Basic Photography - Get to Know Your Camera Better
I know an amateur photographer who was asked by family members to take pictures at a wedding.
His role was to take extra pictures at the wedding even though the family had hired a professional wedding photographer.
He noticed that the pictures he was taking from a distance during the ceremony were coming out too dark.
It became obvious that the built in flash wasn't strong enough to take properly exposed pictures at a distance of more than maybe 12-15 feet.
He was using a "Bridge" type camera with a decent zoom range but couldn't figure out how to get better exposed pictures.
It wasn't until the next day that he realized that his camera actually had a setting that would have boosted the flash power above the standard setting.
Using that setting would have produced properly exposed pictures for most of the shots that were taken at a distance further away than the normal flash range.
When you buy a car, new or used, one of the first things you do is to find all the control buttons so you can safely and comfortably operate the vehicle.
For some reason, many of us don't do the same when we buy a camera.
Of course there is no safety issue to worry about if we just turn on the camera and start shooting.
However, it is inevitable that at some point, a few of your shots won't come out the way you thought they would.
For instance, many folks don't realize that if their pictures are coming out with a greenish or yellowish tint they can use the camera's White Balance feature to adjust the color.
Also, some people don't realize that if their pictures are coming out too light or too dark, they can use their camera's Exposure Compensation EV+, EV- feature to quickly correct that problem.
The following are a few things that can be done to avoid being caught in the middle of some picture taking situations without having a clue as to how to solve a problem.
The most obvious thing to do would be to read the instruction manual.
Get to know what the various buttons and controls are for.
Take a trip through your camera's menu.
If you don't know the purpose of a function or setting, make it a point to find out.
You might not need to use that setting or function right now, but it could be a make it or break it factor in some future picture taking situation.
Visit a few "learn photography" websites.
Some sites are geared towards beginners and amateurs and you can probably find some simple explanations to common problems.
Usually there will be references to the same control buttons and menu items found in your camera.
Also, try taking shots in a variety of situations just for practice.
That way you can see how your camera performs in various scenarios.
If you find that something is not right in your pictures, you can once again reference the manual to see which controls or settings will correct the problem.
Learning the features of your camera and how to use them can only help you when it comes to taking better pictures.
It doesn't make a difference if you are using a Compact Digital Camera or a Digital SLR camera.
Also, it doesn't make a difference if you are a beginner or if you have been taking pictures for a while.
Technology is rapidly advancing and there are always new features being added to cameras.
So read about your camera's features, test them out, and you will get better results just by knowing your camera.
His role was to take extra pictures at the wedding even though the family had hired a professional wedding photographer.
He noticed that the pictures he was taking from a distance during the ceremony were coming out too dark.
It became obvious that the built in flash wasn't strong enough to take properly exposed pictures at a distance of more than maybe 12-15 feet.
He was using a "Bridge" type camera with a decent zoom range but couldn't figure out how to get better exposed pictures.
It wasn't until the next day that he realized that his camera actually had a setting that would have boosted the flash power above the standard setting.
Using that setting would have produced properly exposed pictures for most of the shots that were taken at a distance further away than the normal flash range.
When you buy a car, new or used, one of the first things you do is to find all the control buttons so you can safely and comfortably operate the vehicle.
For some reason, many of us don't do the same when we buy a camera.
Of course there is no safety issue to worry about if we just turn on the camera and start shooting.
However, it is inevitable that at some point, a few of your shots won't come out the way you thought they would.
For instance, many folks don't realize that if their pictures are coming out with a greenish or yellowish tint they can use the camera's White Balance feature to adjust the color.
Also, some people don't realize that if their pictures are coming out too light or too dark, they can use their camera's Exposure Compensation EV+, EV- feature to quickly correct that problem.
The following are a few things that can be done to avoid being caught in the middle of some picture taking situations without having a clue as to how to solve a problem.
The most obvious thing to do would be to read the instruction manual.
Get to know what the various buttons and controls are for.
Take a trip through your camera's menu.
If you don't know the purpose of a function or setting, make it a point to find out.
You might not need to use that setting or function right now, but it could be a make it or break it factor in some future picture taking situation.
Visit a few "learn photography" websites.
Some sites are geared towards beginners and amateurs and you can probably find some simple explanations to common problems.
Usually there will be references to the same control buttons and menu items found in your camera.
Also, try taking shots in a variety of situations just for practice.
That way you can see how your camera performs in various scenarios.
If you find that something is not right in your pictures, you can once again reference the manual to see which controls or settings will correct the problem.
Learning the features of your camera and how to use them can only help you when it comes to taking better pictures.
It doesn't make a difference if you are using a Compact Digital Camera or a Digital SLR camera.
Also, it doesn't make a difference if you are a beginner or if you have been taking pictures for a while.
Technology is rapidly advancing and there are always new features being added to cameras.
So read about your camera's features, test them out, and you will get better results just by knowing your camera.
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