Tag Archives: digital photography

Photography, Tutorials

Getting good exposures with your digital SLR

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Understanding your camera’s meter

There are 2 light meter readings in photography: reflected light reading and incident light reading.

In this post, I’ll confine this discussion to reflected light readings, the kind in your digital cameras.

85% of the time, maybe more depending on the metering mode your camera is set on and the scene you’re trying to meter, the meter inside cameras are accurate and dependable.

There are times when it is not. If you pay close attention and wrap your head around this well, you can learn when to trust your camera’s light meter and when shall we say, you should ditch it? Continue reading Getting good exposures with your digital SLR →

Photography

Photographer Jill Greenberg–did her ego get the better of her?

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A bad economy and a presidential election coming to a close has way of pushing everything else into the background.

It’s to be expected then that even photographers feel they want to or can influence the outcome of important events like this Presidential election.

When I read about  Canadian-born photographer Jill Greenberg and her portrait session with John McCain, I was a little disturbed.

A disclaimer here is in order: I’m not a big fan of Obama but can’t say I will vote against him either.

I will give my 2 cents worth of what I think she did. Continue reading Photographer Jill Greenberg–did her ego get the better of her? →

Photography

Getting started in digital photography–tips to consider

Ask yourself these questions:

Will your present computer run Adobe’s Photoshop?

I’m going to assume you plan to edit your images and you’re using Adobe’s Photoshop CS3. If you haven’t bought this, just know at the time of writing this, Adobe just released the latest CS4 version. So dig into your computer’s documentation and look these up.

Mac users, minimum specs are as follows. Don’t know how to locate this information? Here’s how

  • PowerPC G4 or G5 or multicore Intel processor
  • Mac OSX v10.4.8 through 10.5.2
  • 512 MB of RAM (1GB recommended)
  • 64MB of VIdeo RAM
  • 1GB of available hard-disk space (additional free space required during installation)
  • 1,024 x 768 display resolution
  • DVD-ROM drive
  • Quicktime 7 software required for multimedia features Continue reading Getting started in digital photography–tips to consider →
Photography

21 tips for beginners to becoming better photographers

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How to become a better photographer

  1. get a decent digital SLR body
  2. get a “fast” 50 mm lens something with an aperture of  f 1.8
  3. get a decent flash with an off-camera sync cord
  4. learn how to use Adobe Lightroom, add Photoshop Elements or the full version Photoshop as your interest develops
  5. shoot both camera and flash on manual
  6. open pictures in photoshop study pictures at 100% for focus accuracy
  7. study your pictures metadata when your picture doesn’t work
  8. visit the myriad online photography websites like strobist.com, cambrideincolour.com, digitalphotographyschool.com, bookmark them
  9. a great tip from good friend Rigo, find a photo you love and try to emulate it whether it’s a pose in a portrait or the lighting. Imitation is the highest form of flattery?
  10. get to know a professional mentor
  11. enter photography contests
  12. invest in good professional level equipment especially lenses
  13. study visual publications like National Geographic, Conde© Nast Traveller
  14. keep a notebook of clippings of your favorite pictures
  15. if you’re shooting digital, learn the ins and outs of your computer’s operating system
  16. pay attention to lighting in the natural world
  17. take photography seminars and classes
  18. have your camera with you at all times
  19. take pictures daily
  20. be humble about your abilities
  21. be willing to share what you know without bragging