making better pictures

MAKING BETTER

PICTURESA PRESENTATION TO AREA 2 CAT,

NOVEMBER 19, 2009BY DEREK SOUTHERN, BRANCH 8

PHOTOGRAPHYIS

“PAINTING WITH LIGHT”

HOW MUCH LIGHT?

We have two ways to control how much light enters the camera:• Shutter speed• Aperture

But we can also control the sensitivity of the sensor inside the camera using

ISO settings from 50 – 3200+

SHUTTER SPEEDS

Fast

Slow

APERTURES

Wide open

Closed down

Fast lens $$$

Slow lens

EQUIVALENT EXPOSURES

HOW MUCH LIGHT IS ENOUGH?

HOW MUCH LIGHT IS ENOUGH?

HOW MUCH LIGHT IS ENOUGH?

HOW MUCH LIGHT IS ENOUGH?

CAMERA DISPLAY MAY INCLUDE HISTOGRAM

CAMERA DISPLAY MAY INCLUDE HISTOGRAM

Histogram

HISTOGRAMS TELL ALL!

IS THIS A WELL EXPOSED PICTURE?

CAMERA DISPLAY

Histogram

Exposure compensation

White balance

Image size (5.04 MP)

File size

Image quality

AVOID THE 3B’S OF POOR PICTURES

• Blurry• Bad• Boring

THE 3B’S OF POOR PICTURES

BlurryBadBoring

BETTER?

Focus on main subject, then recompose, and finish the ‘click’

THE 3B’S OF POOR PICTURES

BlurryBadBoring

0.6 secs, f/5, ISO 400, auto-exposure

ANY IMPROVEMENT?

1/10 sec, f/6.3, ISO 400, exposure set manually

SOME WAYS TO REDUCE BLUR

Use a tripod

SOME WAYS TO REDUCE BLUR

Use a faster shutter speed

(lens speed becomes an issue!)

by selecting ‘action’ or ‘sports’

option

SOME WAYS TO REDUCE BLUR

Remember shutter button has a

two stage action; pause at mid-

point, then press slowly without

jerking camera. This allows

autofocus to happen in the

background. Then recompose

picture if needed.

Remember this one?

SOME WAYS TO REDUCE BLUR

Use ‘Image Stabilization’

(Canon’s term) to be able to

hand hold camera at slower

speed

SOME WAYS TO REDUCE BLUR

Rule of thumb with zoom:

minimum shutter speed = 1/focal

length of lens

e.g., With a 200 mm lens use

1/200 sec shutter speed or faster

SOME WAYS TO REDUCE BLUR Use a tripod

Use a faster shutter speed (lens speed becomes an issue!) by selecting ‘action’ or ‘sports’ option

Remember shutter button has a two stage action; pause at mid-point, then press slowly without jerking camera. This allows autofocus to happen in the background. Then re-compose picture if needed.

Use ‘Image Stabilization’ (Canon’s term) to be able to hand hold camera at slower speed

Rule of thumb with zoom: minimum speed = 1/focal length of lens

CANON SD450

USE THE CAMERA MODE FUNCTIONS

• Use faster shutter speeds to ‘stop’ action or reduce blur caused by camera shake: set ‘Action’ mode

• Use SMALL aperture (larger number like f/11) to increase area of sharpness : set ‘Landscape’ mode

• Use ‘Macro’ mode for close-ups (stamps, shells, flowers, ornaments, things to sell on eBay, etc)

• Use ‘Portrait’ mode and with the LARGE aperture (small number like f/2.8) you have a reduced Depth of Field and get a blurred background

SELECT AN APPROPRIATE MODE

selector

BETTER PICTURES OF CHILDREN• Get down to their level

• Use natural light, if possible: (avoid flash!)

• Zoom in; fill the frame

• Save highest quality pictures(you will need more memory cards, they are cheap and memories are priceless!)

• Pre-focus by pressing shutter release half way. This also reduces shutter lag time – if you don’t do this the action has happened by the time the camera takes the picture!

PICTURES OF CHILDREN

1/80, f/2.8, ISO 400

PICTURES OF CHILDREN

1/100, f/2.8, ISO 400

NEWBORN: ZOOM AND FLASH

1/60, f/5, ISO 400, 200mm, flash

The hospital room was not well lit.

I moved away from mother and child, used zoom to fill the frame, and added flash

IMPROVING OUR PICTURES:THE ‘RULE OF THIRDS’• Imagine a “Tic-Tac-Toe” 3x3 matrix

superimposed on your picture (some cameras offer this feature)

• Avoid having the horizon in center of image

• Avoid having person/subject right in the center

• Have space in the direction a person is looking

• BUT - Break the rules when you need to!

BETTER COMPOSITION• The ‘Rule of Thirds’

USING GRID

MAKE A PICTURE!USE PANORAMA WHEN YOU NEED TO

AVOID FLASH! UNLESS YOU CAN’T!!

NO FLASH!

FLASH IS SHORT RANGE

1/60, f/2.8, ISO 400, with flash

NO FLASH, BUT MANUAL CONTROL

1/6, f/2.8, ISO 1600, NO flash

OTHER WAYS TO IMPROVE PICTURES• Fill the screen

- zoom, or get closer

• Change your view point

• Use scenery to ‘frame’ your picture

• Do NOT use digital zoom!

• Bracket the exposure

• Change the White Balance

• Take multiple shots(especially if this is an important picture)

FILL THE SCREEN

MOVE ? - FIRST VIEWPOINT

MOVE? - SECOND VIEWPOINT

NOT A GOOD DAY FOR PHOTOGRAPHY

BETTER DAY – DIFFERENT VIEW

FILL SCREEN AND FRAME

ANOTHER WAY TO FRAME A PICTURE

FRAMING SEATTLE

LOOK FOR DIFFERENCES!

OFF CENTER

OUTDOOR PICTURE, RON AT SIRS IN THE KITCHEN: NO FLASH

1/160, f/4.5, ISO 100, no flash

RON WITH “FILL FLASH”

1/80, f/5.6, ISO 100, with flash

OLDEST OBJECT ~2M YRS, IN BM

OLDEST OBJECT IN BM – NO FLASH

MACRO MODE – GET CLOSE

EVEN CLOSER!