Quick Tips
Quick dSLR Photography Tips to get you started right away!
Family Photography Tips – The Good Group Photo
Probably the hardest picture to set up and pull off is the group family photograph. These pictures only really work when everyone is on the same page, looking at the camera and smiling at the same time. Synchronizing by getting everyone to say “cheese” is the typical way to get everyone smiling. But it doesn’t always work.
Here are some things to think about when trying to snap that lovely family portrait to make everyone happy:
Put the Group at Ease - It is essential that all participants in the photo are at ease and comfortable with each other as well as the photographer. If the photographer also happens to be a family member then being at ease should not be a problem. With no strangers in the midst, relaxing before the camera is not a problem.
Move into Scene - Don’t be afraid to move into the scene, cutting out the background and focusing just on the people.
Crop off the top of the head of the taller people, in order to emphasize a connection among family members. Allow the drama of kinship and love to play out before the camera. Let the family members interact before snapping the picture. Saying “cheese” while always listed as one of the most important family photography tips, is not always a good one, and will make people go rigid and become less candid, so sit them down and let them get comfortable. The good shot will follow as you watch.
Blur the Background - Blurring out the background makes the people aspect more dramatic. It makes the family the focus of attention, because, after all, the family unit is what you’re shooting.
Candid within the Group - There is always someone in the family at a gathering who doesn’t want to sit for a picture. Today’s small compact cameras make it simple to get candid shots without have to pose everyone. Keep the camera in your pocket as you work the room. Find your shot and compose it and shoot quickly. It takes practice, but grab-shots do come out well with a little thought and focus.
Taking Multiple Shots - When trying to capture everyone in one group, the only real successful way to do it is to take many shots, and quickly. Shooting in rapid bursts of three or four shots at a time will get the good shot for which you’re looking. The first shot is usually a throwaway shot. However, the second or third will probably be the keeper. Shoot some shots before everyone is ready. Some of the best pictures are of the actual organizing to sit part of the activity.
Timing is Everything - Choosing your timing carefully will make or break the shot. However, true timing can only be learned with practice. Another of the suggestions that tops the list of family photography tips is that the quicker you learn to compose or to know what you want in composition the better will be your timing. Try to work taking of the picture within the natural flow of events, when the family is naturally together rather than artificially posed making them more rigid.
Lighting - No matter what type of photography, lighting is probably the most important element. In most instances a small flash will be sufficient. However, bigger family groups may require more lighting. Taking the photograph outside in natural light makes for an easier, less stressful shot.
Taking Control - It is paramount for the photographer to maintain control of the situation and communication is the key. Keep talking to your subjects making them understand what you want to do and need for them to do to make for a happy situation. If you have a really large group to photograph, then use a tripod and have someone act as your assistant.
Smile - Finally, there is nothing worse than a grumpy old photographer, so smile. That will put everyone else who has to take part, at ease. Have fun, act like you’re enjoying the process. It’s okay to crack a joke or two in order to get everyone to loosen up. And don’t be afraid to be creative. Think outside the box. The group can be a group without sitting down next to one another with another row standing at attention behind. Emphasize other items of “family-ness.” Play with it. Enjoy!
I hope you have found these family photography tips useful.
Jonnie Blaylock is a hobbyist photographer that helps new photographers learn the fundamentals with his Family Photography Tips and more.
Portrait Photography Tips – Shooting Wow Pictures
All budding photographers, as well as those who’ve been shooting for awhile, are all looking for the same thing. They want to shooting stunning photographs that capture the “wow” factor. It is not an easy thing to do, since beauty is in the eye of the beholder. However, it is not impossible and rather than following rules, sometimes it is necessary to break them. Be random and boldly follow your instincts to find that special picture that makes everyone stop and take notice.
1. Change the Perspective - Nearly all portraits are taken with the camera at eye level. Change the perspective by changing the angle from which you’re shooting. Get up high over your subject for one effect. From that vantage you may see an even more interesting aspect. Experiment with your composition.
2. Play with the Eyes - Eye contact or the direction in which the eyes are gazing heavily affects the effect of the portrait.
Looking directly into the camera isn’t always the most interesting way to shoot someone. It may be more intriguing to have the subject look off to the side, drawing those who look at the shot to wonder what’s there, off camera, unseen. But be careful how you do this, because drawing the viewer’s eyes to the side also takes their eyes off your subject.
3. Staying Focused within the Frame - In other words, have your subject holding an object, like a woman holding a baby, or a child holding a toy keeps the viewers eyes focused inside the frame and on the subjects. It creates a second point of interest and helps to create a story within the frame with the subject.
