One of the most frustrating experiences for a photographer is to get home from a photo trip with some great images only to find that some of the images are not sharp. To help solve this problem, this article covers seven things that a photographer can do to create really sharp images. “Twilight Inferno” captured by DailyTravelPhotos.com (Click Image to See More) Tripod When it comes to getting sharp images, the first place to start is with a tripod. A tripod provides a stable platform that holds the camera rigid — dramatically increasing the sharpness of the image. Weighting the tripod A tripod is a good start. However, a tripod can be made even more stable by using some object to weigh down the tripod. This produces even sharper images. This is so important that many tripods have some type of mechanism at the bottom of the center post that was designed for hanging objects to add weight to the tripod. A simple way to take advantage of this feature is to carry a small net bag with your photo equipment. The bag can be filled with rocks, or other materials, and attached to the tripod. Even if a tripod doesn’t have such a mechanism, other methods can be used such as hanging a camera bag from the center column of the tripod. Shutter release Just because a camera is on a tripod doesn’t mean that the camera will be steady. The simple act of pressing the shutter can cause vibrations that will cause a loss of sharpness. The solution is simple. A remote switch can be used to release the shutter. A remote switch is a device that attaches to the camera through a cable, or wirelessly, and allows the photographer to release the shutter without touching the camera. Mirror lock up Even if the camera is set up on a tripod, the tripod is weighted down, and a remote switch is used, image quality can still be degraded due to vibration from the movement of the camera’s mirror when the shutter is released. This vibration is primarily a problem with shutter speeds between about 1/30s and 1s. “Happy New Year Singapore” captured by fady (Click Image to See More From fady) This is easily solved by enabling the mirror lockup function on the camera. Once enabled, pressing the shutter button once swings the mirror out of the way. Pressing the shutter button a second time releases the shutter. This way, the mirror vibration dies out before the shutter is released. Aperture The middle apertures (around f/8 for most lenses) produce the sharpest images. The larger apertures produce softer images due to various aberrations while the smaller apertures produce softer images due to diffraction. Shutter Speed While a tripod eliminates camera movement, the subject that is being photographed may be moving. Thus, a shutter speed that is high enough to freeze the subject movement should be used. This may require that a larger aperture be used in order to get the proper exposure ISO Increasing the ISO will allow a higher shutter speed to be used in order to stop the movement of the subject. “Cloud Chafers” captured by DailyTravelPhotos.com (Click Image to See More) Following these techniques will put you on your way to creating some really sharp photos. About the Author Ron Bigelow has created an extensive resource of free articles to help you develop your photography skills. Visit Ron’s site at http://www.ronbigelow.com/articles/articles.htm. Go to full article: How to Capture Really Sharp Photos What are your thoughts on this article? Join the discussion on Facebook or Google+ Article from: PictureCorrect Photography Tips

We’ve all seen photos of the Grand Canyon, but I’ll bet you’ve never seen one like this. Last year, Travis Roe captured this image of a lightning bolt striking the rim of the Grand Canyon. Roe submitted the image to the U.S. Department of Interior who released the image recently. The image has become one of their most viewed and liked photos of all time: Grand Canyon lit by giant lightning bolt (Click to See Larger Size, Imgur) The lightning adds a beautiful and almost surreal lighting to the image giving a fresh perspective on an otherwise over-photograph landmark. Below is a video clip from NBC Nightly News that tells a bit more about the photo: Go to full article: Interesting Photo of the Day: Lighting Strikes Grand Canyon What are your thoughts on this article? Join the discussion on Facebook or Google+ Article from: PictureCorrect Photography Tips

All photographers hope to capture a once in a lifetime moment whether it be photographing people or nature. In the photo below, Owen Deutsch, was clearly in the right place at the right time. He was able to capture an incredibly rare moment as a Bald Eagle chased off a Great Blue Heron in effort to protect the eggs that were resting in the eagle’s nest. The photo was taken in Fox Lake, Illinois: Bald Eagle Gives Chase to Great Blue Heron In an interview with National Geographic, where this same photo made it’s Top 25 Wild Bird Photographs of The Week, Deutsch says, “This Bald Eagle was chasing the Great Blue Heron away from the eggs in her nest. It wasn’t trying to kill the Heron or she would have done so long before this once in a lifetime shot was captured.” Deutsch got his start in professional photography working as a fashion photographer, which he did for twenty years. After a hiatus from photography to pursue other goals, he made his return to photography, this time working as a bird and wildlife photographer. Go to full article: Interesting Photo of the Day: Bald Eagle In Pursuit of a Great Blue Heron What are your thoughts on this article? Join the discussion on Facebook or Google+ Article from: PictureCorrect Photography Tips

