Daily Photo Tips Archive

25.Mar.11If you have a photo website, keep track of your web statistics to see which of your photographs are most popular. Use the data to try to understand what people appreciate most about your work.

24.Mar.11Large increases in contrast reduce the effective dynamic range of a photograph. By boosting contrast, highlight and shadow detail become clipped, leaving less usable image information in the midtones.

23.Mar.11Website functionality that allows users to arrange their own galleries can take away from the presentation of your work. In a user-arranged gallery, even great work can look difficult and disorganized.

22.Mar.11Arranging photography well can be as difficult as making a photograph to begin with. Choosing which photographs complement one another or fit thematically is very much an application of artistic talent.

21.Mar.11When entering a photography competition, always be professional. You will often be judged as much on your entrance form and your CV as on the quality of your work.

20.Mar.11If you have a tripod with a reversible column, don't forget to use it! Each time you encounter an awkward tripod setup, particularly in macro photography, ask yourself if flipping your centre column would help.

19.Mar.11Look for overlaying patterns. A pattern on top of another can complement and enhance either cycle, creating new patterns or even entire abstract shapes. The result can be completely different from the beginning base patterns.

18.Mar.11When entering a photography competition, read the rules and expectations of entrants. Even great, groundbreaking work will probably not earn so much as an honourable mention if it is not the type of photography the judges are looking for.

17.Mar.11Even great photographers sometimes have trouble winning competitions. Don't worry if you don't win – competitions are open to biases by judges and are often driven by motivations not spelled out in the contest rules.

16.Mar.11Talk to other photographers whenever you can. The opportunity to learn from casual conversation is invaluable, and you can build a strong sense of camaraderie and place from talking to like-minded people.

15.Mar.11'Portfolio' photography competitions judge the best images a photographer has to offer together. The set is not expected to contain a firm theme, like in a multiple image competition, but a cohesive style should usually be identified.

14.Mar.11Most cameras have a 'native' aspect ratio, one at which the camera records its maximally sized image. Switching to another aspect ratio crops the image, resulting in a smaller photograph.

13.Mar.11'Single image' photography competitions judge every image as a stand-alone work. Even if many images are submitted together, they will be judged separately and are not meant to be thematically linked.

12.Mar.11You don't have to win a photography contest for it to be a positive experience. Creating and selecting the work to enter is great practice, can give you motivation, and will do a lot to help your portfolio.

11.Mar.11Working in the cold is something that needs to be practiced. Extra batteries, thick gloves and numb fingers can make a photographer clumsy and unproductive. Once you have a system, working in the cold can be easy and fun!