Basic Composition

Here are some rules to follow when trying to compose a visually appealing image.

The "famous" Rule of Thirds cuts the frame into thirds. Imagine, equally spaced, two vertical and two horizontal lines across the frame of the image. The points where these meet are interesting places to place objects. Also using one of these lines to place the horizon line is ideal. Just break an image into thirds any way possible and explore the results.

Groups of three are ridiculously visually appealing for some magical reason.

Avoid dead center. Dead center usually result in very...dead looking images. They tend to be boring.

Color can make a dynamic impact on your images. Particularly primary colors, they're strong attention grabbers.

Contrast can make a big difference in the quality of your image. You don't want it to look bland.

Simple is better. An image with a lot going on can be distracting, the viewer doesn't know what to look at. This is especially true for cluttered backgrounds distracting from your subject.

Fill the frame, get closer, focus on what intrigues you or grabbed your attention.

Leading lines, use them to attract the viewers eye to the subject. Diagonal lines work especially well.

Give the face space. Leave more space in front of a face or moving object. It looks awkward when the subject looks as if it has no room to move and is about to smash into the frame.

One last suggestion, break the rules. Forget everything I just told you (but not really). Just go with your gut. If you think it looks good, to hell with everything/everyone else.

Lighting

Whatever environment your photographing in, lighting is very important. Whether you're using ambient light (the sun, or overhead lights), or using a flash, it has a very large impact on how appealing your final image is.

When you rely on ambient light, it can create a lot of problems. If it's too sunny outside your shadows will be harsh. If its too dark or cloudy outside you might have to slow down your shutter speed or increase the ISO. Both of which can degrade image quality. You will get the most effective outdoor ambient light either in the shade on a sunny day, during an overcast sky, or taking advantage of the "Golden Hour" Right after sunrise, or right before sunset.

Indoor ambient light can create even bigger issues. Unless you have a fantastic camera that handles dark conditions well, or you have a tripod, most of the time you will need additional lighting. That being said, a great light source is the window on a sunny day.

Nighttime photography will require either a tripod and longer exposures, or additional lighting. And if there is absolutely no ambient light (you're in the middle of the woods, in the middle of nowhere) you won't get anything.

Most of the time you use additional lighting will be indoors or at night, it is rarely used outdoors in the daytime unless the photographer wants a specific lighting look on a subject with an outdoors background.

You have a few options for lighting.

• Your on camera flash-can be weak and create unattractive shadows.
• A hotshoe flash-generally attaches to the top of your camera, more powerful, but unless a diffuser or it is angled to bounce it has the same issue with shadows.
• Strobes-are much more flexible in a studio setting, you can move them, and have more adjustment options.
• Hot lights-stay on all the time, so they get very hot. Not commonly used.

When it comes to lighting there is some equipment that can be helpful.
Light meter-reads light and can give you advice on how to adjust your lighting for a good exposure.

Bounces or reflectors-are reflective surfaces that can help you direct light, usually use for fill light (to "fill in" shadows).

Diffusers-are materials you attach to a light source to soften light, and decrease shadows.
Umbrellas-are used to bounce light onto a subject, although there are "shoot-through" umbrellas that act as diffusers.

Soft boxes-are gigantic diffusers that give optimal lighting for portraits.

Gels-can be played with to create colored lighting, or correct off colored lighting.

Essentially if you're wandering around and need a flash, a hotshoe flash with a diffuser works great. If you're working in a studio, strobes with a soft box are normally best. And if you're outside in the daytime, you don't need anything. Just be conscious of the direction of the sun and the effect it has on your subject, and you can use a reflector to improve the lighting if needed.

Focusing

There are a few different focusing modes to chose from. What you will choose depends on what your subjects is, and if it is moving or not.

• Continuous or AI Servo- This is for moving objects, the camera continuously readjust focus. This mode can be rough on your camera battery.
• One Shot or Single- This is for static, or mostly static, objects. It is usually more accurate and saves battery power.
• Autofocus-This is relatively new, it may not be on your camera. This mode will decide which of the above automatic focusing mode fits what the camera is sensing.
• Manual-You manually focus the lens.

A tip for manually focusing is to bring the object into focus, move past that until the object is just out of focus, then go back in the other direction, just past where it is in focus. Basically you focus back and forth with less and less movement on the lens until you find the spot in the middle that is perfectly in focus.

You can gain a little more control when focusing in an automatic mode by pushing the shutter button partway down (the camera will usually beep when it is successfully focused). When you lift your finger you will lose that set focus, so it can be readjusted, or give control back to the camera. You can use this for objects that are difficult to focus on. Just focus on another object close by, then move the camera to frame the image and press the shutter button down the rest of the way. Also there may be a AF-ON button on the back of your camera that will hold the focus even if you release the shutter button.

The little lights in your viewfinder that light up as the camera focuses are your focal points. Some modes use multiple points to set the focus, other modes will just use one. You can also manually set that point so that it is fixed.

