Birthday Party Photo Tips – How to Make Yours Truly Stand Out

How many of the birthday party pictures you've seen are kept just because they are of someone's birthday, not because it is inherently a terrific photograph?

When was the last time you heard anyone exclaim: “THIS IS REALLY A GREAT BIRTHDAY PHOTO?” Can you say... NEVER?

And yet, birthday parties are happening ALL THE TIME. You would think that "practice makes perfect," wouldn’t you; but in this case... uh-uh, it apparently doesn’t.

So, here we are, with another important birthday party looming on the horizon and not knowing how to improve on past “how hum” photographs. NOT THIS TIME! Follow the following 11 tips and you will need to start getting used to being asked to photograph OTHER PEOPLE’S birthday parties.

Can’t-Miss Birthday Party Photo Tips

1) Prepare For the Party

Abraham Lincoln once remarked that if you’re going to cut down a tree, spend 90% of your time sharpening the axe. Preparation makes any activity go better. And for birthday parties, you don’t want to have to wait until next year to make up for lack of preparation, do you?

So, what should you prepare for?

KNOW THE LOCATION. Whether the party takes place in a home, party room, or amusement park; realize that each location has its own photographic "blueprint." Based on the location’s blueprint, prepare beforehand for the correct digital camera settings for white balance, metering mode, and exposure compensation.

Read the full photo tips article by Robert Bezman.

Better Photos with Your Digital Camera

Everyone has a digital camera today and we all take a lot of photos. But if your photos still have trees coming out of your father’s head, mom has red eye, and your beloved pet is never facing the camera then here are some tips to help you take better photos.

1. Always be aware of the background. I know this is the hard one but it is critical. If you’re setting up a shot take a quick look at what is behind the people in your shot. So many perfectly good photos are ruined by a tree seeming to grow out of a person’s head. It can be as simple as the person taking one full step to the right or left to move the obstacle that would ruin your photo.

2. Use available light. If your digital camera has an option to turn the flash off and it’s light enough outside to read a book then use the available light and turn the flash off. In general camera flashes are too harsh for human skin and make all of us look pale. (Even better if your camera has a fill flash use that indoors where there isn’t enough daylight, and place the person by a window as well.)

3. Use ambient soft light. The reason that so many of use pose people under trees, and end up with the ruined photo with a tree coming out of dad’s head, is that we all instinctively know that soft light is best. Sunlight filtered through a trees’ leave is beautiful and warm. It warms up the skin and puts a soft light to the features. Indoors near a window with drapes has a similar effect.

Read the full digital camera article by Kelly Paal.

Digital Cameras and Digital Photography

Before you rush into buying your digital camera this holiday season make sure your properly informed. Many consumers during the holiday season rush into purchasing electronic equipment in a mad panic to get that high end gift for their loved one or spouse.

Take the time to resource all the models out their from some of the most reputable manufacturers. Its easy in this day and age to spend too much for a camera since you can easily expect to pay up to $400 US for a mid range digital camera. This might sound expensive but these camera's are become much more affordable considering you can get a 6 mega-pixel for this price today and 4 years ago a 2 mega-pixel might of cost that alone.

Times are changing and your best bet when shopping today is to be armed with knowledge about the specific camera you have selected. I have always recommended eBay because I myself have found deeply discounted items from only the most respected powersellers.

If purchasing from eBay this holiday season make sure to select from auctions that are of the most trusted variety. I have found sites like www.bargainfindsonebay.com do a great job in filtering these auctions and only providing you great deal from the most trusted powersellers.

Read the full digital camera article by Kyle Summers.

The Beginner Buyer's Guide To Digital Cameras, Or The Ins And Outs Of Megapixels

The most important part of buying a digital camera is making sure that the one you select meets all of your needs.

Digital Camera 101

Better digital cameras uses a chip called a "Charged Coupled Device" (CCD) instead of film. Light enters the camera, through the open shutter, and strikes the CCD where it is converted to digital data before being stored in the camera's memory.

While that is the simple description, things can get pretty complicated from there.

Megapixels & Resolution

Resolution is a measure of how many pixels are used to make a digital copy of an image. Pixels are tiny dots of light that make up a digital image.

The quality of a digital camera's image is usually measured in 'Megapixels' where each megapixel represents one million pixels.

Here's how to determine how many megapixels you'll need depending upon the type of photos you will be taking and what you intend to do with them.

Read the full digital camera article by Warren Lynch.

