Learn Digital Photography – Encouraging Creativity in Photography
The world has gone digital crazy. With many homes having multiple digital camera owners you can’t move without seeing someone taking a digital snap. And the operative word here is a snapshot. Not much thought, creativity or photographic composition. Just lots and lots of digital pollution cramming the millions of hard drives, DVDs and memory cards. Digital has enabled people to take more low quality, thoughtless snapshots. Digital photography could see the death of creativity in photography in general. Why such a harsh statement? Here’s why:
1. Lack of thought.
As a film photographer the consumable costs of photography were much higher. This forced us to think and carefully consider each shot. There was a greater thought process. Using a motor drive for taking multiple shots was for the press photographers who could afford take thirty six images in a few seconds. For the rest of us we had to think more before pressing the button.
2. The Shakespeare effect.
This is the evolutionary idea that if you give a roomful of monkeys a typewriter each and enough time, they will eventually produce a work equal in quality to Shakespeare. There is a similar mindset among digital photographers that if they shoot enough photos, somewhere amongst the thousands will be quality images. You have as much chance as that happening as a monkey.
3. Drive by shooting syndrome.
This is similar to the lack of thought in taking a photo. Because of the multiple shot feature in digital cameras and the low cost of digital photography, it’s quick an easy to take an image. Just like a drive by shooting the camera is pointed in the general direction of the subject and a bunch of images is taken. Then you move on to the next target and fire away again.
So what’s the answer? Plain and simple slow down, right down and smell the roses as the saying goes. The creative process is methodical and well thought out. You need to be able to observe, think and then take action. Because digital photography is so quick, cheap and easy the principles and techniques of photography tend to get sidelined. Here are a few steps to encourage your creative process.
1. Make or allocate time for your creative process.
Creativity won’t be hurried. At times it may come to you quickly but this is the exception rather than the norm. So sit down and absorb the environment. Observe your surroundings, subjects and any activity. Let it become a part of you.
2. Be selective.
Find something that turns you or rather your creativity on. If this is colour then focus on the rich hues and shades. If it’s an object or subject observe it carefully in relation to it’s surroundings. Now close your eyes and picture the final image.
3. Change your position or viewpoint.
By looking at your subject from different angles, heights or positions the image will change as the subject changes in relation to its environment. All of a sudden you see things you never would have seen.
4. Try something different.
Shoot a traditional tourist shot of your subject and then look for a shot that is completely different, one you’ve never seen before. Make it unrecognisable. Hire a boat and shoot from the the water. Go to the top of a nearby building or if you’re adventurous climb a tree or lie down on your back.
Creativity is often just doing something different. Something that hasn’t been done before. The key element that I have found to creativity is time. So take your time and smell the roses. Your photography will never be the same again. Put photography, creative photography back into digital photography.
Do you want to learn more about photography in a digital world? I’ve just completed a brand new e-course delivered by e-mail. Download it here for free: CLICK HERE. You can also learn to take perfect photos in 21 steps by taking a look at my new ebook 21 Steps 2 Perfect Photos. Wayne Turner has been teaching photography for 25 years and has written three books on photography. Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/digital-photography-articles/learn-digital-photography-encouraging-creativity-in-photography-1001598.html
Learn Digital Photography: Fast Track Your Photography
Learning digital photography in our instant society is only possible by applying the basic principles of good photography. Digital is another tool and there is no real fast way of doing this. BUT… If you are prepared to follow these six quick photography principles you’re on the road to learning digital photography fast. And I really mean fast. So here goes.
1. Choose your subject carefully.
This is the centrepiece of your photo. Make sure you identify a suitable subject and focus on this. Not negotiable. If subject is not clearly identifiable your photo will be below average.
2. Place you subject intelligently.
Divide your image into thirds vertically and horizontally. Imagine 2 lines across and 2 lines down. Where these lines intersect place your subject on one of these points. If you have an horizon in the image, line it up with one of the 2 horizontal lines.
3. Get closer to your subject.
Most times the subject is what you want to remember about the scene you are recording. So get as much of it in your photo. This is especially so with family photos. Have smaller groups of people shot closer to the camera.
4. Exclude clutter from around your subject.
Make sure that there are no trees or telephone poles sticking out the top of you subject’s head. Unless you particularly want to remember the garbage can, bicycle, microwave or signboard, leave them out of the scene. Look for anything that you don’t want to see in 20 years when viewing the photos and exclude it.
5. Look at your subject from a different angle.
Shoot from up higher (above the subject) or lower (looking up at the subject). Find a different angle so that the image is unique a gives you a different more interesting aspect.