In most cases you will use automatic focus, just because it is is faster. Just remember you are relying on the camera to figure out what is in focus, and that may not always be reliable. Particularly in dark environments. Be sure to check at least every other image to be sure that your camera is focusing correctly.

Mini Photography Lesson Update

Sorry for the delay, just finished up graduation season. Hopefully I can finish this up in the next week or two. I have another project in mind that I'm VERY excited about. So stay tuned!

Camera Modes

Most cameras have automatic, or semi-automatic shooting modes. In manual mode you control everything. Automatic modes can vary from camera to camera and manufacturer to manufacturer. Your camera may have a couple other settings it will change in the following modes, but these are the essentials that impact exposure.

In the following basic automatic modes the camera automatically determines:

• Full Auto: aperture, shutter speed, ISO, white balance, flash.
• Flash Off Auto: aperture, shutter speed, ISO, white balance.
• Program: aperture, shutter speed.
• Aperture Priority: shutter speed.
• Shutter Speed Priority: aperture.

Most cameras also have the following modes as well, their purposes are pretty clear:

• Movie
• Close Up
• Landscape
• Night Portrait
• Portrait
• Sports

Your purposes and skill with the camera will determine which mode you use. I recommend using Manual at all times, at least at first, so you can get a better understanding of what is affecting your exposure. And what to change if it isn't to your liking. The Shutter and Aperture Priority can speed things up at times without throwing in too many variables as well.

Exposure

A digital camera composes an image file by using a sensor, which then gathers that data to compose the image. The more light that the sensor is exposed to, the brighter, or more exposed the image is. The amount of light that is allowed into the camera can be changed by:

• The amount of time the shutter is open, which is the shutter speed. 
• The size of the opening of the opening which is the aperture also called the f-stop. 
• The sensitivity of the sensor which is called ISO. 

Impact on Exposure
Shutter Speed
A shutter speed of 1/125 is faster than 1/60. At faster shutter speeds there will be less motion blur because the amount of time the image is taken in is less. But the image will be darker at a faster shutter speed because there is less time for the light to get to the sensor.

Aperture
An opening of f10 is smaller than f8. A smaller opening makes the image darker because there is less room for the light to get in. But it allows for more in the image to be sharper (depth of field).

ISO
A setting of 100 ISO is less sensitive to light than a setting of ISO 1000. The more sensitive the ISO, the brighter the image. But the higher the ISO the grainier the image.

Therefore the following exposures are the same, but have different effects on the image:
1/60, f8, ISO400: Possibility of blur, more in focus, slightly grainier.
1/250, f2.8, ISO200: Low possibility of blur, less in focus, less grainy.

File Settings

There are a few settings that affect the quality of your final images: file format, image size, and "image quality". Most medium to high end cameras have setting that differ in name, but effectively do the same thing.



File Formats
RAW-If you want the highest possible quality and file information to work with during the editing process, this is your setting. These are larger files, and you will need plugins to view them on your computer etc.
Jpeg-These are easier to handle because you don't have to convert them to share them. But be careful how you handle them because the quality can be degraded.
RAW+Jpeg-This is a nice option that gives you the best of both worlds. It makes a copy of the image in each file format. But this setting will fill your memory card up quickly.

Image Size
This is exactly what it sounds like. This will determine the dimensions of your final image. Most cameras have a large, medium, and small setting. The exact dimensions differ from camera to camera, so you will have to check your manual. Obviously the larger the image, the larger the file size and the more room it will take up.

Image Quality
Quality settings can be very different depending on the manufacturer and the age of the camera. The settings are "Fine" and "Basic", or sometimes they are "Smooth"and "Blocky". These are generally paired with a file format. Basically this refers to how fine the details of the image are due to how much the image is compressed. The greater the detail, the larger the file size.



Most of the time a RAW file will have to most information and automatically be the choice with the best detail in the final image. However if you are not shooting professionally, editing, or intending to sell the image, a medium size jpeg will do. And if you want to save space and don't mind small pictures and poor detail, a small jpeg of basic/rough quality will do.

New Project: Mini Photography Lessons

For the next few weeks I will be helping friends with an interest in Photography. My more experienced friends are welcome to correct me, make suggestions, or discuss topics. Perhaps what they found useful when they were first learning.

Topics I'll cover:

• File Settings-quality adjustments, pros and cons.
• Exposure-how to make adjustments and the effects those methods of adjustments have.
• Automatic camera modes-Automatic, aperture & shutter priority modes.
• Focusing-modes and tips.
• Lighting-equipment and environments.
• Basic Composition-composing an appealing image.

More may be introduced as ideas come to me, and if questions are asked. After learning about a topic, apply what you've learned as soon as possible, it's more likely to stick that way. You'll learn the most by actually having your camera in your hands and putting it to work in different situations.

For now, anyone interested should briefly read their camera manual (you may need to find it online, Camerapedia is a good place to start). If you have time, read through a section at a time. At the very least, find out which buttons do what.