W
hether you’re using a ‘point and
s
oot’ camera,
i
e a
a
u
ous
y
compact Sony Cy
er-s
ot, or a
ar
er camera
i
e Son
’s new
i
ita
SLR,
there are some sim
le thin
s
ou can do to
dramaticall
im
rove
our shots. Brent Williams,
a professional photographer, shares his top tips.
01
>
People
I
you’re s
ooting peop
e,
ocus on t
e eyes, it
n’
m
r
m
i
r
m
n
r
s
i
t
out o
ocus. W
et
er
ou’re s
ootin
a
erson or
rou
, make sure li
htin
is even
across the face
02
>
Rules
pp
y t
e ru
e o
t
ir
s. T
is is t
e
compositiona
ru
e t
at t
e main su
ject o
t
e
oto s
ou
not
e
er
ect
centre
,
ut
should be offset b
rou
hl
a third. The main
sub
ect should ali
n to an ed
e or corner of the
centre square. This creates a visually appealing
p
oto t
at
as
a
ance an
energy.
03
>
Angles
r
turnin
t
e camera on its si
e
or a
ortrait
shot – var
in
the orientation of a shot can
dramaticall
im
rove the
hoto’s im
act.
04
>
Settings
Genera
y spea
ing,
eep t
e ISO sensitivity
own as
ow as possi
e to maximise image
qua
ity, a
t
oug
w
en using t
e te
e en
o
t
e zoom ran
e, a
i
er ISO settin
ma
e
seful in combination with Su
er Stead
Shot in
avoidin
blurr
ima
es.
05
>
Horizons
se ‘
orizons’ to prevent camera ti
t. T
at can
e t
e actua
orizon or a cei
ing
ine, t
ey
n in
i
n
ir
m
r
i
T
i
n
sometimes be trickier than it sounds. If
ou’re
takin
a
icture at an an
le to
our horizon,
the camera’s
ers
ective will make the horizon
appear to s
ope. It’s a
so a goo
i
ea to c
ec
vertica
ines, suc
as
oor
rames, to avoi
ti
t
06
>
Lighting
t
arties or in dark rooms, do some
ractice
shootin
to
et li
htin
levels ri
ht. It’s common
or people to get overexposed because of the
fl ash – a problem that’s very diffi cult to correct
ater wit
so
tware. I
your su
jects are getting
overexpose
,
ower t
e
as
eve
t
roug
t
e camera’s menu or
ut a
itt
e
it o
tissue
a
er over the fl ash to tone it down. As a rule,
t s bette to u de e pose t a ove e pose.
’
r
n
r
x
h
n
r
x
nderexposure can often be corrected by
so
tware. Outsi
e, it’s o
ten
etter to s
oot in t
s
a
e t
an in
irect sun
ig
t.
07
>
Composition
While the LCD is a
ood tool for
eneral
com
osition, use the o
tical viewfi nder (if
our
camera has one) to engage the subject more
asily. With the optical viewfi nder you see the
su
ject wit
no
e
ay an
in
ig
er reso
ution,
so t
e camera
ecomes an extension o
yourse
an
ou’re a
e to en
a
e wit
t
e su
ect
more easil
. Even with the latest LCD screen
echnolo
, the resolution on the LCD never
matches the clarity of seeing something through
e optica
view
n
er wit
your own eye
08
>
Memory
Get a
i
memor
car
an
o
erser
wit
t
e
number of shots that
ou take, don’t
ust take
one shot. Shoot off three or four ver
uick
shots, which gives you the chance to skip any
ictures wit
c
ose
eyes, wac
y
a
-smi
es an
r
mm
n
09
>
Position
Don’t feel intimidated about askin
eo
le
o chan
e
osition. Be a director! A fun
art
f the
rocess is
ettin
eo
le to do thin
s
or t
e p
oto. Move peop
e aroun
to get ri
istracting
ac
groun
e
ements. You can
so
o a
itt
e post-pro
uction cropping wit
o
tware too, i
somet
in
oesn’t a
to t
e
hoto, take it out! Make sure when cro
in
hat
ou kee
the
hoto’s ori
inal as
ect ratio
approximately), so that the photo doesn’t
ecome too wi
e or too t
in
10
>
Balance
I
t
ere’s one accessor
t
at wi
im
rove
our
hoto
ra
h
, it’s a tri
od. It eliminates blurr
hotos com
letel
and allows
ou to use lon
er
x
osure times. Even if a tri
od is not available,
ry an
stea
y your
an
s
y resting your e
ows
on your
nees or any avai
a
e sur
ace.
Check out exam
les of Brett’s work at
ww.creative
ix.net
Digital SLRs
With the launch of its brand, Sony has a new
range of digital SLR cameras. The advantages
of digital SLRs are much the same as fi lm SLRs
– you get through-the-lens viewfi nding. Sony’s
DSLR cameras use a mount system based on
the Konica Minolta (KM) lens mount system for
attaching compatible KM and new Sony lenses.
Single-lens refl ex (SLR) cameras have been
popular in the fi lm world for decades. An SLR
gives the photographer the capacity to see
exactly what the photo will look like before taking
the shot. SLR cameras are also more likely to
have switchable lenses, making them the perfect
choice for professional photographers and
serious amateurs alike.
The cameras complement the compact Sony
Cyber-shot range. The Cyber-shot models take
great photos, with resolutions of up to 10 mega
pixels, and they’re the kind of camera you can
carry with you everywhere you go. The DSLR,
however, gives you the capacity to engage the
subject in ways that only an SLR can.
Sony has designed the to make it easy for
point and shooters to make the move to a
digital SLR. A host of automatic settings makes
those fi rst few shots with the new style of
camera easy. These automatic functions can be
progressively turned off as the user becomes
more comfortable with the camera settings. It
also has advanced features like Sony’s sensor-
based Super SteadyShot, which builds anti-shake
technology into the camera’s body: and a special
anti-dust vibration technology that reduces the
risk of dust attaching to the image sensor and
ruining a good photo. There’s also the Eye-Start
Autofocus system, which starts the autofocus as
soon as you bring your eye to the viewfi nder.
Photo: Getty Ima
e
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