Photography tips.

Dry_bean.

Found this during my wanderings this AM.

It's all about light, motion and focus.

These really are the basics regardless of the type of camera you are using.

http://www.boostyourphotography.com/2014/12/top-posts.html

FreshCoffee2

I've just been looking around that link/site/blog while eating my lunch.... Its a handy resource and I've bookmarked it for future reference. Thanks for sharing J 

Dry_bean.

G'Day Atillio, I thought it was useful and easy to understand, a lot of photographic writing is way to technical for novices. Just about to drive out the gate, heading for Thailand for a couple of weeks, meeting Heather in Bangkok, if the stars align we should both arrive within a couple of hours, she is flying from Rome, just did a 10 day art workshop in Tuscany. Talk to you when we get back.

FreshCoffee2

Have a GREAT time

GeekKopi

on 1435634879:

G'Day Atillio, I thought it was useful and easy to understand, a lot of photographic writing is way to technical for novices. Just about to drive out the gate, heading for Thailand for a couple of weeks, meeting Heather in Bangkok, if the stars align we should both arrive within a couple of hours, she is flying from Rome, just did a 10 day art workshop in Tuscany. Talk to you when we get back.

enjoy your trip mate and take it easy with the $5 massages [emoji41]

Cuir Beluga

Enjoy your getaway Db and lol Geek  :P.

Dry_bean.

Morning all, A quick update re our travels. Typing this on heathers iPad with some difficulty, much prefer my laptop and windows. So far all has been good, now in Chiangmai Mai Bangkok frantic as usual, Chiangmai much more relaxed although much busier than our last trip a few years ago. Weather good, nice to feel a bit of warmth in my bones after the cold of Adelaide. Couple of pics taken yesterday during visit to umbrella factory. Trust all is well back there. 

GeekKopi

on 1436064537:

Morning all, A quick update re our travels. Typing this on heathers iPad with some difficulty, much prefer my laptop and windows. So far all has been good, now in Chiangmai Mai Bangkok frantic as usual, Chiangmai much more relaxed although much busier than our last trip a few years ago. Weather good, nice to feel a bit of warmth in my bones after the cold of Adelaide. Couple of pics taken yesterday during visit to umbrella factory. Trust all is well back there. 

Hi DB, glad to hear you are having a great time. keep the photo's coming! Jealous of the warmer weather. Here in Melb we've had a shocking last few days and we wouldn't mind escaping up north for a bit (oh wait,, baby,,, can't do that )

GaryatGala

Tried the coffee at Chiang Mai? They grow nice arabica there. The quality of specialty coffee in some places rival those over here in australia.

Dry_bean.

Decent coffee in Chiangmai is very difficult to find, were drinking oolong tea, making it in the room, hotel coffee is ghastly, there is a Starbucks over the road from our hotel. ::) Bangkok was ok for coffee, however I suspect Mae hong son will be a coffee desert, heading up there on Tues.

Brett H

Great stuu and great pics DB! 

FreshCoffee2

Never mind about coffee J, just have a great time 

Dry_bean.

Thanks for the good wishes guys. Heathers workshop in Tuscany was a great success, she thoroughly enjoyed it and achieved a lot, will post a pic of her proudly displaying some of her efforts in our hotel room in Bangkok. Our first five days up here have been very enjoyable, let's hope it continues that way.

Cuir Beluga

Mrs Db sure is talented Db .

FreshCoffee2

Looking good. Is she is signing them HDB  ;D ? Following on in the original theme of the topic. Here's anotherie, for anyone that has bought a TTL Speedlight and cant work out the basics from reading the "shorthand" (putting it nicely) instructions the manufacturers lovingly include in the box: https://rolandlim.wordpress.com/2011/02/23/a-simple-guide-to-ttl-flash-photography/

adelaidecoffee

I have a dslr camera but it sucks when taking pics of espresso. You're in the cafe, you dont have much time to take the photo because you also want to drink it when its fresh. Now I can rarely (never?) get it to focus in on the coffee as the camera  ::) prefers the rim of the cup  :head: Frigin rims. I cant work it out but will try the link as posted above for tips. And the thing is, from my understanding, you cant pre-do the settings because of lighting and whatnot? I just end up using my phone sometimes.

