Maui Wedding Photographer

Nine Keys To Taking Better Pictures

You can own the best camera equipment, but that can’t replace what is responsible for great photography – You! Anyone can shoot pictures, but what separates the average photographer and the elite is how you use the camera as a tool and how to use your creativity to share your unique vision.

Professional photographers have taken many years to practice and hone their skills before they were considered among the elite and capturing a subject’s character by projecting emotions and feelings. Below are nine key steps that should assist you in becoming the photographer that you want to be, but remember it takes constant practice:

1. 1. Composition Is The Key
2. 2. Subject
3. 3. Context
4. 4. Subject Placement
5. 5. Lines & Paths
6. 6. Backgrounds
7. 7. Blurring
8. 8. Lighting
9. 9. Experiment

Composition Is The Key

Despite the technical talk, photography is an art form and its most important aspect is composition. To improve your art skills, find photos that you enjoy and ask yourself what exactly drew you to that photo. Once you understand composition and how it was used in those photos, you can go out and try some for yourself.

Subject

When taking a photograph, identify what the subject is. A simple answer of a person or an object is not the answer. You need to go a lot more in depth to identify the subject. Maybe it’s the curves of the body or crackling fixture of the building. What drew you to that “subject” in the first place? Generally, it is the same senses that gave you the sense of touch, smell, taste or feel.

I encourage you to take your time and study the subject before you shoot it. Then ask yourself what was it that appealed to you in the first place that made you want to shoot it. Two questions to also ask are “what is the purpose of this photograph?” and “what kind of reaction do I want my viewer to get from it?”

Context

The next step is to find context. Something such as a backdrop which can add relevance, contrast and/or location to the subject you are shooting. Another is to add depth by finding a context in a different spatial plane than the subject. For example, if the subject is a building and it’s in the background, then make the context a flower or person in the foreground. That would make a big difference in your photograph.

Subject Placement

The placement of your subject in the frame denotes its relevance to the context. The center of the frame is the weakest. It’s static, dull and gives no value to the context. The more you move your subject away from the center, the more relevance you give to the context. So you would want to maneuver until you get the right balance. Each item has a “weight” and, like a waiter filling up a tray, you need to balance the “weights” within the frame.

Lines & Paths

Create impact by using real or inferred lines that lead the viewer’s eye into and around the picture. Train tracks, rivers and fences are obvious choices, but there are also inferred lines from the subject to the context. Lines have subtle effects. Horizontal lines are peaceful, diagonals are dynamic or tense and curves are active and sensuous. You can also connect lines in a path or shape, such as a triangle. A picture is a playground for the eyes to explore, so provide a path of movement and some space for the eye to rest.

Backgrounds

A high quality portrait photo should have a passive background, one that does not take away the attention from the subject. A portrait photo is all about the person’s face and should be taken with a neutral background. A background that is comprised of soft, solid colors is a good background. A busy street or people moving are bad backgrounds to use.

Blurring

Another way to make sure that the attention of the viewer is not divided between the object and the background is to blur the background. This will literally lift the object out of the photo and make it standout.

The technique to blur is simple. You will need to set your camera to a shallow depth of field. You can do that by using a zoom lens and shooting from a short distance or with a wide aperture manual setting.

A face has many details, so the best place to focus is the eyes. The eyes tell a story as they convey emotions, feelings, and state of mind. Depending on the emotions and story that you are trying to convey through the photo guide, your object should look straight into the camera or to look sideways and focusing on another object.

Lighting

Whenever possible, use natural lighting. Natural lighting is much better in capturing the full color range and warmth of the skin. Take your photos outdoors during the day. Position the object in a way that the sunlight hits it from the side.

Do not take photos with the sun right in front of the object as it will result in overexposure and color distortion. You can use a fill-in flash to compensate for some shadowing that might occur on the face, for example in the nose area.

Experiment

It takes time to perfect your portrait shooting abilities. With digital cameras, the cost of taking photos is literally zero. Experiment as much as you need, check out your results and make the necessary adjustments until you get a good sense of how to achieve those high quality portrait shots.

All in all, there are so many aspects to becoming a really great photographer. These nine keys are just a few for you to consider as you begin your journey in becoming the next great photographer. Good Luck!

Home to one of the world’s most active volcanoes and the world’s tallest sea mountain. Birthplace of surfing and the hula. Former seat of a royal kingdom. Hawaii is one of the youngest geological formations in the world and the youngest state of the union. But perhaps Hawaii’s most unique feature is its Aloha Spirit: the warmth of the people of Hawaii that wonderfully complements the Islands’ perfect temperatures.

