You should ensure that you get your image sharp in camera (see this blog post) – you cannot rescue a blurred image by sharpening it. However, you can make a sharp image look sharper and bring out details by using a sharpening tool. Bear in mind that if you are shooting JPEG files sharpening is applied in […]
Archive | Focusing
10 reasons why your shot is not in focus
This is a photo I took of a friend’s lovely white Alsatian (Luna?). You might not be able to tell at this low resolution but it is nice and sharp. Although the auto focus on modern digital cameras is awesome, you do need some knowledge on how to take advantage of it to avoid operator error. […]
How to photograph waterfalls with slow shutter speeds
Tips for photographing moving water, such as fast moving rivers and waterfalls As you will need to use a slow shutter speed you should avoid bright sunshine, so overcast days are better, or at sunrise and sunset. You will need to shoot in manual (M) or Shutter Priority Mode. Set the ISO to 100 and use a […]
What is all the bother about Bokeh?
WHAT IS “BOKEH”? It’s a Japanese word with no direct translation, but it describes the aesthetically appealing blur in the background of images like the one above. It describes the smooth, painterly and attractive blurring of colours and also the blurred circles where there are highlights. Bokeh is highly desirable in images as it […]
Using small apertures to photograph landscapes
DEPTH OF FIELD A landscape typically has a broad depth of field with focus throughout the image. In order to do this the camera needs to use a small aperture (high f/number). Here are a number of ways of making that happen: BEGINNERS: Use the landscape setting if your camera has one (usually found in Scene Modes). […]
How to get soft focus backgrounds
…. or put simply blurry / soft focus behind your subject. This is a very desirable effect for the following reasons: Makes your subject stand out from the background. Introduces depth into your image. It’s aesthetically pleasing, especially if you can achieve some “bokeh” too. Bokeh is the term used to describe the blurry […]
5 tips for a successful and fun family photo shoot
5 family photo shoot tips We all want lovely photographs of our family don’t we? And as our children grow older, we can foresee the day when they will have left home to pursue lives of their own. This was the case with this lovely family, where the oldest daughter will be heading off to […]
Great street photography tips for newbies.
Practical street photography tips for “newbies” I was in London last week, having won a four day trip! We had an amazing time sightseeing, eating, drinking and of course, photographing. I decided to try my hand at street photography, well aware that it was out of my comfort zone. I learned a lot and thought you might find […]
Fine art photography masterclass at the Botanist
What a fabulous day this turned out to be! The idea to hold a Fine Art Photography Course came to me when I first visited The Botanist in Alderley Edge late last year. It is a beautiful and unusually styled venue, with botany and gardening inspired props and plenty of distressed and stained wood panelling. If I’d […]
Camera set up checklist
I don’t know about you, but when I grab my camera I’m often in such a hurry to get the shot that I don’t always check what settings it’s on. Depending on what I was last shooting, this can be disastrous and mean me messing up a shot. And I’ve lost count of the times I’ve […]
How to get blurred backgrounds in photos – with the aid of some meerkats – “simples!” (Part 3 – Distance)
According to my site analytics blog posts with pictures of cute babies and children on get far more views than those with (toy) meerkats, so I won’t be using my little Sylvanian family again! They enjoyed their little trip to the Riviera (side of our pond) but are glad to be reunited with their dad on the […]
How to get blurred backgrounds in photos – with the aid of some meerkats – “simples!” (Part 2 – Focal Length)
In Part 1 we looked at how Aperture plays a big role in how to get blurred backgrounds in photos. Low f/numbers (large apertures) give us a narrow depth of field and high f/numbers result in a wider depth of field. This sounds pretty straight forward, but like lots of techie things it’s not quite […]
How to get blurred backgrounds in photos – with the aid of some meerkats – “simples!” (Part 1 – Aperture)
How to get blurred backgrounds in photos is high on the list for people who want to take better images and it’s one of the things that distinguishes good pictures from snapshots. It can be easy to achieve but if you really want to understand what you are doing and how to control the amount of blur, you should read […]
How to photograph babies indoors – capturing the every day stuff
Photographs of your baby beautifully dressed in your favourite outfit, with a shiny clean face and huge smile are fantastic and they are the pictures that end up in frames around the house. However, some of our favourite moments may not be “frame-worthy” but are still very special and the ones that make us laugh every time […]