Dry_bean.

on 1436162057:

Mrs Db sure is talented Db .

Runs in the family Sue.  : ::)

Dry_bean.

on 1436194084:

I have a dslr camera but it sucks when taking pics of espresso. You're in the cafe, you dont have much time to take the photo because you also want to drink it when its fresh. Now I can rarely (never?) get it to focus in on the coffee as the camera  ::) prefers the rim of the cup  :head: Frigin rims. I cant work it out but will try the link as posted above for tips. And the thing is, from my understanding, you cant pre-do the settings because of lighting and whatnot? I just end up using my phone sometimes.

Two words AC, manual focus, take control of the camera, don't let it tell you what to do :D seriously though, forget the photos and enjoy your coffee, much more rewarding.

FreshCoffee2

"...forget the photos and enjoy your coffee, much more rewarding...."arh yeah, once it starts getting under your skin an interest in photography can start getting a little like having an interest in golf.....getting a good coffee is easier! Just a couple of thoughts AC: a) yes manual focus OR b) for AF, do you have your camera set to focus on a single point, in which case it should focus on what you are pointing it at rather than doing a multipoint focus over the whole area? If you want to take the shot fast instead of taking the time to manually work out the settings, set the ISO to a figure you think is most appropriate but set the mode to "P". You should be able to point and shoot quickly then drink your coffee. Hope that helps.

Cuir Beluga

on 1436197988:

Runs in the family Sue.  : ::)

I know the feeling  :-|.

adelaidecoffee

Cheers @freshcoffee & @drybean - noted. Will practice at home this week. Appreciate the tips.

FreshCoffee2

AC. Check these: http://www.digitalcameraworld.com/2013/02/07/af-points-how-to-take-control-of-autofocus-to-get-the-shots-you-want/ http://www.digitalcameraworld.com/2013/05/15/10-reasons-why-your-photos-arent-sharp-and-how-to-fix-them/ and take a look at the links at the bottom of each page. Hope they are helpful.

adelaidecoffee

on 1436255085:

AC. Check these: http://www.digitalcameraworld.com/2013/02/07/af-points-how-to-take-control-of-autofocus-to-get-the-shots-you-want/ http://www.digitalcameraworld.com/2013/05/15/10-reasons-why-your-photos-arent-sharp-and-how-to-fix-them/ and take a look at the links at the bottom of each page. Hope they are helpful.

You know i've tried looking at online stuff before but i just cant get it right, however its been awhile and good to get some direction from you guys. thanks.

Dry_bean.

on 1436255252:

You know i've tried looking at online stuff before but i just cant get it right, however its been awhile and good to get some direction from you guys. thanks.

Aperture, and shutter speed are tied together AC, small aperture equals slower shutter speed and greater depth of field and of course larger aperture requires a higher shutter speed and will will result in an image with a shallow depth of field, of course you can compensate by using a higher ISO, however once you go above about 400 ISO quality will suffer when you try for bigger enlargements. Google hyper focal distance, once you grasp the concept it's a valuable tool, particularly when trying to take shots of coffee etc.

Brett H

I've a D800 which shoots usable pics at iso6400.  You'd not want to print much bigger than A2 but under that the noise isn't an issue.  I'm shooting f4 now as opposed to f2.8 with only the bokeh suffering occaisionally.  My latest body the D750 accidentally ramped up to iso12800 in the theatre the other night.  I'd not constrained the high end in the menus. Guess what... Some noise obviously but all usable especially for 10x8 prints with a bit of smoothing in PS.  This thing sees better in the dark than my 3yo!!!

GeekKopi

Great thread guys. I'm now in he market for a new camera. I've got a couple compacts and an old DLSR (canon eos300d from 2004). Yes that's 6MP. I'm now after a full frame DLSR or Mirrorless. Just can't decide. I like the form factor of the Mirrorless full frame cameras but I'm worried about battery life (electronic view finder always on) as compared to the optical VF of DLSR. Has anyone used a new fancy Mirrorless such as from FUji, Samsung Nx1 or Sony a7?