Make sure your subjects are well lit. Camera phones have very small lenses that don’t let much light in, so the more light around you the better. Particularly avoid shooting at night, or low light indoor scenes.

Hold the phone steady. Another by-product of the small lens size is that the exposure time (ie shutter speed) is longer than you would expect . which means it’s more likely to get a blurry image. I like to rest my phone against a ledge or pole when taking a shot.

Get Close. My Digital Photography Move Closer Secret is even more relevant for camera phones as the images tend to be small in size. Better to have a full frame of your subject than a tiny spot in the middle of your image! Oh – don’t get too close either, as this can cause distortion of your subject due to the camera’s lens.

Use a plain background. Again, the small image size means your subject could tend to get ‘lost’ in the photo of the background is too busy. You want your subject to be the focus of your viewer’s attention, not the background.

Take full advantage of your phone’s capabilities. Some phones can associate a picture with a person in your address book, and display a photo caller ID whenever they call you. Other phones allow you to control the camera’s white balance. Learn the specifics of your particular phone.

Know where your images are being stored. Images take a lot of memory, so it’s usually best to save your photos to a storage card rather than your phone’s built in memory. And make sure you’ve copied your images from the phone before deleting them!

Clean your lens! This sounds simple, but it’s surprising how often a great photo is ruined because of a fingerprint on the lens. A clean cloth is preferable to clean your lens, but in a pinch your shirt will work too.

And finally, here are some great uses for your camera phone

Taking photos where cameras aren’t allowed. More and more sporting events are restricting or banning the use of cameras. But they still allow camera phones. Take photos of your team’s big win on your camera phone – a lower quality image is better than none at all.

New Baby pictures. Send photos of your new arrival to your relatives minutes after the birth.

Capture a last minute inventory for insurance purposes.

In fact, a camera phone is very useful in ANY situation where you are afraid your regular camera could be damaged or stolen. Or if your camera is one extra item you just don’t want to take.

Use a Tripod. This is essential for fireworks photography as most of your exposure times will be between 1 and 15 seconds.

If you don’t have a tripod handy, you will get some camera movement. You can counter this and create a special effect by exaggerating the movement by moving the camera in a circular motion, or zooming in.

For best effect, you really need a camera where you can control the shutter speed and the aperture. Some cheaper P&S cameras may not allow you to get the best results, but it’s always worth trying to see how you go.

Use long exposure times (keep the shutter open for a long time). You will want to capture both the initial explosion as well as the trails left behind by the burning particles. Anywhere from just under a second to more than 15 seconds will work. Try a few different options and use what’s best.

If the sky is black, you can leave the shutter open for a long time and wait for the right firework to be in your viewfinder. Alternatively, you can cover the lens with a piece of black cardboard until the right firework arrives.

If you can’t control the shutter speed, take LOTS of shots. Use Continuous mode to keep the camera shooting. Some of the shots won’t work, but you should get 3 or 4 good shots for the night.

Use a Cable Release or remote control. This is a button on a lead that allows you to tell the camera to take the shot without moving the camera itself. If you use the shutter release on the camera, you can wobble the camera too much and produce unwanted effects. If you don’t have a cable release, you can use the timer function of the camera so it takes the shot a few seconds after you press the button. Note you’ll need to pre-empt the firework so the camera shutter is open at the correct time.

Focus. Most of the time all fireworks will be the same distance from you, so you can use the same focus setting on your camera for the whole show. Use the first few fireworks to set the focus and set your camera to use that for future shots. This will save a second or two in focus time for each image. If your camera can’t preset focus, set it to Landscape Mode.

Turn off the flash. If you can’t turn it off, try covering it with something like tape.

If you want full-framed shots, you should use a telephoto lens. Keep your tripod head loose and follow the tracer with your viewfinder. Release the shutter when it explodes. To include most of the fireworks in a scene, the regular lens is fine. Zoom in enough to compose all your fireworks.

