Discreet observation with the camera will
often give you a chance to capture candid occasions when people are absorbed in
their thoughts and completely unconcerned about the presence of a camera. You
can often capture unselfconscious spontaneity by ignoring preparation, control
and considered lighting. This kind of image is usually best taken with a
telephoto lens from some distance away. If you get close, the camera might be a
distraction.
14. Silhouettes
Silhouettes are a common subject, and there
are numerous ways to achieve an interesting image of a silhouette against a
strong backlight, whether it's sunlight or even an artificial source of light.
Backlighting through anything translucent brings out richness of colour. To
work well, this kind of photograph depends on the shape of the subject and on
the co-ordination of the two principal tones: black and the light background. A
prerequisite is that the outline of the subject be strong, clear, and
recognisable.
15. Shooting
street fashion
Patience really is a virtue in terms of
street fashion photography. Spotting stylish people on the street is difficult
enough, let alone shooting pictures of them, and the challenge is that as a
photographer you might not really know what it is exactly that you're looking
for. Crowds of people don't do much to help improve your chances of spotting
someone stylish on the streets. Knowing how to take a good street fashion
picture is an invaluable skill you could have in your repertoire. It's
important that you are well aware of the environment you are shooting in, as
you don't want a background that distracts or clashes with your final image.
16. Texture
Using textures can enhance your image, and
in more ways than one. Capturing textures of various surfaces while shooting
isn't what we're talking about here. Overlaying an image onto an existing image
of a textured wall or an old paper, or any texture that evokes a feeling in you
can be used to alter the mood of your images.
17. Multiple
exposure
Combining two or more exposures (photos)
using Photoshop and similar image editing software isn't exactly a new idea,
especially for those of you who’ve tinkered around with analogue film cameras
in the past. The idea of combining two or more photos to create a unique
picture has been explored since the time of film cameras, and now with the
latest digital cameras hitting the market, it can be executed both on camera,
and off camera with the help of image editing software.
18. Underwater
photography
The technique used to achieve such a
picture is almost self-explanatory. 'You’ll need a camera capable of shooting
undeiwater to try this one out. There are water-sealed cases available for a
lot of popular cameras enabling you to click pictures undeiwater. There’re a
variety of subjects out there, 'ibu could experiment with everything from
shooting portraits undeiwater, to shooting marine life.
19. Stop
motion animation with stills
Stop motion animation is a simple, fun
animation technique. You can use just about anything in your stop-motion
animation, and thanks to digital cameras and computers, creating one is now
super easy. The first prerequisite is an idea. To begin with, you could start
with something simple. Let’s say, for example, that you would like to make a
pair of shoes move itself across the floor. Using a tripod and only moving the
shoes will make it appear as though the shoes are moving through your frame.
Keeping the object in the same general area in each frame by moving the camera
along with it will make it appear as though you are travelling with the object.
For your animation to be smooth, keep in mind that you'll need approximately 10
photos for every second of film. In order to turn your images into an animated
video you will need video editing software, the most easily available being
Windows Movie Maker.
20. Blurs
Books on photography, workshops etc. lead
you to believe that blurs are the worst thing that can happen to your images,
often wrongly so. But used creatively, blurs can make your images artistic too.
Whether it's a motion blur, or even an accidental blur, analyse one such image
and you might just find a way to connect with it.
21. Camera
toss
This is a tip you should try at your own
risk. This technique involves taking photographs while tossing your camera.
There's no rocket science involved when it comes to the technique. The basic
idea is to toss the camera while exposing a frame using the timer. As
impractical and risky as it sounds, the end results are unique and present a
whole new perspective. There's no one way to shoot while tossing the camera as
you will not be able to control the angle and exact direction of the lens while
the camera is falling.
22. Unconventional
angles
When you're bogged down by the traditional
angles and tired of following all the rules of composition, you could try and
experiment a little to spice things up. Unconventional camera angles, angles
that you don't ordinarily look at your subject from, make for some interesting
pictures. Cameras with swivel screens will help your cause if you're looking to
try something out of the ordinary.
23. Aerial
Photography
Aerial photography is taking photos of the
ground from an elevated position, and usually refers to images in which the
camera is not supported by a ground-based structure. Cameras may be hand-held
or mounted, and photos may be taken by a photographer, triggered remotely or
even automatically. Platforms for aerial photography include fixed-wing aircraft,
helicopters, balloons, parachutes, and even kites. It's not difficult to
understand why this kind of photography is expensive to pursue. With a little
planning and patience however, a lot can be done.
24. Zoom burst
Zoom burst is a technique attainable with
zoom lenses with a manual zoom ring. It involves zooming while the shutter is
open with a relatively slow shutter speed, usually below I/60th of a second. It
is also possible to achieve a similar effect with computer software, in which
case you need not worry about the shutter speed.
25. Free-lensing
This technique involves taking photos with
the lens detached from the camera but held in place and moved around to focus.
This sometimes lets in extra light causing light leaks and gives the photo a
vintage look and feel. It's easier if your camera has “live view” so you can
see what the effect of this technique is even before you click a picture, but
it isn't a lot harder with the viewfinder. For light leaks, you will need to
hold the lens no more than a finger's width away from the mount. This is a bit
risky if you're worried about dust, so do not hold the lens away from the
camera for too long, and do it in a relatively dust-free environment
preferably.
