SLR Photography Tips

All my life, I've always been fond of the beauty that nature has to offer. The water under the bridge, swaying tree during an autumn day, or even a water droplet laying still on a vibrant green leaf are just a few things that take my breath away. Although I'm still a rookie, I can now capture nature at its finest! Today, I will help my fellow beginner photographers achieve fantastic photographs. Please keep in mind that adjustments are needed to reach your desired photograph. Enjoy and Happy Shooting!

Aperture – (Field of Depth) Determines how blurry the background is with respect to the subject. Measured by “F-Stop (f/#)” Lower = blurrier the background. Looks nice and gives it a very professional look. In MANUAL mode, you can adjust it by rotating the dial.

ISO – deals with the surrounding lights. Use a higher ISO up 3200 if there isn’t much light and you don’t want to use the flash (like in a concert). It creates an artificial brightness with any available lights in the picture. In MANUAL mode, you can adjust it by pressing the “Fn” botton in the left side of the camera

Shutter [speed] – Deals with subjects in motion. Use lower settings if you want to capture movement. Also, use lower settings with high ISO AND flash, to make a subject seem to be in daylight when the surroundings is dark. NEED Tripod for anything less than 1/60.

SPECIAL SHOOTING MODES (the flash is activated by you in any of these modes)

P – “Program” just like Automatic mode without the flash. You determine when to use the flash. Good for snapshots at parties where it’s constant movement. The camera controls everything except for flash.

A - “Aperture Priority” You adjust the Aperture (F – Stop) by rotating the dial on the right top corner. The camera will adjust ISO and Shutter speed. You may adjust the ISO by pressing the “Fn” in the front left and rotating the dial.

S – “Shutter Priority” You adjust the Shutter speed by rotating the dial on the right top corner. The camera will adjust the ISO and Aperture. You may adjust the ISO by pressing the “Fn” in the front left and rotating the dial.

M – “Manual” You have full control of the Aperture, ISO, shutter speed, flash, and all the other features. Practice shooting different things to get what you want on the picture.

GENERAL NOTES:

• Avisable to use the preset Modes when shooting parties or sports. The MANUAL MODE is great only for photographing things and backgrounds (when you’re out doing your own thing)
• Using a low shutter speed will blur movement and brighten the picture BUT you have to really keep your hand steady. Use the flash when you don’t want blur.
• “Underexposure” = means the picture will be black
• “Overexposure” = means the picture will be white

SHUTTER SPEED

• (less shutter = brighter image = higher possibility of blur = need tripod) EXAMPLES BELOW – adjustments needed

• 1/8 or less good for blurring water falls
• 1/125 for moving cars
• 1/500 or more will stop motion

ISO

• · Lower ISO = less light = more dramatic shots

  · Higher ISO = brighter pics = more grainy = good at parties

  · when you notice that the camera is recommending a really slow shutter speed (less than about 1/3), crank up the ISO

  · capture a low-light scene with a shutter speed of 1/15 second with ISO 100, or 1/60 second with ISO 400 àsame thing

APERTURE

· (wide) Large hole = large aperture = More background blur= ex) F2 = great for portraits and close up shots = will help make picture brighter (whiter)

· (Narrow) hole= less aperture = ex) F22 or more= Less background blur = great for landscapes = will make picture darker but ok when it’s very bright outside.

· Best aperture to use if you DON’T want field of depth is btwn F8 to F11

PHOTOGRAPHING EVENTS

Parties

• Hi ISO at least 1600
• Choose any aperture but I like wide aperture (f-5.5),
• Shutter at 1/60 or more. Lessen shutter when not using flash and is dim but hold it still because it will cause blur. (less shutter = brighter image = higher possibility of blur)
• Bounce the flash at the ceiling or wall if possible

Silhouettes

• Best at sun up and sun down
• NO FLASH
• Use very low ISO 100
• point your camera at the brightest part of your picture and then press the shutter halfway down (don’t let go), now write down the aperture and shutter #s
• Shutter 1/500 OR at whatever auto detected, ADJUST ACCORDINGLY
• Aperture F16 OR at whatever auto detected, ADJUST ACCORDINGLY
• Shutter to focus on the bright background NOT the subject

Lightning

• Need tripod. Get it at Walmart for $15
• Shutter Very, very low 15 sec to 2 minutes!
• ISO at 100 or 200
• Aperture f/20 if near, f/5 or less if far

Light Rays

• Tripod
• NO FLASH
• Narrow aperture (F/22) *wide means EX) F/4
• Shutter very low around (1 second, but adjust)

FOG/MIST

• NO Flash
• Tripod
• Slow Shutter
• Wide aperture

RAIN

• Background must be dark
• To catch individual rain drops, Shutter 1/250 – 1/500
• ISO = 1600
• Aperture = f8-f11
• Use flash if necessary