"The only stupid question is the one never asked" (answering photography questions)

I did a little poll a few months back asking what people struggled with or found difficult when taking pictures. The responses I had received were mostly from entry level shooters. Some with DSLRs, some just using camera phones. The questions are good though, sometimes we are afraid to ask because we are concerned how we will be viewed. Don't be. "The only stupid question is the one never asked". I want to always encourage you to ask questions and learn from others. We also need to read our manuals, read forums, read/listen to interviews with other photographers. There is a ton of information out there and so much to learn. I want to also encourage you to experiment with your camera, learn by trial and error. Learn what happens if the shutter speed is too slow, or if your ISO is too high. Hands on learning is the best way to learn. So lets gets to a couple questions ----

"How do I avoid having people close their eyes in a photograph?"
-First thing, we need to think why they are closing their eyes. If your camera has the setting "red eye reduction", this option actually sets off multiple "pre-flashes" prior to actually taking the photo. This confuses your subject into thinking the picture has already been taken, then they blink during the actual shot. I recommend disabling that setting. Let me guess, your worried about "red eyes" now. So option number two is; Take several pictures consecutively. Let's say you take 3-4 pictures back to back, you may have people who blink in one, but another will be less likely to have the same results. Option three is; mislead people. For example your taking a group shot, say "on the count of three", when you count ONE, TWO then click the shutter catching the people off guard. Sometimes people anticipate the flash and blink prior. The image below was a our photobooth for my wedding, Our box has a timer and one single flash. Rarely does it have people blinking, and never has red eyes. I do want to add we lost focus toward the front of the image as the camera was manual focused to a further distance. We simply overcrowded the area and therefor I was out of focus. Just an FYI.

LivePixStudios.com

"How do I take better pictures with my phone?"
-This was asked multiple times. Our phones aren't the best cameras, but more recently, they are some really capable cameras! BUT we still need to know a few things, like exposure. First thing I notice when a cellphone picture is blurry, it's usually the lens is dirty. Think about it, you are using your phone for texting, facebook-ing etc, your hands are touching that lens all the time. So wipe off the lens with a cotton cloth (your t-shirt). This will help drastically. Getting back to exposure, The easiest way to get an evenly lit photo is having the sun to your back (not directly above you). Maybe you want to back light your subject, you can still do that too. you just have to change your exposure. On most smart phones, this is done by touching the subject on your screen and adjusting the slider up or down (if back lit, you would scroll up). I have shared several photos on Instagram that are taken with my camera phone and people always ask "How?". We just need to learn the limitations of the camera phones we have, because cellphones do have their limits. The picture below was on my lunch break at mid day (usually worst time to take a picture). But I was able to find an area where the sun wasn't brutal, than manually adjust the exposure. This was taken on my phone.

ATGphotos.com

"How do I edit pictures?"
-Editing can be a very complex question. Many photographers rely on Adobe Light Room and Photoshop. I personally recommend Light Room as it cheap to buy ($99USD) or $10USD/month for the Creative Cloud that include both Light Room AND Photoshop. Lightroom is a very easy to use software and comes with some basic presets (like filters). It is easy to manipulate your photos, change settings for a batch of photos, resize them and watermark them. There are countless resources online that offer free presets that you can load on Lightroom to get the desired effects. Photoshop is a bit more in depth, so you really need to know what your goal is with editing. It maybe truly unnecessary if your only adjusting saturation and contrast. If your on your cellphone, there are tons of amazing apps to simplify the process of editing (Instagram being probably the most common). BUT HOW DO I EDIT? It's all about what effect you are looking for. Do you want to convert your photo to black and white? Do you want to make your photo vibrant? Or are you trying to even out the exposure due to harsh shadows? There are countless scenarios. We must begin to learn these powerful tools we have at our finger tips (the software). Learning our tools will help us fix what ever issue we see. So this being such a broad question, I would have to recommend finding a filter/preset you like, apply it the photo of your choice, then modify it to work for that photo. Filters and presets by themselves can make your photos look generic as everyone single handedly uses them, BUT you can make it original by adding your creative touch.

Thanks again for reading! I really hope these quick questions were of help. If you have any questions of your own, please comment below and I'll respond soon. Now have a great weekend!!!!