Say Cheese Jack O’Lantern! – Using Exposure Compensation

There was great excitement in the Owens house last night when we carved out the pumpkins which have been sitting on the porch since last weekend’s visit to the pumpkin patch. I have to say that I love this American tradition! In Ireland, Halloween is more about fireworks and bonfires than pumpkin carving. Anyways, when we were finished making our jack-o’-lanterns we had, of course, to take photos and I thought that it would be a great opportunity to show you how sometimes, even when shooting at night, it’s better NOT to use flash.

This first shot was taken with automatic flash. I just set my camera to automatic and this was the result:

Pretty bad huh? And not at all spooky! The flash totally overwhelms the subject, throws the background into darkness, and we don’t get to experience any of the lights inside the pumpkins.

For the second photo I turned off the flash altogether.

• I did this by selecting “Flash off” in the flash modes setting.

The problem with this method is that although we do experience some of the ambient light coming from inside the pumpkin, it’s way too underexposed, i.e.too dark!!

In photography exposure is everything.  Most people don’t even realize that their compact digital cameras have the ability to change the exposure and we rarely change the ISO but that’s exactly what I did to achieve my final result.

To do this on my camera (Canon Powersot SD 1200IS) I had to

• select M for Manual in the Functions  settings

• Then, I raised my ISO to 400 by pressing the ISO shortcut button on the back of the camera.
  

  ISO Button

  If I only raised the ISO setting I would still have gotten quiet a good shoot so this is worth remembering when shooting in low light conditions.

• Finally I increased my EV or Exposure Compensation to .33 (or 1/3 of an f stop for all the techies out there) in order to allow more light into the camera and hence a longer shutter speed.
  

  Exposure Compensation

It’s important when you are shooting in low light conditions to hold your camera very steady because the long exposure will magnify even the slightest camera shake. In order to counteract this I used two of my favorite tricks – I used my best pal the Gorrillapod and I used the self-timer instead of pressing the shutter button. This will eliminate any camera shake from the action of your pressing the shutter button.

Pretty scary huh?

Now, what do I do with all this pumpkin?

Happy Halloween!!!

Ingrid

P.S.  Please let me know if you try this technique – it can be used for any subject which is self- illuminated!

Flash Photography Tips at the Pumpkin Patch

It’s Pumpkin time! And of course what does one do if one has both a baby and a pumpkin?  You sit on on top of the other of course!  Well, in my case the baby won’t stay on the pumpkin and tries to eat everything around her in the great outdoors – grass, gravel, bugs…(she doesn’t get outside much.)  So for my pumpkin picture we had to have daddy in the frame too.

It was quiet a gloomy day in Smyrna, so check out the two photos below to see what happens when I used my “Fill Flash.”

This first picture was taken in Auto Mode and as we were outside the camera detected that no flash was necessary.

But I know better than my camera!!!

The second picture is so much more vibrant and bright.  I did this by simply switching my Flash to “on” or “Fill-in” so that it will fire outside. this is one of my top flash photography tips!  This give just enough light to brighten up the shadows on my subjects’ faces and adds a bit of sparkle in their eyes.

To do this…

• First, find your Flash button (usually denoted by a “lightening strike”  ) and a “shortcut” button on the back of your camera.
• Select Fill In flash from your flashy type choices – Usually denoted by the” lightening strike” symbol again.  This will ensure that your Flash will fire regardless of lighting conditions that the camera senses.
• Don’t forget that you have to be within about 3 to 4 feet of your subject, otherwise the flash effect will be lost.

So no need to worry if it’s not the perfect Fall day when you have your trip to the pumpkin patch – Use Fill-in Flash!

Welcome to Beginners Photography Blog!

Are you trying to get to grips with a new digital SLR? Are you trying to get a handle on photography basics without the waffle and jargon of those high brow forums? Welcome to Beginners Photography Blog! You’ve found a place where there is no such thing as a stupid question and we are all learning together. I’ve been teaching photography in the “real world” for over 10 years and been involved in the photographic industry for the past 20yrs. I love helping people get the most out of their cameras and improve their photography easily, sometimes by just knowing which mode to use! This blog will help you do that and more!

In my experience I’ve found that although there is a ton of photography information out there online, it can be sometimes difficult for a beginner in photography to know were to begin.  Maybe you can’t be bothered with that manual or perhaps you can’t make head nor tail what that camera icon is – I promise I’ve got you covered! Beginners Photography blog is a great place to get lots of tips and tricks that will help make your pictures pop without having to know the intricate workings of your camera!

So if you’ve already begun to learn photography or if you’re just thinking about buying a Digital SLR,  subscribe to our RSS feed to be sure you don’t miss any secret tips of the trade!

Black and White Photography

At a family gathering this weekend I was reminded of the beauty of black and white photography. Instead of the usual family snapshots of people posing , fakey smiles and bright colors, our efforts were rewarded with a set of timeless pictures where we are not distracted by fashion or fads and the true personalities of our subjects can shine. A lot of times we forget how beautiful Black and White can be, choosing instead the “reality” of color. I have to be honest and say that in the past I’ve kept Black and White for Lansdcapes and Scenery and the odd posed portrait shot. So think about using this mode for an unusual twist on what could otherwise be another set of snaphots.

Black and White mode can be found on most cameras within the scene mode menu. Look for BW icon or a color mode. I feel it works best in situations where you can forgo flash so if your inside, turn off your flash and push up your ISO to 400 or 800.

If you’d prefer you can desaturate the color from your images after they have been taken by using a photo manipulation program such as Adobe Photoshop Elements or Picasa 3. This will certainly give you more control over the black and white effect you apply but can sometimes be quite laborious if you have several shots to work on.