Taking photos

One of the most popular ways to get out of the house, whether for a vacation or a weekend getaway, is to pack up and head to the beach. You don't have to wait in line to get in, there's plenty of room for everyone and there's no dress code. In addition, you can work on your tan after spending all week under the artificial lights of home and the office.

Some say winter photography is the most difficult season to photograph. And that could be because of the difficulty with light, shadows and reflections in an all white landscape. But winter is a season you can get out and about and capture the magic of a winter wonderland. So if you need inspiration to get out in the cold here are 20 tips to help you get great winter photos.

With the photograph, you can tell a story, and atmosphere or a mood. Photographs allow us to share with others what it was like to be with the person, at a place or the beauty of the thing.

Have you ever experienced this: you are traveling through some of the most scenic terrain that you have ever seen, you hurriedly get out  and snap photographs the most beautiful overlooks.

Taking great photographs that have that magazine like quality is not luck, it takes practice and skill. It is like playing the violin, you cannot become first chair if you aren’t willing to put the time in. There are no short cuts to greatness, you have to practice, make mistakes, fix the problems and then practice even harder.

Are you one of the many people that have a smartphone camera without knowing exactly how to use it to better advantage? Most of the people that have them are familiar with the various filters that can be used to make pictures look great or even hilarious, but is there more that can be done with them is what many wonder?

There are no real rules when it comes to photography or the different styles that photographers will choose to follow. At one time there were unspoken rules on how some photos were achieved. This included wedding photos. The photographers used to shoot from a list and did most of the photos for wedding albums in a controlled environment and sequence.

Night time photography just requires a few creative tips. Here are seven that will help your night photos shine. All photography requires some light; even night time shooting. If you want those colors to really pop in your night-time photos then taking them at dusk, instead of full dark, will do just that. With a small amount of light and a faster shutter speed, colors and details will jump right out of your photos.

If you think winter has nothing to offer when it comes to taking some great photos, well, it’s not true. You’ll definitely miss your chance of creating a photo masterpiece if you sit in warmth and comfort of your home. Besides, it’s not always that miserable outside – winter scenarios can be  quite charming in their simplicity and restrained beauty.

Reflection photography is one of the basic forms of photography, mostly because reflections on different surfaces are all around us and can give an excellent range of effects with comparatively little effort.  Reflective images are particularly powerful, and can add an emotional dimension to your photography, whether it be loneliness expressed through an image reflected in a window or the magnificence of sunset on a lake.

Here are some hints to help you look at the urban landscape with photographer’s eyes, and to help you compose interesting shots using what is around you.  You don’t need to go outside the city to find scenes worthy of photographing – with a bit of thought and a little skill, even an amateur photographer can take good street shots.  There are plenty of things to photograph in the city, and with some imagination you can turn mundane scenes into something special.

If you’re at all used to your DSLR, you might have realized you have a lot more options now than you used to with your old compact camera. The fact that you have full control over aperture and shutter speed is certain to bring you a creativity boost. However, as with every tool, you first need to know how to use it in order to put it to good use.

Just as there are differences between early and late morning light, so are there differences between morning and afternoon light.  The most obvious difference is the direction of the light source as the sun rises and as it sets.  This has nothing to do with the quality of the light, but may affect the composition of a photograph using shadow for dramatic effect, as a shadow falling in a particular direction can give a more pleasing picture than the same shot with shadows coming from the opposite direction.

Plasticity is a word used very often by professional photographers, many of whom use it to describe an artistic attribute of their work.  A definition of what they are actually talking about is, however, rather elusive.  They know what they mean - they expect to be communicating with like minds, who also know what they mean – but when you are outside the loop, you are left wondering “what’s it all about”? 

Using flash in photography is essential (in most cases anyway) – it is a simple but hard-working unit that provides you with that extra lighting to work with shadows or poor lighting conditions. A Speedlight is a flashgun and it’s ideal for working on a low-budget or for reportage-style photos.