1. Move closer to your subject. Nothing kills a photo quicker than a distracting background. If you have a great background try bringing the subject closer to the camera so they don’t get lost. Remember this tip if nothing else. “chit-chat” captured by Raluca Mateescu (Click Image to See More From Raluca Mateescu) 2. Take lots of pictures. Digital photography is cheap and it is good! It is okay to shoot multiple photos with only slight variations…keep and share your best photos. Also you don’t need an expensive camera; I have photos from all over the world hanging on my walls that were taken with a $300 point and shoot. 3. Get creative. It doesn’t take much to enhance a photo. Pictures taken from 5 ½’ above the ground can look repetitious. Think about changing the perspective – get down on one knee or on your stomach if possible. Stand on a chair. Experiment with different lenses if you have them. Experiment with composition. 4. Rent equipment. Professional camera stores are not just for professionals. They have rental departments where anyone can pick up an exotic lens for a day or more. Many that can be used on non-professional cameras. These rental departments are manned by people with lots of photo knowledge and people are generally more than happy to “talk photography” if not too busy at the moment. Don’t be shy. “The Catcher in the Rye” captured by Arman Zhenikeyev (Click Image to See More From Arman Zhenikeyev) 5. Use the camera’s flash. Especially outside. Your eyes can look at a person in front of a sunset and see their smile but your camera can’t. It is either going to record the colors of the sunset and your subject will be a silhouette or your subject will be visible and the background will be overexposed. Be conscious of shadows on people’s faces – again utilize your flash. If your subject is looking into the sun they are squinting – turn them away from the sun and fill shadows with flash. 6. Think of your camera like a painter’s canvas. Be the artist. Is there a garbage can or other unwanted item in the frame that can be eliminated by simply moving a foot or so to the left or right? Look at the entire frame you are about to capture, not just the one main element you are focusing on. Sure you can fix it in Photoshop but it is better to capture it the way you want to see it. 7. Study Pictures. Pictures you like. Cut them out of your favorite magazines or newspapers. Keep a file on your desk and just take a moment to look at them and tell yourself what you like about them. Bookmark web sites that have photos you like. Go to them often. Develop your eye. Oh, and move closer to your subject ;) 8. Learn to take a little criticism. All photographers love their own photos. You put your heart and soul into them. You want to show them off. They are pictures of your kids, taken with the camera you always wanted and just bought. How can people not love them? Remember art is subjective. Not everybody is your mom. 9. Get your pictures published. Local newspapers have photography contests, generally centered on a theme: children, pets, travel. If you are in the right place at the right time, CNN might be interested. Don’t forget about the internet. There are always photo contests you can enter online. Publish your own website. There are plenty of free sites that will allow you to build a web site using your photos. They are a great way to share our art and these days you don’t need a degree from MIT to do it. 10. Learn from your mistakes. But don’t be afraid to break rules. Photography is fun and creative. Nobody is going to die if your snapshots are a little off or weird. What might not work one day may be a stroke of genius the next. And one last time, move closer to your subject. “Kelso Dunes” captured by David Urban (Click Image to See More From David Urban) For the

And who isn't... Then this will be of interest to you! You can save 71% on his DVD and book combo "Photo Recipes Live Part 2", right now it can be yours for just $12.99 and it also comes with free shipping (usually $44.95). This is for the DVD/book version, not a download or a streaming video, but the hard copy in your hot little hands. If you wonder how professional photographers use natural light, studio light, and direct daylight to get amazing shots, you’ll see it all in this DVD, as it happens. Best of all, Scott explains everything in simple, plain, easy to understand and follow English, just like you're talking to a friend. You can read our original review of "Photo Recipes Live Part 1" from Scott Kelby here. The bad news is this offer is only good until May 18th (2013), so if you want "Photo Recipes Live Part 2" from Scott Kelby do not doddle. Here is a two minute teaser video from Scott. (subscribers will need to return to the blog to watch the video)

