Digital Photography A workshop on Digital Photography BY

Digital Photography A workshop on Digital Photography BY Ram Ravindran October 2, 2010 India Community Center Indianapolis 1

Digital Photography About me… Ram Ravindran § Just like all of you, I knew nothing about digital cameras till about 5 years ago. § I read a lot about them. § Took lots of pictures. Took some mental notes § Bought several cameras over 6 years. § I want to share with anyone what I know about taking digital pictures. § For some, this presentation maybe basic. But I believe for most of you this maybe the right level of content. 2

Digital Photography What will you learn from attending this workshop? § § § § Learn to choose a digital camera Know the features of the camera How to use various features Dos and don’ts when shooting pictures How to do touchups after you take pics What can you do with the pictures Printing tips 3

Digital Photography Types of cameras § § § Point and shoot (average, slim) Digital SLR Roll film cameras are not used anymore Camcorders (bulky) “Flip” type video cameras that store video on memory cards are becoming more popular. Some take even still shots. § You can take really good video with your digital still camera as well. 4

Digital Photography Point and Shoot Camera 5

Digital Photography Digital SLR Camera 6

Digital Photography Digital SLR cameras § Produce good quality pictures § SLRs are: much faster at starting, focusing, taking pictures, taking multiple pictures; better at taking pictures under low lighting situations by using higher ISO speeds. They can take on many types of lenses. § And of course they cost more. § The biggest drawback is they are bulky 7

Digital Photography What are the advantages of digital cameras § § § No recurring cost Take as many pictures as you want You can manipulate pictures and make them look near perfect before you print them out. § You can do lots of things besides making prints (Albums, coffee mugs, T shirts). § Can be used as a video camera as well 8

Digital Photography Point and shoot digital cameras § § § Most of us use P&S cameras. They cost from $100 -$350. The ones made after 2007 offer a lot of useful features. What are they? They use high capacity SDHC chips 32 GB They take video in 720 or 1080 P. With the new digital still cameras in hand you don’t need a video camera. 9

Digital Photography Point and shoot cameras what to look for? § Don’t get taken in by the number of megapixels. Anything larger than 10 megapixel is unnecessary § For taking a good 6*4 picture all you need is a 3 MP camera § You can make a good 8*10 print if you have a 5 MP camera § The only reason to have a larger MP camera is to be able to do cropping and make a poster size picture ( 11*17) § Don’t go for a ultraslim “shirt” pocketable camera. § It is hard to hold it steady when you use zoom or take videos § When you look for a zoom make sure it is optical zoom and not digital zoom § Most of the cameras now come with a zoom of at least 4 X § An optical zoom of 10 X is nice to have. It comes in handy for nature photography. 10

Digital Photography Point and Shoot cameras what to look for § § § § It is nice to have a camera with quick start up time ( as soon as you turn on it is ready to go) A good lithium battery that can hold charge for shooting 100 pictures is a must Always take with you an extra battery that is fully charged as well When the battery gets weak the recharge time of the flash goes up. Never buy a camera that takes just one or two AA batteries Stick with the camera that can use SDHC memory chip (they go up to 32 GB) Always use a large capacity high speed chip (it is well worth the initial cost. Go for name brand memory chip like Sandisk) 4 GB with 6 or 10 X class The camera should re-charge quickly after taking a flash photo Low light photography is a big plus (Sony Cameras have that capability) Greater wide angle will allow you fit in more people (<26 mm) Make sure the camera has face recognition and auto stabilization It is nice to have a camera that has the flash that pops out. It produces better flash Be careful about the location of flash bulb 11

Digital Photography Point and Shoot cameras. . what to look for § § § § Adjustable flash, and exposure controls are good to have It should have fast sports mode (it is good for taking pictures of babies) If it has panorama capability it is a plus It should take pictures in 3: 2 and 16: 9 aspect ratios. The old 4: 3 is useless. If you have one with that aspect ratio then you have to crop it to make it ready for print Lens cover is a nice thing to have. Macro capability is a good thing to have if you take a close up of something small It should allow you to force flash A good camera should have video capability The video should have 16: 9 aspect for display in HDTV It should also have zoom capability while videoing is done. Nice to have separate video button and review button Tripod mount and self-timer features are nice to have as well. After you take a picture it should display it for a few adjustable seconds 12

