First of all , to start photo making you should be knowing that grabbing a camera which
is a sensitive electronic device , you need to ensure that it's packed in a safe environment from water , humidity , excessive heat sources that could be direct like a flame source or Indirect like the sun heat , while photographing depends on the size if small one hand is OK but if it's bulky two hands are a must for a good control despite the fact that It's also possible with extra care , in case you are busy doing other thing with the other hand like driving a bike! , don't try this one
Positions of usual handling is portrait and Landscape , some people try to take angles in-between for the sake of having a kind of perspective view , which sometimes turns to be good option.
next thing while photographing is you always to be against the light source , stand making sure that the light is in your back , otherwise the photo wont be clear , of course in some Instances you can't avoid this position , so you can use light filters
, and or reflectors if not available try to change the angle till it gives the optimum shot , otherwise try to fix the light sensitivity (ISO) and /Or manipulating
whiteness , or if you have advanced features like changing the shutter-speed and/or the aperture you could have a better photo, but this proves to be time-consuming so most people chose the auto-mode in which the camera evaluates the best * values for you, which I don't to depend on all the time.
Before taking the photo , be creative , and know what you camera can do so that you can produce a better photo , from the angle that will express the best angle of the thing you intend to photograph , this really Important , for example if your aim is to take a passport photo for somebody , don't shoot in portrait position but in landscape , and let your person be standing 89 degrees to your face and be having the appropriate background colour with suitable T-shirt Colour , with enough light source to avoid shade that could make problem and then require photoshop to remove!
Indoor and Outdoor photography are two different worlds , Outdoor photography could be further split into Day and Night photography , Day photography is the easiest of all and even a humble mobile camera could give a fair results , but the muscles really show when you Capture a captivating night shot for a well lit monument or for some celestial bodies like some planets or the moon , night photography requires your camera to have a controllable shutter speed and aperture , and most Importantly the time that you could keep your lens open before it captures the photo , Shutter speed
Is a factor that decides the quality of Night shots and also shots of moving bodies for example , speeding car , or water splash you should apply high shutter speed for
night shots you should apply the slowest possible or the most adequate depends on the quantity of incoming light , most of the night shots require a stable platform like a tripod and even if you have a tripod sometimes it's not enough especially if you are zooming so the best manoeuvre in that case is to let the camera start shooting after 2 or 10 seconds to avoid even the delicate touch on the shooting button which might result in slightly blurred photo.
one of the very nice advantages in zoom cameras is that you can zoom in and out take landscapes , monuments , statutes details in a very captivating way , and on the other hand you the ability to shoot in macro-mode , this let you photograph the tiny details in flowers , electronics , coins ,Insects,Body-parts (eye), book-covers , etc... in a beautiful expressive way that you might not expect .
Another advantage also , which people are not using in digital cameras is the ability to merge photos to create a wider or longer view of a place that can not be captured all in one , or that the necessity for more details are required , and this option even if it's not Integrated in your camera , it's the result of a software capability
only , like the one shipped with canon cameras , called photostitch actually this software could take any photo even if not canon made and convert it to one big picture , but this stitching has it's rules first the photos should be clear , with distinct landmarks in between the merging lines and with minimum 15% area of overlap recommended , and should have the same proportions (at the same zoom level) otherwise the software can not fit them together perfectly
Compact cameras usually doesn't have lenses to be mount on them , but some barrel compact cameras do have limited options , for example the Canon Powershot S3 IS do
have the option of tele and wide lens types for increasing the width and field of depth , in that case you have to have an additional piece called a converter that helps fit the lens over the existing barrel
Some compact cameras comes with an additional attractive option for people who like to photograph in unusual places or times like , bad weather (heavy rains) or under water this additional cover protects the camera from water till certain depth and allows the camera button function normally , an example of this is the Canon powershot S1 IS the newer model doesn't have this advantage.
An Important thing to consider when you purchase a camera is , the power source type
for example Lithium batteries are OK for Inside city trips where you can charge the battery anywhere , but if you are away or not always having the time and option to be near a socket wall in that case you have to consider buying a camera that could Incorporate alkaline batteries that you could find anywhere , and you could have extras batteries secured in your pocket or bag pack
Sometimes cameras could be having a frustrating low flash , or very high one , or a flash that never gives an adequate light , in some cameras like Canon powershot S3 IS you can control the level of flash which gives a good option, but to the truth is this option is not as good as the one in Sony , which provides a multiple bursts of flash that guarantees in most of the case goof light with less red eye effect that usually created by one burst of light .
Some people who are not used to photography , and who are just point and shoot photographers think that Flash is always a must in the light shots , this is truly wrong and it's obvious , only when the object is not light emitting and within the flash range which is no more than 3 to 5 meters depending on the visibility it's OK to shoot it with flash , one more thing to consider is that there should be no more light sources that could interfere , if the object is light emitting in that case you have to use a slow shutter speed and that option is only in the professional and semi-professional cameras that gives the semi-manual control .
the quantity of pixels camera provide are of no big Importance for seeing the photo on a normal TV screen (29") or even a computer display (15") Or higher if it's above 3.2 MP , but it really makes a difference whenever you are trying to have a hard-copy
in that case the 2 MP can not produce a photo better than 4"x6" (10 cm x 15 cm) , while the 3.2 MP can produce an A4 size with clear print , 6 MP can do a little better it can print A4 and A3 , But jumping to A2 you'll require minimum 8 MP , A2 to A1 requires 11 MP up to 16 MP , A0 requires 16 MP up to 21 MP some professional cameras like Hasselblad and Mamiya can provide up to 39 MP which is really terrific in the world of commercial and scientific digital photography .