Photography Business: Taking Baby Photos - for Professionals & Families

Babies make the best and the worst subjects to photograph. They are the best for two reasons, people are more tolerant at looking at baby photos, as well as the fact that babies are not aware their image is being captured, and therefore they do not tend to put on the “camera face” so typically used by elder children and adults. They are the worst subjects because their behaviour is unpredictable. Because their behaviour is uncensored, they show their emotions, and can just as easily cry as gurgle happily into the camera.

One of the most challenging aspects of photographing a baby is to control the subject. On the one hand you want them relatively still, but too much control and the photo loses its impetuousness. Lighting and background are both important, you want the background as uncluttered and simple as possible if the photograph is indoors, or as natural as possible outside, a piece of grass is ideal. The lighting should be coming from at least two directional sources, but if it is too strong it will throw shadows that complicate the picture, and often lose the wonderful facial expressions it is possible to capture. However don’t miss those impromptu shots either especially with a digital camera, you can always edit the background later.

It is usually helpful to restrict babies’ activities; they are not portrayed at their best nappy high in the air crawling across the floor. A good way to restrict them is a highchair, or holding them in the arms of another person. Baby photography is often better taken very close up, and it is a wise move to look at the manual for your camera, and see how close you can get. It is better to get everything set up first, and then place the baby in position when the lighting and setting have been chosen. However that of course is not always possible.

Read the full baby photography article by Roy Barker.

Digital Cameras: How Many Pixels Do I Need?

With the bewildering number of digital cameras on the market, it's increasing difficult to know where to start for your first purchase. One of the major determining factors of the price of a digital camera is the number of pixels. Nowadays, even 5.0 megapixel cameras are affordable, even for casual snapshots.

But is bigger always better?

Higher megapixel cameras do have some drawback. The first, and most obvious, is price. A basic 5.0 megapixel camera currently runs between $200 and $300. A 1.2 megapixel camera can be had for less than $50. Storage for those large pictures will also cost you more. A 32 MByte memory card will hold around a hundred 1.2 megapixel pictures. This drops right down to around 60 pictures for 2.0 megapixels and to around 40 pictures for a 3.0 megapixel model. One other consideration, not often mentioned, is that a higher megapixel camera has to do more work to compress and store images, leading to longer waits between picture shots and viewing.

Read the full digital camera article by Marty Rubenski.

Underwater Photography: The Wonders Under the Sea

The world of photography is an amazing one. It’s been with us for quite a while now but it is constantly changing. Cameras are changing and improving. Methods of developing are changing and improving as well. We have digital cameras that allow people to take a view of their pictures immediately without traditional developing. Another change in the world of photography is underwater photography.

What do you think brings us those great shots of saltwater fish and movies that film in the ocean and under the sea? What about shots taken in swimming pools? You see those in the movies a lot but may not have thought about how they take those pictures and videos.

You probably never thought about it because for a long time underwater photography was not really an option for everyday people. But now it is not just an option, it’s really easy to achieve.

What is Underwater Photography?

Underwater photography is as the name implies photos that are taken under water. This is pretty interesting since early cameras could not function if wet. But as people started discovering the wonders under the sea, they wanted to be able to share that with others or even just to prove what they actually saw. So we began creating cameras that could work under water.

Read the full underwater photography article by Colin Hartness.

Camera Cell Phones -- More uses than you could have imagined

I was shopping in the large superstore with my five-year-old daughter, perfectly unaware that in the next few minutes I would be living through every parent’s nightmare – in an instant my child would disappear from my side. She had been looking through the little dresses right beside me and, when I called her to go try one on, she was no where to be found. I loudly called out her name, trying to keep the panic from my voice, as I frantically looked all around.

I rushed to the front of the store to inform security and the first thing he asked me was, “What was she wearing?” Wearing? What was she wearing? We had dressed quickly that morning, looking forward to a Saturday spent shopping for clothes she would soon wear to kindergarten. Next Tuesday would be her very first day of school. In my panic I couldn’t remember what I had pulled from her closet that day. Was it her blue shorts set…no, she had worn that yesterday. I simply couldn’t remember.

As I fought back the tears of an anguished parent, I saw my precious little girl walking toward me, holding the hand of an alert clerk who had found her wandering toward the back of the store. When I asked her why she had left me, she innocently explained that she had seen someone who looked like her grandmother and she had simply followed her.

Read the full camera cell phone article by Elizabeth Edwards.

How To Make A Time-Lapse Video With Your Digital Video Camera

Getting the most out of your digital video camera can mean being able to create some really cool stuff. You just have to step outside the manual a bit and find the cool things you can do with your digital video camera and your editing software.

