Random thoughts

[compuwar]

In no particular order:

1. Expose for the highlights with a digital camera.

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/expose-right.shtml

2. If you're not shooting people, get lower down.

3. Shoot more verticals.

4. Use a good tripod.

5. Use fill flash outdoors.

 

[Yakamoto]

Ok, I'll add a few more.

1. Double check your settings before you shoot.

2. Never take the walk up shot. (landscape)

3. Shoot more RAW if possible.

 

[dllavaneras]

1. Remember to charge your batteries
2. Take pics at the highest quality you can (I cringe at people with 7Mp cams taking their pics at 640x480. It's just sad )
3. Don't use 4Gb+ cards, it's always better to get a couple smaller ones
4. Experiment! Try macros, landscapes, portraits, panning, etc...
5. Do B/W conversions on the computer, not in-camera (just a personal preference)

Oh, and for dSLR users: Buy GOOD glass!

 

[Abstract]

2. Never take the walk up shot. (landscape)

What does that mean?



Oh, I have two.

1. Never trust your meter entirely. They're too stupid and can't actually see.

2. If you shoot with a Nikon, don't trust your histogram unless you have a 3 channel histogram display like on the D200 and maybe the D80. Another reason for me to switch to the D80, I think.

 

[Yakamoto]

What does that mean?



Oh, I have two.

1. Never trust your meter entirely. They're too stupid and can't actually see.

2. If you shoot with a Nikon, don't trust your histogram unless you have a 3 channel histogram display like on the D200 and maybe the D80. Another reason for me to switch to the D80, I think.

It means try not to just go to a spot that everyone is shooting from, or has shot before.
Try it from a different viewpoint or location. You might suprise yourself.

Oh, and I totally agree with #1 and #2

 

[-hh]

#1: An old one from the days of slide film: "Bracket, Bracket, Bracket".

Since it has application again today to create a High Dynamic Range (HDR) image.


#2: Put a forground subject in your wide angle shot.



-hh

 

[wmmk]

#1: An old one from the days of slide film: "Bracket, Bracket, Bracket".

Since it has application again today to create a High Dynamic Range (HDR) image.


#2: Put a forground subject in your wide angle shot.



-hh

best tips all thread, especially the 2nd.

1. don't be afraid to use manual focus

2. always take as many different angles as you can

3. take time for B&W conversion, don't just hit a button in iPhoto

4. remember that elements is just as good as photoshop for most amateurs, even fairly serious ones

5. LEARN WITH FILM, then go digital

 

[dllavaneras]

5. LEARN WITH FILM, then go digital

Would you care to elaborate? Why should I learn with film if I can see what I took just seconds after, instead of waiting a day or two to develop? (last time I shot film was in 3rd grade with the most basic of all cameras, so don't be too hard on me )

 

[Grimace]

learning with digital is okay too, but you do have to be very meticulous about writing down what settings you use (or pay attention to the EXIF data).

Take each subject 5 times with 5 different settings, one variable adjusted each time to learn ISO, aperture, flash, etc.

 

[technicolor]

5. LEARN WITH FILM, then go digital

I agree.

I cannot even take anyone seriously who has never tasted developer....

 

[panoz7]

5. LEARN WITH FILM, then go digital

I couldn't disagree more. I learned with film, but I honestly can't think of a single thing that I learned with film that I wouldn't have learned easier with digital.

Instantly seeing the results of changing a setting is incredibly valuable. I've taught many people the basic technical skills of photography with my DSLR.

With digital I can take a picture, show it to them instantly, change a setting, take another picture, and let them see the change right away. With film, we'd have to take a bunch of pictures, develop them, get the prints back a few days later, and then try to remember what each setting change did.

In my own experience people are also much more likely to take pictures with digital then with film. The cost per picture is much lower, and the ability to delete a picture they don't like seems to make people more likely to experiment and try something new.

 

[compuwar]

I agree.

I cannot even take anyone seriously who has never tasted developer....

I suppose you've never developed with PMK then...

 

[shecky]

I couldn't disagree more. I learned with film, but I honestly can't think of a single thing that I learned with film that I wouldn't have learned easier with digital.

Instantly seeing the results of changing a setting is incredibly valuable. I've taught many people the basic technical skills of photography with my DSLR.

With digital I can take a picture, show it to them instantly, change a setting, take another picture, and let them see the change right away. With film, we'd have to take a bunch of pictures, develop them, get the prints back a few days later, and then try to remember what each setting change did.

In my own experience people are also much more likely to take pictures with digital then with film. The cost per picture is much lower, and the ability to delete a picture they don't like seems to make people more likely to experiment and try something new.

i agree; learning how photography works is easier on digital. i think its a good place to start, and when you get good, then you can graduate to film.

my personal opinion is that film spanks digital any day of the week and twice on sundays in every way except convenience and cost. what i do with film is not taking studio portraits or cheesy landscapes, so there is that; i can understand how a commercial photographer might prefer digital.

oh and as far as a random thought goes, it would be this: out of every 1000 pictures you take, 1 is good.