There are primarily six major islands to visit in Hawaii: Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Lanai, Maui, and Hawaii’s Big island. You’ll find each island has its own distinct personality and offers its own adventures, activities, and sightseeing opportunities. We invite you to explore all of Hawaii to find the unique island experience for you.

• Kauai’s incredible Waimea Canyon is 10 miles long, and one mile wide.
• Duke Kahanamoku, the “Father of Modern Surfing,” grew up in Waikiki on Oahu.
• The tallest sea cliffs in the world can be found on Molokai’s north side.
• A hulking ship is still trapped in the waters of Shipwreck Beach on Lanai.
• The crater of Haleakala on Maui is roughly the size of the island of Manhattan.
• Kileaua Volcano in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on Hawaii’s Big Island is the world’s most active volcano.

State Name:

Hawaii

State Nickname:

The Aloha State

Capital City:

Honolulu

Population:

1,262,840

Time Zone:

Hawaii Standard Time (GMT-10 hours), 5 hours behind the US East Coast, 6 hours behind during Daylight Saving Time (Hawaii does not observe Daylight Saving Time).

Languages:

English
Hawaiian

Currency:

US dollar. Credit cards are widely accepted. Traveler’s checks are accepted at many businesses.

Average Temperature:

April- November: 75˚-88˚ F.
December- March: 68˚-80˚ F.
Average water temperature: 74˚ F.

Area Code/Cell phones:

The area code for all of Hawaii is (808). Cell phone coverage on most Islands is readily available if you’re coming from the US. Check your carrier and calling plan for details.

Internet Access:

Internet access is readily available on most islands and at many hotels.

Accommodations:

Luxury resorts, hotels, bed and breakfasts, rental cottages and condos are located throughout the islands.

Transportation:

Transportation options include car rentals, tour buses, shuttles, taxis or city buses.

Clothing:

Dress casually. Bring a light jacket for nights. Bring semi-casual dress clothes or resort wear for restaurants and nightlife. Suits and ties are rarely worn.

Tipping:

U.S. standards apply: 15-20% on meals, at least $1 per bag for porters, and at least $1 per night for housekeeping.

• Read the camera’s manual, and learn what each control, switch, button, and menu item does. At the very least you should know how to turn the flash on, off, and auto, how to zoom in and out, and how to use the shutter button.
• Set the camera’s resolution to take high quality photos at the highest resolution possible. Low-resolution images are more difficult to digitally alter later on; it also means that you can’t crop as enthusiastically as you could with a higher-resolution version (and still end up with something printable). If you have a small memory card, get a bigger one; if you don’t want to or can’t afford to buy a new one, then use the “fine” quality setting, if your camera has one, with a smaller resolution.
• Start off with setting your camera to one of its automatic modes, if you have a choice. Most useful is “Program” or “P” mode on digital SLRs. Ignore advice to the contrary which suggests that you operate your camera fully manually; the advances in the last fifty years in automatic focusing and metering have not happened for nothing. If your photos come out poorly focused or poorly exposed, then start operating certain functions manually.
• Take your camera everywhere. When you have your camera with you all the time, you will start to see the world differently; you will look for and find opportunities to take great photographs. And, of course, you will end up taking more photographs; and the more you take, the better a photographer you will become.^[1] Furthermore, if you’re taking photographs of your friends and family, they will get used to you having your camera with you all the time. Thus, they will feel less awkward or intimidated when you get your camera out; this will lead to more natural-looking, less “posed” photographs. Also, remember to bring batteries or charge it if you are using a digital camera.
• Get outside. Motivate yourself to get out and take photographs in natural light. Take several normal ‘point and shoot’ pictures to get a feel for the lighting at different times of the day and night. Go outside at all times of day, especially those times when anybody with any sense is sleeping, eating, or watching television; lighting at these times is often dramatic and unusual to many people precisely because they never get to see it!

Keep the lens clear of caps, thumbs, straps and other obstructions. It’s basic, yes, but it can ruin a photograph completely. This is less of a problem with modern live-preview digital cameras, and even less of a problem with an SLR camera. But people still make these mistakes from time to tim

1. Set your white balance. Put simply, the human eye automatically compensates for different kinds of lighting; white looks white to us in almost any kind of lighting. A digital camera compensates for this by shifting the colors certain ways. For example, under tungsten (incandescent) lighting, it will shift the colours towards blue to compensate for the redness of this kind of lighting. The white balance is one of the most critical, and most underused, settings on modern cameras. Learn how to set it, and what the various settings mean. If you’re not under artificial light, the “Shade” (or “Cloudy”) setting is a good bet in most circumstances; it makes for very warm-looking colors. If it comes out too red, it’s very easy to correct it in software later on. “Auto”, the default for most cameras, sometimes does a good job, but also sometimes results in colours which are a little too cold.^[2]