Photography Tips

Computer Care: Tips for the best summer snapshots

By Arthur Glazer glazer.tech@gmail.com POSTED: August 23, 2013 9:04 p.m. This summer I spent more time with my camera than my computer. As a camp photographer up in the mountains of White County, I shot more than 20,000 photos. To make them look good, I had to edit them quickly and judiciously -- good enough for parental scrutiny. Although the dog days of summer are behind us, Labor Day is just around the corner and chances are you still have some pictures to take. I’ve seen more poor quality images posted to Facebook recently; some were dark, some washed out, some simply blurry or in need of cropping. Even with the ubiquitous cellphone camera, quality photos can be created with little effort. The primary thing to consider when taking pictures is where your light is. Ideally, you don’t want to shoot into the sun, but rather have it over your shoulder. Even if you’re outdoors, don’t be afraid to use a flash. It will remove facial shadows and brighten up your pictures. Keep in mind though, the pop-up flash on cameras will reach only about 6 feet before its light dissipates. In order to get the most from the light that is available, your camera will read it with a meter. In DSLRs, most point-and-shoots and many cellphone cams, you control the meter. Usually, if you place the crosshairs in your viewfinder on the face of your subject and press the shutter release button half-way down, you not only place your subject in focus, but take a reading of the light on them as well. The thing is to hold onto that meter reading. Readjust your view to take the photo without releasing pressure on that button. Otherwise your pals will be in shadows, all blurry with the lake behind them sharply illuminated. After you get that reading, continue to frame your image, then finish pressing the shutter release button. When composing a picture, look at it as if it were a print. Be critical. Are there trees or poles coming out of your subjects’ heads? Are they in the light? Are there extraneous objects in the photos, like people or vehicles? It’s always a good idea to take a few extra shots to ensure one will come out. Some may be too dark or light; others may have someone not smiling or their eyes closed. There were close to a thousand shots at camp I didn’t use. Edit out the bad shots on the fly, before you get home. This will cut down the editing process. Just about every shot needs some editing, whether it be cropping out extra sky or people, or adding contrast or light to the image. However you alter it, the paramount rule of editing is not to save over the original photo. If you are working on photo 123.jpg, rename the edited image as 123a.jpg and save it in your docs or photo folder as opposed to the card it came from. This way, should you inadvertently ruin a picture, you will always have the original to try it again. Photoshop is the granddaddy of photo editors, but there are many good free editors online. GIMP is an open-source image editor. It is the closest thing you can get to Photoshop without paying anything. There’s a learning curve, but it’s free. Find it at www.gimp.org. Easier to use and free, are IrfanView, at www.irfanview.com and PhoXo at www.phoxo.com. Both will provide the basics of adjusting light and contrast with crop tools and more. Without loading an app to your computer, you can use online editors, like FotoFlexer found atwww.fotoflexer.com and Pixlr, at www. pixlr.com. They save you the trouble of an installation. Experiment with being creative with your photography. Try the different modes your camera has to offer. They change the exposure settings so you don’t have to. Most have a panoramic mode, one for sports and another for portraits. Looks at the icons on your camera’s mode dial or display and you’ll figure it out. If you want to experiment with manual settings, just remember the F-stop (aperture opening) works in direct relation to the shutter speed. If you raise one, lower the other. You’ll get basically the same picture with a little different results. Although the same amount of light comes through, a faster speed freezes action better and a smaller aperture yields a greater depth of field (more things in focus). Want create the effect of motion? Try panning your subject. If you have a moving subject like a car, a runner or bike rider, move you camera with it as you shoot the picture. Your subject will be in focus with a blurred background, looking as if he/she is really moving. Try it a few times and you’ll easily perfect this technique. So if you still have pictures to take this weekend or haven’t really done anything with images from the Fourth of July yet, now you can get busy with the knowledge of how to shoot better photos and how to fix those that didn’t come out as you’d expected.  Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly on the Business page and on gainesvilletimes.com.

