I love photos! I really do. Even if I wasn’t a scrapbooker, I would still love photographs and find ways to incorporate them into my daily life. I use photos to decorate my house, teach my children, inspire myself and others, create scrapbook layouts, and to capture memorable moments. Photographs are also a wonderful addition to blog entries so I use them a lot here on the scrapbook lady blog. I guess I’m a visual person and for me photographs simply illustrate my life.
our own "hall of fame" - my stairway is filled with photographs.
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I am not a professional photographer. I’m definitely an amateur but I do hope I’m moving more toward an advanced amateur level because of the amount of practicing I do. If you are looking for the secret to being a good photographer, the only one I have found so far is practice! I’ve heard many people say “I’m just not a photographer” or “I take lousy pictures” and they seem resigned to that fact. I think that is downright silly. I wouldn’t pull out a sewing machine and expect to sew a wedding dress if all I had ever sewn before was a straight line. Like anything else, it takes time and patience to take good pictures. Oh, and some of it is just luck. Seriously it is. But you can increase your chances of “good luck” by taking LOTS of pictures and not being afraid to just delete bad ones (or even turn those into good ones… but more on that later.) And there are many simple tricks you can use to make sure the pictures you take are great. I will be sharing those over the next few days.
For now let me start by introducing you to my cameras:
Meet my best buddy Sony Cybershot. I LOVE this little guy and I take him everywhere! I keep him in my purse (and my purse is very small) and I pull out the camera all the time. I even take pictures of food in restaurants before I eat it. My hubby and kids have even realized that they should wait to see if I want to snap a photo before we all dig in. LOL!
I took this photo of coconut creme cake (yum!) with my sony cybershot camera.
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You never know when a photo-worthy moment might pop up so having a camera with you always is the very first step to becoming a great photographer. There have only been a few times I didn’t have my camera with me and I almost always ended up regretting it.
yes, I even snap pictures while I'm shopping! IKEA photo taken with my sony cybershot camera.
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Now I know you are probably wondering about bigger and better cameras. Those are great and I finally got one myself just a few months ago. But even the newest ones are a bit big and bulky (not to mention expensive!) so most likely you aren’t going to pack them around with you all the time. I would say that 90% of my photos are still taken with my point and shoot even now that I have a dslr camera. Invest in a good little camera and use it all the time. There are many great models out there, but I’m on my 3rd Sony digital camera now (I’ve upgraded over the years after I started out with a lowly 2 megapixel camera in 2002 – now I’m up to 8.1 and lovin it!). I have loved each and every one of my Sony cybershots so I will heartily recommend them to anyone who asks.
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If you want to make your point and shoot even better I suggest you read the manual (I did) but if you just can’t bear to do that than at least experiment around with all the buttons and settings to see what they do. I just LOVE using the macro setting, which means I turn the dial to the little flower icon and shoot up close. It’s not just for flowers – it’s great for any up close shots.
Valentine Candy Corn taken with my sony cybershot camera on macro setting.
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Another favorite setting of mine is called "soft snap" and it blurs the background a bit and brings the subject into more focus. Looks like a fancy trick but it is so easy. Again, you just turn the dial on your point and shoot camera until that setting comes up. It might be called soft focus on some cameras. You can even use it in combination with the macro setting for even more dramatic results.
May flowers at Home Depot photographed with my Sony Cybershot camera using the macro and soft snap settings.
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Don’t be afraid to try new settings. And stay away from the flash as much as possible. I’ll go into this more in part 3 of this series but basically I can’t stand flash lit photos unless we are talking about professional lighting situations.
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Ok, so that is a very basic introduction to using a point and shoot camera. Now let’s pull out the “big guns”.
Here's my other camera:
After longing for a dslr camera for the past few years I finally got a Nikon D40 this past March for my birthday. I did a lot of research and I'm convinced that this is a fanstastic camera for the price. I’m still somewhat intimidated by the thing. Most likely it is because it hasn’t been in my hands several times a day for the past few years like my little Sony has. I need more time to get used to this camera and I suddenly feel like a beginner again. But in a way that is very exciting and I’m excited for the possibilities.
Mossy ledge in Oregon taken with my Nikon D40 camera using automatic setting.
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I always keep a clear ultraviolet filter on the end of my lens to protect it from scratches. Those lenses are pricey so I don't want to have to replace it very soon. I’ve also had a lot of fun with macro filters. You can read my post about how these little inexpensive things have made me very happy!
English Daisies photo taken with my Nikon D40 and a macro +4 filter.
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While it's nice to finally have my dream camera, I truly believe that good photographers can take good pictures with any camera. An expensive camera will give you great results, but so can a less expensive camera. Don't feel like you have to spend a lot of money to take good photographs! That said, older cameras (especially digital) may not be able to give you the quality you need. If your pictures look grainy or fogged over it's probably time to buy a new camera. I would suggest you get at least a 6 megapixel camera in either point or shoot or dslr. Generally the bigger the better when it comes to megapixels, especially in a point and shoot.
Here are a few good resources to check out for more information about buying a digital camera:
PC World - how to buy a digital camera
Digital Photography School - a 9 step guide to buying a digital camera
WikiHow - How to buy a digital camera
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Related posts :
Part 2 – hold still or shake it up
Part 3 – lighting is everything
