using fill flash to "brighten" your photos

I have weddings on the brain - my first wedding shoot is rapidly approaching and I am in full research and learning mode. Lighting at any wedding is crucial, so I will definitely be posting more and more on using your flash in photos.

Behold, today's lesson:

This is a problem I've encountered MANY times - where the background is bright or well lit, and the foreground is shadowed or dark, and my focal point is therefore too dark to see. In this photo, since the sun is behind the leaves, the leaves are too dark to see the beautiful green color.

In this situation, your camera's light meter will pick up on the brighter part of the image and decide the photograph is well exposed (when clearly it is underexposed). What's a photographer to do in this situation, you ask?

The simplest answer, applicable to both point and shoot and SLR users - is fill flash. In essence, you activate the flash manually, providing additional light for a better exposed photo. Fill flash helps with photos where your subject is backlit (see above), and also to eliminate shadows cast across your subjects face (for example, under one's nose or chin, or a face peering out from under a hat)

Most point and shoots (and SLRs) allow for the photographer to manually pop up the flash for a picture. Check your manual to see how you can force the flash to pop up. The key is to dial back the brightness of the flash so that you don't have flash blow out. Again, check your manual to see how you can lower the output of your flash - some cameras have a fill flash setting, while others allows you to lower the output in halves or thirds. I do this ALL the time with my point and shoot because my camera's flash is CRAZY bright...

Any questions? Leave a comment or email me.

In Focus - using focal lock

So far on Lens Flare, I've covered exposure and composition with you, but we haven't really discussed focus - the third component to a great photo. Today's topic is focal lock - a simple but very effective technique to ensure the subject of your photo is in focus. This lesson applies to SLR and point and shoot photographers alike.

Many of you are probably thinking "I use auto focus, so my subject is always in focus - what's the problem?" Look at the photo below:

(photo courtesy of digital photography school)

It's pretty obvious the couple is the subject of this photo, but they're out of focus. The lady in between their heads, however, is in sharp focus. This is a depth of field issue as well - because of the shallow depth of field in this photo, the lady is in focus but much of what is in front of her (the couple) and behind her is out of focus as a result.

Auto focus is a wonderful thing, but it's no guarantee that what you actually want to be in focus will, in fact, be in focus. When you press the shutter button to focus the image, the camera must make a decision as to where to focus - in this photo it determined that the lady, not the couple, should be the focus. So how can you "train" your camera to focus on what you want? Focal lock.

When you are framing your photograph (imagine you are going to take the picture of the couple above), move your camera so that the subject (the couple's faces) are in the center of the viewfinder/LCD screen. With the subject in the center of your frame, press the shutter button halfway down to focus the image. WITHOUT LETTING GO OF THE SHUTTER BUTTON move your camera again to re-frame your shot (so the couple's heads are in the top third of the image), then press the shutter button all the way down.

Here's another example:



this photo is from the gardens at La Alhambra in Granada, Spain (truly an amazing place to visit - perhaps a future wanderlust post on La Alhambra is in order). I wanted the poppies in the foreground to be in focus, not the poppies further back. To do this, I used focal lock - I centered the foreground poppies, pressed the shutter button halfway to get the shot in focus, and then moved my camera to frame the poppies in the lower third of the image. Voila!

A simple technique that will improve your photos significantly. Happy focusing!

Using Your Point and Shoot Like a Pro - Part 2

(photo by inertiacreeps via flickr)

Lens Flare reader Barbara gently reminded me that it's been a while since I started this series, and she has been patiently waiting for a part 2. Barbara, your wish is my command!

Part 2 of using your point and shoot like a pro - how to avoid flash blow out. I guarantee if you have used the flash on your point and shoot while taking a picture at night, you have experienced flash blow out - that crazy bright light that pretty much ruins the photograph. I mentioned in Part 1 of this lesson series that one way to take better photos with a point and shoot is to just turn off the flash entirely, but there are situations where no flash just won't work. The problem is that for most point and shoot cameras, the photographer doesn't have much say in how much light is used.