4. Composition Rules - Composition rules as listed in portrait photography tips, are made to be followed and broken. The rules are great to know and to use, but stretching them, or pushing to the outer limits makes for more interesting portrait art. Learn the rules, get comfortable using them, then learn to break them in order to achieve a more eye catching result.
5. Experiment with Lighting - The possibilities are endless with lighting. You are hindered only by your imagination and ability to be creative. There is no good and bad. So go ahead and play with the lighting. You might surprise yourself. Sidelight, back-light, silhouette, the possibilities are infinite.
6. Make Subject Move - Interesting portraits happen when you take the subject out of his or her comfort zone. Make them move. Put them in clothing or in a setting where you wouldn’t ordinarily find them. Surround them with stuff that says who they are, but make them react differently to it. For instance, put them in business attire in an office, but have them jump up and down or read a book upside down. Again, be creative.
7. Don’t Stage the Photo - Shooting candid shots are better than posing the subject. People, and kids in particular tend to tense up and hide rather than reveal their personality when the picture is staged and they are required to pose. Photograph your subjects while they work or kids while they play. Try to catch them reacting naturally to their environment.
8. Using Props - Enhance your shot by creating another point of interest with a prop. For example, if you’re shooting a doctor, let them be wearing a stethoscope or holding a skull. Be careful not to let the prop dominate the picture, let it be part of the picture telling part of the story.
9. A Part of the Whole - Try focusing on a part of the whole, for instance, instead of shooting the head and shoulders of your subject, take a picture or two of their hands, or their back, or maybe even a shoulder with a special tattoo, keeping the face in shadow. Be dramatic and bold. Sometimes what is left out of the shot is as important as what is left in.
10. Variation on a Theme - Obscuring your subject in order to focus on one particular aspect works well too. In other words, shrouding a woman in a shawl leaving only her eyes visible and looking at the camera. Possibly making the shawl match the eyes of the subject making for a dramatic color statement.
The possibilities for taking creative and dramatic shots are limited only by your ability to think outside the box. Know the rules, know how to work them, then learn how to break them for a more creative effect. Finally, take a series of shots… not just one… shoot often and quick… sometimes, in order to get what you want.
I hope you have found these portrait photography tips useful.
Jonnie Blaylock is a hobbyist photographer that helps new photographers learn the fundamentals with his Portrait Photography Tips and more.
Landscape Photography Tips
Article by Michael Kitada
After pointers on portraits, I believe most photographers need and want landscape photography tips. Where to place the horizon is so crucial to landscape photography, yet looking at most images, photographers don’t apply basic rules.
The 1/3rd 2/3rds Landscape Rule – Not everyone photographs people only.
So, how to compose a beautiful landscape that will make the viewers want to go there or at least admire your photograph?
Place your horizon line in either the lower or upper horizontal third of the frame. This rule accentuates either the sky or the land and gives a pleasing weight to either. Most photographers make the mistake of bisecting the horizon exactly in the middle, which is so boring to the eye that all of the energy of the scene is lost and the viewer loses interest and moves on.The 7/8 1/8 Landscape Rule for greater impact -
Whenever you want to emphasize your land or sky to a greater degree, try this landscape photography tip, place the horizon either very low in the frame, say about an 1/8 of the way down which leaves a massive amount of sky in the frame.
For example, a day when you have beautiful white puffy clouds sailing across the sky. You don’t need to show the ground, or much of it. So, show mostly clouds and you have a professional looking and composed image of spectacular clouds!
This works for buildings or mountains, too! – Does your image consist mostly of buildings? Try this rule on them, too. Make the buildings 2/3rds of the frame and the sky 1/3rd. This gives a nice composition that can accentuate exactly what you want and makes it pleasing to the eyes. Mountains and trees follow this rule, too.
Lastly, consider your depth of field when photographing a landscape.
For most landscapes photos a large depth of field is required and desired to keep all of the elements as sharply in focus as possible. So, one way to achieve this with a point-and-shoot camera is to adjust your ISO, thus requiring less light and increasing the f stop which increases the depth of field.
Or on a DSLR just adjusting the f-stop to a larger number will increase the depth of field, too. Do you get the shakes? Try a tripod or bracing yourself against a rock or tree to ensure rock steady photos that have no blur or camera shake in them. Try these landscape photography tips to create photographs that will impress your closest friends and relatives.
Michael Kitada is a professional photographer with more than 20 years experience. His work has appeared in People Magazine, Forbes, TV Guide and the cover of Newsweek magazine. To learn more digital photography secrets visit: http://www.takebetterphotosnow.com/
Related Photography Tips Articles