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5 Simple Steps to Shooting Photos Like a Pro
by Norm Bellisario on August 1st, 2007Filed under: Digital Photography
When my daughter was born four years ago, our new digital camera and I had to become friends. Fast. I didn’t have any experience as a photographer, or any time to learn the craft, yet I still had to find ways to get those perfect once in a lifetime shots. Through trial and error I found a system that works for me. While I’m sure I’m not blazing any new trails here, these are the guidelines I’ve used to get shots my family and friends enjoy:
1. Say No to Shutter Lag: Get a fast camera. Shutter Lag is the enemy when your subject matter won’t sit still. I started with a Panasonic DMC LC20. After my daughter started getting a bit more mobile I graduated to a Canon EOS Digital Rebel. It’s hard to find shutter lag stats published even in independent reviews. Try out the camera in the store if possible, and pick a moving target. I had a friend rotate slowly. I snapped a shot when he was facing the camera. If the picture was of his profile or the back of his head, I know I had to keep looking.
2. Say Yes to Storage: Get a memory card for your camera with as much storage capacity as possible. I use 1GB and that allows me to take about 160 shots before I have to transfer photos from my camera to my computer. Be sure you have a fresh memory card for each new outing. Pick up a memory card reader to speed up the process. You need to clear your card frequently so you don’t want comparatively slow USB cable transfer speeds getting in the way. And don’t cheat by using a low resolution or low quality image setting. Use the highest quality and resolution you can.
3. No Film, No Fear. Take a Lot of Shots: Those precious moments come and go quickly. Get them even if the framing and zoom are not perfect. That can be fixed later. However, be sure to learn how to properly use your auto focus. Very out of focus images are something you can’t fix after the fact.
4. Go Deeper. Find the Hidden Gems: Once you’ve transferred your images to your computer, review them carefully to find the shot within the shot. If you’ve taken enough shots, the gems will be there. You’ll need a decent digital image editing software package with and easy to use cropping tool. ACDSee 9 Photo Manager is a good tool at a good price.
5. Shed Unwanted Pixels. Crop Crop Crop:
Cropping your photos creatively allows you to get a fantastic shot out of some not so fantastic raw material. Once you’ve found a part of a photo you like, crop away the extra stuff. Highlight the subject matter and reveal shots that would have been missed if you took too much time setting up before hitting the shutter release.
Now that you’ve spent so much time and energy getting your shots just right, you want to have a special way to show them off. Give Touchpoint Gallery a spin and let us know what you think. Download here for free.
August 2nd, 2007 at 12:02 am
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August 2nd, 2007 at 2:25 am
Very good tips. Shutter speed is vital and opens up an entire new type of shot that can be achieved with the new found speed. The only thing i would suggest that this did not is that yes cropping can be very useful, but one of the most important things a photographer can do is get the shot sized proper initially. Which brings me to my personal favorite tip.
Get Closer to your subject
August 3rd, 2007 at 10:50 am
Hi Norm,
Thanks for taking the time to share these tips.
I found them most helpful, please continue to share more posts like this.
The shutter lag you mention makes taking photos a lottery sometimes,
especially when my 4 year old is hurtling down a slide.
Gavin Allinson
www.OutsourceSuccess.com
August 11th, 2007 at 5:16 am
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August 23rd, 2007 at 2:43 am
So, does the camera make the photographer?
Though arguably this is not so, I must say that it actually helps a lot.
One of the things I do when I take pictures of children (and I got this from a pro) is to shoot at the same level as they are. So sitting down or kneeling to get good shots helps a lot. Helps them relate to the camera as well.
August 29th, 2007 at 11:26 pm
Good tips! I’ve been shooting gorgeous dragonflies all this week> With these fast-flitting beauties, I’m definitely encountering frustration here and there with shutter speed lag.
Love my camera 98% of the time (a Canon Z710), and I’m still learning it. But I’ve suddenly run into a few situations where the lag has caused me to miss some key, quick shots. What I did capture is magical, though. Hope you’ll check it out: http://www.tabblo.com/studio/stories/shared/19783/avcrwsjt2pmoufn
Viqi French
December 9th, 2007 at 7:02 pm
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