Complete Digitl Photography Guide

http://www.komando.com

Essential Guide to TAKING GREAT PHOTOS

ContentsEssential Guide to

Digital Cameras .......................... A

Essential Guide to

Taking Great Photos .................... B

Essential Guide to

Creative Photo Editing ................C

A

B

C

The Kim Komando Show © 2012All Rights Reserved.

AMERICA’S DIGITAL GODDESS®



Essential Guide to DIGITAL CAMERAS

ContentsIntroduction .................................1

Digital Sensors .............................2

ISO Settings .................................5

Image Stabilization .......................7

Digital SLR Cameras ....................9

Hybrid Cameras ......................... 11

Camera Lenses ...........................14

Point-and-Shoots .......................17

Controls & Modes ......................18

Advanced Controls ....................19

Video Recording .........................21

External Flash .............................22

Tripods.........................................23

Photo-Editing Software .............24

Accessories .................................25




1Kim Komando’s Essential Guide to Digital Cameras

You want to take great photos at your daughter’s

soccer game and your son’s piano recital. You want

to take natural-looking portraits and group shots

of family members. You want your vacation photos

to wow. You don’t want to miss a moment of your

precious family memories.

You want to step up from the smartphone camera

you’ve been using or the point-and-shoot you

bought a few years ago. What to buy? If you’ve

visited an electronics store or shopped online

lately, you know this is no small task. You have

dozens of choices when selecting a camera. You’ll

find cameras in all different sizes and shapes from

a variety of manufacturers. The sheer number of

camera models on the market can be daunting.

How do you find a camera that best suits your

needs—and your budget?

That’s the point of this book. We’re going to go

through cameras, bit by bit. You’ll have a good

grasp on them when we finish and be able to

make an informed choice.

From novice to pro, learn what to buy

THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO DIGITAL CAMERAS

Introduction


The sensor is the most important part of a

digital camera. The sensor is where all the magic

happens. As you can probably guess, the sensor is

used to capture the image.

Strictly speaking, the sensor doesn’t actually

capture images. Rather, it collects light. It then

translates this light into electrical signals. The

signals are sent to the processor, which creates the

image file.

A camera may be fast and powerful. It may have all

the latest bells and whistles. But it’s a bad choice if

it has a bad sensor. After all, years from now, you’ll

care more about that photo of Aunt Mabel than

the camera used to take it.

Don’t fall for the Megapixel Myth

When talking about sensors, many people focus

on megapixel count. But don’t judge a camera’s

quality on megapixels alone.

Megapixels simply refers to the number of pixels,

or picture elements, on the sensor. One megapixel

consists of 1 million pixels. Pixels are sites on the

sensor that collect light. Multiply image height in

pixels by width in pixels to get megapixel count.

All else being equal, a camera with an 18MP

sensor will let you make larger prints than a

camera with a 12MP sensor. The larger sensor will

also give you better prints from photos that have

been cropped during the editing process.

Digital Sensors

Where the Magic Happens


Sensor size is more important than megapixels

Here’s a shocker for you: A camera that has

a full-frame 12MP sensor will take much

better pictures than a point-and-shoot

with a 16MP sensor.

How can that be? Size matters

when dealing with sensors. The

full-frame sensor measures

36mm x24mm. The point-and-

shoot’s sensor is roughly 6mm

x 5mm. The full-frame sensor is

nearly 30 times larger!

In general, larger sensors have less

noise and better sensitivity in low light

than smaller sensors. Noise is the term for

off-colored pixels. It somewhat resembles film

grain. It’s particularly apparent in dark areas of

a photo. As pixel density increases, you’re more

likely to see noise.

Larger sensors generally have larger pixels. That

means more light is collected at each pixel site.

You’ll get more-detailed photos.


Dynamic range is also improved. Dynamic range

is the difference between the lightest and darkest

pixels. You’ll get more details in both highlights

and shadows.

Without the constraints of film, manufacturers are

free to make digital camera sensors in a variety of

sizes. There are about a half-dozen sensor sizes in

use in the most popular digital single lens reflex

(DSLR) camera and hybrid cameras. Refer to the

chart for a visual comparison of common sensor

sizes.