Make sure there are no unwanted buildings or lights in frame that will distract from the final shot.

Merge the fireworks together using Image Manipulation software. It’s a lot easier to get an image with lots of fireworks if you take lots of images separately and merge them together afterwards on a computer. You can even make some fireworks appear smaller or larger to make a more balanced and pleasing composition. The quickest way to merge firework images is to use Photoshop and the “Screen” layer merge option.

Every situation is unique so the best advice is to go to a place that regularly runs fireworks shows and get lots of practice.

Most couples hire a professional photographer, so be careful not to interfere with the professionals.

Buy some bridal magazines beforehand and look at the photos inside for inspiration.

The bride’s dress can overpower the camera, as it’s all white. Either the dress looks perfect and the bride’s face is too dark, or her face is perfect and the dress has no details. This can be circumvented by using a reflective surface (like a large white card) to direct extra light towards the bride’s face. A white wall can achieve the same purpose.

Use different angles. Try zooming in on a kiss, or tilting the camera slightly.

At the Church: Some churches don’t allow flash photography. If your camera doesn’t work well in low light don’t try to take any shots in the church. Instead wait until the happy couple pauses on the church front steps. Plan ahead and find a good location before they exit the church.

Don’t just focus on the bride and groom – take photos of the other guests.

At the Reception: Events at the reception include cutting the cake, the first dance and the bouquet toss. Plan ahead so you can be at the right place at the right time – it helps to have a family member alert you when the event is about to start.

“Be prepared” is the motto when shooting weddings! Attend the rehearsal and take note of the sequence of events. If there is no rehearsal, visit the scene of the wedding beforehand and study the lighting and other conditions that will affect your photos. Knowing what to expect will save you lots of time on the day.

When shooting at weddings you want to minimize the distractions of using any manual settings of your camera, but still want great photos. One way to do this is to use your camera’s custom white balance feature. Take a white balance reading at the front of the church; inside the church; and in the hallway – whenever the light changes a lot. Use the same reading for all shots at that location. If your camera supports it, you can also ‘save’ these settings beforehand as index shots and switch back to the appropriate settings when you take the photos.

For interesting shots, try not showing everything in your image – leave some to the imagination. For instance, the bride may have a veil and a headdress etc. Rather than showing these with every picture, cut it away and leave hints every now and then.

• Catch your pet in action – fetching a ball or stick, playing with a toy.
• Dogs in particular have a lot of energy. A bouncing-with-energy dog makes a fantastic photo subject.
• Cats can show a keen concentration. Move in close to their face but use the optical zoom so your cat desn’t get distracted by a camera in their face.
• Find where your pet loves to play, and hang out with them there. If they like playing with a person, have the person there as well. Keep the camera handy and when you see a great shot, take it!
• Have someone to help you if your pet is being uncooperative. They can supply a very useful extra hand.
• Bribing your pet with a treat will help if they’re not cooperative.
• Use a squeaky toy to get them to look towards the camera if you’re after a more traditional portrait shot.
• Use a high shutter speed – particularly when your pet is excited. The more excited they are, the more they move around and can produce blurry images.
• Simple backgrounds are best. Look for a solid color as a background so your pet stands out. Just make sure your pet doesn’t blend in and become invisible!
• Avoid flash because a lot of pets eyes will reflect a green color (red-eye but green).
• Don’t forget your smaller pets. Make sure you get really close, and avoid shots with cage bars. Try shooting through the open cage door. Turtles can be placed with almost anything and produce a stunning photo.
• Use the natural curiosity of your pet to your advantage. Give your kitten a new toy or play area and watch them investigate!
• Take a bit of time to get the right photo. You may need to shoot thirty or more shots to get a perfect one. Keep working with it and you’ll be amazed at the results.
• Groups of pets can make stunning photos, but you need a LOT of patience!

At the Zoo

At a zoo, you can shoot animals other than your pet. Zoo photos are great because you can use them to teach your children about various animals and create posters and other projects.

