Photography Tips and Tricks

Ah, summertime. Time to pack up the family and head out on another vacation. This vacation, come home with pictures you can be proud of. These tips will help.

Be Prepared

Part of getting those great pictures is being prepared. Make sure to have your camera with you at all times. Keep it turned on with the LCD monitor turned off. This is the best way to be ready for shots and save batteries at the same time. It takes much more battery power to turn a camera on and off than to leave it on with the LCD screen turned off.

Keep an eye out for unusual shots. Interesting buildings, strange characters, and lively shops all have the potential to make a memorable vacation shot.

Keep a notebook handy so that you can write down a little info about each picture. An amazing picture of a historical building is only half as good if you don’t know which historical building it is. A simple note like, “White building, red shutters- The Hospitality House of 1912,” is enough to jog your memory.

Repetition

Another key to great vacation photos is repetition. It’s all about playing the numbers. Take as many shots as possible of the same subject. The more shots you take, the more likely you are to get a great shot. You can always delete the bad shots later!

Tripod

Keep a small tripod with you at all times. The tripod will come in handy when you want to be in the picture and there is no one else to take the picture. It will also be needed for any night shots, fireworks during the 4^th of July, and any other shot that takes a slow shutter speed.

Use these tips and you will want to show off your vacation photos to all your friends and family!

Digital cameras can be tricky when it comes to cleaning them. All of the electronic parts tend to make most people nervous. The outside of a digital camera can be cleaned, though, quite easily and safely.

The Lens

The lens is one of the easiest things to get dirty on a digital camera. Dust and fingerprints collect there, making photos less than perfect.

Since the lens has small nooks and crannies, the best thing to clean it with is a cotton swab. Dip the cotton swab in window cleaner. Dab almost all of the window cleaner off of the swab with a paper towel. You want the swab almost dry so the cleaner doesn’t drip into the camera’s electronic parts. Then, run the swab around the inside rim of the lens. Use a fresh swab to clean the glass of the lens.

LCD

Another gathering spot for dust and prints is the digital camera’s LCD screen. This can seem impossible to clean because of the delicate nature of LCD, but it can be cleaned easily with the right tools.

For everyday cleaning, keep a shammy used to clean eye glasses handy. These shammies will get rid of light accumulations of dust and fingerprints without harming the screen.

For tougher grime, spray the shammy lightly with window cleaner and gently rub the screen in light circles. Never spray the screen, or any part of the camera, with cleaner.

Remember to use a light touch when cleaning LCD screens. Pressure can damage them.

Buttons

After a while, oils from fingertips will collect on the camera’s buttons, making them dull, dust magnets. Clean the buttons the same way you cleaned the lens. Dip a cotton swab in window cleaner, blot most of the cleanser off the swab, and rub the buttons with the swab while the camera is off.

Do not use harsh cleansers on your camera and make sure never to let moisture drip into the camera and your digital camera will benefit from your extra loving care.