6. Change your viewpoint.
Most people stand in front of the subject and just shoot away. Move around looking through your viewfinder and find a different position that gives a more interesting shot. Experimenting is the key.
BONUS TIP
Finally here’s a bonus tip. Choose a subject you want to photograph and shoot it in 50 different ways. Shoot from high, low, the left, the right, directly above. Get in really close, turn you camera at an angle, hold the camera above your head. Change your viewpoint, walk away from the subject, lie on your back or lie on your stomach. It may sound a lot but when you try it you’ll see it’s possible. When you’ve finished, browse through all the images and you will be amazed at your ability. You will have found a new and different angle that will amaze your friends and family. Don’t worry about feeling stupid if you want to get that great shot. Follow these 6 basic photographic principles and your photos will improve dramatically and very fast. Within hours you friends will be complimenting you on your great images.
Do you want to learn more about photography in a digital world? I’ve just completed a brand new e-course delivered by e-mail. Download it here for free: CLICK HERE. You can also learn to take perfect photos in 21 steps by taking a look at my new ebook 21 Steps 2 Perfect Photos. Wayne Turner has been teaching photography for 25 years and has written three books on photography. Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/digital-photography-articles/learn-digital-photography-fast-track-your-photography-997977.html
Adobe Photoshop Features For Digital Photographers and Photoshop Video Tutorials
Today, the art of photography is now very easy to master thanks to the power of the computer and digital camera technology. And, there are also photo editing software programs that can help in making your ordinary looking photos into professional looking ones. One software program that is very popular among photography enthusiasts and professional photographers is Adobe Photoshop.
So, what’s with Adobe Photoshop that it even made professional photographers want one of their own? Well, basically, the great thing about Adobe Photoshop is that this software contains everything that a photographer needs in order to edit pictures. This software is basically a digital photo laboratory where you can edit pictures to make it look even better.
The basics of the software are easy to pick up. However, it can be somewhat a mystery for first time users of Adobe Photoshop because of its unintuitive interface and lack of simple tutorials. If there is a simple tutorial included that will be able to teach the user the different interface of Photoshop, then this will definitely be a software program that everyone can easily understand.
Adobe Photoshop is basically made up of four areas. These areas are the menu bar located at the top, the toolbar located just below the menu bar, the toolbox which is located on the left and the palettes that are located on the right. By understanding the basics of the Photoshop interface, you will be able to start editing your ordinary looking photos and convert them in to something special.
And, the great thing about this software is that you don’t have to have a professional SLR digital camera in order for you to take great pictures. But, all you need is an ordinary digital camera. In fact, even a 2 megapixel camera is enough for you to have a high quality picture with the help of Adobe Photoshop. That’s the power of this software.
Also, you can never avoid errors on the photos you take. For example, you may experience red eye on the photos where the subject will have red eyes. When this happens, it will be almost impossible for you to remove the red eye unless you take them to a professional photographer that will be able to edit the photos for you. However, with Adobe Photoshop, all you need to do is remove the red eye with one of the tools provided.
Motion blurs are another error that can make your pictures look bad. To correct this, Adobe Photoshop has sharpening tools that will be able to remove the hand shake blur errors. If you want your photos to have that misty feel, then there are also blurring tools that you can use.
If the colors are dull, then the software will be able to make the colors look more vibrant like it was taken by a professional photographer. These are just some of the many things that Adobe Photoshop can do. As you can see, you don’t need to be a professional photographer to make really good pictures. With the help of Adobe Photoshop, you can be sure that you will be able to turn those ordinary looking photos in to something magical.
So, if you love to take pictures and you want to produce high quality photos, you may want to get this software.
Did you find this article useful? Curious about learning photoshop fast? Well now you can by watching this Photoshop Sample Video…what are you waiting for?
Custom Postcards Making Your Own
Editor’s Note: Let’s take a break from talking about using custom postcards for business and focus on the mechanics of actually making them. This great article below will fill in any knowledge gaps you may have about this process:
I have seen a lot of “off the shelf” postcards in my day. My family always sends them when they are off somewhere enjoying themselves. Imagine my surprise when my brother sent me a postcard and he was actually in the picture! I never thought you can do custom postcard printing, but apparently you can! On his next postcard mail, (it was the holidays) he and his girlfriend where on the picture as they were sunbathing in some tropical country. It was incredibly cool! I just had to know how he was doing all his postcard printing.
So I asked him about it when we finally met, and I got all the info. Now, I do the same thing whenever I go on vacation. I even use his technique to create my own postcard printing for my business. Are you interested in knowing how it works? Read on below and be amazed at how easy it is!
