Click a Pic Photography Tips A few rules for clicking pics like the pros! Rule of Thirds The Rule of Thirds is one of the most fundamental principles of photography, and it comes from the way people look at pictures. Observe:
Filling the Frame Don’t be afraid to get close to your subject! Details are important and framing them helps draw the viewer’s attention to what’s important about the picture. Of course, if your subject is fire or poisonous snakes, then you might need to look into getting a zoom lens for those up close shots!
Light If you can, turn off your on-camera flash and practice maximizing the light available to you. Whatever your light source is, keep it behind you to avoid distracting lens flare. A classic way of lighting portraits is called Rembrandt Lighting, named after the painter Rembrandt: place a single light source at a 45-degree angle from your camera for flattering light and shadows across the face.
Breaking the Rules
Studies have shown that people’s eyes naturally go to one of the intersection points on the grid, rather than the center. Using the Rule of Thirds effectively means your images will be inviting to look at. As you are looking through your camera’s viewfinder or at the LCD screen, imagine that grid overlaid on your picture. Are you placing the most interesting details on those points? Try putting eyes, figures, critical action moments and other important subject matter on these points and compare the image to a similar one that where the subject is centered.
Great photography rules are made for breaking! Rule breaking is a great way to refresh how something is seen and bring new interest to a subject. Breaking the rules often means experimenting and not being able to necessarily predict the outcome, which also makes things more exciting!
Centering Centering the subject of your image breaks the Rule of Thirds. Sometimes it’s necessary to break this rule, like when you are taking a close portrait of someone, or photographing something circular that draws the eye to the center of the picture.
Randomness
Complimenting the Rule of Thirds is the importance of having a level horizon. Your images will be more interesting if your horizon lines move along the rule of third’s horizontal grid lines, in a straight line. Nothing is more annoying than discovering that your horizon line is just zooming it’s way UP your image instead of across!
The rules about photography are a lot about order and technique. Breaking those rules is more about embracing the beauty of chaos and spontaneity. Life isn’t always orderly, right? Try framing your pictures with odd angles or moving the camera while you are taking a picture to get cool blur. Consider the perspective of creatures smaller than you or taller than you—what would your subject look like from way low down or very high up?
Getting the Background Right
Color and Light
The background of an image can be important in different ways. It can set the stage of the image (especially in street photography) or it can set off the subject in front of it, like in a portrait, where the background tends to be more distant or fuzzy.
Turn your on-camera flash ON. Get some cheap colored light gels to tape over that flash—instant party light! Try shooting INTO the sun (just don’t stare at it while you are doing so) or other light sources—sometimes the effects are worth it! Practice making silhouette portraits by placing your subject in front of a strong light source.
Level Horizons
If you are especially interested in street photography, a handy trick is to find a cool building or busy park setting where you can sit with your camera and watch your subjects move in the frame. Paying attention to your background before shooting and then fixing your camera frame to it allows you to concentrate on the subjects in the foreground and getting the timing right for a great shot.
Above all, have fun!!