• Watch for glass when using your flash. If there is glass between you and the animal you wish to photograph, place your camera on an angle so the flash doesn’t reflect back at the camera.
• Flash also won’t reach very far into the indoor enclosures, so most of the time it might be better to not use the flash. Take a tripod (or monopod) and use the low light tips to take your photo. If you’re outdoors, remember to use the flash to fill shadows.
• Have the camera at the same eye level as the animal.
• Watch the background and make sure it’s simple and free from distractions
• Remember to fill the frame with your subject. Use the highest optical zoom you can.
• Use the rule of thirds.
• Try to get your child and the animal in the same frame. Either with the child’s back, or both as a side-on view.
• Don’t make all your shots of the animals. Capture your child’s expressions when they spot a large creature!

Location

You need to get as close to what you are shooting as you can. Most press photographers are given specific places they can shoot from – and they pay for that privilege. I’m betting you don’t have a press pass and so will need to shoot from the stands. Get as close to the action as possible.

It also helps to know the sport you are photographing. Get into the correct location to enable you to “capture the moment”. Near the goal posts is usually a good spot for Football or Soccer.

Capture The Moment

Sports photography is mostly about timing. Be ready at the right place and be ready to shoot at the right time. Most sports have predictable moments – scoring a goal, getting a home run, shooting a basket. Be ready for when these moments happen.

Remember the following – “If you see the action, you missed it.” This basically means you need to anticipate the action. Don’t wait for the batter to hit the ball before pressing the shutter. If you do, the image will likely to be taken once the ball has been hit and has left the frame. Anticipate by holding the shutter release down half way (so the camera can focus and set the exposure level). Just before the ball is hit, press the shutter all the way down. Through experience, you will learn how much time beforehand you need to press the shutter.

Be aware that sports also have unpredictable moments, so keep a keen eye out for these and have your camera ready.

Sports Equipment

Having the correct gear is essential to great sports photography. Because most of the time you will be standing a long way from the action, you will almost certainly need a telephoto lens to enable you to zoom in. Because most good telephoto lenses are large and bulky, you should also think about a monopod (a tripod with only one leg). An optional piece of equipment is a flash with a high output but be aware that a lot of sports events do not allow flashes. Talk to an event official first to get the okay.

Focus

An out of focus shot is pretty useless. You should aim for every photo to be crisp and clear. Auto focus cameras do a very good job of this, and they usually focus pretty quickly. Many times, however, manual focus will work much better because the camera’s auto focus can take a long time to complete.

There are two ways you can focus your camera – Zone Focus and Follow Focus. Follow Focus is where you keep your camera on the subject, changing the focus as needed to ensure the subject stays in focus as they are moving around the court (or ground). This works well when most of your subjects are moving from side to side in your image – car racing, football and soccer are three examples.

Zone Focus is where you expect the action to take place at a specific position – eg a the basket ball ring or the jump point for a high jumper. Focus on the area you want to be sharp and wait for your athlete to move into the zone.

Composition

Faces. The face is the primary source of emotion, and because emotion is what makes a shot it’s vitally important to include faces in your digital images. It can be difficult to capture faces in some sports (fencing for example involves face cages, baseball caps create shadows on the players faces). Use a flash to fill in the shadows in these instances but remember the flash has a very limited range.

Use Vertical. Because the human form is taller than it is wide, it lends itself to a vertical composition. Rotate your camera 90 degrees so the height of your image is also larger than the width.

Rule Of Thirds. The Rule Of Thirds is also useful here. Divide the frame into thirds vertically and horizontally and place the subject where the lines intersect. Watch for where the player is moving too – if they are moving to the right, place them on the left third line and vice versa.

Take Individual Shots. Most professional photographs are of individuals so try to shoot one person at a time. Exceptions to this are when there is conflict – two players fighting for a ball.