We have all seen them in a movie or a TV show, those very cool shots where they speed up time and capture a long segment of time and condense it into a very short amount of video. My very favorite example of this technique was an arty movie of many years ago that was called Koyaanisqatsi. (view trailer) In that movie they had some very interesting segments where they did time lapse effects to show driving on a bridge, flowers growing, clouds flying by and so on. Another example is many of the TV news stations nowadays have a camera that captures the day’s weather and then they process it down to a 20 second clip to show the clouds and weather racing by on screen.

Well this technique is not just a tool in the hands of the movie makers or the big TV stations. You can do this with your digital video camera gear too. I will go into two ways that you can accomplish this effect and get some cool results for your next video project. This one is worth playing around with in order to find the right settings to get the most dramatic effect.

Technique number one is to use the camera itself to do the time lapse recording for you. Almost all digital video cameras have the ability to do an interval recording. What this means in a nutshell is that you tell the camera how long you want to record for and how long in between recordings and it will go on autopilot for you for as long as the battery lasts or the tape runs out. This is what those cameras at the convenience store do, they record a few seconds of motion every 30-60 seconds giving the overall view of the traffic in the store over time.

Read the full digital video camera article by Kevin Rockwell.

Tools of the Trade: Photo Editing

With digital cameras becoming a hit not only to professional photographers, it is understandable that creations of digital image files are also increasing. It is actually the magic of being able to manipulate your photos – edit and organize them and make certain special effects that digital image files become interesting and essential. In order to keep in line with the best and easiest ways of editing, organizing and storing digital photos, latest software application programs for digital photo enhancements are being introduced.

Here, we give you an overview of the features of some of the newest tools to maximize your digital image editing efforts:

1.Adobe Photoshop Elements 3 – this latest offering of Adobe offers enhanced features not only for editing your digital photos but also helps you in organizing your files. Ten new features makes it an all-in-one home photo solution: 1)could perfect, transform, organize and share your digital photos; 2) ability to brush away flaws on your photo; 3) can create dynamic slideshows; 4) can send themed photo e-mail; 5) you can enjoy flexible print options;6) you could get high quality images with camera raw and 16-bit support; 7) you’re given the chance to pick your best shot from among many; 8) photos for safekeeping can be archived; 9) gives you the full color range, and; 10) have intuitive capability to instantly fix common flaws.

Read the full photo editing article by Lala C. Ballatan.

How to Take Great Flower Photos

I know that many out there want to improve their photography in one aspect. Flower photography. With gardening as popular as it is this shouldn’t be a surprise. Flower photography while looking like one of the simplest forms of photography can quickly become one of the most difficult. Here are a few tips for you. (Keeping in mind that basic good photography skills are always used.)

1. Soft diffuse light. Today it’s very overcast outside, and if there were any flowers in bloom today would be the perfect day for capturing some great images. Soft diffuse light enhances color saturation, so if you wondered how or why pro photographers flower images seem so deep in color this is one of the reasons why. (There are exceptions to this rule. I do some flower photography is bright or dappled sunlight but I’m usually trying to get an effect of light passing through the petals.)

2. Slow film speed. 200 speed or less. The slower speed films have greater detail and for flowers you’re going to need to get close anyway and you want the nice sharp detail of a slower speed of film. I use 100 speed for my flower photography.

Read the full photography article by Kelly Paal.

Photographing Kids

Kids grow up so quickly and while we are often left with countless memories, most parents have only a drawer packed with school photos, blurry holiday snaps and the forced grin of the inevitable yearly birthday picture to account for the years gone by.

It’s time to stop bemoaning the latest photograph of your thumb obscuring your adorable baby and get on with improving your skills as a photographer.

Why should you bother when the near-by mall has a perfectly good photo studio, you ask? Photographing children poses specific challenges but yields numerous rewards.

While it can be frustrating when you miss that spontaneous moment, it is also highly satisfying when you manage to capture the joy in their faces as they dance in the summer’s first sun shower. Capturing the day-to-day moments will provide a treasure trove of memories that you will cherish forever.

Read the full photographing kids article by A.Charlotte Riley.

Slow Shutter Speeds and Long Exposure Photography

Many new cameras will come with built-in shutter speeds of up to 30 seconds or longer, which is enough for most long-exposure photography. Other cameras will have a B (bulb) setting that will keep the shutter open as long as you keep your finger on the shutter release button or a T (time) exposure setting that will keep the shutter open until you press the shutter release button a second time. Cameras with bulb settings can also be fitted with a locking cable release so that it isn't necessary to keep your finger on the shutter for long exposures. If your camera doesn't have a cable release, you can use the self-timer option found on most cameras. This will eliminate camera vibration from your hands.

