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These photography tips are a record of new entries to the Daily Photo Tips RSS feed since November 2007. There are currently 1567 tips in the database! Contact Me to comment or add tips.
Lens flare can be partly controlled by stopping the lens down. Since the size of the polygonal shapes that flare in the frame match the aperture, reducing the aperture should reduce the size (but possibly not the intensity) of the shapes. (First published Oct 30, 2011)
21.Oct.11Super-telephoto prime lenses are lenses longer than about 300mm (35mm equivalent). These lenses are invariably huge, bulky, and can cost as much as a vehicle. They are commonly used in 'long-reach' sports and wildlife photography. Excellent technique, firm camera support and a high ISO setting are often mandatory when using these lenses.
20.Oct.11Wide zoom lenses usually range from about 18mm to about 35mm (35mm equivalent). Though they have a limited range, these are among the sharper zooms and are excellent for travel and landscape photography.
19.Oct.11If you're using a 'pancake' type lens, use the supplied lens hood or buy a generic screw-in type. Not only to these types of lenses flare easily, but a hood will keep stray fingers out of the frame!
18.Oct.11When collecting RAW and JPEG images simultaneously, make sure you know which file is displayed on the viewscreen during playback. RAW files will take longer to load, will appear softer and less saturated, but will give you a better idea of the true potential of the photograph.
17.Oct.11JPEG artifacts, while not noise, can often be removed in noise reduction software. Most software makers include it, because 'noise', to many photographers, is the same as 'distracting, unwanted details'.
16.Oct.11Some in-camera JPEG algorithms process a photograph two different ways, them combine the results into a single image. Because noise structure often depends on the method a photograph is processed, this technique usually produces quite low-noise photographs.
15.Oct.11When converting a photograph to black and white, try to mix like colours in similar quantities. Gently fading one hue to another will help prevent the appearance of noisy transition areas.
14.Oct.11Making it easier to add photos to your website or social network may cause you to add poor-quality photos without critiquing them properly. As you streamline your workflow, be constantly critical of the quality of the work you choose to show.
13.Oct.11Baby photos are often best made from the baby's level. Standing at your adult height and looking down can make baby look insignificant. Getting down low and close up can give a photo a feeling of respect and a sense of fun!
12.Oct.11'Pancake' type lenses usually have a fairly fast maximum aperture for the focal length. In some cases, the small size and fast performance is a trade-off for strong vignetting and soft corner regions.
11.Oct.11Macro lenses that allow reproduction of an object beyond life size usually can't focus all the way to infinity. These lenses function almost like microscopes, and have as much application in science as in specialty artistic photography.
10.Oct.11When using a long telephoto lens, the shutter speed 'danger zone' increases, even when the lens is mounted on a tripod. Since long lenses are more sensitive to vibrations, medium-slow shutter speeds don't give the image time to 'settle' before the majority of the exposure is made.
09.Oct.11Portrait prime lenses are lenses from about 80mm to about 135mm (35mm equivalent). Portrait primes are usually extremely fast (in order to produce a pleasing background blur) and are often very sharp when slightly stopped down.
08.Oct.11A screw-in lens hood can screw to the end of a filter, and will therefore not interfere with your ability to operate a polarizing filter. Instead of having to reach into the front of the lens, polarization can be changed by simply rotating the hood.
07.Oct.11If a camera case is provided by a manufacturer for a particular camera and lens combination, it will probably be less bulky than a third-party solution. The custom case will fit the camera snugly, while another case will add bulk through internal dead space.