Thursday, April 16, 2009

Remember to use a smaller camera aperture for greater depth of field


A fishing boat moored and ready to sail the next morning. A delightful picturesque shot and a sort of photo you and your digital camera shouldn't miss.

A high camera angle gives depth to the image of the boat tied up to it's mooring, the quayside and the almost high tide tells the rest of the story.

Whenever you shoot a photo, try different camera angles and choose the one that pleases you most.

Remember to use a smaller camera aperture such as f11 for example, for a greater depth of field and under ideal conditions like this the shutter speed would have been around 125/second.

The original image is so sharp you can see the detail in the seating and deck.

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Here's an interesting way to shoot a portrait of your kid


Here's an interesting way to shoot a portrait of your kid by just including his head only in the picture... behind the fortified walls of his castle.

Try to make your photo look more interesting by approaching the idea of a portrait from a totally different angle, in fact the child's angle down at his level.

This shot has worked well and tells the story of the fantasy's he likes to play out defending his castle... I can tell you there were some fierce battles going on at the time, but a smile of victory is all over his face!

Shot using a Canon EOS film camera with the camera flash on, in the Auto setting, but could have easily been a DSLR camera or a digital point-and-shoot camera. You already own a suitable camera to shoot this Image.

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Shoot your storyboard image on a digital SLR camera and see where the inspiration takes you...


"In an English country garden"... In fact in the village of Eydon, UK. a beautiful three hundred year old house... and I can't help thinking of that song!

Sitting out on that lawn, eating home made cakes and drinking afternoon tea brought to you by the servants that use to live in, all those years ago... this would make a great re-create costume photograph of the gentry sitting there while the servants waited on them...

What a photograph that would be, or even a commercial for "Mr Kipling's cakes".

You could make quite a story from this picture, but lets start by finding, but more importantly seeing such a image in your mind.

Shoot your storyboard image on a digital SLR camera or even a film camera and see where the inspiration takes you...

Monday, April 13, 2009

Wherever you point your camera you'll see a great picture waiting to be taken...


Don't English villages make the most pretty images you could ever see... this is Upper Boddington, UK. a most delightful village to photograph and not far from William Shakespeare's Birthplace, Henley Street - Stratford-upon-Avon...

And while your visiting Upper Boddington it's only a short journey to the birthplace of William Shakespeare, which makes a great day out with some great memorable photo opportunities for your digital or film camera.

While your exploring the village of Upper Boddington, there are no end to thatched roof, stone walled cottages and pictures views of the surrounding countryside for your camera to capture.

Take this photo for example, wherever you point your camera you'll see a great picture waiting to be taken.

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Such a simple photo to shoot and almost any camera will do


By showing you this photo I'm indulging a little as these are three of my grandchildren, caught in a split second when they weren't fighting...

They look so angelic but I can assure you they are perfectly normal, caught off-guard when I produced my camera and grabbed this picture.

Definitely one for the photo album!

Such a simple photo to shoot and almost any camera will do, shot on a SLR film camera with a Metz CL4 flash attached to the camera.

The good thing about using a separately attached flash, is that you wont get red-eye caused by the flash being too close to the camera lens.

Think of something funny to say to the kids and wait for the perfect moment and shoot.

Saturday, April 11, 2009

With a mean machine as powerful as that...


This young man is picking up some last minute tips before he takes his historic racing car for a warm up spin around the circuit befor the big race!

With a mean machine as powerful as that he needs to listen very carefully to Dad, so he can finish in first position... no sweat...

Look at that powerful engine it's enough to make you tremble, but as far as Harry is concerned... it's no problem...

In this picture there had to be a decision whether to get a close up of Father and Son at the expense of the topic of conversation, namely the Napier Bentley, or a long shot featuring mostly the car, so a combination of both were chosen.

Notice how the tilt of the camera angle and the lines of the car lead you nicely to the ones deep in conversation.

The trick is to check that the chosen camera aperture will cover the depth of field so that both the figures and the car are in sharp focus... It works well here and overall a nice image.

Friday, April 10, 2009

Is it a little boy's dream, to drive a historic racing car like this...


Is it a little boy's dream, to drive a historic racing car like this, even if it is a vintage 'Napier Bentley'... If so, what a car, what a dream!

Here's a young man that wants to be part of the action and just loves to check out these mean machines.

Perfect weather conditions for the shot, with only minutes to spare before the first downpour of rain, check out that cloud formation.

Don't know if you can make out the words written on the right side of the car... It reads: "If driven responsively, report as stolen"... the owners words not mine.

This makes for a great photo image as the classic machine plus the kid tells us what we need to know about the event.

You could shoot an image like this on just about any camera and get a great picture and it matters little if it's a digital camera or film camera.