Festival Mediarte
Photography Tips, Art, and Music
Digital Photography: Overcoming Your Manual Fears
Jul 17th
When buying a new digital camera, most people start out with the best intentions of becoming a truly creative photographer. One look at that thick, complex technical manual, and they switch the camera to auto…and that’s where it stays. As a result, most of us settle for snapshot photography when our cameras are capable of so much more.
Does this sound like you? Don’t worry, you are not alone. Camera manuals reflect the technical power of modern cameras, but they are intimidating to any beginner who just wants to take a decent photo.
Digital cameras are like most computer programs; you may find you can get by with about ten percent of the available functions. So don’t get tied up in knots trying to understand everything. Just learn what you need to know, and learn it well, and you will be well on the way to being a better photographer.
Here are a few tips that may just take the complexity out of photography for you.
Tip #1. Stick with the basics. In the days of film, good photographers used SLR cameras with two main settings; aperture and shutter speed. These were the ingredients of all great photography. Today, cameras come with hundreds of features, but guess which ones you really need to understand? That’s right, aperture and shutter speed.
If you can understand these two settings, you are halfway to becoming a better photographer. Your manual (I never said you could throw it away) will tell you which buttons to press on your camera. However, to really understand what these settings are all about, don’t rely on the manual. There is plenty of information out there; workshops, websites, books and ebooks can help.
Practice has never been easier than it is today. Most cameras have semi-automatic settings, called ‘aperture priority’ and ’shutter priority,’ that allow you to operate one setting while the camera takes care of the other. This is a great way to practice a skill without fear of getting too many failed exposures.
Tip #2. Learn from your mistakes. If you just delete every photo you are not happy with, you are missing a golden opportunity to learn from your own experience. Photos you consider ‘rejects’ actually contain useful information – you really can learn from your mistakes!
Let’s say you are experimenting with aperture. Try photographing a scene three times, with three different aperture settings, for three slightly different results. Instead of keeping your favourite and deleting the others immediately, you could transfer them to your computer and take the time to examine them properly. You can see how each setting changed the look of the picture, and which setting worked best for that subject. Now you can learn from your own results, not from some theory in a book.
Did you know that if you right-click your mouse over a photograph on your computer and select ‘properties’ you will find a lot of information embedded in the file? You don’t have to keep a note of the aperture/shutter speed information; your photo does it for you!
Of course in the long term you don’t want to keep every single photo you take, but you might want to keep a folder of ‘learning photos’ to refer to later, with maybe two versions of each subject you experiment with. To make it even easier, rename the pictures with relevant titles, for example: Wildflowers/Small Aperture, Wildflowers/Wide Aperture; Waterfall/Fast Shutter, Waterfall/Slow Shutter.
Tip #3. Learn The Art As Well As The Technique. Every problem in photography cannot be solved by the camera. Experienced photographers know that good lighting and creative composition is often more important than up-market technology. In fact, most photos fail not because of bad technique, but because they were taken at the wrong time of day, or the photographer did not put enough thought into the composition. Yet daily I meet people who think that all their problems would be solved by a better camera, or some mysterious technique they are yet to learn.
Remember what I said in Tip #1; aperture and shutter speed are the fundamental skills, and with a little practice, they are not hard to learn. Master them and you are halfway there. The key to becoming a really good photographer is a balance of technical knowledge and artistic skill. Practice both, and soon your friends will be coming to you for photography tips!
Digital Photography: Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, and Manual Modes
Jul 16th
Digital photography has given almost anyone with a camera the potential to become a creative photographer. These days even compact cameras offer features that once were only found on ’serious’ SLR cameras.
The trouble is, most people who have grown up with point-and-shoot cameras have very little idea what these features are all about. After buying a good digital camera with the best intentions, they soon give up and switch to automatic.
Are the settings on your camera really so hard to understand? Of course not, but it can seem that way at the start, especially if they are not explained to you in simple terms you can understand.
The two settings you need to understand here are Aperture and Shutter Speed. Aperture is the size of the hole that lets the light in for your photo. The larger the hole, the brighter the exposure. The shutter speed is the length of time given to each exposure. Slower shutter speeds allow more light, resulting in a brighter exposure. By finding the right balance of these two settings, you and/or your camera control whether your photo is overexposed, underexposed, or just right.
With your camera set to Manual mode, you control both settings. If this seems daunting, you can start with the semi-automatic functions, Aperture Priority and Shutter Priority.
How do the semi-automatic functions work? They allow you to choose one setting (either aperture or shutter speed), while the camera chooses the other. That way you can be a little bit creative, but with the safety net of knowing your camera will make sure your exposure is correct. It is a good halfway point between automatic and manual.
Let’s start with Aperture Priority. This function allows you to set the aperture on your camera; the camera chooses the shutter speed for you.
The aperture controls depth of field (the area in front and behind the main subject that will be in focus). When you set a wide aperture, you reduce the depth of field; when you choose a smaller aperture, you will have a greater depth of field.
Obviously when you change the aperture, you change the level of light in your exposure. The camera will compensate by adjusting the shutter speed. So when you operate your camera in Aperture Priority mode, you have control over the depth of field, but your camera still makes sure your exposure is correct.
The catch here is, you still need to keep track of what your shutter speed is doing. If it falls to a very slow speed, you need to use a tripod to eliminate camera vibrations.
How about Shutter Priority? Here you set the shutter speed, and the camera balances the exposure by setting the aperture. This is a great system if you are working with moving subjects. Sometimes you may want to freeze a moving subject with a fast shutter speed, or create a motion effect with a slower shutter speed. Meanwhile the camera compensates for the changes in shutter speed by adjusting the aperture.
