Photography by Lara Hartley
In learning how to become proficient with your digital camera’s capabilities, you need to be able to decipher the cryptic icons that are on the camera and in the menu. Those tiny icons are the keys to a wealth of information about the functions and features of your camera. In order to make it as […]
Icons: Keys to understanding Read More »
Now that you are getting to know your camera, we would like to talk about light and shadow. For without those two elements, we don’t really have anything to see or shoot. Well, “duh” you’re thinking, but hang on. Let’s dissect the phrase above. Light to illuminate: Of course. It is obvious, right? Sunlight, moonlight,
Light to illuminate, shadow to shape Read More »
Aesthetics — Noun: A guiding principle in matters of artistic beauty and taste; artistic sensibility. Aesthetic — Adjective: Characterized by a heightened sensitivity to beauty. You make aesthetic decisions all the time. What color to paint the kitchen. What blouse goes with what skirt. Can you wear a black sock on one foot while wearing
Light is your paint, your camera the brush Read More »
Colour temperature and light In addition to having bright and dark qualities, light has a colour spectrum which is measured using Kelvin degrees of temperature. This can be affected by a number of factors: time of day, type of lighting, altitude. (Stick with me here, it gets easier.) If you used to shoot a lot
White: A balancing act Read More »
Okay now, students. Put away your books and take out a nice sharp pencil. We are going to have a pop quiz! Well, maybe not really, but kind of. We are going to use the lessons learned from our past few tutorials to dissect this image. Is it a good photograph? A bad one? And
What’s wrong with this picture? Read More »
So far in our columns we have covered these basics of composition: Simplicity Simplify your pictures by choosing uncluttered backgrounds that strengthen the center of interest. Move in close eliminating unnecessary distractions. One famous photographer said that anything further away than 500 yards was not photogenic. Something to think about maybe. The Rule of Thirds
Where do your lines lead? Read More »
Composition and how you frame an image determine the difference between a bad photo and a good one. Now, if you like your photos with heads cut off, big empty spaces around things and a little kid whose face is so small it’s hard to pick him out of the pumpkins he’s sitting in, then
Continuing our chat about composition, let’s review a bit from last week. Putting the horizon line in the center of a landscape has a tendency to cut the image in half, where the two parts do not necessarily create a more harmonious whole. When you are standing or crouching in position you have to make
Taking a visual journey Read More »
Today we continue with a lesson on candid portraits, that is, portraits shot outside of a portrait studio. In this situation you have two choices: shoot tight on just the face and shoulders, or shoot wider to allow some of the environment to show. Tighter is good when the background is distracting, or when you
Up close and personal Read More »
What’s with this manual mode stuff when we have a camera that does perfectly good auto? There are times when you are going to want to override your camera’s settings for shutter speed and aperture — and they are directly related to each other. I explained this to a friend of mine using sound effects
Terrifying words — ‘Manual Mode’ Read More »