Digital Photography Tips

Computer Care: Tips to shoot high-quality digital photos

	By Arthur Glazerglazer.tech@gmail.com

UPDATED: March 16, 2012 11:40 p.m.

Computer Care: Tips to shoot high-quality digital photos By Arthur Glazerglazer.tech@gmail.com UPDATED: March 16, 2012 11:40 p.m. Aside from being a technician and writer, I am a photographer. People often ask what kind of camera I have when they remark about my shots. The fact is, I only paid a few hundred dollars for my camera; it's not a professional model by any means. I explain that I don't have a great camera, but a good eye. Too often I see photos posted on Facebook, websites or blogs that people are proud of. They have the potential to be good shots but were simply posted prematurely and unedited. You don't need superior knowledge or special software (although the latter is nice), to transform an average photo into an extraordinary one.Most PHD cameras (Press Here, Dummy) come with software. Alternatively, you can download free software at download.com. Just use terms like "free photo editor" in your keyword search. A wonderful (free) open-source program is GIMP. It's a Photoshop-like program for the serious photographer. Download it at http://www.gimp.org. Whether you use Photoshop, GIMP or another freebie from the Web, there are a few simple steps to enhancing each photo you take. Crop your image, especially if you didn't get close enough when you took it. Try to delete extraneous background matter that could draw attention away from your subject. Optimize the picture. Lighten shadows, darken bright spots and add contrast when necessary. Some photo editors have a one-click button that does it all automatically. Watch for things like trees and telephone poles coming out of subjects' heads. Shooting from a different angle or asking your subjects to move could avoid this. If unavoidable, with the use of software, a clone tool can place sky or foliage where a pole may have been. Be aware of your background; if you can avoid it, keep stray people out of your shots (although you can learn to get rid of them with the software). Try to have subjects looking into the shot instead of out of it. The same goes for flying birds, sailboats, etc. It makes for a more interesting picture. Use the Rule of Thirds while composing your photos. Having your subject off-center just looks better. Wikipedia provides a good explanation of this concept at en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rule_of_thirds. Be aware of the sun and try not to shoot into it; but don't have your subjects squinting either. Consider its position in the sky. A high sun is the brightest, but causes facial shadows. A low sun has a softer light but causes long shadows. Watch for reflections in glass, especially if you're using a flash. Don't be afraid to use a flash outdoors. It will get rid of facial shadows. Keep in mind that most cameras' built-in flashes will reach only 6-8 feet, so make sure you are close enough for it to have an effect. If you do use a flash, watch for red eye. Your camera may have pre-flash burst that eliminates red-eye or you can easily treat it with your software. If you use a DSLR, you can be more creative and have more control over the camera by taking it out of Auto Mode. There is a direct relationship between shutter speed and aperture size. To get the same exposure, for each F-stop you decrease (higher number yields a smaller aperture), you need to add a time element.For example: shooting at 125th of a second at F-16 is the same as 250 and F-8. There are times you may need a faster shutter speed (to stop the action) and times that call for a smaller aperture (it yields a greater depth of field). Set your DSLR to bracket your shots. It will take photos at the exposure you want and one or a few on either side of that to ensure you'll get a good one. Remember the resolution: it all depends on whether you're posting an image online or printing it. To do the latter you want a hi-res shot. To get a good 8 X 10, you'll want at least a 4 MB image. For Facebook, you can put up a 60k image and it will look just fine, but you couldn't print it. Film and the processing of it used to be expensive. Digital photography is not. Take lots of shots. I often shoot a few dozen images just to get one or two good ones. Some will have a poor exposure, others may be blurred and a few will have the subject either not smiling or with their eyes closed. If you take enough shots, you are guaranteed to have at least a few quality photos. Even those few that appear to look fine will warrant some tweaking. Unless they were cropped while you took them, if you do no other editing, crop them with your photo utility. With just a $90 camera, a trained eye, some free software and this advice, you'll soon hear your friends tell you what nice shots you've posted. Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly on the Business page

Computer Care: Work to make your digital photos look even better

By Arthur Glazer
arthur@glazerthepctech.com

POSTED June 11, 2010 11:32 p.m.

