Photo Tips for Holiday Hits Series-#1

Hi , The Holiday Season is now upon us! If you are the photographer in your family that everyone looks to to capture the moment, this is for you. As our families and friends come together, this time helps us to think back to the simple things that are important in life. It's a good time to have the same reflection in the fundamentals of our photography! Here are some ideas: Don't use flash indoors Turn off your flash indoors - whenever you can possibly get away with it. The flash can be a real lifesaver, no doubt about it. This burst of artificial light can mean the difference between a decent photo and a totally blurry, unusable image. However, the light from on-camera flash units tends to produce harsh, flat, and cold light. If you are shooting indoors during the day, for example, make your portraits with your subjects standing near a window or door instead of relying on the flash. Get between your subject and the window - in other words, don't include the window in your composition, as this will throw off your exposure meter. Don't forget the details! Small scenes and close-up images can help round out any holiday photo essay. Zero in on a festive dinner table or a vase of flowers, a seasonal still-life arrangement, a display of gifts, a holiday window display, or seasonal decorations. The long list goes on. Such images will add some awesome visual variety to your photography. -by Kerry Drager The best subject placement The more that the subject is NOT placed in the center or the "bull's eye" area of the photo, the stronger the image will be. It is really easy to have the subject in the center because most of the cameras have the focus sensor in the center. But if you press your shutter button halfway down to focus on your subject and then WITHOUT releasing the shutter button, move your composition to have your subject out of the center and then complete the pressing of the shutter, your subject will be focused and out of the center. Placing your subject off-center adds more energy and dynamics to a photo. This is not to say that it should always be this way; there are times when having the subject in the center works the best. But to help liven up your images and create some diversity and energy, then it's usually best to go off-center. -by Susan and Neil Silverman Be on the lookout for our 4 part series of tips this weekend. Stay tuned for next time for when we'll talk about some strategies for shooting sharper images. All of us at BetterPhoto hope you have an amazing Holiday adventure! Thanks, Jim Miotke Founder and Owner, BetterPhoto.com P.s. If you want to avoid the crowds and get in on some killer deals, we are going to have a sale on 'Cyber Monday' that is going to knock your socks off! Its going to be a one day sale so you won't want to miss the details! Stay tuned for more info. BetterPhoto.com is the worldwide leader in online photography education, offering an approachable resource for photographers who want to improve their skills, share their photos, and learn more about the art and technique of photography. Click here to opt-out of future communications from BetterPhoto.com. The sender of this email is the BetterPhoto.com, Inc., 16544 NE 79th St Redmond, WA 98052