How many megapixels do I need?
For most of you, 3-4 megapixels is plenty. You will get good quality pictures at a reasonable price. Do you want great 8x10s and good 11x14s? Go for 5 megapixels but plan on paying more. If you're serious about picture taking you will need six or more megapixels to achieve high quality pictures. The higher the megapixel number, the better the quality of the picture, but you also need larger memory cards and more disk space to store the pictures and they cost more.
A basic point- and- shoot, 3 megapixel camera can be purchased for around $250.00. Intermediate models, 4 megapixels, can be had for around $350.00. SLRS of 5 megapixels and higher, start at around $700.00 and can cost several thousand dollars.
Whatever your choice, make sure you understand what you're buying, what features you're getting and what accessories come with the camera. A good camera is a lifetime investment. Do you need more help or have a question? Visit our forum , ask your question and see what other photographers have to say.
Back to Basics: Aperture and Shutter Speed.
You just bought a new digital SLR camera and you set out to take some great pitures only to be disappointed at the end results. What went wrong? The first thing you need to understand is how the camera works, captures light and stops motion. The answer is aperture and shutter speed, two of the most basic elements of photography. If you don't understand either of these functions it will be difficult for you to take good pictures.
Aperture
It's very simple; aperture is how your camera lens controls the light comming into the camera. Inside the lens there is an iris, just like in your eye, that opens and closes to different diameteres to allow the amount of light to enter the lens that you would like.
The amount of light that enters the camera changes as you change your camera's f-stop, which is the description of how much light is entering the camera at any time. A low f-stop value(f/1.5) means a greater diameter for your lenses iris which lets more light enter your camera. As a result, your picture will be brighter. A higer f-stop value (f/22) means a smaller diameter for your lenses iris which lets less light enter your camera.Thus, you have a darker picture.
As you change your f-stop from f/1.5 to f/22, each step will let in half the amount of light as the previous step. Conversely, if you open your lens one f-stop at a time (moving from f/22 to f/1.5), each step lets in twice the amount of light as before. So for example, if you move from f/5.6 to f/8, then you're going to let in half as much light. If you're going from f/8 to f5.6, you're going to let in twice as much light.
Different effects can be achieved by adjusting your f-stop, the most obvious effect being the brightness of your picture. Lowering the f-stop value will achieve a more shallow depth of field. This effect will isolate your subject by blurring your background. With a higher f-stops value like f/22, you get the greatest depth of field, so the entire picture is in focus. This effect works well for landscapes and scenic views. Varying your f-stop will vary your depth of field so don't be affraid to experiment. Take the same picture several times, changing your f-stop for each picture, then compare all the pictures. This is the best way to learn how f-stops work. Experiment and have fun with it. If you don't like what you see, just delete the pictures and try again.
Shutter Speed
Shutter speed is how your camera controls the amount of time your film or digital sensor is exposed to light. It regulates in seconds how long your camera's shutter is open. The exposure of your picture is directly proportional to the amount of time your digital sensor or film is exposed to light.
Slow shutter speeds of 1 second or longer, results in the camera lens being opened longer, allowing more light to enter the camera. Slower shutter speeds are used in low light situations or when you're trying to show the effects of speed like a race car. When using slower shutter speeds, you will need to use a tripod to reduce camera shake which will cause a blurry image.
Fast shutter speeds 1/1000 seconds, results in the camera lens being opened for a shorter amount of time, allowing less light to enter the camera. Fast shutter speeds are typically used for shooting clean, sharp, photographs and stopping motion.
Just like aperture, as you click through shutter speed stops, the light entering the camera doubles or becomes half as great. Speeds of 1/4 of a second to 1/2 of a second, lets in twice as much light. Going from 1/2 of a second to 1/4 of a second, lets in half as much light.
A rule of thumb for different shutter speeds and lenses is that the slowest shutter speed used without much blur from camera shake, is the shutter speed numerically closest to the lenses focal length or smaller. For example, if you are shooting with your lens at a focal length of 30mm, you should use a shutter speed of 1/30 of a second or less to ensure less blurry photographs.
Aperture and Shutter Speed Working Together
Shutter speed and aperture go hand in hand when shooting pictures. A fast shutter speed (1/1000 seconds) requires more light and a smaller f-stop value(f/1.5), to get the best exposure. If you use a fast shutter speed and a large f-stop, your picture will come out either too dark or completely black.
A slow shutter speed (1s) requires a lot less light and a larger f-stop value (f22) to get the best exposure. If you use slow shutter speed and a low f-stop value, your picture will come out either too bright or completely white.
In summary: slow shutter speeds use higher f- stops. Fast shutter speeds use lower f-stops.
Superb Sunset Photos:
Romantic and Inspiring
Sunset photos are the most emotional of all nature photography. They can convey such strong feelings of wonder and inspiration! They are symbolic, encapsulatng the pure power of nature.
The great thing is sunsets are readily available for you to capture. The opportunities to take awesome twilight photographs happens every single day; you don’t have to travel anywhere, and this kind of photography provides numerous ways to alter your composition, from silhouettes, dramatic shadows, surreal close-ups.
If you are really creative and into digital photography, you can make some absolutely stunning creations by manipulating your results in the computer, or by applying the creative use of White Balance.
But shooting really amazing sunsets requires a little bit of effort, planning and preparation to make sure you have it exactly perfect!
The light changes fast at this time of day, and is often challenging to capture. But by using a few simple techniques, you’ll be taking spectacular photographs in no time! (Check out the Sunset Photo Gallery coming soon,for examples and photos.)
After many attempts to capture that fleeting sunset, you know the kind – truly amazing almost unnatural colors, a few clouds to add some texture, and more drama than an Oscar winning movie – I decided I’d better come up with a more consistent technique to avoid being disappointed, not to mention wasting so much money on film!
Here's my best process for taking original and creative evening twilight and dusk photos:
· The most basic technique of all is to get set up at your location early.
· I try to have lots of film, (or digital cards) on hand, make sure I have extra batteries.
· I remind myself to not forget my tripod!
· I bracket my exposures to make sure I have all the possibilities covered. Usually I do +/- 2 EV.
· I use an assortment of lenses to capture unusual perspectives.
· I meter on manual, taking my reading from the sun, and recomposing so the sun is not the center of the image.
"The twilight's last gleaming..."
The most important secret, I think, though, is to keep taking photographs, for an hour or so AFTER the sun has vanished beneath the horizon. This special time of rapidly changing colors can be the magic hour of all sunset photography!
You never know what kind of photo event the clouds, the haze, the sun and the other elements on the landscape will create as those last faint rays evaprate into the darkness. Give it a try - I promise you won't be disapointed.
Special techniques on the following pages will help to make sure you seize every possible second and transform your sunset session into a series of sunset photos that leaves your viewers speechless!
A Picture of Sunsets: Real and Imagined
When the weather won't cooperate, sometimes a picture of sunsets is as good as the real thing. Can't get outdoors, but your creative energy is compeling you to DO SOMETHING? What can you do?
Here on the prairies our dramatic sunsets are almost always awe inspiring - espcially in autumn, when the harvest is underway and the grain dust is in the air, creating that nice hazy ambiance that makes prairie sunset photography so wild.
But when it rains every day, and its been the coldest summer on record, there are very few crops to harvest - no grain dust in the air and so very few of those romantic sunsets and photo opportunities.
So I get really creative. Check out these pictures of sunsets.
This article was printed with permission from Alexandra Morrison, who is a professional nature photographer, digital artist and publisher of the Nature-Photography-Central web site.
