Easy tips to shoot great group photos

Easy tips to shoot great group photos

We’ve all seen them, and we’ve all probably taken one or more of them — the group photograph that didn’t quite work.
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The kids look great; all happy, smiling faces.

But Grannie looks as if her favourite pet just died, and Uncle Joe … well, he is in the shot, but the bottom of his face has become lost behind Aunty Flo’s healthy crop of hair. Read more

Silhouette Photography made easy

Capturing that brilliant silhouette of a fisherman at sunrise, or a boat on the water against the backdrop of a setting sun, is all about timing — and a few basic rules. Read more

Shooting Great Pictures at Home

By guest contributor Peter Langston (Lango)

The view from the Tamworth lookout is spectacular but like most scenic views, once you’ve seen it … unless it’s the start of the day and a dense fog is just clearing and you catch the morning flight from Sydney on its final approach. This was shot on my Canon 50D EOS in AV mode, mounted on a Slik Pro500DX tripod at f5.6, 1/1000sec and 100 ISO with the 18-200mm lens set to 135mm and picture style on landscape.

The view from the Tamworth lookout is spectacular but like most scenic views, once you’ve seen it … unless it’s the start of the day and a dense fog is just clearing and you catch the morning flight from Sydney on its final approach. This was shot on my Canon 50D EOS in AV mode, mounted on a Slik Pro500DX tripod at f5.6, 1/1000sec and 100 ISO with the 18-200mm lens set to 135mm and picture style on landscape.

I’ve travelled a fair portion of Australia, with only Tasmania and the tropical north of Qld still escaping my lens and it would be a reasonable assumption that whilst all of those kilometres enveloped me in their protection from all things “back home”, they also gave me opportunities to take some spectacular photographs. Read more

Outdoor Photography Opportunities

From guest contributor Peter Langston (Lango)

This is Peter’s second contribution and you can read more about him here and on facebook. Peter is a customer of the Eastmon Tamworth store.

Sometimes, fortune takes over from planning and a shot just appears before you. At times like these, you hope all of the workshops and courses and advice from others has sunk in and the choices you make are good ones.
Photography is about moments held in your viewfinder so that others can wish they were there and a bit like fishing, we can all talk of the one that got away. Read more

Have fun with Black & White photos

Colour image converted to B&W with yellow balloon held back

Colour image converted to B&W with yellow balloon held back

I felt like trying something a little different and as I have just acquired a new photo editing program I decided to play with some of the different effects that can be achieved. The simplest and sometimes the most effective technique is turning your photos black and white. Almost every program is capable of achieving this whether it is a simple photo editing program that comes with your computer or Abode Photoshop. Read more

How to Shoot Photos on a Rainy Day

February 3, 2009 by Eastmon Admin  
Filed under Amy's Photography

Look for strong colours to capture attention.

Look for strong colours to capture attention.

The wet, rainy weather wasn’t very good for our Australia day this year, ruining BBQ’s and street cricket everywhere but as far as photography is concerned you can’t let a little rain dampen your spirits. Just after it rains it seems that colours are brighter and stand out more and everything looks so fresh and clean. Read more

How to Create Depth in your Photos

January 22, 2009 by Eastmon Admin  
Filed under Amy's Photography

Compose your shot to make your eye travel around your photo

Compose your shot to draw your eye into the picture

Have you ever seen a beautiful landscape, taken a photo of it to show everyone, only to get home and find the photo lifeless and dull? It is very hard to capture the feeling and atmosphere of a place in a single photograph and when it comes to landscape shots most end up boring and uninteresting as they lack both detail and depth. But there are a few simple techniques that can overcome this problem to help you create photos that draw you into the picture and are more intriguing. Read more

Focus – The Art of Seeing

November 20, 2008 by Eastmon Admin  
Filed under Beginners Tips

picture-32A camera, no matter how automatic, is a lifeless piece of equipment until a person uses it. It then becomes a uniquely responsive tool, an expression of the photographers eye and creative mind.

Anyone can take amazingly beautiful photographs by simply taking a mental “walk” around a photo opportunity to view it from multiple perspectives. This will always result in important insights and fresh ideas.

Three of the most important factors as you begin to understand the ‘Art of Seeing’, are:

Understanding and using these to your advantage to take better photos helps to develop your ‘Art of Seeing’.

Focus

One ingredient of great images is focusing the camera carefully.

Auto-focus (AF) technology today has made focusing as painless and as child proof as pressing a button. Still, to increase your percentage of sharp pictures, keep a few things in mind before you press it. Read more