Read about the best photography exposure settings and learn how to read a histogram in order to get the correct exposure for your photo.
Night Time Photography is so much fun when you use these Night Photography Settings. Includes a free cheat sheet for your camera bag.
Unveiling this heavenly phenomenon requires the right camera settings and techniques. So, here is a list of the best Milky Way photography settings to capture the galaxy in all its glory. If needed, find out how to find the Milky Way first.
Night photography tips for beginners that'll make your photos sharp. Including night photography settings and tripods suggestions.
Click here to purchase this print to hang in your room.
Flash photography doesn't have to be scary or complicated. Here are some beginner tips to help you get started using on-camera flash
We've shared some funny pictures in the past that illustrate how distance, not focal length, changes perspective -- but nothing beats a video walk
Snowdonia, Wales
I consider myself to be a very very amateur photographer, learning as I go & enjoying the process, however the most common emails I get from readers (I love those!) are about my photography. So while I might not know much, I am always happy to share what I got: Today's topic: how to get crisp, clear, bright photos? My equipment: Canon Rebel T2i, 50 mm f/1.4 prime lens, tripod & remote (see this post for more of my remote/tripod photography tips) First off, I do a couple of things while shooting to ensure sharp photos: {1.} spot metering (this post helped for tips on metering mode) {2.} Hold my remote next to my face so that is the most in focus point (my remote has a 2 second delay, so I have a little time to point the remote next to my face & then hide it) {3.} For outfit photography I stick to an aperture of f/1.8-2.8 but I have found that f/2.2 is just about my happy spot. {4.} Because it is just me standing in my alley, by myself, I typically have all the time in the world to get the right shot (just dealing with mosquitos, creepy neighbors, & dogs that need to be walked aside) - it is normal for me to take 50 photos/outfit & only 3-6 make it on the blog.... there are tons of blurry ones that the world just doesn't ever see... but they exist! FYI: I shoot on manual, so I set the ISO (aka light sensitivity), aperture ("f stop") & exposure depending on the day's elements (with white balance set on auto). Figuring out manual settings is a more complex topic than I want to get into in today's post, but I just wanted to show you the settings & what each element means... there are pictures below that this key will be relevant for :) (P.S. you can find this info for each photo by clicking "info" in iPhoto) See how ISO, aperture (f/#) & exposure (read as a fraction of a second, i.e. 1/1000 = 1 thousandth of a second) work with each other in these pictures below: As far as the post-processing photo tips I know, those are few & far between. I use Photoshop (I have an ancient version, CS3) & don't extensively edit my photos but I do do three things to every photo: {1.} lighten it a little bit (using brightness/contrast sliders) {2.} Bump up the sharpening (I follow this tutorial for photo sizing & sharpening... but don't use their suggestion to save as .png files, I prefer .jpg & think they load better) {3.} Resize the image to be exactly the pixel width I want & save it in the highest quality format so I can upload the original, high-res file directly to Blogger (& pick "original size" option every time) Personal tip: Because I know that I have the power to adjust the brightness/contrast of each photo, I prefer to shoot the photos a little darker than I want as it is easier to "fix". The photo on the left was brightened to achieve the look I wanted: While I attempted to darkened the left photo, & the result on the right looks a little unnatural. Finally, the sharpening that I do is very subtle, but an easy fix because I have the whole process automated in photoshop. Can you tell a difference? What photo processing do you use? I would love for this to be an open forum for us to share tips with each other. If you have any burning questions let me know & I will try to include them in a future post! P.S. Enter to win a shop credit to Bella Fusion {here}
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Phoenix Area Family Photography
Learn pro techniques for portraits, poses, lighting, landscapes and more with our one-stop photography cheat sheets
Everything you need to know about DSLR photography. This difinitive beginner DLSR photography guide with have you taking beautifule pictures in no time.
Frustrated with blurry, unfocused, or hazy-looking snaps? This photography cheat sheet has some useful tips to make sure you get sharper photos from now on.
Become a master of professional portrait lighting with these 24 essential studio lighting set-ups. Our free portrait lighting guide offers everything you need to know to get set up, plus illustrati…
This guide is intended for concert photography beginners. If you have a DSLR camera and are interested in how to control your camera settings to take
Many beginner photographers struggle to get their heads around the concept of apertures and f-stops, but our handy F-Stop Chart clears up all the confusion!