Doing postcard printing yourself
Now, here’s a custom postcard printing tip that needs some equipment. If you have a digital camera and one of those mobile picture printers then it is easy enough to do. First, before going anywhere, be sure to buy some postcard paper, or one of those blank postcards. Some craft stores and stationary stores sell these kinds of things. If you can’t find any, then some photo paper will do fine. Be sure to bring them where you are going to. Afterwards, simply take a picture of yourself, or any subject that you want to put in your color postcard. Then, just plug the camera into your mobile printing dock. If you spent a great deal on that printing dock, you can customize the picture by adding a border and a few other image enhancements. Then, load up your blank postcards on the printer and start printing! It is that easy!
If you couldn’t find any blank postcards, use the photo paper I told you about. To add those message lines and stamp markings be sure to load up an image scan of the back of a postcard in your camera or laptop. Flip the photo paper in its back and print up that image there. Presto! Custom postcard ready for the postcard mail!
Editor’s Note: Making postcards yourself can be fun, but if you’re only looking to do a handful of postcards, check out online custom postcard printers!
Online postcard printing
However, if you don’t have a mobile printing dock (they can be a bit expensive) then you can do all the printing online. One you have an image that you want to be placed in a postcard, then simple send them to an online postcard printing company. There are a lot of these online printing companies these days. Simple search for them using a search engine. For a minimal fee you can have your postcards printed and delivered to you within a few hours or a few days time. Once you get them, add up your message and mail them to your loved ones, or even to your customers. Simple as that.
See? Easy to do right? You don’t have to be an expert or anything. Try it out for yourself! You will be amazed at how it works, and people will marvel at your apparent genius.
Editor’s Note: Just reading this article gets my creative juices flowing! Are you ready to start making your own custom postcards, too?
For comments and inquiries about the article visit Postcard Printing and Postcard Mail. Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/digital-photography-articles/custom-postcards-making-your-own-994247.html
Custom Postcards Great Ways to Print a Postcard
Business printing had primarily become one of the sought after printing service known at present. This is because it had brought in tremendous changes in terms of fast printing service and turnaround time. It had efficiently worked to print quality materials and deliver materials on time like postcards, business cards, brochures, catalogs and a lot more.
Taking part with postcard printing, it is a process in which businesses are able to share the newest and latest updates their businesses have. Through printing card, businesses are able to leave an impression that people and customers will remember. Moreover, in printing postcard there are several ways on how they can be developed. One of which is digital printing and the other is offset printing.
Editor’s Note: This is probably the most important section of the article. Knowing the difference between offset and digital printing can help save you money, and it tells the printers you get quotes from that you’re an educated buyer, i.e. someone they should respect!
Do you know the difference between offset and digital printing?
1. Digital Printing
Digital printing is known as a process that is actually closer to photocopying than to printing. This is because the prints are made directly from a computer file without film or plates. This method is ideal for lower-quantity and customized needs but can only print CMYK images and files.
The process that digital printing wants to share is that you can have your cards printed in short turn time but limited number of copies. The advantage of printing card through digital printing is that you are able to have your materials printed on a rush job and delivered before the given deadline.
2. Offset Printing
On the other hand, dealing with offset printing is also a good choice. Offset printing postcard is a widely used printing technique where the inked images are transferred from a plate first to a rubber blanket, then to the printing surface.
The advantages of using offset printing for print postcards results to bring:
•Consistent high image quality – it brings sharper and cleaner prints because the rubber blanket conforms to the texture of the printing surface.
•Usability on a wide range of printing surfaces
•Quick and easy production of printing plates and
•Longer plate life for the reason that there is no direct contact between the plate and the printing surface.
In addition with the advantages that offset printing gives, it can also print high volume commercial printing materials and as well as bring quality and efficient high volume jobs. Although digital printing is said to be influencing more of the print jobs still offset printing is the one preferred when it comes to high quality of work.
Generally no matter what printing method you apply in printing postcards, both are good enough to be applied and used in developing quality prints.
Editor’s Note: Now you’re armed with the knowledge you’ll need to negotiate successfully with postcard printers if the custom postcards you create will be for larger quantities you’ll use in business!
For more related articles and guides about postcard design and other marketing or promotional products you may visit Postcard Printing Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/digital-photography-articles/custom-postcards-great-ways-to-print-a-postcard-994250.html
EARN $200+ PER DAY TAKING SIMPLE PHOTOS IN YOUR LOCAL AREA!
Subscribe to Our RSS Feed