 

[dllavaneras]

oh and as far as a random thought goes, it would be this: out of every 1000 pictures you take, 1 is good.

Particularly when taking macros... move 5mm and it's OOF So crank up that aperture! But don't overdo it or diffraction will kick in

 

[technicolor]

I suppose you've never developed with PMK then...

I suppose you never built and shot with a camera obscura then...

 

[compuwar]

I suppose you never built and shot with a camera obscura then...

A good taste of PMK and you'd not be posting . Since almost all my B&W developing was with PMK, tasting it was never an option!

Never built an obsucra, shot with home-made pinholes, 4x5s, 5x7s, 645s, 6x6's 6x7s, 35mms, and even an APS once. I've still got two enlargers.

 

[technicolor]

A good taste of PMK and you'd not be posting . Since almost all my B&W developing was with PMK, tasting it was never an option!

Never built an obsucra, shot with home-made pinholes, 4x5s, 5x7s, 645s, 6x6's 6x7s, 35mms, and even an APS once. I've still got two enlargers.

I know what PMK is, obviously people have never heard of hyperbole.... in reference to tasting developer....

 

[pdxflint]

I agree.

I cannot even take anyone seriously who has never tasted developer....

I always liked my developer with a fixer chaser... mmmm, good!! Nothing like home cooking to get the old juices flowing...

 

[srf4real]

1. Always check and remove sand before replacing lens cap on lens.
2. Never let wife view your pics on camera unless you've deleted all the chix in bikinis first.

 

[EstorilM]

1. Always check and remove sand before replacing lens cap on lens.
2. Never let wife view your pics on camera unless you've deleted all the chix in bikinis first.

Not sure which camera you have, but I can hide pictures from playback on my D200. It's a pretty sneaky feature if you ask me

Hmm..
1. Pan with moving subjects - always, no matter what shutter speed.
2. Avoid shooting wide open, this is one I see a lot - at least if max sharpness is your goal. Every lens has a sweet spot.
3. Don't use continuous shooting mode as an excuse for poor timing - for sports my first shot is always treated as if I'm in single shot mode.
4. Be careful panning with VR/IS lenses, while they SHOULD "detect" it, if you have the shutter half-pressed when they are coming at you, and keep it pressed when they start to go across your plane, the lenses don't always disable horizontal VR (in general they don't do this 100% of the time.) This causes the lens to treat your panning as vibration, and it will attempt to stop the motion and ADD blur to the image. If there's enough light, don't use it.

I'm not in a shooting mood right now so I can't think of too many, when you're out on a shoot you always have these things running through your head automatically.

Oh, actually.
5. Use the histogram, or better yet.. RGB histogram (and highlights / RGB highlights) to determine exposure, it's nearly impossible to tell exactly what's going on by eyeballing the LCD.

 

[Doylem]

Rule no 1: Point the camera at something INTERESTING! Even with today's smart cameras, people don't really LOOK. Thankfully, it means I can still scrape a living as a photographer...

 

[Father Jack]

best tips all thread, especially the 2nd.

1. don't be afraid to use manual focus

5. LEARN WITH FILM, then go digital

Why would you want to use manual focus when the camera can do it as well (or possibly better) than you and almost certainly much faster?

Why would you want to use film?
When using negative film (colour and B & W) you would sometimes give slightly more exposure to ensure adequate shadow detail. To do that when using digital results in burnt out highlights.




FJ

 

[Buschmaster]

I couldn't disagree more. I learned with film, but I honestly can't think of a single thing that I learned with film that I wouldn't have learned easier with digital.

Instantly seeing the results of changing a setting is incredibly valuable. I've taught many people the basic technical skills of photography with my DSLR.

With digital I can take a picture, show it to them instantly, change a setting, take another picture, and let them see the change right away. With film, we'd have to take a bunch of pictures, develop them, get the prints back a few days later, and then try to remember what each setting change did.

In my own experience people are also much more likely to take pictures with digital then with film. The cost per picture is much lower, and the ability to delete a picture they don't like seems to make people more likely to experiment and try something new.

I'm the same way. I find so many more cool shots with digital because I'm willing to try it out. Because I have no problem wasting a couple shots on digital I try things and have learned much better what I need to do to create better shots for myself.

Edit: And I started on a purely manual focus film SLR. So I know both ways.

 

[Bocheememon]

A note.

NOTE: Always make sure to check the corners of your image before you click the shutter button. Focusing on the image in the center may be easy, but you can't ignore the corners, as they are essential to composition. The corners are what frame the outside of the image, not the center. Doing this has made my compositions much stronger. It is hard at first, because it takes time to look at the corners, but after doing it for a bit, it becomes automatic and quick!

I agree with others on film and digital elements. Learning both helps because they are two different workflows and a person approaches picture taking for each medium in separate ways.

I shoot film and digital. Film has more dynamic range than our current digital sensors. Everytime I compare my film to digital images, the film always looks more alive in shadows and highlights. Photo-editors can help bring out more depth, but I still give film the award for best picture.