Lark Photography » pictures http://larkphotography.com Smile and Shoot Fri, 14 May 2010 07:22:19 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 en hourly 1 Shooting the Moon – Learn the Secret on How to Take Perfect Pictures of the Moon http://larkphotography.com/shooting-the-moon-learn-the-secret-on-how-to-take-perfect-pictures-of-the-moon/ http://larkphotography.com/shooting-the-moon-learn-the-secret-on-how-to-take-perfect-pictures-of-the-moon/#comments Thu, 04 Mar 2010 09:40:55 +0000 richard http://larkphotography.com/?p=78 Sorry for not posting for  while. I was busy doing something else. Now I’ve come back to give  you tips. :)

Photography in the moonlight follows the general rules for night shooting, but remember that the moon is a relatively strong light source, so if you want to include it in the image, it can easily become overexposed. When the graceful sunset is replaced by the more subtle and mysterious moon, then this is part of what makes moonlight so well suited for photography. The special light, the magical atmosphere, which cannot be reproduced by all kinds of studio setups.

Although we have a beautiful photograph of a full moon and dark cloudless sky, perhaps also with other elements such as large trees, beautiful buildings, or a daring bridge construction.

Almost everyone who pulls out the mobile phone or compact camera and snapping the moon will be disappointed when the results are available. Most often, the moon appears as a fuzzy circular light.

How is it that the moon that glows so clear and makes so much of himself in the night sky is so little photogenic?

The photographic challenges is that the moon is much brighter than the sky and the rest will be exposed if we do not set the camera correctly. Moreover, the moon is far away and make up a very small portion of the image surface using normal lenses. And it’s also in motion…

The first commandment is clear weather and clear view. To take good pictures of the moon, which is small, far away and moving, you need a telephoto lens and a tripod (or good support). Turn off the anti-vibration function if you use a tripod. To avoid overexposure, use a short shutter speed. For best control, select manual tuning. I recommend aperture f/11 and shutter speed 1/250 sec.

]]> http://larkphotography.com/shooting-the-moon-learn-the-secret-on-how-to-take-perfect-pictures-of-the-moon/feed/ 0 How to Take Beautiful Photographs With Your Camera Phone http://larkphotography.com/how-to-take-beautiful-photographs-with-your-camera-phone/ http://larkphotography.com/how-to-take-beautiful-photographs-with-your-camera-phone/#comments Fri, 07 Aug 2009 10:43:42 +0000 richard http://larkphotography.com/?p=51

Almost everyone these days has a mobile phone. Mobile phones with inbuilt cameras have really taken off in recent years. Some camera phones have quite amazing cameras with high specifications. Why not use your phone to take beautiful photos? I don’t suggest that you replace your camera with a camera phone but, phones are incredible handy and perfect for when you have left your camera at home and see that perfect photo opportunity.

I’m going to prove to you that you can take beautiful photos with your mobile phone in 5 simple steps.

1. Keep that lens clean.

The lens on your camera will be lucky enough to have a protective cover, the lens on your camera phone may not be so lucky! Your phone is often in your hand, in the bottom of a bag or left about where the lens is just collecting dust and grime. To get beautiful photographs from your camera phone you need to first look after the lens. Here are two ways in which to keep that lens squeaky clean: Get your camera phone a cover, its good if you can take it off when taking a photo. This will minimise dirt getting to the lens when your phone is in your bag or not in use. Clean the lens. The ideal solution is not to get it dirty in the first place, but lets face it, may be quite difficult. If you have a dirty lens take an ear bud and really gently clean the lens in a twisting motion.

2. Avoid digital Zoom.

Using digital zoom on your camera phone is a bad idea. Digital zoom works by cropping the image and then enlarging it, thus decreasing the quality of your photograph making the image much more pixelated. Some camera phones are now being sold that have optical zoom. Optical zoom works by enlarging the pixels meaning that the zoom will produce a crisper image to that of digital zoom.

Use ‘natural’ zoom, your feet and get close to what your photographing. Fill the frame. Camera phones tend to have low resolution making the subject seem very tiny and sometimes unrecognisable, so get close.

3. Hold still.

In low light the camera phone will set a slower shutter speed, this will increase camera shake so its really important to hold still. To help you hold the phone still, grip the phone tightly and lean your wrist or arm on something stable like a table or wall. This will help you keep the camera phone from moving when your taking a photograph.

Remember that when you take a photo using your camera phone there is usually a time delay from your pressing the shutter to the photograph actually being taken. This delay is called shutter lag. You will have to hold still for a few extra seconds until the photo has been taken.

4. Give your photos a chance!

Remember the screen on your phone is smaller and not as good as the screen on your computer. If your memory allows, keep all your photos and look at them more carefully when you look at them on the computer. Shoot hundreds of photographs!

5. Light your subject well.

Make the most of natural light as not all camera phones have a inbuilt flash. If possible shoot out side. When shooting inside turn lights on to add extra light.

If you do have a flash remember to use it when shooting in bright light too as this will act as a fill flash.

]]> http://larkphotography.com/how-to-take-beautiful-photographs-with-your-camera-phone/feed/ 0