Know Your Sport

Each sport has a different technique for getting the best images and it helps to know the key elements of your sport. Know the basic fundamentals of the game and be prepared for what may happen next. With 15 seconds to go with a basketball team two points down, they may try to shoot a basket from the opposite end of the court. Anticipating this will help immensely with your photographs.

It also helps to know the players. If a particular player does a victory dance after each touchdown, be ready for it when it happens.

Freezing Action Shots

Most of the time you want to freeze the action. People want to see people suspended in mid air, or in mid shot. To freeze the action you need a fast shutter speed. The faster the shutter speed, the better the freeze but the more light you need. Most of the time this won’t be a problem as a lot of sports are held outdoors. Set your camera to the fastest shutter speed possible.

The Illusion of Movement

It isn’t always the best thing to freeze-frame the action. Blurry images imply movement which helps in some sports. You don’t want a race car to appear to be standing still but having the car crisp while the background is blurry will help show that the car is moving fast.

Slow your shutter speed down and follow the subject (panning) with your camera. Try to keep your subject in the same position in the frame. This will blur the background and keep your subject sharply focused.

Emotion

Hands down Emotion is what makes fantastic photos. If there is no emotion, there is no desire to view a photo. Fortunately, sports participants who are exerting themselves exhibit emotion. The thrill of victory or the agony of defeat are both fantastic emotions to capture. But don.t forget the other chances for emotion to show: A high jumper preparing for the highest jump of his career; a cricketer batsman positioning a hit ball between two fielders; Even a junior hockey player getting the hair out of her eyes.

Oh, and crowd reactions also make fantastic shots. Don’t forget to turn your camera around every now and again and look at the crowd.

Take Safe Images

Although you want to try to take memorable shots at key points in the action, sometimes you just miss them. To ensure you have a record of the day, take a number of “safe” images that will show what happened, but may not have the emotion of that specific action shot. Take images of the players doing “what they do” in the sport. Eg a tennis player serving.

Take lots of images

Not every image you take will be a perfect shot capturing the action and emotion. Prepare for this and take as many shots as you can while at the event. It’s not unusual for professional photographers to take 100 shots during a match and only use two or three. Don’t just take any old shots though. Try to plan each one to capture a story or an emotion.

Taking memorable sports images can take time and effort, but with patience and a little knowledge, you too can produce sports magazine quality images.

Taking Photos At The Beach

The beach is a fantastic place to not only photograph your family and friends having fun, but you can get some good landscape photography of the beaches or hills as well.

• When taking photos of sandcastles, drop down to the same level as the sandcastle and ensure your family is at the same level
• The summer sun will usually be very bright and harsh. The best light will usually be in the late afternoon or early morning.
• Take your telephoto lens if you have one. Pictures of surfers work really well in closeup.
• Watch for beach animals such as crabs and photograph them using your Macro function.
• Try standing in the water, keeping your camera close to the water and shooting towards the beach for an unusual shot.
• Keep the flash on. This will “fill in” the shadows on their faces (particularly if your subjects are wearing hats)
• Be careful with your camera, as sand and salt water are very harmful substances to get inside your camera!

Taking Photos At National Parks

Natural wonders abound in National Parks. There’s so much to photograph: The Animals, Scenery, Your Family!

• When photographing wondrous scenery like waterfalls, focus on that subject but don’t make it the only thing in your photograph. Include some sky, or a person for scale.
• Again, keep the flash on to help with shadows on your subject’s faces.
• Take advantage of the scenery. When photographing your family and friends, include something of the surrounding area in the photograph as well.
• Try different angles to see if you can make the shot more interesting. Eg shooting upwards from ground level.
• Taking more than one battery will help because you’ll have loads of good photo ops you won’t want to waste any!
• Look for detail. The sheer cliff face might be breathtaking, but the climber scaling the cliff would be just as exciting to capture in your photos.

Take plenty of memory!
Make sure you have extra memory cards, have another storage facility like a Laptop or media storage unit.

Get close
Don’t stand too far from your subject – instead get nice and close so you can see their face. Either a three-quarter shot, or profile generally works well.

