10 Tips to Shoot Better
Pictures with your Digital Camera
By: Alex Timaios
 With
the boom of the digital photography more pictures
then ever are being shot everyday. The Digital
Photography allows to increase significantly the
picture production by lowering costs. But does the
quality increase on the same ratio ? Probably not.
With few simple tips it is possible to take more
advantage of your own equipment and increase the
value of your own pictures.
1) Get closer to the Subject: 90% of the
pictures are taking too far of the subject. Just
step towards your subject and ensure that it fills
completely your visor. It is never too close.
2) Use a tripod: take a light high quality
tripod with you and use it! You will be able to
capture more details of your subject and increase
the sharpness, specially when taking scenic,
architecture and landscapes.
3) Use the "Raw" mode of your digital camera:
JPG pictures allows only 8 bit per channel, this
means the information per channel is restricted and
you may loose information when processing your
picture later in your digital lab. RAW modes support
the full range of your digital equipment and
provides highly flexibility to re- process your
pictures afterwards.
 4)
Use low ISO values: your digital camera is able
to be setup to high ISO Values (ISO 500-1500),
however the noise of the sensor will increase
dramatically, needing also an intensive
post-processing, i.e. using noise reduction filters.
Use higher ISO values only when its unavoidable
5) Keep it simple: in photography less is
more. Concentrate on the message you desire to
capture and try to eliminate everything else. Keep
your backgrounds simple and your main subject
understandable without anything else that could
disturbe your clear message.
6) Bring profundity in your pictures. The
world has three dimensions, but your pictures only
two. A subject that looks great to your eyes may
appear flat in your pictures. Play with diagonal
elements crossing the picture, but with simplicity
of lines.
7) Either Fore or Background: a typical
beginner error is to try to capture fore and
background on the same picture. This is the typical
"tourist" picture in front of some touristic
attraction. Decide if you would like to capture the
fore- or the background and concentrate on one
subject. Only by using extreme wide-angle lens and a
good composition you can have both.
8) Discover hidden details: The world is
infinite complex and contains innumerable details
that are waiting to be captured by your lenses. Use
tele-photo lenses to bring to the audience what only
you have discovered.
 9)
Donīt place your subject in the middle. Your
pictures will be boring if everything is symetric
and the subject is exact in the middle. Apply the
"golden section" of the "rule of the thirds". Keep
your composition balanced. Of course, extreme
symmetry can be wonderful, if applied properly.
10) Unleash your creativity: once you have
carefully applied the rules 1-9, forget them and
start using creative photography. Donīt use tripod
and move your camera intentionally in order to get
blure pictures, play with high ISO values and
extreme perspectives, extreme light situations and
unusual subjects. You will be a great photographer.
Alex Timaios is a Stock Photographer based in
Germany, he is specialized in Business, Nature and
Travel photography. He runs the website
http://www.alex-images.de
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