Hints & Tips

Here are some hints and tips to help you “Capture the Power” but remember there are no rules in photography. Have fun, experiment and you will find your perfect shot.

1	Which way up - horizontal or vertical? When framing your subject experiment with holding your camera in a vertical and horizontal position and see which one works best for your photo. The vertical position is known as portrait format and is mostly used for photographing the face and the horizontal position is known as landscape, mostly used for photographing landscape.
2	Framing the rule of thirds The best position to place your main subject when composing is usually one third from the top or bottom of the picture frame and a third in from either side. Try experimenting with placing your subject at different positions within the frame and see the difference in effect.
3	Try different points of view Photographing your subject from a low angle can add power and height or perhaps try a high angle looking down on your subject to diminish the sense of scale and power.
4	Get the most out of weather You don't have to wait for sunny days to take pictures outdoors. Make the most of misty, foggy and hazy days to create atmospheric and mysterious type of photos.
5	Expand your view of things with a wide angle The wide angle is great for taking pictures of panoramic views of landscape and cityscapes. You can also use it to show a person in relation to their work or living environment. However have you ever tried to photograph a person's face using a wide angle? Try it and watch how the face takes on a new shape.
6	Zoom in to get up close Using the zoom on your camera will allow you to photograph situations where you cannot get close to your subject such as wildlife, sport or candid portraits. The focus will be on your subject and not the space around them. Watch out for camera shaking though and use a prop such as a wall or tripod if you have one.
7	Getting exposure right A common fault with photos is that the scene is either too bright or too dark. This is the result of either there being too much (over exposure) or too little light (under exposure) reaching the film or sensor in your camera. To avoid over exposure, point your camera more towards the brighter area of your scene or close your aperture down a stop to reduce the amount of light entering into your camera. For under exposure point your camera more towards the darker area of your scene or open your aperture up one stop to allow more light to enter.
8	Light up the time of day Try taking pictures at different times of the day and see how the quality of light changes. Early morning and late evening light are generally good for creating softer, more low contrast images. The golden hour, usually about one hour before sunset, is a fantastic time for capturing warmer and richer colours.
9	Avoiding getting red in the eye Red eye is created when the flash is reflected back from the person's retina to the camera. It is most likely to happen when photographing in dark environments. Some cameras have a red eye reduction mode on the camera to reduce this or ask the person you're photographing to look slightly away from the camera.
10	Flash to flatter Using the built in flash on your camera to photograph a portrait can give you the result of lighting your subject to reveal detail but flatten any appearance of depth and atmosphere. Try putting tracing paper over your flash to diffuse its intensity or if you have a separate flash unit, point it towards the ceiling to bounce light on to your subject.

• Winners 2010
• Overview
• Gallery
• Hints & Tips
• Prizes
• Winners 2009

Call us if you have any questions, we'd love to hear from you!