Candid counts
Images with people are usually more interesting when the subject is caught in a candid moment. When setting up for a posed shot, try to include something interesting to liven up the shot.

Make your trip a story.
Create a visual diary by photographing landmarks along your journey such as signposts and street scenes. You can also capture the mood of the day – If you feel bright and happy, shoot some scenes which will capture that feeling. If you’re moved by what you see, ensure your shots convey that feeling.

Take shots at meals
This is the time when family is gathered around. Take advantage of it by taking an image or two of your relatives around the dinner table. Ensure you use a the red eye reduction mode of your flash and activate the self timer if you also wish to be in the shot.

Include the mundane
Most vacation photographers just photograph landmarks and scenery. Make your vacation shots more interesting by including the mundane – washing the dishes, taking off in the car, setting up camp, waiting for an aeroplane etc.

Meet them eye-to-eye

Bring yourself down to the child’s level – even if you need to crouch down. This will give your shots a ‘kids eye view’ and won’t distort their image (as taking the shot from above does).

Capture natural expressions

While posed shots are great, often better results can be gained by capturing an image when their thoughts are preoccupied with something else like while at play. You’ll capture their faces enjoying the moment rather than thinking about the camera.

Familiarity ensures success

Children who have grown up having their photo taken will be a lot less likely to freeze or show off in front of a camera. Start early and make photo taking a part of every day out.

Children grow up quickly

Record their growth from toddler to child to young adult by taking a family photo every year around the same time – either the first day of school, or during spring events.

Candid photos are usually simple photos without a lot of technical equipment or any time taken ‘setting up the shot’. Thus they capture some wonderful ‘slices of life’!

Here are some tips for taking candid photos:

• Take your camera everywhere you go! Keep alert for candid situations – they can be found everywhere.



• Some examples of candid shots: A daydreaming store owner; an elderly man sitting beside you; commuters waiting for a train; two lovers on a park bench about to kiss; a child’s delight when feeding ducks; elation of a football supporter when a goal is scored; a city tramp surrounded by clutter; a woman lost in thought staring at the beach.
• It’s rare to get a second chance with candid photography. When you see an opportunity, grab it!
• Don’t use complicated lighting techniques for taking your candid shots. Concentrate on the simple and use your camera’s automatic features. Technical problems don’t matter so much if you have a great candid photo. Most technical problems (like if the image is too dark or too light) can be fixed on your computer.
• Set your camera to “ISO 400″ so it uses a fast shutter speed. This will help you ‘grab’ the shot even if you are moving.
• The best candid photographers blend into the background so don’t be too obvious. Do what everyone else is doing so you fit in with the situation. Then when you see a good candid moment, bring your camera up to your eye.



• You don’t always need to take the shot with your camera at eye level. Support your camera on your waist when taking the photo. Some luck or experience is needed here to get the framing right.
• Use your zoom lens to it’s fullest extent so you can keep away from the action while taking your shot. A Telephoto lens is essential if you’re going to be a fair way away.
• Never take photos of people’s backs. Nothing is more boring than a group of people with all backs turned to the camera. It just doesn’t work.
• Try converting the image to Black and White to get that extra punch and emotion.
• People ‘doing things’ make the best candid photos. Sports players, trades people, farmers and accountants are all excellent examples of subjects with ‘things to do’. Try to capture the essence of the person’s task. For example, you might capture a plumber concentrating on fixing a leaky pipe.
• If you’re in a public place, it’s usually okay to photograph people. If they object however, you need to stop. If you’re not sure, it never hurts to ask permission before hand. Your subject may want to pose, so explain what you saw them doing and ask them to continue as if you weren’t there.
• Experiment! Sometimes the artistic expression of a candid photo can be limited by you; the photographer. Try different angles, places and scenes. Look at candid photos created by others (they can be found in lots of magazines) for inspiration.

Candid photography is a great way to add some artistic flare to your photos without spending a lot of time with the technical aspects of photography.