Posts Tagged ‘Photography basics’

Taking excellent photographs is far more dependent on the skill of the photographer than on the type of gear used. Just because you have a good camera doesn't mean you'll get good photographs as some professional photographers have been known to shoot with disposable cameras.

One of the best things you can do to become a great photographer is to get a solid understanding of the technical elements and how they interact with each other. Composition, contrast, color balance, depth of field – all of these things combined are what make a photograph unique, and without an understanding of each you may find that your work suffers.

Froozen leaves by mpcevat on flickr (licensed CC-BY)

With that in mind, here is a comprehensive breakdown of one of these elements – Contrast.

Although the auto exposure of modern cameras is pretty good, they doesn't always get it right. This is especially true if there is a large difference in brightness between your subject and the background.

For example, a person in a dimly lit room with the sun shining in through a window behind them. You'd probably end up with a photo where the person is a silhouette, but the window is exposed correctly. Great if this is what you wanted, but not so great if you were trying to capture the person's portrait.

IMG_0870.JPG by busbeytheelder on flickr (licensed CC-BY-SA)

There are a few different things you can do to fix this. We'll first look at the camera settings etc. you can use to fix the problem on location. Then we'll look at options for fixing existing shots using image editing software.

Is there such a thing as the perfect exposure? To get the perfect exposure, you will first need to identify the main subject of the picture you are taking.

As humans, it is only natural that we sometimes find ourselves in a rut. These ruts aren't limited to our day-to-day lives and can often crop up in our hobbies. Even the most passionate photographers find themselves in a loop now and again, and when these situations arise it is important we rise to the challenge and force ourselves out of our comfort zones with interesting projects. Here are five great ways to breathe new life into your photography

One of the most important elements of a photograph is often the one that is the most frequently overlooked. The background of an image can do many things - it can help establish context for the image, add emotion or feeling and strengthen the narrative of the picture. When taking pictures, it's important to know how your background will impact your picture and how you can use it to your advantage.

Niger Portrait by etrenard on flickr (licensed CC-BY-SA)

Aperture is one of 3 settings, along with shutter speed and ISO, that can be used to affect the brightness (exposure) of an image. It also affects how much of the image is in focus (DoF), and how out of focus areas appear (bokeh). This article covers how the aperture setting affects exposure, DoF and bokeh, and what aperture settings to use for certain effects.

Macro photography is one of the most attractive and popular forms of photography. According to some experts it is very easy to master the art and techniques of macro photography – and that is, perhaps, the secret behind its fame.

I don't need shades to look cool by Andrea on flickr (licensed CC-BY)

If you are interested in learning about photography, then there are some photography basics that you should learn first. Taking photographs correctly can be a highly technical process and often requires a lot of skill to get the images that you desire.