101 Photography Tips

[TOM]

1. Take photos early morning or night as there as less shadows
2. Always make sure your battery is recharged (or you have spare batteries) so your camera doesn't suddenly die on you at the worst possible moment
3. Get closer - if you can't get closer zoom in further, if you can't zoom in get closer
4. Learn to use the histogram to adjust settings and get a good exposure.
5. Take the lens cap off doofus!
6. Check that your camera is not set to auto ISO,(unless you definitely want it to be) learned this the hard way.... as have many others, I expect.
7. Starting guide for obtaining a proper exposure of a full moon is to the aperture at f/11 and shutter speed at one over the ISO setting (eg. 1/125 for ISO 100). For pictures of a half moon, use the same shutter speed at f/8. For a quarter moon, f/5.6.
8. Lenses and cameras never used to have anti-shake systems built into them. As shutter speeds got slower, camera shake was likely to blur your image, and you had to know what you could safely get away with! As a rule-of-thumb, the slowest shutter speed at which you could safely handhold a camera was usually considered to be one over the focal length of the lens. So, if you're using a 50mm lens, you could generally shoot at 1/60 sec or faster. A 100mm lens needed at least 1/125 sec; 1/300 for 300mm and so forth. Not enough light to do that? Then you had to use flash, a tripod, or brace your camera (and yourself) against a solid object.
9. The classic advice is, "Expose for the highlights and let the shadows take care of themselves." This works with slide film and digital. But with negative film, especially colour negative film, you're actually better off overexposing by one stop.
10. To stop action moving across the frame that's perpendicular to the lens axis, you need shutter speeds two stops faster than action moving toward or away from you. For action moving at a 45-degree angle to the lens axis, you can use a shutter speed one stop slower. For example: If a person running toward you at moderate speed can be stopped at 1/125 sec, you'll need a shutter speed of 1/500 sec to stop the subject moving across the frame, and a shutter speed of 1/250 sec to stop him if moving obliquely with respect to the camera.
11. Before you ask the question - READ THE MANUAL!!
12. Learn and understand "depth of field"
13. When taking your camera out for the first time since a previous shoot verify all your settings are what you want for this new shoot so you don't use the previous shoot settings which may be wildly inappropriate.
14. dont be afraid of a little fill flash to expose shadowed areas.
15. Learn and understand the interrelationship between shutter speed, aperture and ISO.
16. Make sure the camera is on when you go to take a shot
17. When at a famous landmark, look for the angle you've never seen in another photo before
18. Get down to children's height to take photo
19. Know your equipment - to the point where it becomes second nature. The less you have to muck around in menus and think about settings, the more time you can spend on the much more important aspects of timing, lighting and composition. You will always be wanting a new lens, a new body etc - working with what you have will force you to be more creative.
20. Start shooting raw and learn about white balance
21. Learn to use exposure compensation (Ev) and handle the highlights better
22. Keep it simple, in photography less equals more.
23. Always put your camera on full auto when storing it, travelling etc. You never know when a great shot might present itself, and in Auto you can grab the camera and get the shot off. That elusive shot of a Yeti, will be just a blur if you still had it set to 10 second shutter speed from the night landscapes from yesterday.
24. For portraits of children always spot focus right between the eyes
25. always have your camera and tripod by your side as you never know when the opportunity moment will arise to get THE shot
26. When doing portrait shots of man's best friend (the dog) always focus on the eyes... a focused nose and blurry eyes just look silly.
27. Look at the image in the viewfinder - not through the lens.
28. DOF - Small number-small DOF. Large number-big DOF.
29. Never pack your camera gear away in a wet or damp condition.
30. Always double check your bag zippers/fasteners are closed before picking it up.
31. Always turn off camera before changing lenses.
32. Try to avoid changing lenses in wet or dusty conditions.
33. Never hard scrub the glass on your lenses to clean, especially true for the sensor.
34. Be Quiet. Some of the best shots happen when the subject doesn't know you're there (kids, animals, etc).
35. Always look back before you leave.
36. For long exposure remember to use a tripod, a remote also helps to stop from camera shake when pressing the shutter button.
37. When do Pano's use a tripod and turn IS OFF, IS can sometimes go crazy and cause a soft blurry image.
38. Don't be shy to experiment, take lots of photos of the same thing with different angles and camera settings.
39. Some images may look crappy in the playback mode on your camera, but might look good on the computer at home. So dont choose the keepers untill you veiw them on the computer.
40. Never point or look through your lens directly at the sun.
41. Always try and have your horizons straight in your photos, or straighten them in the editing process.
42. Never use cheap filters in front of expensive glass.
43. When shooting night photography, ALWAYS use the lowest ISO to avoid/reduce digital noise
44. Learn the Sunny 16 rule - it helps understanding exposure
45. THINK! before you shoot. I.e. exposure, DoF, ISO, camera settings, composure etc.
46. When shooting portraits, be aware of poles/plants/projections growing from the head of your subject.
47. Enjoy what you do.
48. As much as the rule of thirds is important and one should keep that in mind when composing, remember that rules are meant to be broken.
49. Have a simple clear subject for your image
50. Using the natural surroundings to frame your composure can add more meaning and focus to your main subject. We can use almost anything as a frame, eg. tree branches, bushes, archways, tall buildings and doorways. Keep the focus on the main subject, and use a high f/stop when you need more depth of field.
51. The ‘keep it simple silly’ rule is just what it says. You should keep your composition relatively simple. If you have zoomed in close to your main subject, use appropriate Depth of Field to make the background out of focus, or make sure that nothing in the background interferes with the main subject, thus removing any distractions. This stops unwanted elements pulling the viewers eye away from the main subject.
52. Use leading lines to draw the viewer's eye through the photograph. This is an especially powerful technique to draw the viewer's attention to one or more intended subjects or a single focal point. Please be careful when using leading lines, make sure the lines don’t distract the viewer or lead them away from the main subject. The use of roads, water courses, fences, walls etc. can be useful as leading lines.
53. A different angle or perspective can often add impact to a photograph. Think lines, angles and height. Try crouching down, kneeling , climbing up higher, moving to the left or right. Better still, try to take a photo from a different angle, through a window, doorway, or an archway. Experiment with lenses. You could even invest in a fisheye lens, which will give you a whole new perspective on everything.
54. Patience. It's better to consider a composition thoroughly (and technical aspects ) and take a single set of good images rather than take a scatter gun approach and shoot anything and everything in the area.
55. Bring an extra memory card
56.Never stand in the one spot and compose by zooming in and out. Learn what different focal lengths look like, previsualise the shot, set you focal lenght on your lens (or change to a different prime lens if required), then compose your shot by moving closer or further away from your subject.
57.If you are using a light meter built into your camera (reflective light meter), learn how it is calibrated and why there is a need to adjust for subjects with different reflectance/luminance.
58.Study different subject's luminance.
59.If you have a camera with a mirror, and the situation permits, always lock it up to reduce vibration. This should result in sharper images.
60.Learn when to use hyperfocal focusing or infinity focusing if shooting landscapes. The two techniques will produce different results, and differnent scenes may suit one technique more than the other.
61.Keep your lens hood on all the time, and use your lens cap whenever not shooting. These two things will offer the best protection for your lens. The lens hood can also help with flare and veiling flare, and can also provide more contrast to your images. Shooting with your lens cap attached will make your lens almost flare proof, although underexposure is a common side effect .