It’s summer and there is no better time than now to take as many outdoor shots as possible. Whether you are capturing your daughter’s first swim lesson or your son’s first t-ball game you want to make sure you get the best photos possible. And since these summer activities take place in the great outdoors it’s important to learn how to use the sun to your advantage.
For example:
FLASH
Turn off your flash. This is especially important if you have a moderate priced point and shoot digital camera off. Most cameras in this category have overpowering flashes that turn the background of your photos black while electrifying your subject in the least attractive way possible. To avoid this from happening simply turn off your camera’s flash. Look for the symbol on the back of the camera (in most cases it is a lightening bolt icon) and place it in the off position. Some digital cameras let you put the flash at half or quarter power, but if you are in a well lit setting with afternoon, morning or early evening sun, you should simply turn off the flash, and your background and foreground will be decently exposed.
WHAT ABOUT WHITE BALANCE?
You will learn about white balance very quickly if you ever shoot under fluorescent lights (most photos taken under these types of lights have an unflattering yellow or orange tint to them). If you are shooting with a digital camera you can change your camera’s lighting settings to avoid the ugly orange glow. All you need to do is look for your camera’s “white balance” feature. You should be able to choose among different types of light: daylight, fluorescent, flash, cloudy and incandescent. The standard setting, auto white balance, should work fine in most situations. However, if the background colors in your image look washed out on the LCD preview screen, change the setting until you get the desired coloring.
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