A tripod, or something to rest your camera on, is essential because the camera must be completely still during the time that the shutter is open. If you want to make a fast-moving car blur as it speeds by you, a relatively fast shutter speed of 1/20 of a second may give you the results you are after, however, if you want to make stars in the nighttime sky look like glowing rings as the earth rotates, your exposure may last all night.

The light meter on your camera may not be able to accurately judge the best aperture setting for longer shutter speeds, especially in low-light situations, so your best bet is probably to "bracket." This means taking up to six pictures of the same subject, but doubling the shutter speed each time. This will give you a variety of effects and exposures and allow you to choose the best shot. In general, slow shutter speeds will allow a lot of light into the camera, which means that you will want to use a small aperture (ie. f/22) to avoid over-exposing the shot. In bright daylight it will be necessary to use the lowest ISO available and a neutral density filter to cut the light down.

Read the full photography article by Rick Blythe.

So you have bought your first DSLR?

Ok! So you have bought a DSLR (Digital SLR)…now what?

You have joined the ranks of the "keen amateur photographer" by buying a new digital SLR, but what do all those buttons and bits actually do?

The way things are going what with pricing and technology, I can see a boom about to happen with regard to Digital SLR sales.

People who have previously just owned film or point and shoot digital cameras, will now as prices fall, have the opportunity to join the rest of us in the exciting world of the Digital SLR.

I can imagine that for a lot of people the transition will be exciting but also a tad confusing. Even if you have owned a film SLR in the past, I can guarantee that it didn't have this many buttons all over it with "custom functions" and the like!

These new breed of cameras are quite simply amazing and I despair when I see reviews and forums airing their disappointment that a new camera just released hasn't addressed the issue of "having to go to the menu" to make an alteration.

Read the full digital SLR article by Nick Stubbs.

Buying Your Child A Digital Camera - What You Need To Know

Purchasing any gift item for your child is a mind-numbing task. You can never be sure whether they will like what you buy for them or not. So, when you want to buy a digital camera for your little kids, then there are lots of things, which you must know, which will help you (hopefully!) to get the right camera for your child.

One of the most important things for children is that the digital camera should be one of the latest available in the market. If it has been heavily advertised and people are talking about it, then it is even better. This gives children a sense of pride and also allows them to ‘show-off’ their possession to their friends.

Another factor, which is critical for children, is that the camera must look good. This is very, very important to them. It does not matter whether it has a big screen or small screen, whether it is 2 mega pixel or 1.5 mega pixel – the camera should have a smart shape, come in flashy colors or it can also look cute or funky. But, the camera should not look ‘boring’ or very ‘serious’ in nature. However good the functions might be, if the camera does not look good, it is most likely that your choice will get rejected.

Read the full camera article by Kevin Rockwell.

Getting Good Picture Results

Creating beautiful photographs can prove to be very difficult if you are not using the right equipment as well as the appropriate technique. To help you with that predicament, below are helpful tips to guide you in your quest for photographic enlightenment.

The first thing to keep in mind when shooting photos is that you have to look your subject in the eye. Direct eye contact can get your viewer transfixed with your picture thus enjoying more view time. Position your camera at your subject’s eye level to reveal those beautiful smiles. Getting a good angle will give you photos that are appealing and good to look at.

A plain background is good for giving emphasis to your subject. It is never a good idea to have the background upstage the person or landscape you are taking a picture of.

Also, if you are going to shoot pictures outdoors, use flash. Glare from the sun can create ugly facial shadows. For this problem, the flash is the key.

You must also be particular with the proper distance between you and your subject making sure that you are not very near nor very far. The closest possible range for shooting pictures without making your subject blurry is about three feet. Other than that would be disaster.

Read the full photography article by Paul Hood.

Digital Cameras vs. Film Cameras- the debate goes on

One of the biggest debates in the photography world is whether digital cameras are better or film cameras better? The answer to this question cannot be answered in a simple yes or no. There are several issues which need to be considered while answering this question.

To make things simple and without getting too technical, the major benefits of using a digital camera is that it is cheap and fast. There is no cost involved in clicking digital photographs as compared to film cameras. Also, you can preview the pictures before choosing to print them; hence there is little/no wastage of snaps involved.

However, for traditional users, a digital camera is not such an easy gadget to use. One does not only need to learn how to use a digital camera but he/she also needs to gain mastery over the computer. This can get to be a little difficult for those who are computer-averse.

