Posted: 12 Oct 2010 12:43 PM PDT Much has been written on the topic of Macro photography for those photographers fortunate enough to own a DSLR with macro lenses – but what about if you own a compact point and shoot camera? Can you get great macro shots too? While the results achievable with a point and shoot camera in macro mode probably won’t compare with a DSLR with a purpose built macro lens I’ve still seen some remarkably good shots with compact cameras (all three shots in this post were taken with compact cameras). Here are a few tips to help you get the most out of yours: Get free tips like this each week via our email newsletter Select Macro Mode – this is a fairly obvious first step but I’m always surprised by how many digital camera owners haven’t explored the shooting modes that their camera has. Macro mode is generally symbolized with a little flower and when selected it will tell your camera that you want to focus on a subject closer to your lens than normal (the minimum distance allowed will vary from camera to camera – consult your instruction manual to find yours). Macro mode will also usually tell your camera to choose a large aperture so that your subject is in focus but the background is not. Use a Tripod – in macro photography a tripod can be particularly useful, even if you’re just shooting with a compact camera. Keeping your camera still not only improves your shots (getting rid of camera shake) but it allows you to play around with different settings without losing your composition. Aperture – once in macro mode some cameras will not allow you to make many other adjustments but if you are able to play with your aperture settings it can be well worthwhile to do so. As we’ve covered in our Aperture tutorials, the main thing that aperture impacts is the depth of field of your shots. Choose a small aperture (big number) if you want a large depth of field with everything in focus or a large aperture if you just want your main subject in focus. In macro photography you’ll probably want a shallow depth of field so select the largest aperture available. Focusing – I find that in macro photography it is helpful to have full control over focusing – especially when you have shallow depth of fields where it is all the more important to make sure the right part of your shot is in focus. If your camera allows manual focusing select this option and manually focus on the part of our subject that is the main point of interest. Composition – remember some of the basic rules of composition like the Rule of Thirds. Make sure your image has a main point of interest and place that focal point in a smart position in your image in order to draw the eye of your viewer. Try to select a non cluttered or simple background for your main subject so as it doesn’t compete with it visually. Flash – in many macro shots having some artificial light is important. The challenge with compact cameras is that most give you limited control of your flash. As a result choosing a good time of day when there is plenty of available light is probably your best bet. If you do need more light check to see if your camera allows you to pull back the level that your flash fires at. Alternatively you might like to try diffusing it in some way (tissue paper or cellotape over the flash for example). Another option might be to use some other source of artificial light or to invest in a reflector to help make the most of available light. Experiment with different methods of lighting your subject. Take Your Shot - once you have your shot lined up and in focus take your shot. Make sure once you’ve taken it to take a good look at it on your LCD, zooming in to make sure that your focusing is sharp. Try shooting at slightly different apertures, with different compositions and focusing on different points of your subject to see what works best. Macro Lens Attachments – some compact cameras actually have accessories available to help with macro/close up photography. These will enable you to enlarge your subject and/or decrease your minimum focal length. These might be worth investing in if you intend on doing a lot of macro work. Self Timer – (this point was added as a result of comments below – thanks team!) when using my DSLR for Macro work I tend to use a shutter cable release and tripod to make sure my shots are completely still (to eliminate the small amount of camera shake from pressing the shutter). Most compact cameras don’t have cable releases but a simple way around this is to use your camera’s self timer on it’s shortest time setting which will similarly mean you have no movement of your camera when taking your shot (if you’re taking notice of the ‘use a tripod’ tip above). PS: I’ve used the term ‘macro photography fairly loosely here. Technically ‘macro photography’ is actually when you produce an image where your subject is captured on your image sensor at life size (or bigger) with a 1:1 ratio. In the case of most (all?) compact cameras this is not achieved and in fact ‘close up’ photography would be a better description. However as most manufacturers call their close up mode ‘macro mode’ I’ve used the term for the purposes of this article. Post from: Digital Photography School      |
