Photography Tips and Tricks

If you want to make your digital pictures better, then use these seven simple tips.

Fill’er Up!
No matter what you’re photographing, always fill your viewfinder or LCD screen with your subject. This adds the most interest to your photo and really makes your subject the star.
Avoid Face Shadows
No matter what your lighting, you can still end up with shadows. Shadows on the face can be aging and not very flattering. Use your camera’s fill flash to remove the little shadows around the eyes and chin.
Go Vertical
When shooting tall subjects, turn your camera on its side so that the viewfinder is vertical. This makes filling up your viewfinder much easier, and you don’t have to back up as far to get a good shot.
No Aliens, Please
Everyone has probably given someone bunny ears in a photo before. The “bunny ear” effect can happen on accident, too. Never pose people so that their heads are right in front of light poles, car antennas, tree trunks, or other vertical object. It will look like your subject has something weird growing out of their heads, which isn’t very attractive.
Get Level
Don’t always shoot photos straight on. Straight ahead photos are boring. Don’t be afraid to get on your knees to shoot smaller objects or to stand on things to get a better angle. Professional photographers get such great shots because they aren’t afraid to go low or high to get the shot.
It’s All About the Numbers
Another thing that professional photographers do is take multiple shots of their subjects. In fact, most pros can go through 100 photos in one shoot. Why? Because the more photos you take, the more likely you are to get one that is phenomenal.
Not Too Close
Don’t stand too close to your subject when using a flash. The colors will be washed out if you do. If you need to use the flash and you need to be close, use your zoom to fill the frame.
 

Your camera’s viewfinder is your best tool for creating the best photo composition. Your viewfinder should look like a frame around your subject, creating the best composition possible before you click the shutter button. Here is how to use your viewfinder to compose a great picture.

Viewfinders and Surprises

First, you need to understand the difference between what you see in a viewfinder and what you get in the finished photo.

Point and shoot cameras crops the image in strange ways, so what you see in your viewfinder isn’t exactly what you get. SLR cameras (Single Lens Reflex), unlike point and shoots, have one lens to view the scene and capture the image, so the picture is going to look exactly like what you saw in the viewfinder. Digital cameras also give you a perfect view of what your picture will look like.

Cropping

Cropping should always be the first thing you do to when planning a picture with your viewfinder.

Use your viewfinder to crop your subject. Look through the viewfinder and use it to eliminate elements that distract from the main subject by visually cutting them off.

An easy way to do this is to use your camera’s zoom. Look through the viewfinder. Zoom in to cut out extra objects from the viewfinder. Zoom out to add more to the subject.

Rule of Thirds

Using the Rule of Thirds can take the mystery out of advanced composition. This technique is used by photographers everywhere.

Find your angle by using the Rule of Thirds by looking into your viewfinder and dividing the area in the viewfinder into thirds horizontally and vertically. Think of the square of your viewfinder as a tic-tac-toe board. Your focal point should lie on at least one of the four line intersections.

So, basically, your subject should be in one of the upper left area, lower left area, upper right area, or lower right area. Generally, this lends to a stronger composition than just centering your subject in your viewfinder, which tends to be quite boring.

Using your viewfinder properly will give you great photos time after time, without the need to edit them later.