Shutter priority may be a better option for some beginners. It is much easier to stay aware of when to use your tripod. Also, when your camera manages the aperture, it controls the depth of field, which is not usually as critical as the shutter speed. You may not always get exactly what you want, but you won’t get any catastrophic failures.
These two semi-automatic functions appear to offer you the best of both worlds. You get to be a bit creative, and try out your photography skills, while your camera’s high-tech hardware makes sure you don’t overexpose or underexpose the photo. So far, it sounds perfect.
So why should you learn to operate your camera in Manual mode? The answer is simple.
Aperture Priority and Shutter Priority both work on the assumption that your camera’s reading of the exposure is always correct. Unfortunately, that is not always true. In fact, sometimes you have to be smarter than your camera.
Imagine you are photographing a flower in the sun, but the background is in the shade. This simple situation can be all it takes to confuse your camera. It may expose for the background, brightening the exposure and totally overexposing the flower.
In this situation, semi-automatic settings will not solve the problem. You could try to darken the exposure by (for example) closing the aperture. The camera would simply adjust the shutter speed to compensate, maintaining what it believes to be the correct exposure.
What you need to do is switch the camera to Manual. Then you can adjust both settings and create an image that is slightly darker, bringing your flowers into perfect exposure.
This is not just a hypothetical exercise. Situations arise all the time that require you to out-think your camera. If you understand how to operate your manual settings, you can take control, and you won’t be left blaming your camera for ‘the one that got away.’
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Repair the Camera to Work in Proper
Jul 1st
The issue of entertainment is one of the sectors which always interested the people around the globe to personalize. Perhaps, it is caused by the excitement and fun as it bring for leisure. As we know that the intention of daily activity such working is no doubt lead to bored, stress or tired afterward. Therefore, to refresh the mind for while some is choosing to deal with movies, music, games, and hobby in matter of sport or art.
The hobby of photography is one of interesting subjects that eager the people who have sense of art. Through photography they can deliver their passion of art in the right place to represent their unique and original masterpiece for being known. To run the hobby in smooth some equipment such camera is required. It is function to capture the scene, moment, or event that may beautiful in view. The hobby such photographer is interrupted as the camera is not working properly. It can influence the activity for some period of time as you do not consider to camera repair. In the line, to find the right place of reparation of such important gadget is needed to do in careful. It has purpose to prevent any serious damage toward the camera of looses of the file inside. The Teleplan Camera repair is one of the places of digital camera repair which can rely on the safety of service. Here, no matter what type of your camera is, all is available to fix to return the system in normal. Through the website they are guaranteed of highly skilled technician who diagnose your camera problem fix it based on brands like Canon camera repair, Samsung, Sony, Kodak, and more.
So, if you are interested to do reparation of your specific camera types, you better move your step to the right Repair Center to get the right treatment. It is function to bring satisfaction of both customer and provider against any trouble in future.
Hints And Tips For Creating Mouthwatering Food Photography
Jun 27th
Food photography is a huge undertaking that is never valued and respected to the level that it truly deserves. Photographing food and products with the highest level of quality requires several knowledgeable people working together. An expert food stylist and chef work together with the food photographer to create a work of art made specifically to market the product.
Food photography is a necessary component in marketing campaigns for any company that deals with food and beverages. In fact, restaurants that utilize photographs in their menus will sell more food than those who use only food titles and written descriptions. This is the main reason marketing and advertising companies use food in their campaigns today. Simply photographing food and products will not work unless viewers find them particularly tempting. To ensure effective food photography that entices a craving from viewers, follow these simple tips and tricks:
Tricks Of The Trade
There is more to photographing food and products than simply dishing up a nice meal, setting it on a tablecloth, and taking a picture. The advertising will not lure in customers if the edible focal point does not look like the tastiest thing they have ever seen. For example, if you require a photograph of a vegetable such as a tomato, the food stylist might only use two out of an entire case. Substances such as glycerin can be added to lettuce or a tomato to make the vegetables appear to be fresh, cold, and moist. When working with a steak in food photography, for instance, the chef is instructed by the food stylist to prepare several at once so that only the best ones are used in the photos. To make perfect grill marks on the steak, a wire is used with a propane torch.
Using Props
The use of props is vital for successful food photography. When photographing food and products, a stylist will often choose several items to compliment the main object. A photo of ice cream in a plain bowl will get the point across, but adding props such as nuts, chocolate sauce, fresh whipped cream, and a plate of cherries will tantalize the viewer. Every detail of the photo shoot is decided on between the photographer and food stylist before anything else can occur.
Lighting
When photographing food and products, the use of lighting to create a certain feel can have a major impact on the pictures. In food photography, substitutes are often used when setting up the lighting to keep the actual food as fresh as possible. In addition, some lighting is specifically designed to enhance the texture of a food to make it look more appetizing.
Have Perfect Timing
Timing is everything when it comes to effective food photography. For most successful food photographers, on-site photo shoots are preferred over studio sessions simply because it allows the pictures to be taken with the freshest food possible. The photographer and stylist will use substitutes to perfect the setting and lighting while the chef is preparing the actual food that will be used in the shoot. This way, rather than being dried out from the heat of the lights, the food will be fresh and juicy. For food photography involving fresh fruit, the food stylist will cut it during the last seconds before a shoot and then apply ice or glycerin to give the freshness an extra boost for the picture.
There is more involved in food photography than simply cooking and taking a photograph; it requires the knowledge of a team consisting of a food stylist and chef along with an expert photographer. When looking for a team to produce high-quality advertising materials, choose one that is skilled in the art of photographing food and products.