Tag Archives: beginner

More Beginning Photographer Mistakes

Obviously I can’t count. Picking up where I left off from the Top 10 Mistakes of Beginning Photographers

Gabe and Julie, lollipop in hand, explore the sea wall in northern California

Knowing your camera well, even if it’s a point-and-shoot model, allows you more control than you might expect. I intentionally under-exposed this backlit shot of my kids walking on a seawall in Klamath, California to get a silhouette. Continue reading More Beginning Photographer Mistakes

Simple Portraiture


It’s the 3rd meeting for my digital photography class at UC Riverside’s California Museum of Photography.

As with our previous meeting, we jumped right in with our cameras.

We met Brittani our gorgeous, drop-dead model outside, walked around the pedestrian mall.

Our first stop was a small sliver of light between two buildings reflecting off the windows of the building around the mall area.

Currently the mall area between City Hall and University Ave is a total disaster.

The concrete has been torn up for many months.

Photo of Peter, students and Brittani by Susan Mikhail.

Continue reading Simple Portraiture

Digital Photography Toolkit–Hardware

So, for the professional photographer who works on location, here are hardware suggestions that can help avert a “photo disaster.”

  1. Plentiful supply of an assortment of batteries whether rechargeables or disposables. Radio slaves might use 9-volt batteries, triple or double As.
  2. Proprietary batteries for digital slrs are problematic and pricey but they tend to hold the longest charge. Some manufacturers have battery holders that allow you to pop in double A’s.

    The battery grip for the Canon 40D for instance accepts 2 proprietary Canon batteries or 8 double A’s.

    It is obvious that without power, you are “up the creek.” Everything you do depends on you having power whether it is ac (alternating current) or dc (direct current). Continue reading Digital Photography Toolkit–Hardware

Reducing post production in digital photography

Do you enjoy sitting at the computer on a beautiful sunny day trying to rescue a bad picture, or do you prefer to be outside taking pictures?

Chances are, you’re like me and you prefer the latter. You didn’t get into photography to be in front of a computer on a beautiful day. So instead of spending a lot of time messing around in photoshop, why not shoot your pictures right to begin with?

Following these 4 simple tips can go a long way in reducing your post production work at the computer. Continue reading Reducing post production in digital photography