Tips to Blend Photography and Positive Change

Framing our view on the canvas of life, photographers express ourselves through the photographs we create. We make art. We share our vision. We fulfill our desire to create. But what if each of us carved out an area of focus for positive change? What if we used our photography skills as a form of advocacy?

I find that my most rewarding documentary work has been made in situations when I showed up simply because I believed in the good work of my subjects and the positive impact of their actions. This is the work I assign myself. Your ability to document and share an experience in a visually compelling way through photography is a gift. Consider sharing your time and photography skills with individuals, educational institutions, and/or non-profit organizations doing work you find inspiring and fulfilling.

As you think about approaching this work, particularly when photographing subjects living in material poverty or under challenged circumstances, the most important aspect of your work has little to do with your technical skills and the camera gear you bring to your assignment, and everything to do with the state of your mind and the composition of your heart. Treating your subject with respect as an equal partner bends your role from fleeting observer to trusted advocate. When you become a trusted advocate, your level of access to and comfort in working with your subject will grow, leading to more intimate and powerful images.

Here are three tips to help you apply your photography skills toward positive change:

1. Focus on a cause that inspires you. You can find a lifetime of documentary material just by turning your lens on your own community-the people closest to you, in settings that feel most familiar. Identify local contacts you admire (e.g., schools, shelters, non-profit organizations) and explore opportunities to support them with your photography. Finding a level of comfort in documenting people can come more easily if you photograph people who know and trust you and are comfortable in your presence. Building a relationship with your subjects will take time. If you’re passionate about the cause and respectful of your subjects, it will undoubtedly be reflected in the quality of your work.
2. Put your camera down and connect with your subject. When I pick up my camera, I can’t help but form a barrier between myself and my subject. I become less involved in the action and dialogue, and more of an observer to the experience. I’m thinking about light, making decisions about what to include in the frame of my viewfinder, and anticipating what might happen next. I can’t remain in this zone throughout our entire time together, as I’d miss the opportunity to build a personal connection with my subjects. For this reason, it’s critically important to put your camera down long enough to ask questions and listen. Understand the context of your subject in his/her setting and situation. The more you know about your subject and the cause, the more sensitive you will become in sharing his/her story from a photographic perspective. 
3. Embrace the Fair Content initiative. Fair Content is a collaborative movement to encourage photographers and other creative communicators to provide fair compensation and editorial input to their subjects. Supporters of Fair Content believe people who share personal stories about their own lives have the right to determine how, to whom, and for what purposes their stories may be shared; to validate that their stories are portrayed in an honest and authentic way; and, particularly when their stories are shared in ways that generate income, to receive fair payment, not as a form of charity, but as compensation for a valuable asset. As you consider starting or developing your photography project and find that you may have an opportunity to generate income from the sale of your portrayal of your subject’s story, I encourage you to work collaboratively with your subject(s) to craft a Fair Content agreement so you and your subject have an opportunity to benefit from your collaboration.

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Basic Photo Tips

Basic Photo Tips

There are certain photographic truths that apply to all cameras, regardless of whether they’re DSLRs or compact point-and-shoots. Depth of field is one of those truths. It’s a photographic term used to describe the area of an image—from near to far (or, in front of and behind your subject)—that looks sharp.

Let’s say you’re taking a picture of a friend standing outside surrounded by trees and shrubbery. Naturally, you’re going to focus your lens on your friend. Everything that’s on the same plane (also known as the plane of critical focus), i.e., objects that are the same distance from the lens as your friend, will also be in focus. If you increase the depth of field, some of the trees and bushes behind and in front of your friend will also look sharp.

Before we go into details about how and when to change your depth of field, let’s talk a little about sharpness and the human eye. Notice that earlier we didn’t say that the objects falling within the depth of field range were in focus, but rather that they looked sharp. There’s a difference.

To put it simply, a lens can only focus on one distance at a time since the sensor (like a strip of film) is a flat surface. So, if your subject is eight feet from the lens, other objects that are also eight feet from your lens (along the plane of critical focus) will be in focus. The objects in front of and behind the subject will not be as sharply focused as those that are perfectly parallel to the sensor at the same distance. And, in fact, the sharpness of objects will get softer the farther away they are from the in-focus subject.

However, depending on the image and its depth of field, our eyes may not be able to discern the differences in sharpness. The apparent sharpness of an image, in part, depends on image size and the viewing distance from the image. If you stand close to a large print, for example, you will notice the softer focus areas more readily than if you were standing farther way from the print or if the print were smaller.

It Starts with the F-Stop

When it comes to depth of field, the most important tool you have is the f-stop, or aperture setting. The size of the aperture controls how much light enters the camera. In turn, the aperture affects how much of the image appears sharp. A higher number, like f/8 or f/16, means the camera will use a smaller aperture opening and, therefore, deliver a broader depth of field, with more of the image appearing in focus. A lower number, like f/2, gives you a larger aperture opening and a shallower depth of field, softening the background (which creates an often-desired effect called bokeh).

In order to manually adjust f-stops to affect depth of field, your digital camera needs to have an aperture priority or manual exposure mode. In aperture priority mode, you choose the aperture and the camera chooses the shutter speed (in manual mode, you choose both). Keep in mind that, unlike DSLRs with a full range of aperture settings, some compact cameras have a limited range of f-stops, often topping out at f/8 or, at the higher end, f/16. No worries, both are sufficient to give you increased depth of field.

Assuming you want an increased depth of field, with more of the image appearing sharp, set your camera on aperture priority and stop down the aperture (set the aperture to a higher number). At the same time, be sure to check the shutter speed the camera has chosen. If it’s too slow to hand hold, either use a tripod to steady the camera or open up the aperture until the shutter speed is faster.

Choosing Between Broad and Shallow Depths of Field

So, when should you use a broader depth of field? Any time you want all or most of the components of your photograph to appear sharp. Landscapes, a field of flowers, the interior of a room, and a group of people are all good candidates for increased depth of field.

That’s a broad range of subjects and one might think that all photographs will benefit from an increased depth of field. Not true.

Decreasing depth of field can result in a more powerful image, depending on the subject matter and the feeling or message you want to convey. Portraits are the perfect example of when to use a shallow depth of field. By allowing the background to soften or blur while your subject is sharply focused, it puts the emphasis on the person rather than on his or her surroundings. A field of flowers may look wonderful when the entire flora fall within the camera’s depth of field. But perhaps you particularly like a small group of those flowers or even an individual blossom. If you have a shallow depth of field, the eye will be drawn to those few choice plants or single flower.

The Long and Short of It

Most digital cameras have zoom lenses, allowing you to shoot at different focal lengths. These different focal lengths also impact how much depth of field you get in a picture.

The rule of thumb is that the shorter the focal length, the broader the depth of field. Conversely, the longer the focal length, the shallower the apparent depth of field.

Check it out for yourself. Standing in place, set your lens to its widest focal length and take a photograph. Then take the same picture, from the same distance, zooming in to the lens’ longest focal length. More of your picture will appear sharp when you shoot in wide angle.

Along the same lines, the distance from camera to subject affects depth of field. Using a “normal” focal length (try somewhere in the middle between wide angle and telephoto), take a photograph while standing a few feet from your subject. Then, keeping the zoom at the same “normal” setting, step back about 8-10 feet and take the same photograph. The depth of field should be greater in the picture when there was more distance between your lens and the subject, so more of the image will appear in focus.

Think about how you take pictures. When you shoot a landscape, chances are you shoot at wide angle. Not only does a wide angle give you a broader angle of view, but it allows you to capture a larger area with more of the image in focus.

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Tips to Improve Point-and-Shoot Travel Photography

Tips to Improve Point-and-Shoot Travel Photography

Do you flip through your photo albums and/or online gallery and sigh at the fact that all your photos look the same? The vacations all might blend together into an array of similar photos. It’s easy to fall into a rut of taking the same types of travel pictures, especially when our point-and-shoot cameras seem to do all the hard work of shooting. That’s the fun of it though. Rather than photographing the same old pictures from summers past, try out some of these improvement techniques from our top 10 tips for using your digital point-and-shoot this travel season.

1. Use the manual modes
Make the bold move to switch the camera dial from “Auto” to “Manual.” More point-and-shoot digital cameras these days come with built-in manual modes, depending on price and manufacturer. Some point-and-shoots cameras include manual features in which users can control aperture and shutter speed, features that were once only limited to higher-priced SLRs for advanced users. That isn’t the case anymore. Some point-and-shoots now carry manual functions that give users the benefit to control shooting capabilities in varied lighting and speed situations. Users can access aperture and shutter speed usually through menu settings and then via a zoom button. Although not all compact cameras have aperture and shutter speed controls, the majority of point-and-shoots include controls for ISO speed (usually 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, and sometimes 3200), flash (On, Off, Auto, Red-eye Reduction), and sometimes exposure stops (+/- 2).

Experiment with the manual modes by first playing with the menu items. Change your menu settings by pressing the zoom toggle or main four-way controller, depending on the layout for your camera. If you have more time before the trip, remove the plastic wrap from the manual guide for some light reading about your camera’s full feature set, usually listed in the index. If you’ve lost the manual, access the manufacturer website for the online version to your camera’s guide.

2. When to turn off the flash
Point-and-shoots tend to employ a flash-on setting as the default mode. For travel photography though, most situations will call for little flash compensation since most vacationers spend their time outdoors that is already well lit. Those with a traveler’s heart, though, should shut off the automatic flash or suppress the pop-up in situations with plenty of light. To turn off the flash, hit the multi-controller button marked with a lighting bolt icon, which is oftentimes the preferred method that point-and-shoots identify the flash setting. Change the “Flash On” setting to “Flash Off.” Use natural lighting shining through a window during the daytime in lieu of the flash.

You can also turn off the flash for nighttime shooting. To compensate for the lack of light and flash, the camera will boost ISO or slow down the shutter speed, usually automatically, unless overridden in manual mode by the user. You might want to also use a mini travel tripod or simply set the camera to an automatic timer that is included on almost every camera for the increased time it takes to capture the night picture. Turning off the flash captures the ambient light for more natural-looking pictures.

3. When to turn on the flash.
Some situations do call for the extra help of a flash such as the standard indoors settings or even outdoors in bright sun or shady days. For those outdoors situations, users should consider turning down flash to fill in for overcast or shady conditions. Not all point-and-shoots offer this adjustable feature to increase and decrease flash increments, but if your cameras does, use it. It can help properly expose your outdoor photos for even lighting.

4. Remember the zoom
Do a practice run on your zoom by photographing objects like flower buds and engagement rings. Sometimes, you might notice that your point-and-shoot sets off a ”!” alert that indicates the image might be blurry. Instead of putting the lens too close to the subject, move back and then zoom in using the lens.

This technique is also particularly useful for portraiture. Pulling back away from the subject allows the person to feel more relaxed for more natural smiles, but also provides less foreshortening of noses or foreheads for more realistic and prettier faces.

5. Get a new perspective
One of the easiest ways to vary your shooting involves some exercise. Photograph from below or shoot from above. Try getting down on the ground to spruce up landscape photography that can make small churches look like cathedrals. You can kneel or simply crouch similar to the way baseman empires do. Point your camera upwards to make things in the foreground appear much bigger than they really are. Look for things like street signs with the city behind it or flowers in the foreground with the grassy knoll in the background.

Also consider shooting overhead for a bird’s eye view. Climb to the second level of a shopping mall or other multi-floor venues, and shoot down below. Zoom out, and keep your camera parallel to the ground. This will get the tops of people’s heads, which is interesting for big crowds or people in formal wear. This is particularly effective for wide shots in banquet halls for weddings or rockers at concerts. Get the muscles moving for new perspective shooting.

6. Steadier landscapes and night scenes
Tripods are helpful for nighttime and landscape photography. Bolt the point-and-shoot to the camera socket. Be careful to twist just enough for stability, but not too tight, particularly if the socket is made from plastic, which can peel if worn away from over usage.

During nights, turn off the flash for some long exposures. The tripod will steady the camera. Try shooting cars zooming by on a busy city street. The long exposure will make the cars look like streaks and the light posts like starbursts.

You can consider using the tripod for landscape shots. Rotate the camera horizontally using the tripod. Take a series of photos at the same level for a 180-degree, panoramic view. If you choose to, you can use this series of photos for a post-processing stitching to create one long, wide photo.

7. Creative subject framing
To get a little more creative, try framing your subjects off center. Try depressing the shutter halfway to focus. Recompose the photo off-center, and take the shot. This should keep the focus on the subject, even if it is not at the center of frame, adding a dynamic element particularly to your portraiture photography. This should work with most point-and-shoots, but some cameras will default to the center as the point of focus. In that case, change the AF setting to “Spot” or “Tracking AF” via the menu system.

8. Find some red
Look for interesting points in a landscape or street scene with a flash of red to make subjects stand out from their surroundings. Ask your portrait subject to wear a red scarf or hat or switch shirts to a red color. Just as in car colors, people are more likely to be drawn to red.

9. Always be ready to take a great photo
If you are using the manual mode on your p&s, make sure you have the settings correct for the environment you are in (i.e. ISO set to 100 for broad daylight, or 800 for nighttime, aperture and shutter speed appropriate for action or still shots). If you are suddenly inspired to take a photo, or something interesting happens, be ready to capture that moment instantaneously without fumbling to change the settings.

Also, it may seem obvious, but all users should remember that battery life during vacation is the key to successful travel shooting. Charge your batteries the night before your hike for the full amount of required time that your manual dictates. Most chargers have a blinking light that signals when the charge is complete. Remember that overcharging your battery can also lead to damage to your battery. Read the fine print on your camera’s battery charge times, as spelled out in your manual specifications.

10. Submit your photos for critique
There’s no better way to improve your travel photography than sharing your photos with other photographers through a network. Try submitting your favorites to Photo.net’s Photo Critique Forum or even informal person-to-person feedback. You’ll find that other photographers—novice users and professionals—have plenty of travel tips to offer.

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