As far as image quality is concerned, there are four major factors – picture resolution, presence of noise/grain in cameras, dynamic range and the color quality of the image.

Resolution, in photography language, means the sharpness and the visibility of the image. In this area, the film camera definitely wins since nearly a 6 mega pixel camera is needed to match a 35mm film camera.

Read the full camera article by Kevin Rockwell.

How to Organize Your Digital Photos

If you’re like me, you may have taken tons and tons of digital photos with your trusty digital camera, but never took the time to organize them. It’s certainly not a good idea to have thousands of photos lying in your hard drive totally disorganized. For one thing, it’s going to be very tough to find a specific photo for viewing purposes.

So what can you do to put those photos into some semblance of order? Well, this article will show you how, so read on. We’ll assume Adobe Photoshop Album is used as the photo management program of choice.

Step 1: Get a Good Photo Management Program
The first step in organizing your precious photos is to get a good photo management program. Some people maintain that you don’t need a dedicated program to organize your photos – they prefer to use native Windows XP features to do the organizing.

Personally, I think a dedicated, commercial grade program is better since they is usually more user friendly and there are a host of extra features (e.g. the ability to catalog and backup your photos). Currently, my favorite program for organizing photos is Adobe Photoshop Album 2.0. You can also consider an alternative option, Ulead Photo Explorer 8.5, which is equally good.

Read the full digital photography article by Gary Hendricks.

Get The Most Out of Your Digital Camera Today

Point and click. The new life of digital cameras gives us all the opportunity to capture images as we go. Whether you simply hit the shutter button to take pictures of your friends and family or if you want to have your camera with you at all times in order to capture the beauty of life wherever you find it, getting the most out of your digital camera can be easy.

Let’s imagine ourselves with the perfect set up of digital camera and a few accessories to make things just right. My personal and professional recommendation is that we start with memory. Get more today. If you only have one memory card for your camera it is time to add to the collection. If you have more than one then good job! The more memory you have for your digital camera the less likely it will be that you get stuck wanting to take more pictures and have no more room on the storage. Memory is relatively cheap, takes up no space in your kit and gives you total control over creativity.

Your camera comes with a variety of quality settings to work with when taking images. Don’t use TIFF, leave it on one of the medium quality level settings and your camera will take fine images for you and not eat up all your memory. If you use the highest setting you will get very few images onto your card. They will for the most part be of very high quality but you would only want to shoot at that level of quality if you are intending to make high quality large format prints of your images.

Read the full digital camera article by Kevin Rockwell.

Top 10 Advanced Digital Cameras

If you’re an intermediate level digital photographer, you might be looking for a good advanced digital camera. I know it’s very tough to decide on which one to buy – given that these models usually cost a bomb. A good advanced digital camera should be pretty rugged and also give you as much control over the photography process as possible. I’ve compiled a list of the top 10 advanced digital cameras that are selling like hotcakes in the market right now.

Canon EOS 20D
The Canon EOS-20D is one of the best digital cameras for the advanced user. With an 8.2 megapixel resolution and a bewildering range of manual modes, this digital SLR will deliver professional looking photos.

Canon PowerShot G6
The Canon PowerShot G6 has a 7.1 megapixel resolution, a 4x optical zoom, as well as a wide range of scene modes and manual controls. Even though it lacks a digital SLR body, the images shot with this camera are nothing short of outstanding. It’s also one of the cheapest advanced digital cameras out there.

Olympus C-7000
The Olympus C-7000 zoom offers a 7.1 megapixel resolution and 5x optical zoom. It also boasts 5 scene modes and full manual options. A very attractive buy, although the optional lenses are not allowed.

Read the full article by Gary Hendricks.

Digital Cameras, Media, and Card Readers

With the dropping prices on digital cameras and digital media in the past few years there is really a need for a quick reliable transfer method for your pictures to your personal computer.

Using the USB cable directly to your camera works to transfer pictures, but it's a waste of your battery and is often quite slow. Also some cameras don't seem to connect properly without specialized software from their manufacturer.

My favorite work around for this problem is purchasing a 7-in-1 card reader, there are all sorts of digital media card readers, some of them support even more than seven different kinds of media. These card readers generally run you about $15 to $50 USD and will save you loads of time and money (on batteries).

These card readers hookup to your computer via the USB port and don't require an additional software. Normally when you plug them in a series of drives will appear in your drives list in My Computer. As you put the different types of digital media in to the card reader the device will pop-up on the screen and you can transfer your files, delete the files, and basically treat the new media as a small hard drive.

Read the full article by Ken Dennis.