Don’t worry much about sensor type

You’ll see a lot of technical specifications when

looking at cameras. All the mumbo-jumbo can be

like reading Greek. Don’t feel bad.

One of the things you’ll see is sensor type. The

cameras you see will use CCD or CMOS sensors.

Sometimes, sensor type is given star billing on

shopping sites’ product pages. You’re led to

believe that sensor type is terribly important.

In reality, CCD and CMOS sensors are both very

capable. Don’t worry about the differences.

Type 1/2” 2/3” 4/3” APS-C APS-H 35mm Full Frame

Sensor W x H 6.4 x 4.8mm 8.8 x 6.6mm 17.8 x 10mm 22.2 x 14.8mm 28.7 x 19.1mm 36 x 24mm

Sensor Diagonal 8mm 11mm 20.41mm 26.7mm 34.5mm 43.3mm

Sensor Area 30.7mm2 58.1mm2 178mm2 329mm2 548mm2 864mm2

Crop Factor 5.41 3.93 2 1.62 1.26 1

The chart above illustrates various sensor sizes. Sensor formats of digital cameras are mostly expressed

in the non-standardized “inch” system, which is approximately 1.5 times the length of the diagonal of the

sensor. Due to inch-based sensor formats being not standardized, their exact dimensions may vary, but

those listed are typical.

Sensor Size Comparison Chart


Pay attention to ISO range

Back in the days of film photography, we talked

about film speed. We used ISO to denote film’s

sensitivity to light. The higher the number, the

more sensitive to light the film was.

We still use ISO to refer to the sensor’s sensitivity

to light. With digital cameras, you can select the

ISO you want to use for any given situation. This

can be done on a picture-by-picture basis, if you

choose.

In camera specifications, ISO is listed as a range.

For example, you may see 100-12,800. Each step

up the ISO range increases the light sensitivity of

the sensor - less light is needed for photos.

Low-light shooting is a major frustration for many

camera users, and sensor makers are continually

pushing the boundaries of sensitivity.

Top ISOs of 25,600 are commonplace now. Nikon’s

and Canon’s flagship, full-frame DSLRs max out at

ISO 102,400!

ISO Settings

Light Settings


Useable ISO is key

You want a camera that has a good ISO range. But

you also need to consider noise. As you increase

the ISO, image noise increases. An image shot at

ISO 25,600 will likely be extremely noisy. So, you

need to think about usable ISO.

To get a feel for a camera’s usable ISO, read the

online reviews of photography magazines and

photography blogs. Reviewers often post photos

at different ISO settings for comparison.

You’ll also find plenty of discussions about

useable ISO in online photo forums. Most people

who hang out in these forums know lots about

cameras. They can spend hours discussing the

finer points of their gear. Don’t worry if some of

the terms and jargon go over your head. Just

take what you need of their advice and ignore

the rest.

Look for a camera that has a

usable ISO of 800 or better. That

will allow you to conquer most

dim rooms, school auditoriums

and other low-light situations.


Beat the shakes with image stabilization

Any number of things can cause a blurry

photograph. But the No. 1 culprit is probably

you. No matter how hard you try to hold still, your

hands shake. This can result in blurry, headache-

inducing photos.

Image stabilization helps a lot. It’s perhaps the

best thing to happen to photography since digital

cameras.

Stabilization can’t do anything for motion blur.

That occurs when a shutter speed is too low to

stop a subject in motion. But stabilization works

wonders to reduce the minor shakes caused by

unsteady hands.

Stabilization technology gives you the ability to

capture a low-light photo at a slow shutter speed

of 1/15 or 1/8 of a second without having to use a

flash or tripod. (If you find yourself in that situation,

take several pictures in continuous mode to

improve your odds of getting a good one.)

Without stabilization, it’s difficult to get a sharp

picture at a shutter speed of 1/30 or slower. Bulky

telephoto lenses require even higher shutter

speeds to compensate for a shaky hand.

Sensor-shift vs. Lens-based

There are two ways to accomplish image

stabilization. Some manufacturers put gyroscopic

sensors in their lenses. Floating elements within

Image Stabilization

Stabilize Your Image


the lenses compensate for horizontal and vertical

movements.