Over the weekend, I visited an Ansel Adams exhibition in London. Having found his work even more breathtaking in print, I purchased a documentary about the man himself. It was an effort to learn more about the artist I admired.
Street photography: Getting the perfect shot In street photography, there are many factors to consider when you're capturing a scene. When I first started out, oftentimes I would catch my best shots out of pure luck. But looking back I realize it has more to do with timing than luck. There's a lot
If you just got your first DSLR or mirrorless camera and are now scratching your head over all the symbols, we have a couple of cheat sheets to help.
Cheat Sheets for the Photographer - learn aperture, shutter speed settings and so much more!
In honor of the New Year, Boost Your Photography will spend the month of January featuring collections of top posts across a variety of topics. This opening post will cover top posts explaining specifics of camera settings. Other top posts cover aperture, exposure, phone photography, DIY photography hacks, composition, lenses and accessories, top photography ideas, and macro photography. Top Posts about Camera Settings Shutter Speed. Shutter Speed: an overview and Creative Ideas Using Shutter Speed. These two posts provide a comprehensive overview of shutter speed in photography. The overview post provides a quick overview across the full range of possible shutter speeds and includes a useful visualization graph. Creative Ideas takes this a step further by providing how-to directions for a variety of shutter-based photographs. White Balance. What the ... White Balance and Strategic White Balance. What the ... White Balance provides an introduction to white balance and the most common white balance presets available on your camera. Strategic White Balance explains how to creatively manipulate white balance to improve your photographs. Overall Recommended Settings. Missed the Shot? Remember Camera Zero. Never miss a shot because your camera settings were off. Get in the habit of re-setting your camera to the same default settings each time you finish shooting. Read the why behind my recommended settings in Missed the Shot? Remember Camera Zero. Focus. Why Won't My Lens Focus? and Deciding Where to Focus. Find out why your lens might not be focusing correctly and the kinds of situations that can lead to focus issues. Read Why Won't My Lens Focus? Once you have those basics down, Deciding Where to Focus will help you nail focus in the right place every time. Depth of Field. Depth of Field: it's more than just aperture. Depth of field is the area of the photograph in focus, and this post will highlight all the various components of photography that can impact the depth of field in your final photograph. Want more great ideas? Follow Boost Your Photography on Pinterest: Boost Your Photography Boost Your Photography: Learn Your DSLR is now available from Amazon. Get the most out of your camera with practical advice about the technical and creative aspects of DSLR photography that will have you taking beautiful pictures right away.
CLICK HERE TO GO BACK TO STEP 1 STEP 2.| CAMERA SETTINGS Now that we have decided what sort of lighting we are working with, we can discuss settings. This is a long portion of the post, and photos don’t really help explain it. I do have this graphic you can reference as we go. […]
An explaination of WHAT some of these semi-automatic modes are (aperture priority, shutter priority, programmed auto) and WHEN you might want to use them.
Let's take a break from editing tips and get back to some basics! Today I made a really convenient printable photography cheat sheet for those wanting a little guide that can fit inside your camera bag! This is a 3x5 card that you can carry and refer to easily on the go. When you want to know what
A photography tutorial for beginner photographers explaining how to take amazing photos of the starry night sky. If you've never tried astro photography before, this tutorial explains the process in detail.
A detailed guide to how to photograph the northern lights, including tips on camera settings, camera equipment, how to find the northern lights and more!
ISO is all about measuring light. The brighter it is where you’re taking your photos, the lower your ISO number needs to be. Therefore if it’s dark and/ or there’s not a lot of …
Learn the best lighting options for outdoor photography, and what to do when they are not an option. Feel confident to take your very best outdoor pictures!
Still struggling to understand your camera's metering modes? Read this article and watch the video.
Last post, we talked about basic gear. This post, we'll talk about camera settings. But first, lets talk about star movement.Star MovementStars move across the sky. This isn't actually true, as this movement is caused by the earth's rotation, but we'll ignore that for now. For our purposes, the…
You bought a beautiful DSLR or mirrorless camera but you are still using the automatic mode for all of your photos? I can imagine that you are overwhelmed and impressed by the features of your camera, but learning the manual settings on your camera can help you truly master the camera and its many settings – […]
If you want to take better photos, you have to learn to shoot in manual mode on your camera. This guide explains camera settings and how to use them.
