Digital Photography Basics…Easy Enough For an Eight Year Old

Recently, my eight year old daughter, Hope, was given a digital camera as a Christmas present. It made me think about the luxury we have today of being able to take a photograph of nearly anything we want by merely taking a digital camera (the size of my wallet) and clicking a button. Best of all, they are reasonably priced; so just about anyone can afford a digital camera. Simply stated, digital cameras are one of the greatest inventions I have witnessed in my lifetime.

As I watch Hope take hundreds of pictures (Several of the same things…over and over again), it reminds me that many digital camera users could use a little help in creating great photographs. Regardless of the camera you own, you should have a basic knowledge of digital photography. Following, are some hints to take great digital photographs.

Know your camera. One of the biggest mistakes you can make is not taking time to learn about the features of your camera. Don’t be lazy. Read your instruction manual.

Turn Your Camera. Simply turning your camera and taking a vertical shot can sometimes make a world of difference.

It’s Just Like Driving…Use Two Hands. The greatest way to avoid shaking (other than using a tripod) is to hold your camera with two hands. Put one hand on the right hand side of your camera where you actually snap the photograph and the other hand will support the weight of your camera.

White Balance. When shooting outdoor shots, you should try to adjust your white balance setting from auto to cloudy. The auto setting will make your shots appear cold, but changing it to cloudy will increase the warmth of your pictures.

Use Your Flash Outdoors. Even on a sunny day, there is still a need for a flash. If the sun is directly overhead or behind your subject, dark shadows tend to appear on the face of your subject. The flash will help lighten the dark areas.

To Center or Not to Center…That is the Question. Move your subject off center to introduce more life into your photos.

Rule of Thirds. This is perhaps the most well-know principle of photographic composition. The basic principle behind the rule of thirds is to imagine breaking an image down into thirds (both horizontally and vertically) so that you have 9 parts. This identifies four important parts of the image that you should consider placing points of interest in as you frame your image. Not only this – but it also gives you four ‘lines’ that are also useful positions for elements in your photo.

The theory is that if you place points of interest in the intersections or along the lines that your photo becomes more balanced and will enable a viewer of the image to interact with it more naturally.

Of course, this is far from being a complete list of the many ways to improve your digital photography, but it is a start. By fine-tuning these few items, your photography skills can be greatly enhanced.

You may consider taking a course on digital photography at a local photography resource center like Shutterbug Photo Mall. You might also think about joining a photography club such as the Sunny 16 Camera Club in Bowling Green.

Regardless of how you choose to learn about your digital camera and techniques to improve your photographic skills, it is important to learn as much as you can if you want to capture your memories in a unique and special way.

Then again, you might take some advice from my daughter…take a lot of pictures and you’re bound to get a great photograph! Sometimes you can’t beat the wisdom of an eight year old.

Scott A. Lewis is the Director of Sales for the Roshan Group, owner and operator of the Shutterbug Photo Mall in Bowling Green; the only stand alone photography lab in South Central Kentucky. Although he’d like to take all of the credit, he must say thank you to Terri in his office for her contribution to this article. Scott can be reached with questions or photo-related story ideas via telephone at 270-781-3315 or email at scott@sbphotomall.com.