How to get the best results from your camera this summer?
Summer is a time of candy floss and cloud gazing, lying on your back and soaking up the rays, exploring and rediscovering your favourite holiday spots and what your own beautiful country has to offer, barbeques and tinny music stereos. It is a time when people smile more, when motivation is so much easier to come by, to get out of bed, go outside and greet the new day. It’s uplifting to the mood and inspiring to the arts. So how do you use this new found enthusiasm as a budding photographer? Here are some handy tips.
1.Summertime means brighter, sunnier days which is a blessing for photographers. Now you can change your camera’s setting to shot at a max. ISO of 200. Decreasing the ‘film speed’ means smaller pixels and more detailed and in focus shots. On bright days you can now shot at fast exposures (set to min: 1/125) so that you don’t have to worry about camera shake outside and can explore the world of motion photography. Being able to shot at shutter speeds of say 1/1000 means that you shutter opens and closes at one thousandths of a second so subjects that are moving fast can now be capturing without blur, for example, sports photography or taking pictures of a bird in flight or dog catching a Frisbee. You can also set your f-stop (aperture opening) to a higher number which means a greater depth of field and more of your image in focus. This is great for those spur of the moment action shots that normally would come out, out of focus or with the focus on the background instead of the foreground and ‘grainy’ so get out there and experiment with what you can capture.
2.Allow bright, sunny days definitely have the fell good factor there are still some things you need to consider as a photographer. The best time of the day to shot is in the morning and early evening as when the sun is at its apex the light can be too strong and powerful and bleach out many a scene. With bright sunshine remember that you now have to consider shadows, also direction – if you shot into the sun you will, at the very least, get sun spots (use your UV filter to help) and at worst get a huge, overexposed sunlight ball with everything else hazy and darkened. By all means do shot into the sun but make sure that you’re taking your light metering readings from the subject that you want to highlight so that the exposure is correct for them.
3.People shots looking smiley and happy are great but if the sun is behind you your subject has to squint into the light which makes for unattractive and uncomfortable poses.
4.With so much natural light available why not use that source by reflecting it onto your subject using reflective umbrellas or discs? This helps you control how your subject is lit for the best finished results. These products are available fairly cheaply now on eBay or Amazon.
5.Although holiday makers love to see clear, blue skies they are no advantageous for photographers. For the best pictures you want detail in your capture and the distinct and shapely clouds of summer add beautiful definition and personality to a picture that can otherwise appear bland with just a bank of solid colour.
6.Take advantage of the longer days to experiment with your sunset shots. Check the time the sun sets and plan in advance an ideal location (in the west!) to act as the foreground of your image. Sometimes the best shots are not of the amber, sinking halo, as metering your image to capture the colour of the sun, without overexposure, darkens everything else, but of the colours in the sky and the hues cast over other objects with beautifully diffused light and shadow. I good tip is to ‘bracken’ your images as it’s very hard to tell if you have the right settings from a small view finder, so mess around until you have your camera set to the best exposure, aperture, ISO and then shift one of these factors down a point and take another photo and then up a point and examine the results at home.
8.Summer is also a great time to develop specific areas of your skill, for example, portraiture, weddings or social photography and stock photography. There are certain activities that are seasonal so don’t miss the opportunity to take advantage of new and different subjects and styles. In summer you can become more comfortable with shooting people and can learn what works for you in portraiture without having to risk spending a lot of money on studios and lighting kits, just to realise that this area doesn’t interest you. Your studio is the great outdoors and your lighting is provided free of charge so develop your patter and professionalism, asking friends to pose for you and helping them feel at ease. There is also a great demand from companies and businesses for travel photography or simply summer stock photography.
Businesses are going to want attractive, positive and colourful images to represent them in magazines, brochures, blogs and websites so the majority of the images that they buy will be taken over the summer not only due to the content but the added quality that can be more easily achieved.
So this summer, stride outside of your comfort zone and rediscover your potential and avenues available as a photographer. Carry your camera everywhere, make the most of the light and enjoy yourself as you try new subjects, compositions and even post editing effects. Practice makes perfect after all and what better way to study than visiting new places and browsing for shots with the sun beating down and cheerful nature dancing and laughing all around you.
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