Jun 02, 2001 03:41 AM
5808 Views
Wow, I think I can go on and on about this topic. There is so many different aspect of a photograph that makes it a good photograph. Lighting, subject, and background all makes a big difference in the photograph. If you want to learn how to shoot good photograph, make sure you have good lighting. I know it's tough to do sometimes when you decide to shoot a party or a gathering, but without good lighting, the photograph is not going to look good.
Good lighting is a key to most of the photograph. If you shoot a photograph outdoor in the early morning or late afternoon, you are going to get a soft lighting on the fast and a very nice glow around your hair. With the with difference the lighting in the morning has more gray and blue in it. So your photos are going to look a little bit ''cooler'' on the color palette. In another word, the photos are going to looks a little blue. But if you decide to take pictures in the later afternoon, you are going to get a warm, orange tone in your photos. Use those lighting to create a mood and bring out the emotion in your photograph.
When you shoot outdoor in the bright day light, be sure to use a small flash. If you have a manual camera you can set the aparture and shutter speed to make sure you have a balance exposure. The reason to use a small flash is to get rid of the harsh shadow on faces when the sun is directly above you. Around 10am to 3pm in a bright day, sun is going to create too much contrast in the face. So when you use the flash, it acts like a fill light to fill in the shodow spots on the face. That will give you a lighted, and more balance look on your face.
When you shoot in a dark situation. For example, a cloudy day or indoor lighting. Be sure to open the blinds or curtains when you are shooting indoor. The more natural lighting there is, there better it's going to be. The reason I stress that is because lighting sets a tone in your photographs. The color of a photograph can be effected by flash. When you use flash, unless it's really bright already, it's going to washout the face (makes the face really light) and darken the background. Shooting in a dark situation, try to get the light from a natural source, if that is impossible, use the flash. If you have to set your camera in a low speed to shoot a photograph, use a tripod. If you have a manual camera, it will have the options for shutter speed, if you are shooting 1/60 or lower, use a tripod.
When you are shooting people, especailly children, try to get close up pictures. The more things in the background is just going to be a distraction from the subject of the photograph. Trying to get just the upperbody or just the face. Unless you are shooting more than one people than you could zoom out a little further. If you want to shoot your friends or family been in a certain place. Try to offset the subject (people) in the photograph to either right or left side. That just creates a better composition for the photograph.
There is so much more to talk about, but I'll try to make it short.
I'm used to shooting models so I'll give you some important tips when you want to shoot portraits.
The less make-up the better. Make-up shows in the photograph, powder and excessive color in the face is not going to look good. A good saying for this is less is more.
Wear plain cloth. This goes for either man or woman. Cloth without pattern will look better in the photograph. Cloth do take away attention from the face and you don't want that unless you are shooting the cloth and not the model. Simple pattern would be fine. Black and white are recommended.
Try to have a natural look, pretending to smile only makes your smile look fake. If you don't feel like smiling, DON'T. There's no rule saying everyone has to look happy to have a great photograph. Go with what you are most comfortable with.
Here it is, I hope if you are still reading this you are not bored yet.
If anyone of you have anymore question, feel free to email me or leave comments.
-Michelle