Other manufacturers move the camera’s sensor

instead of lens elements. This is called sensor-shift

or body-based image stabilization.

Nikon and Canon DSLR systems use lens-based

stabilization, which makes sense if you think about

it. They began working on the technology when

film cameras were still prevalent. It wasn’t possible

to move the film up, down, left and right to

compensate for shake.

You’ll see sensor-shift stabilization in Sony Alpha

and Pentax DSLRs and in Panasonic and Olympus

mirrorless cameras.

Both stabilization methods work well. Keep in

mind that a stabilized lens steadies the image on

the sensor and in the viewfinder. The view through

a nonstabilized lens will be shakier.

Some image stabilizer zoom lenses can cost $500-

$1,000 more than their nonstabilized equivalents.

On the other hand, digital camera bodies go

obsolete at a much faster pace than lenses.


Buying a Digital SLR

A digital single lens reflex camera (DSLR) includes

a mirror that flips up when the picture is taken.

The mirror and an internal prism allow you to

frame your shots through the attached lens. The

mirror flips up to reveal the sensor when you press

the shutter. Additionally, SLRs allow you to use

interchangeable lenses.

Don’t confuse DSLRs with the fast-growing

category of hybrid cameras, which I’ll talk about

in the next. These are fine cameras that also

offer interchangeable lens systems, but they use

an electronic viewfinder instead of the mirror to

compose your image.

The first thing to decide when buying a DSLR is

whether to get a full-frame or a reduced-frame

sensor. Cameras with full-frame sensors start at

upwards of $2,000.

Full-frame cameras appeal to pros and advanced

amateurs because, in addition to their big sensors,

the cameras also capture more frames per second.

That’s very important in sports and wildlife

photography. Mid- to top-range DSLRs are also

SLR - What to Buy

Digital SLR Cameras


more weatherproof than entry-level DSLRs. A full-

frame sensor is the size of a frame of traditional

35mm film - 24 x 36mm.

Reduced-size sensors translate to lighter, more

compact cameras with a price range starting at

$750. With megapixel ranges between 12 and 18,

they’re very capable cameras. They can produce

stunning 16 x 20 prints or better and gorgeous HD

video footage that’s worlds ahead of point-and-

shoots and smartphone cameras.

Most compact DSLRs have APS-C sensors. APS-C

sensors in Canons are 60 percent smaller than

full frame. (Canon also makes an APS-H sensor,

which is 30 percent smaller than full frame.) APS-C

sensors in Nikons and others are half the

size of full frame.

Sony’s line of SLT Alpha cameras veer off from

traditional SLR design. SLT stands for single lens

translucent. The camera’s mirror is fixed; it doesn’t

have to swing out of the way like the mirror in a

conventional SLR.

The SLT lets a majority of light pass through it

to expose the sensor. But a portion of light gets

reflected to the camera’s autofocus system. That

means you can look through the Sony’s electronic

viewfinder and use autofocus while shooting

video. In this way, SLTs have much in common with

the mirrorless hybrid cameras.

When you shoot video with a DSLR, the mirror is

up, so you can’t see through the optical viewfinder

or use autofocus. You can shoot beautiful video

with a DSLR using the live-view LCD screen on

the back of the camera. But you’ll probably

find yourself using a tripod a lot and pausing to

refocus.

It’s something to think about when investing in a

camera, especially if video is as important to you

as still pictures.


Buying a hybrid camera

When Panasonic and Olympus invented this breed

of mirrorless, interchangeable-lens camera in 2008,

most digital SLR shooters yawned and went back

to taking pictures. Today, hybrids are the choice of

many pros that need small, lightweight backup

cameras; travel photographers; and people who

specialize in street and documentary photography.

Of course, hybrids are also ideal for anyone who

wants to upgrade from a point-and-shoot or

smartphone camera and take better family and

vacation photos.

Hybrid cameras dispense with the SLR mirror

altogether. Without the mirror, camera makers can

make lenses smaller because they’re closer to the

sensor. The lack of a mirror and bulky internal

prism also allows manufacturers to downsize the

camera body.