Are you just starting out in the realm of photography and trying to figure out, WHAT DO I CHARGE?! I’m going to be talking about all of this pricing goodness today. I’ve pulled some amazing ideas from: How To Price Your Photography When Starting Out. If you’re looking for prewritten photography pricing list templates.…
No matter what people say about how great the cameras are getting on our phones, the fact remains that today the most flexible device you can use to
This easy tutorial shows you all the tips and tricks on How to Take The Best Sharp Action Photos! You'll never have to worry about blurry pictures again!
White Balance is my nemesis, and I am sure it is many of yours too! There are a few ways you can set your white balance in camera - you can use Auto White Balance (not recommended!), use one of the presets available in your camera (like Sunny, Cloudy, Tungsten etc) then tweak in p
White balance is an often-overlooked aspect of photography. Many, many of us are guilty of simply adopting a "set it and forget it" approach to white balance, relying on auto white balance and our camera's ability to interpret a scene and choose an appropriate white balance. For many situations, your camera's auto white balance will do a decent job. But if you really want full creative control over your photograph, it is important to understand white balance and how to use it to truly capture the photograph that you are after. What is White Balance? We tend to think of light as white, even though we have all seen the science demonstration of a prism and how white light is actually the full rainbow of colors. Our eyes look at a white piece of paper, and we see it as white, whether we are standing outside in full sun, in dappled shade, or indoors under fluorescent tube lights. Our cameras, however, are less flexible. If you take a photograph of a white piece of paper, you may find that it looks white in daylight, blue in the shade, and yellow indoors. This difference is referred to the 'color temperature' of the light, and it is measured in K or Kelvins. If you want the whites in your photograph to look white, then you need to shoot with a white balance that matches the situation of the photograph. Canon has several different white balance options, other than Auto: Daylight (5200K), Cloudy (6000K), Shade (7000K), Tungsten (3200K), Fluorecent (4000K), Flash, and Custom. The photograph above demonstrates what each of these different white balance options look like for a single photograph. (Quick aside: if you shoot in JPEG, white balance is an unchangeable part of the final image file. If you shoot in RAW, however, the RAW file contains information that allows you to use software, like Photoshop, to change the white balance in post-processing, while still maintaining all the original information recorded for the photograph. The sunset photograph above is a composite of all the white balance options from a single RAW file.) Cloudy white balance works well for sunset shots. The cloudy and shade white balance settings are considered "warmer" than daylight or tungsten, which means that they tend to bring out more orange and yellow tones in a photograph. Cloudy and shade settings can work extremely well during the 'Golden Hour,' the approximately hour-long period before-and-after sunrise and sunset, when the sun rays lend a much more golden tone to the morning or evening light. The cloudy setting is also popular with landscape photographs, as it can add a golden tone to non-golden hour photographs. Read a few landscape photography books, and you will find that many well-known landscape photographers use cloudy as their default white balance setting. Indoor White Balance White balance can also make a huge difference with your indoor photographs. Common sources of indoor lighting (halogens, compact fluorescents, etc.) do not contain the full spectrum of white light, like sunlight, and often impart an awkward yellow tone to indoor photographs. Knowing the type of lighting you are using allows you to choose an appropriate white balance setting, like fluorescent, to compensate for this issue. Get the how to on this shot: Fizzy Photography Think about the lighting for the particular scene you are photographing, and consider changing your white balance to match the scene at hand. Shooting indoors? Consider fluorescent. Using your on-camera flash? Consider flash. Shooting a sunrise, sunset, or other scene with golden tones? Consider cloudy or shade. Better yet? Consider shooting in RAW and adjusting your white balance to your preference. Want to get your white balance exact? You can use a gray card to set the white balance manually. If there is enough interest, you can expect a future post on the topic of custom white balances. Want more great ideas? Follow Boost Your Photography on Pinterest: Boost Your Photography Boost Your Photography: Learn Your DSLR is now available from Amazon. Get the most out of your camera with practical advice about the technical and creative aspects of DSLR photography that will have you taking beautiful pictures right away.
Let's take a break from editing tips and get back to some basics! Today I made a really convenient printable photography cheat sheet for those wanting a little guide that can fit inside your camera bag! This is a 3x5 card that you can carry and refer to easily on the go. When you want to know what