If you’ve ever posted photos on the Internet, whether on Facebook, eBay or attached one in an e-mail, then here are some ways to make the next ones better.

Even the simplest camera can yield good results. The trick to quality pictures is with the photographer, not the camera.

Those little cameras don’t have great optics, but you can still get a good image from them, especially if you’re only viewing it online.

When printing, you need more pixels — a better resolution. You want at least a couple of megabytes. For online viewing though, an image as small as 100kb is sufficient.

Also, you want to avoid making those who view your photos online having to endure a long download or having to scroll and scroll because you made it too large.

Whether you’re shooting a person or an object, consider the light.

Generally, you want the light source over your shoulder when taking photos. If it is behind the subject, your subject will be in the dark.

Don’t be afraid to use a flash outside during the day. You can easily override the camera’s automatic setting. Keep in mind that a flash will become ineffective after about 8 to 10 feet. Too close though, and you’ll wash out the subject and get hot spots.

When shooting at or through glass, remember what we learned in school.

The angle of incidence equals the angle of reflection. Stand at about a 45-degree angle to the subject to reduce glare.

If you shoot straight at it, the flash will bounce right back into the lens, ruining the picture.

Before you press the shutter release, scrutinize the picture you are about to take.

If it is a person, is there a tree or telephone pole coming out of their head? Either change your angle or move the person if there is.

Is it in focus? I’ve seen more good pictures that were blurry.

With most of today’s cameras, if you press the shutter release button halfway down while on the subject, it will focus it for you.

You should also get as close as possible to your subject. Sure, you can always crop it later, but still get close. Their faces will have a better exposure if you do.

Take more than one shot; lots more. It’s not like it costs anything. Try different angles; try it with and without a flash. It’s good practice to take lots more than you need.

This way you’re guaranteed at least one good one. Exposures might be off or eyes may be shut. There are also funny faces or out of focus shots to consider.

If you are shooting something small and your camera lacks a macro mode, try shooting through a magnifying glass.

This could come in handy if for example you’re putting a ring for sale on eBay or Craig’s List. Just beware of the glare on both the object and the glass itself. Auctions are always better with a few pictures.

If possible, use a tripod. Alternatively, put the camera on a table, rock, tree stump or whatever. Even digging your elbows into your ribcage will help steady the shot somewhat.

After the picture-taking process is finished and you’re back at your computer, use your software to do some real editing.

Whether with Photoshop or the free application that came with the camera, you can tweak the image to make it better.

Don’t just crop it — and most images do require cropping. Consider adjusting the brightness, contrast or gamma settings.

Many photo apps will have an “instant fix” button to click on. This way you don’t have to mess with all the tools manually.

Get rid of red-eye while you’re at it. Some cameras have a dedicated flash setting for it. By eliminating red-eye, it is one less thing to worry about in the editing phase.

Now’s the time to reduce the photo’s size, unless you plan to print it.

You can add finishing touches like a box or a frame around your image. Give it a 3-D effect by placing a shadow behind it.

Remember – and this is a big one — never make changes to the original photo.

Use the “Save as ...” option and create a secondary image. This way if you mess up a photo while experimenting, you can always start all over again from the original.

If after all is said and done, and you’re not happy with the final results, don’t settle for garbage.

Take another series of shots. It’s not like you have to pay to get them processed.

Take the time to compose and set up quality shots. Spend a little more time in your “darkroom” tweaking the photos.

It’s a creation of yours; take pride in it, whether your camera is a high-end digital SLR or just your cell phone.

You’ll feel good when that online item sells because of the photos you included or your friends leave you positive comments on the Facebook album that you posted.

Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly.