Have you taken pictures many times and never satisfied with the photos? Have wondered how you could be just like a professional photographer? I want to share with you how to take good pictures, even using just a simple digital camera.

You must first always remember that the simple digital camera is only a tool to express your unlimited imagination. Taking a good picture does not depend on the price of your camera. It depends on how you use the camera. Just imagine that you now have a high-tech camera and you do not have any idea how to use it at all. So just start with a simple digital camera and learn the technique first, before using a more expensive camera.

Here are some of my tips how to take good pictures:

Digital Photo Tips 1

Understand how your digital camera works. Read the manual book again if you do not understand how to change the settings. I find it very useful if I know perfectly how to use my own camera. It allows me to take pictures just like my imaginations. The most basic settings, that you need to understand, are the shutter speed, the aperture, the ISO speed, and the white balance. Other settings are usually extra tools to express your imaginations.

Digital Photo Tip 2

Take as many pictures as you can, be more active. Buy yourself one or more new memory cards. Because with those extra memory cards, you will have the freedom to shoot more than once for every object you see. And try to be more creative, try to zoom in or zoom out a bit, change the angle, put the object in different positions, change the camera settings, like the shutter speed, aperture, ISO, white balance, make many experiments with your own camera. Remember, practice makes perfect, it is always the effective way to sharpen you photography skill.

Digital Photo Tip 3

Join photography forums or discuss with your friends who also have this exciting hobby. I personally want to share my knowledge about photography with my friends and got myself excited that I could help them. Post some of your new pictures and let them review your pictures. Take their advices and critics, because you will definitely learn much more from them.

Digital Photo Tip 4

Try to make your own style. Copying other style is not a good idea. Style makes one photographer different with other photographers. Just be yourself and let your imaginations flow. People will more appreciate your original ideas than just copying other’s ideas.

Today is digital era. Digital cameras are now being more produced than analogue cameras. With its easiness and low cost in developing, many people buy digital cameras.

Compact cameras are mostly used by traveler. It is fully automatic. Just press the shutter and you have the picture.

Well, if you want to start learning photography, it is better to use a camera that is not fully automatic (at least there are P, A(or Av), S(or Tv), M shooting mode).

A or Av is the Aperture priority mode, here you could set the aperture.
S or Tv is the Shutter Speed priority mode.
In the Manual mode (M), you can adjust both Aperture and Shutter Speed.
So, these are the basic: Aperture, Shutter Speed, and ISO (also known as ASA).

1. Basic Digital Photography Guide: Aperture

The aperture or blend opening has the same function as pupil in our eyes. The bigger the opening, the more light you will get.

In the front side of the lenses, there are numbers such as f/2.8-f/3.2. This number refers to the blend opening. Small number represents big opening (example: f/2,8 or smaller number) and big number represents small opening (example: f/8 or bigger number).

The big opening gives you more light and vice versa. It is very useful to own a lens with big opening especially in low light situation.

Beside the light exposure, the aperture also determines the Depth of Field (DOF). Wait a minute… DOF? What is that? Deep of Field determine the sharp area in a photo. The sharp area is in front and back of the focus area.

2. Basic Digital Photography Guide: Shutter Speed:

Shutter speed determines how long is the light exposure. Logically, the longer the exposure, the more light the sensor will receive.

If we want to shoot an object that moving pretty fast, use the high shutter speed, e.g: 1/200 second. Using low shutter speed in such case will not guarantee you to take sharp images of the moving object. The long exposure time normally used to take picture at night or low light condition.

A small but fascinating tip: If you shoot streets where many cars passing by at night, you will get a fantastic picture. Try it by yourself.

If you want to use the low shutter speed, especially when you take pictures of buildings or steady objects, use a tripod or put the camera on platform that is stable.

3. Basic Digital Photograph Guide: ISO/ASA:

ISO is a term which is used for the films (analogue cameras), and today the digital cameras use sensor. But this term “ISO” is also used in digital photography which determines the light sensitivity of the sensor.

High ISO speed (e.g: 400 or 800) gives you more possibility to take photos in low-light condition, because the light sensor is more sensitive than the low ISO speed (e.g: 100)

In digital camera, the ISO speed can be set manually and automatically.

The disadvantage using high ISO speed is noise. It also depends on the size of the camera sensor. The smaller the sensor, the more noise will appear. That is why when you take pictures with DSLR, the pictures seemed to be less noisy than if you use a digital pocket camera.

While the portable camera has been affordable for decades, nothing made photography more accessible to the average user than the digital camera. Suddenly, a photographer could get instant feedback about both the digital photography techniques and the shooting environment. Being able to see your shots instantly is one of the most enjoyable parts of this art. However, with more amateurs trying their hands at photography, a digital photography guide can be helpful for beginners as well as experienced artists.

Know Your Camera

You don’t have to have an expensive, professional-quality camera to get good shots. In fact, even point-and-shoot models can give great results if you know what you are doing. Most cameras, even basic models, have various preset programs that allow you to take shots in different settings. Night, action, water, portrait and landscape are common programs on many cameras. Read your manual and play around with the various preset programs to become familiar with what they are useful for. Once those are mastered, switch to manual mode and become familiar with things like aperture and shutter speed.

Understand the Lighting

Nothing kills a good shot faster than poor lighting. Of course, in a professional setting, various tools are used to ensure that lighting is always ideal; supplemental lights, light boxes and diffusers are commonly seen. However, in a home setting, these aren’t always available. However, there are many digital photography tips that give advice about how to find the best lighting. Any digital photography guide will tell you to look for even lighting, avoiding harsh, direct rays. When you are outdoors, a fully shaded area is ideal. Indoor shots can be taken adjacent to a window, but out of the sun’s direct path. Avoid any area where there is a mix of sun and shade. In addition, if you can tell your subject will be in a shadow, use the fill flash to even out the lighting.

Develop Your Eye

A good deal of successful photography really has to do with how much of a feel the photographer has for their subject. Things like composition and poses can make the difference between a so-so shot and something that wows the viewer. The best way to develop your creative eye is to practice. Participating in photography events, such as a digital photography contest, can help you develop your craft. General competitions work great for beginners, but more advanced photographers may want to enter contests with a more narrow focus. Of course, studying other contestants, as well as photographers you admire, can help you begin to see quality shots and identify the characteristics that make them appealing to the eye.