Simple Tips for improving your pictures

Often times, people think one can take better pictures with only better cameras or expensive equipment! The truth is, camera is not the one who is taking pictures - infact YOU are! You can take great images even with a simple camera! Of course better equipment can help get better images but only if you have the skills! Here are some simple tips.

Choose the best light conditions:

Quality of light is a major aspect of Photography. The same subject can look drastically different in different light conditions. Soft morning light and warm late evening light are considered ideal for most photography.

For e.g. Here are three photos of Seattle skyline. Left was shot in early morning, middle one during late afternoon and the right one during late evening. As you can see each of these images give different feelings.



There are no harsh shadows on cloudy or overcast days and hence they are well suited for Garden and Flower Photography. When there are no harsh shadows, you get more details in your photos. So, avoid shooting in bright sunlight or mid-day sun. If you have to shoot, (say a portrait or a close up of flower), use Flash. This will fill-up light in the dark areas causing the photos turn up little better. 

Always choose appropriate light for your subject.

Choose the right film:

Films mainly differ in speed and quality. Slower the film (or smaller ISO rating), finer the grain (better quality). Faster films are ideal for action, hand held, indoor (low light) photography because they require less light and hence allowing you to use faster shutter speed. The principle is same in digital cameras too. Most digital cameras provide you an option to change the ISO setting. If you have to use a slow film in indoors/low light, use flash and/or a tripod.

Under low light conditions, slower films tend to result in cooler tone and faster films in warmer tone. Here is an example. The photo on the left was taken with Fuji Velvia 50 ISO and the one on right was taken with Kodak Ektochrome 200 ISO.



Regardless of speed and light conditions, films by different manufacturers have different color saturation. So, try out couple of different films and pick the ones you like.

Choose the right settings:

Most Cameras have both manual and automatic settings. If you want more control, you need to use manual mode where you can choose the desired aperture and Shutter speed idependent of each other. You also have Aperture Priority and Shutter Priority modes where you will be allowed to change either aperture (f-stop) or shutter speed only. If you are using these modes, you need to be familiar with the exposure theory, metering and how f-stop and shutter speed work.

If you usually shoot with Automatic mode, you could use these basic modes:

Portrait Mode: Use this if you want to shoot close-ups of people. When you choose this mode, the camera will select a wide aperture setting, minimizing your depth of field for a soft background effect.

Landscape Mode: Use this mode, when you shoot pictures of landscapes and sceneries. Your camera will select the smallest aperture possible under the conditions to maximize depth of field in the image so that the image will show up sharper from foreground to background.

Night Mode: Use this during general picture taking in night scenes or low-light conditions. It captures both subject and background. However this mode will cause slower shutter speeds and you are prone to camera shakes (even when using Flash). To avoid this, use a Tripod or a sturdy surface to hold your camera. 

Action Mode: If you want to capture fast action, you'll need the fast shutter speed setting offered by the Sports/Action Mode. When you switch to this mode, your camera will automatically choose the fastest shutter speed possible given the lighting situation. 

Macro Mode: The Macro Mode allows you to focus on objects at small distances. Use this mode when you need to capture even small details on your subject. This mode is very useful while taking pictures of flowers, bugs etc.

Isolate your subject:

Having too much clutter in your images will take away the focus off of your main subject. Always try to avoid any unnecessary elements in your image. Only include what you want. Watch out for a head or a hand that does not belong in there! Carefully check the edges of the frame for any unwanted things. If you can't move the distraction, try changing the angle of shooting or simply pick a different spot! You can also use zoom to isolate your subject.

While its hard to say what the main subject is in the image below on the left, it is very clear with the image on the right.


Composition of your subject:

Composition is organizing the elements in a balanced and pleasing way. Most of the times, composition can make or break an image! However good composition is very subjective.

There are few guidelines that are commonly applied:

The rule of thirds: This simply means that your subject is positioned at one third distance from the edges of the frame. But make sure that your subject is facing the two-thid space. The resulting image will turn up far stronger.

In the images below, left one has the Yellow Tulip in the dead center while the right one has the tulip placed as per the rule of thirds. The right one seems more interesting.



Try different perspectives of a subject: Some subjects may appear more pleasing in Horizontal than Vertical and vice versa. So, always try both compositions. You can also try to shoot in the eye level of a subject.

In the images below, the vertical composition seem to work better than the horizontal one due to the vertcical lines of the subject.



Here are few things that you can avoid: 

• Placing the horizon line in the dead-center of a picture or Tilting the Horizon line: You can try placing the horizon line in the bottom or top third of the frame.
• White Sky: Although overcast days are great for flower and Garden photography, try avoiding the white sky!
  

Get the subject in sharp focus:

When you look through the view finder, typically the whole scene looks sharp. However your camera does not see the scene in the same way. Depending on the f-stop and where the focus point is, rest of the image may or may not be in sharp focus. Another common mistake made is to over zoom on the subject. Each lens has its own minimal focussing distance. Once you cross this distance, your subject will not appear in focus. You can find out the minimal focussing distance for your lens from the manual. So, always make sure that the subject is in sharp focus. When photographing live subjects, keep the eye in sharp focus. If the eyes are not sharp, the image may not appear to be in focus.

In the sample images below, left one has the focus point directly on the Teddy bear. So, the bear appears sharp but background is blurred. In the middle image, the focus point is on the basket in the background and hence Teddy bear in the foreground is blurred. In both these cases a larger f-stop was used (f4.5). In the last image, the focus was on the Teddy bear but we used a smaller f-stop (f22) which caused both the basket and the Teddy bear to appear in clear focus. This illustates how the f-stop and focus point change the appearance of the image.



Use Tripod or a stable surface:

Tripod is an invaluable tool in Photography. If you have an option, always use the Tripod. This will help compose your picture better and will prevent Camera shake. When the shutter speed is less than 1/60th of a Sec, it is difficult to get a sharp image with hand holding the camera. This is when you can either turn on the flash and/or use a stable surface/Tripod. Some modern Cameras/Lenses do have a feature called Image Stabilization (IS) or Vibration Reduction(VR). This will help get the image in sharp focus up to some extent even when using slow shutter speeds.

In the sample images below, left one was shot with only Flash at 1/60sec. It looks pretty flat and there are not much details. Middle one was shot without Flash. It only has ambient light available. The yellow hue is due to the Incandescent light. Since there was no flash, we had to use Tripod to avoid camera shake. Last image was shot with Flash and ambient light and a Tripod was used as well. In order to get ambient light, we had to use a slow shutter speed so that after the flash was fired and before the shutter was closed, enough ambient light could get in to the film. This made it a more pleasing and natural looking image of all the three.



Break the rules, be Creative and Open:

There are no rules when it comes to creativity. Beauty of an image is very subjective. Don't hold back just because its against the rules! Here are two images that give a different perspective of flowers that are not commonly shot.


Critiquing your own work or comparaing your images with the best images that others have taken will greatly improve your Photography. When you like or dislike an image, question yourself why do you like or not like it! This will help identify both positive and negative qualities of an image. Photography is like life. Its a constant process of learning and adopting!