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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.08In sports or action photography, your subject's expression will go a long way towards setting the mood of the photo. Good sport photos can be ruined by a subject's strange expression.
20.Oct.08The distance to your subject will affect the depth of field in your photograph. The farther your subject is away from you, the greater the depth of field will be with the same lens and aperture.
19.Oct.08Don't project original slides on a traditional slide projector. The heat and bright light causes the slides to fade faster than normal, and can 'bake' small particles onto the surface of the slide.
18.Oct.08If you're just learning about photography, keep a journal of what choices you made for each photograph. When you're evaluating your photos later, you'll be able to see what worked and what didn't.
17.Oct.08It often takes many years to learn many of the subtleties of photography, and to build up a noteworthy collection or a good reputation. Don't give up – perseverance and determination is often better than raw talent!
16.Oct.08No matter what lens you use, the sharpest part of the photo will always be the centre. Very high quality lenses show almost no sharpness difference from centre to corner. The opposite is true for poor lenses.
15.Oct.08Side light is light from the side, perpendicular to the camera direction. Side lighting tends to maximize shadows and contrast, highlighting texture and detail.
14.Oct.08When buying a flash, consider one with the capability to tilt and swivel. This will make bouncing the flash or creative flash work easier and faster.
13.Oct.08Snowshoe feet are manufactured for some tripods. These feet fit over the regular tripod feet, making the tripod less likely to sink into very deep snow. If you work in the snow a lot, consider buying some or making your own!
12.Oct.08Using a polarizer to darken the sky in an image taken with a very wide angle lens usually doesn't work. The polarizer darkens some parts of the sky and not others, resulting in a 'banded' look.
11.Oct.08Many photographers prefer lenses from 80mm to 135mm (35mm equivalent) for portraits. These lenses provide a pleasing background blur, and are small enough to not intimidate the subject.
10.Oct.08Allow yourself to respond emotionally to your subject. Connecting with your work will allow you to see it and communicate with it in new and interesting ways.
09.Oct.08Pincushion distortion is the tendency of a lens to bend straight lines towards the middle of the frame. Pincushion distortion is usually most pronounced towards the frame edges.
08.Oct.08Good portraits require a strong connection between the model and the photographer. Good portraits are created when the model feels comfortable and at ease.
07.Oct.08If you want to learn to use bokeh (blur) in your photography, try composing totally blurry photographs for awhile, only introducing sharp elements into your work once you're comfortable with using bokeh in its own right.