Digital Camera File Formats

A Different Perspective

Get Down Low

Change your perspective and improve your photography.

Have you ever wondered why so many photos look ordinary?

 It starts with our perception, in other words how we as people usually see things. We see things from where we’re standing or sitting. Seeing at eye level alone makes up 80% of our waking hours. Add to that, when most people take photos, they usually do it from a standing position. If we shoot an image the same way we see it, there’s a good chance that’s how everyone will see it.

So in order to make your photos distinctive, you must show something in a different way. Try another perspective.

Try this for an exercise; get down low, firstly get on your knees and take some shots, then try lying on your stomach and take some more, finally stand up and take some from your normal stance. Compare your images and you will be surprised at the difference in your shots

What is the Rule of Thirds

The basic principle behind the rule of thirds is to imagine breaking an image down into thirds both horizontally and vertically so that you have 9 parts. As follows.

With some practice as you’re taking an image you would have done this in your mind through your viewfinder or in the LCD display that you use to frame your shot.

With this grid in mind the Rule Of Thirds now identifies the four important parts of the image you should consider as to where you place those points of interest in the frame of your image.

This also gives you four lines that are useful positions for the elements in your photo.

The reasoning is that if you place points of interest in the intersections or along the lines that your photo becomes more balanced and will enable a viewer of the image to interact with it more naturally. History has shown that when viewing images people’s eyes usually go to one of the intersection points more naturally rather than the centre of the shot, using the rule of thirds works with this natural way of viewing an image rather than working against it.

In a similar way a recommended technique for landscape shots is to position horizons along one of the horizontal lines, one third above or one third below the centre line.

Using the Rule of Thirds comes naturally to some photographers but for many it takes a little time and practice for it to become second nature.

In learning how to use the rule of thirds the most important questions to be asking of yourself are:

• What are the points of interest in this shot??
• Where am I intentionally placing them??

Keep the rule of thirds in mind when you edit your photos, post production editing programs  have some great tools for cropping and reframing images so that they fit within these rules.A good idea would be to experiment with some of your older images to see what impact it might have on your photos.

Aperture Explained

What is Aperture?

Put simply – Aperture is ‘the size of the opening in the lens when a picture is taken.’

When you depress the shutter release button of your camera a hole opens up that allows your cameras image sensor to catch a glimpse of the scene that you want to capture. The aperture that you set determines the size of that hole. The larger the hole the more light that gets in – the smaller the hole the less light.

Aperture is measured in ‘f-stops’. You’ll often see them referred to as an f/number – for example f/2.8, f/4, f/5.6,f/8,f/22 etc. Moving from one f-stop to the next doubles or halves the size of the amount of opening in your lens (and the amount of light getting through). Keep in mind that a change in shutter speed from one stop to the next doubles or halves the amount of light that gets in also – this means if you increase one and decrease the other you let the same amount of light in – very handy to keep in mind).

One thing that causes a lot of new photographer’s confusion is that large apertures (where lots of light gets through) are given smaller f/stop numbers and smaller apertures (where less light gets through) have larger f-stop numbers. So f/2.8 is in fact a much larger aperture than f/22. It seems the wrong way around when you first hear it but you’ll get the hang of it.

Depth Of Field & Aperture

Depth of field (DOF) is the amount of your shot that will be in focus.

 A large depth of field means the majority of your photo will be in focus whether it’s really close to your camera or further away.

A small or shallow depth of field means that only part of your photo will be in focus, and the remainder will look fuzzy (out of focus).

The aperture you select will have a big impact on the depth of field. A large aperture (remember it has a smaller “f” number) will decrease the depth of field, while a small aperture size (larger “f” number) gives you a larger depth of field.

It might seem a bit daunting and confusing at first just remember a small “f” number means a small/shallow DOF & larger “f” numbers a larger DOF.

So get your camera out and experiment with the different aperture sizes and see how it all relates.

Composing Your Photo's

Even if you don't plan on selling your photo to National Geographic or one of the many Photography Magazines keep it balanced and beautiful.
Everyone responds better to a picture that has all the right elements in balance.
Lead the eye along an interesting path through the photo, with the use of strong lines or patterns, etc.


• Take care to keep the horizon level in your photo.
• Crop out any unwanted objects that appear in your photo.
• Place your subject where you think it most belongs, rather than just accepting the fact it just happens to land in your photo.
• Play with perspective so that all lines show a pattern or lead the eye to your main subject.
• Remember the Rule Of Thirds

What Is A DSLR Camera

What Is A DSLR Camera

A single-lens reflex (SLR) camera is a camera that uses a semi-automatic moving mirror system that allows the photographer to see exactly what will be captured by the digital imaging system (after a very small delay), as opposed to pre-SLR cameras where the view through the view finder could be different from what was captured on film

Most digital single lens reflex cameras (DSLR) are cameras that use a mechanical mirror system and a pentaprism to direct light from the lens to an optical viewfinder on the back of the camera.
The basic operation of a DSLR is as follows: for viewing purposes, the mirror reflects the light coming through the attached lens upwards at a 90 degree angle. It is then reflected three times by the roof pentaprism, rectifying it for the photographer's eye. During exposure, the mirror assembly swings upward, the aperture narrows (if stopped down, or set smaller than wide open), and a shutter opens, allowing the lens to project light onto the image sensor.
A second shutter then covers the sensor, ending the exposure, and the mirror lowers while the shutter resets. The time period that the mirror is flipped up is referred to as viewfinder blackout. A fast-acting mirror and shutter is preferred so as to not delay an action photo.
This all happens automatically over a period of milliseconds, with cameras designed to do this 3–10 times per second.
DSLRs are often preferred by professional still photographers because they allow an accurate preview of framing close to the moment of exposure, and because DSLRs allow the user to choose from a variety of interchangeable lenses. Most DSLRs also have a function that allows accurate preview of depth of field.
Many professionals also prefer DSLRs for their larger sensors compared to most compact digitals. DSLRs have sensors which are generally closer in size to the traditional film formats that many current professionals started out using. These large sensors allow for similar depths of field and picture angle to film formats, as well as their comparatively high signal to noise ratio.
DSLR generally refers to cameras that resemble 35 mm format cameras, although some medium format cameras are technically DSLRs.

Suggested number of megapixels for high quality prints

Below are the suggested numbers of megapixels to use for common print sizes.
If you crop your images increase the minimum suggested megapixels.
Today it is difficult to find a digital camera with less than 5 megapixels;
Some cameras will automatically reduce the size of the image when you switch between certain modes such as a high ISO

 Print Size     Megapixel Camera           Pixel Size

4 x 6″              2 megapixels                     1600 x 1200
5 x 7″              3 megapixels                     2048 x 1536
8 x1 0″            5 megapixels                     2560 x 1920
11 x 14″          6 megapixels                     2816 x 2112
16 x 20″ +      8+ megapixels                   3264 x 2468

Print quality depends on a number of factors, such as the visual quality of the original image, Printer type, ink, and the paper used.
If you plan on doing your own printing, use a photo printer and high quality photo paper for the best results.
©Peter Murphy 2010