Daily Photo Tips Archive

03.Feb.09Check your camera's internal light meter periodically by testing it against another camera body. If two bodies show the same exposure for the same scene, they are quite likely both correct.

02.Feb.09Think original. Don't worry if your photos don't look the same as everyone else's. By definition, art is the product of human creativity – unusual photos can be the sign of a developing artistic voice.

01.Feb.09A low ISO will tend to produce colours more vividly and more accurately. This makes it easier to produce photos that better match the scene you're photographing.

31.Jan.09Get used to new equipment before using it for real. Fumbling with equipment or being intimidated by your camera gear will only frustrate you when you're trying to be creative and alert to your surroundings.

30.Jan.09SLR style cameras use a complex series of mirrors and prisms to redirect light from the lens through the viewfinder. They allow the photographer to actually see through the picture-taking lens.

29.Jan.09If you often work in cold weather, consider using a frost-free viewfinder cover. A frost-free cover protects the viewfinder from icing over when you breath on it.

28.Jan.09With many smaller subjects, you have full control over the direction of the light. Simply changing the camera direction will show your subject in a whole different way.

27.Jan.09All of the automatic presets on modern cameras assume that you're hand-holding the camera. The camera will try to maintain a shutter speed of faster than the reciprocal of your lens length.

26.Jan.09Being calm under stress is often key to getting good photographs in difficult conditions. Develop ways to calm yourself – you may find that, without the stress, the photography is really quite simple!

25.Jan.09Barrel distortion is the tendency of a lens to bend straight lines away from the centre of the frame, making two parallel lines look like a barrel. It is usually most pronounced near the edges of the frame.

24.Jan.09Anything you post on the internet, in almost any location, can be copied and shared. If you want to retain exclusive rights to any of your photographs, only post low resolution copies on your website or blog.

23.Jan.09Flashes light near objects exponentially more than far ones. To properly expose a scene with flash, try to arrange your composition so that all of the elements are nearly the same distance away.

22.Jan.09Keep photos that didn't work. Going through a list of your recent mistakes will often teach you more than your successes. Lots of mistakes only means that you're challenging yourself.

21.Jan.09A photographic style is not something that you should try to 'settle' on. If you are learning and growing as an artist, your photographic style should gradually change throughout your artistic career.

20.Jan.09To emotionally connect with your viewer, you must emotionally connect with your subject. Just wanting a photograph isn't enough – great art and great photographs must happen for a reason.