Posted: 12 Oct 2010 07:07 AM PDT There was a lot of response to a post of mine titled How To Bring Back Boring, And Possibly Horrid, Travel Photos here on DPS. It was a sarcastic stab at some problems I've had in the past with creating less than exciting travel photos. Photos that bore my friends and family. Some people liked it and some people didn't (and it's good to see different people still have different opinions!). But two requests came out of that post: 1) Tell us how to take good travel photos and 2) tells us how to recover our already bad photos. To that end, this post will address #1. There is a lot of info here on DPS if you search for travel or use the category link for Travel Photography. To consolidate some of it, here are 7 tips to get you started. Get Up Early And Stay Out Late Waking up at 6am is worth it. Use The Rule Of ThirdsImagine a grid on your screen or eyepiece. It is made up of two lines, equally spaced, extending from top to bottom and another two from left to right. A small grid with four intersections. These intersections are the start of a simple method for making your photos more interesting. What you will need to do is place the main focus (pun intended) of your photograph in one of those intersections. If the main subject is someone’s face, place one of their eyes at an intersection. If it’s a mountain, place the peak near an intersection. Interesting bug on the ground? Don’t just center it in the photo and click away. Boring! Place it on an intersection and give it room (meaning, if it is facing left, place it on the right side of your photo so it visually has room to move into the photo).More on the Rule Of Thirds can be found here. Get The Horizon Out Of The Middle Of Your Picture Along with the Rule of Thirds, never, ever, never place the horizon in the very center of your screen. While it may seem logical at the time, when you view a photo taken this way, it will appear bland and unnaturally balanced. Get that horizon off the center one way or the other! I prefer to give more foreground space and less sky, but there are times when more sky is needed. It works well to use one of those grid lines explained earlier in the Rule Of Thirds as a location for your horizon, but there’s no pat answer. Play around a little, but please, no more centered horizons!Learn How To Change Your Exposure SettingsThis one may be a bit trickier but is worth it. Background: Your camera is not perfect. Neither is mine. No matter how much money you spend, cameras have their limits. In most automatic modes a camera will take a look at the scene in front of them and try to find an average setting that lets all the highlight areas be seen and the shadows as well. The problem with this approach is cameras are not human eyes and don’t have the wonderful range our eyes (and brain) do. A scene may be 40% dark and 60% bright and the camera comes to middle ground on its choice.This choice may make the highlights far too bright, or the shadows as black as midnight, with no detail either way. And if your subject happens to be standing in those shadows when the shutter is released, they will be lost in the dark while your camera tries to make everything even. Understand what your camera is trying to do and then tell it to do something different. How? By using exposure adjustment features. Most cameras will have a simple +/- button or menu feature. This allows you to override the camera’s ‘correct’ exposure setting in any condition and will tell the camera to overexpose or underexpose the scene by up to three extra ’stops’ of light. Taking the example above, if the subject is too dark when you snap the first photo, use the exposure adjustment and crank it up to +1 or +2. This tells the camera, "Hey, take what you think is the correct settings and let in more light, please" You’ll notice the highlights get brighter, but you’ll also notice you can now see your friend in the shadows. The reverse is also true if you find things are a bit too bright (because you’re out shooting during the middle of the day like I told you not too, aren’t you!?). Crank it down to -1 or -2 and your camera will let in less light to help those overexposed areas. It’s a give and take game, so practice with this setting. A quick example: The first picture below is adjusted to the camera's suggested exposure settings (ISO 100, f/5.6, 1/500). Because of the large amount of sky, the camera adjusted the main subject to be too dark. But the sky looks ok.   Use Fill Flash If your camera has a flash, there are many instances when it can be used and you may not have thought of them. For instance, you’re on a tour with a set schedule and have no other option than to take photos of your family in front of the pyramids of Egypt at noon. Harsh, harsh sun is beating down. Everyone, rightfully, has a hat on their head to block the sun. The only problem is their faces are now in deep shadow while the pyramids are harshly lit. Did I mention the harshness in this setup? In this scenario adjusting exposure, as in the item above, will not help because the pyramids will become washed out while the faces become visible. What do you do?Use your flash! That’s right, in the middle of the day, use your flash. Most cameras have a "Fill-Flash" setting and even if they don’t, a full flash will be better than none. A fill flash is just that; a flash to fill in the areas of the scene in dark shadow. Suddenly your family’s faces can be seen beaming with joy from under their hats before rushing back to the air conditioned tour bus. The photo at right has a subtle fill flash used to overcome the very dark shadows on my daughter's face. While more edits can be made in Photoshop, starting with a more even exposure helps in post processing. Another handy use for fill flash is when a subject is backlit. Maybe the sun or a bright light is behind them. Fill flash to the rescue! The bright light will still be there, but now faces and features can be seen as well. Use A Long Lens 300mm x 1.6 = 480mm. Don't get too close. If you don’t have a zoom lens readily packed for travel, consider renting one. There are many places online and possibly in your town, that will rent a lens for a fraction of the price of purchasing it new. It’s often worth the cost if your once-in-a-lifetime trip will require it. Lastly, Break All The RulesOnce you have learned the rules and how to use some of these tips, break them when the situation calls for it. Travel photography is about artistic expression so go with what feels good to you. But first, learn the Rule Of Thirds before you move your subject just a bit further to the side. Learn to use a fill flash before you decide having a dark, silhouetted face works better and don’t be afraid to take some details shots during the middle of the day even in the harsh sunlight.Post from: Digital Photography School   |
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
“Macro Photography Tips for Point and Shoot Digital Cameras” plus 1 more: Digital Photography School
