Simple Steps to Better Photography

Digital imaging technology is moving faster than anyone can keep up with.  With all the advancements in digital photography, shouldn't cameras be able to do the work for you?  If you have ever tried to capture the orange glow of a sunset or your child running around  a soccer field, you know that it isn't easy to create the picture that you imagined in your mind before you pressed the shutter.  The hard-hitting truth about photography is that great photos are made long before you take them. 

In the digital age, cameras have become inexpensive and portable and yet incredibly powerful.  One very important factor hasn’t changed...the camera cannot read your mind!  In order to take great photos, or even just better photos, you need to learn how to use your camera.  Here are a few simple adjustments that can be made on every $100 point-and-shoot camera, as well as professional DSLRs:

• ISO - This is a measurement of how sensitive your camera is to light.  Low ISO is less sensitive, but provides better quality while high ISO means more sensitive, but more “noise” (aka lower quality).  Use low ISO for daytime portraits and group shots, but use a high ISO for moving objects and poor lighting. 

• Exposure Compensation - This is a basic measure of brightness usually calculated in thirds.  Don’t worry about the numbers!  Higher number equals brighter; lower and negative numbers equal darker.  Brighter, however is not always better.  Bring your exposure compensation down a bit if the sun or another bright light source is washing out colors.

• Move! - EVERY camera allows you to try a different angle, move your subjects around and compose your photo differently.  Don’t settle for a mediocre  picture without thinking about what made you want to take the picture in the first place.  Refine your photo until it looks just how you want.  Anyone can be a better photographer with a little effort!