Thursday, January 31, 2008

Quick and Dirty Tips for Taking Freelance Article Photos

If only I had known then what I know now. I really tried to learn about photography before I went on my first assignment. But my eyes glazed over at the talk of f-stops and exposures. I didn't have time to take a class, but my pictures improved enormously after I looked at some basic tips Kodak has for taking pictures - with visuals!


What I've learned:

This is tricky because most cameras auto focus on stuff in the middle. I have to push the button halfway to focus it, then move the subject to where I want it.

Use a one color background to highlight your subject matter. Stuff get's lost if the background is too busy.

Sure, we always said it about Aunt Verbena, but be careful she doesn't actually end up with a pole up her butt in the photo. Watch for objects that visually merge together in the photo and move your subject as needed.

Try Different Angles:
The same subject from another angle can look uber different. Here are two pictures I took from different angles. This is Branson's Titanic Musuem shot from both sides.









Buy a 2G memory card for your camera, and go crazy. It's always better to have more pictures to choose from.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Cool! Thanks for the tips! I love taking pics - and this digital business just makes it so fun and easy. I've been lazy and not used my 5mp camera much, only my 2mp camera phone, so images are less clear; but since I almost always have the camera phone, I take pics when the opportunities arise!

zeldadg said...

I've gotten addicted to taking pictures lately. I think it's like writing - the more you do it, the better you get.

I'm off to to take pictures of our snow day!