Digital Photography Dos and don’ts when you use a camera § § § Select the normal or programming mode Set the picture pixel to at least 1600*1200 Set the camera to take still pictures at it highest quality and highest resolution Keep the subjects within 6 -8 feet of the camera Don’t include too many people, when you have too many people you have to back off too much that will cause the flash to become ineffective. Take at least take 2 pictures of the same individual If it is a group takes at least 3 (chances are someone might turn away or close their eyes). Please let them know that you are going to take more than a single picture of them. Make sure it is properly framed. . head. . shoulder. straight line. . minimal distractions Position the subject in different areas of the LCD screen Take pictures of a subject at different angles Make sure you don’t cut off the head or shoulders 13

Digital Photography Dos and don’ts when you use a camera § If it is husband wife or family make sure they are all close § Try not to include distracting people or objects. § When you take pictures at an event like birthday, anniversary or wedding, take some pictures of the place § Make sure you include all the important people connected with the person of importance § While taking pictures of a group make sure their heads are not blocked § Position people at an angle right and left and keep the important person in the center. § When you take a group of people make sure they are close together § Watch out for head tilt. Take time to eyeball the subjects § Watch out for reflecting surfaces and open windows. § Make sure the beam or other objects are in line 14

Digital Photography Dos and don’ts when you use a camera § § § Immediately check out the picture taken. If you are not satisfied do it again. Take several pictures of the same group Include your picture somewhere so that they can point out who took the pictures on a certain occasion Whenever possible use the force flash mode. If you do that You and the subjects know when the picture is taken Force flash smoothes out light and shade effect Select 3: 2 aspect for print and 16: 9 for video. Don’t use 4: 3 aspect While taking indoor pictures make sure there is some light on the subject Request subjects to move to a place where there maybe more light Take mostly landscape than portrait style pictures Set red-eye reduction mode 15

Digital Photography Dos and don’ts when you use a camera § It is easier to take an outdoors picture than indoors § Use higher ISO, higher exposure, and increased flash while taking indoor pictures § Don’t raise the ISO > 400, > exposure >flash § Don’t erase any pictures unless you need to make room § Be careful when you erase pictures § When you take video, support camera with the palm of hand move it very slowly § Use the zoom sparingly. § Zooming uses up a lot of battery power. § Your collection of pictures should tell a story. 16

Digital Photography Post processing of pictures § Use USB memory card adapter to transfer pictures to computer § Don’t bother with the cables supplied or using the software that came with the camera § Use HDMI slot to show video on HDTV § Most of the indoor digital pictures need light and color adjustments. § Don’t show the pictures to anyone till you make the adjustments § Enhance lighting and color § Learn to select with lasso § Select just the face and make color and lighting adjustments. § Do inversion and change background or darken background 17

Digital Photography Post processing of pictures § § § § Clone out unwanted things Clone in desired things Add borders Add objects, clip art pictures Add frames Add masks Learn to chop head off and incorporate it in different pictures § Use gamma correction than brightness § Shrink pictures for email and iphone? § Use one of the freeware programs 18

Digital Photography What can you do with the pictures taken? § § § Convert it to a size (800*600) or (800*533) for email display Convert it to i. Phone size of 480*320 Make a photo CD using Picasa Using Picasa convert pictures into a movie to burn on DVD Include pictures in calendars, greeting cards and wow your friends and family Make panorama prints of nice landscape Make collages with the collage making software (you can have pictures of the whole event in one card) Display on web using Picasa and free Google account. Share it with your folks in India or relatives and friends here. Upload videos to You. Tube and share them with your folks 19

Digital Photography What can you do with the pictures taken? § Display on computer and on TV § Make specialty items like T shirt, coffee mug , gift album, magnets § Make a power point slideshow and run it continuously § Make Picture DVD or even Blu-Ray 20

Digital Photography Printing pictures § Don’t bother to print them at home § Home printers don’t make prints that have lasting quality. § It is expensive to pay for high-end cartridge, andspecial photo paper § Walgreen does the best job § The digital picture has to have a pixel size of 1800*1200 or somewhat near that size § Matt finish looks better. § Post holiday printing may cost you only 15 C § You can send the pictures to any Walgreen store in US. The advantages are you save mailing cost and it is done within a few hours. 21

Digital Photography Useful freeware § Recuva to recover deleted pictures from the memory chip § Irfanview (multipurpose software) § Photofiltre (multipurpose) § Picasa § Don’t buy Adobe photoshop § (It is too hard to learn and too time-consuming) § Photo card maker, EM collage maker 22

Digital Photography Summary § § § Digital photography can be fun Invest in right camera and Chip Know how to use the features of camera Learn dos and don’ts Take notes (mental and physical) and practice The more pictures you take the more better pictures you will end up with. § Learn the capabilities of freeware. § Use your imagination. 23