So, courtesy of Digital Photography School, here are 7 strategies for avoiding flash blow out:

1. Take a step back - put some distance between you and the subject of your photo
2. Try and diffuse the flash - place something opaque right over the flash to soften the light, such as tissue paper or vellum.
3. Redirect the flash - try using a card to bounce the light onto the ceiling or a wall near your subject (this will obviously take some practice, but this is what people with fancy SLR cameras can do with an external flash...)
4. Try "Night Mode" - some point and shoot cameras have this option, allowing for a slow shutter speed and flash to be used. Check your owner's manual.
5. Decrease flash output - again, you will need to check your manual, but many point and shoot cameras allow for you to dial back the intensity of your flash.
6. Add light - if possible, see if you can move your subject to an area with more ambient light, or just turn some lights on for the picture.
7. Experiment with shutter speed, aperture and ISO settings - another visit to the manual for this tip. I've previously discussed shutter and aperture on this blog (click here to review) so in a nutshell, slower shutter speed and/or a low aperture number (i.e. f4, f3.5, etc.) will allow you to take pictures in lower light situations, possibly without even using your flash. Also, a higher ISO setting can help with low light situations. Remember though - once you slow down the shutter speed you will need to hold VERY STILL to get a shot that isn't blurry.

As always, my dear readers - email or comment with any questions. Happy flashing (hahaha)!

Using Your Point and Shoot Like a Pro - Part 1

Okay, I still haven't woken up completely, and as I was doing research for this lesson I realized it should be broken down into several parts. So I will start with some basics:

I have a fancy pants camera (i.e. Nikon D200 digital SLR) that is currently at the "doctor" as it will not autofocus. And I left my point and shoot camera on a BART train heading for San Francisco back in September. So I was thrilled when my husband got me another point and shoot camera for Christmas. Much as I love the Nikon, it is BIG and HEAVY and often too much to lug around. I love the ease of the point and shoot, that I can drop it in my bag and go, and that I can capture short video vignettes as well. But I definitely feel that my photos are better on my fancy pants camera.

Well, there are several article on the Web that claim you can take pictures on a point and shoot that are just as good as any fancy pants camera out there. I do beg to differ with the "experts" on at least one account - it is mighty hard to capture a crazy preschooler on a point and shoot (usually the image is out of focus). But considering: (1) I just started this blog about a month ago and I'm committed to a new lesson each week during 2009, and (2) my Nikon could be out of service for 4-6 weeks, I need to learn how to take good shots with my point and shoot.

So here are some basic tips (and I apologize if these are too basic - leave a comment and next time I'll be sure to jazz it up some)

1) Hold the camera still. I realize this sounds stupid, but the article I read today mentioned the fact that most of us hold our camera away from our body to look through the LCD screen when taking a photo. Couple that with the fact that most out of focus photographs are caused by "camera movement" (meaning the photographer wasn't standing still or was moving the camera) and holding still for your photo is a big deal. If you have a traditional viewfinder, try looking through it when framing your shot - holding the camera against your forehead will help to steady it. If you are like me and have a camera that does not have a traditional viewfinder, hold your arms as close to your sides as you can while framing your shot. If all that fails, pay attention to how you are standing when you are taking a picture - if you look like a contortionist in Cirque du Soleil, there's a good chance your image will suffer from "camera movement."

2) Plan ahead. Most point and shoot cameras allow you to hold the shutter button halfway down in order to prefocus your shot. Many also have presets that account for various situations - sunset, closeups, nighttime, etc. This requires you to read the manual for your camera, which I admit I was going to tackle today, but I have not had enough coffee yet (perhaps part 2). But a little planning before your shot will result in a much better photograph.

3) Just say no to flash. I know many of us just take the picture without giving much though to the flash - if the camera needs flash, it will use flash, if not then no flash. In my humble opinion, when you are photographing your precious children it is best to use no flash and as much natural light as possible. This means setting your flash to the "no flash" setting. I know what you're thinking - when I don't use flash my kid moves too fast and the picture comes out blurry. I hear you - I normally use my Nikon when I'm taking kid shots in a lower natural light setting with no flash. But give it a try - if you can get a quiet moment with your kiddo I promise you the photo will be lovely.

I will post some pics from my point and shoot next week. Happy pointing and shooting! Click here to read the full article I referenced for this lesson.