Those Star Trek special effects guys are going to feel pret-ty foolish when they find out about Adam Kennedy. Turns out you don’t need years of computer-generated image training to create breathtakingly detailed alien planets. Adam finds his planets on the street! Fire hydrants, my friends. He photographs, the rusted, peeling spheres that sit atop fire hydrants and edits them into wonderfully awe-inspiring habitats. The best part about Adam’s planet project is that it started with a single imaginative thought. It’s what inspires street art, photographers, and artists of every kind. So the next time you think, hey that thing looks like that other thing, you know exactly what to do. (Make art!) Planets Made Out of Fire Hydrants p.s. Wedding season is here! Get 40% off pro photo prints from Nations Photo Lab with code PHOTOJOJO. p.p.s. We’re hiring A WEB DEVELOPER and AN EVANGELIST/BIZ DEV HERO. If you love photography and San Francisco, APPLY HERE. Related posts: The Ultimate Tool for

In the eleventh hour, your best friend who’s getting married is in tears. The professional she hired to photograph her wedding bailed. You happen to have a digital SLR and all of a sudden you’re it. Here’s my survival guide for you. Photo captured by Olesia Kliots (Click Image to Find Photographer) 1. Make a “Shot List”. Think of this as your “storyboard.” A guide to the different scenes you want to see if you were doing a movie. This shot list will break down what you might concentrate on in the 3 phases of any wedding: preparations, ceremony and reception. It’s your cheatsheet on the order of the events, various arrangements for the formal portraits, so go over this with the couple. 2. Shoot lots of candids. Just because you have everyone bossing you around, telling you to take their picture, it doesn’t mean you have to pose all your subjects in every picture. “Amanda and Taras” captured by Tatiana Garanina (Click Image to Find Photographer)

Update – Part III just released! See below In the following video, which combines both timelapse and stop motion photography techniques, Mayeul Akpovi enchants viewers with images from around the area, showing reason behind the cities appropriate moniker, The City of Light. Compiled from thousands of still images captured throughout Paris, each individual photograph was carefully edited together in post to create the 2-minute long tour. Take a look at Akpovi’s work here: To capture the shots during the day, Akpovi used four different shutter speeds which varied from 1/100th, 1/60th, 1 or 2. For the night exposures, like the following images, he says he increased his exposure time up to 5 seconds. Here is Part II: The changing weather, Akpovi explained, had a sizable influence on the camera settings. And finally, here is Part III: Paris is definitely on my list of places to visit now. If you are wondering how he managed to stabilize those incredible moving sequences, it appears the magic lies i

We all have an inner street photographer, whether it be a hidden urge or a full-blown passion. In this Nikon-sponsored video, documentary photographer Nina Berman discusses her approach, on the roads and avenues of New York City, to this style which demands so much instinct, quickness, and versatility: For a long time, Nikon has been gearing their cameras towards this type of photography by focusing their development on high ISO performance, wide dynamic range, and ever more compact bodies. True to the essence of street photography itself, Berman focuses her project on “speed”. In doing so, she seeks out swift motion and energy, but also embeds her theme on her method of shooting – very immediate and intuitive, often not even using the viewfinder, shooting blindly or from the hip. These are tried and true techniques for shooting streets; firing without framing leaves your images wide open to absorb amazing slices of life that often elude the more inquisitive eye. Viewing your images without

This is by far the single most popular post we have ever done on Weekly Photo Tips, so we have decided to edited and update our list of the best available free fonts out there to share with you here today. Enjoy. There are times when working on projects (for both yourself and clients) and the standard fonts you find on your computer just aren't doing it for you. And the right font can really "make" the project pop (just as a bad font can sink it). Below is list of websites that have way more FREE fonts than you ever knew existed. 1001 Free Fonts Abstract Fonts Acid Fonts California Fonts Chank Fonts Creamundo.com DaFont.com Fonts.com Font Fabric Font Freak Font River Font Shop Font Space Font Squirrel Free Fonts on Pinterest Free Typography Get Free Fonts Google Fonts Simply The Best Fonts Urban Fonts If you download any of these fonts for a project I (and your fellow Weekly Photo Tippers) would love to see the final result