While hybrid camera makers were shrinking lenses

and camera bodies, they were also increasing

sensor sizes compared to point-and-shoot

cameras.

Add to that the ability to switch high-quality lenses

and you can see why hybrid cameras sales are

surging.

To see what a hybrid camera sees, you look

through an electronic viewfinder (EVF). Some

hybrids don’t have EVFs. To trim cost, they use

only the live-view LCD display on the back of the

camera.

An EVF also gives you a live view, but it simulates

the experience of an SLR’s optical viewfinder. You

A Camera ... Hybrid?

Hybrid Cameras


can shoot with the camera up to your eye instead

of holding it away from your face to compose as

you do with a point-and-shoot. Some EVFs are

built-in; others are detachable and fit into the

camera’s hot shoe.

EVFs can help you take sharper pictures because

they allow you to magnify portions of the image to

tweak focus. Most EVFs also let you fine-tune

white balance and make other color adjustments

before taking the shot. Most EVFs brighten

automatically in low-light situations. Early EVFs

were dim and a major weak spot of these cameras

a few years ago.

Shutter lag can still be a problem with EVFs, and

that’s a turnoff for some photographers. You’ve

probably missed a few action shots with your

smartphone or point-and-shoot because of shutter

lag. It’s the very slight delay that occurs when you

press the shutter and the camera actually takes

the picture.

Live view is a bit of a misnomer. In a camera with

an EVF, the sensor records the view through the

lens, processes the view and projects the view

onto a display. It takes only a fraction of a second,

but that delay can translate into you capturing a

picture of a splash instead of your kid just above

the water with a huge smile on his face.

In the hybrid category, sensor sizes are all over the

map. Sony packs an APS-C-size sensor into its

Alpha NEX line of hybrids. Seven E-mount zoom

and single-focal-length lenses should cover all

your bases. Some enthusiasts buy a NEX just for

the slim, pancake style wide-angle lens. It’s less

than an inch long and weighs 2.5 ounces.


Fujifilm’s X-Pro 1 also uses an APS-C sensor.

Fujifilm invented a hybrid viewfinder that lets the

photographer switch between an optical

viewfinder and an EVF. At the X-Pro 1’s release in

late March 2012, only three lenses were available

for the camera. More will come.

The Panasonic Lumix and Olympus PEN cameras

use the Micro Four Thirds sensor. It’s 25 percent

the size of a full-frame sensor.

Lens connoisseurs love Micro Four Thirds.

Panasonic and Olympus offer a wide range of

zooms and exotic primes, such as fish-eye wide

angles. They also allow third-party lens makers to

get in the Micro Four Thirds game. On the low

end, you can buy plastic “toy” lenses. They’re

popular for their soft-focus, grungy look. If you’re a

stickler for sharpness and top-notch image quality,

you can pay big bucks for Leica Micro Four Thirds

lenses.

Nikon came late to the hybrid party at the end of

2011, but its two mirrorless cameras are attracting

enthusiasts. The flagship V1 has an EVF and a hot

shoe that accepts Nikon’s popular Speedlights.

The sensor in it and the J1 are about half the size

of a Micro Four Thirds sensor. So far, the company

has made a versatile, all-purpose zoom lens for the

cameras. It has Vibration Reduction (VR), Nikon’s

term for lens stabilization. A pancake-style wide

angle is also available. A third wide-telephoto

zoom lens was made especially for video. The lens’

VR and a 3-speed, silent zoom motor turn these

cameras into very capable camcorders.

The only major camera maker left with no hybrid

offering – Canon – is expected to introduce a

system sometime in 2012. In the meantime, the

company has launched an interesting contender in

another fast-evolving class of cameras - high-end

point-and-shoots. I’ll go over those a bit later.


The ins and outs of lenses

Earlier, I said the sensor is the most important part

of a digital camera. Lens quality is crucial, too.

When you shop for a DSLR or hybrid camera,

you’re also getting married to a system of lenses.

Make sure that system suits your needs now and in

years to come.

DSLRs and hybrids are sold as a camera body only

or as a kit with an all-purpose zoom lens. The kit

zoom lens may not be the best in the

manufacturer’s lineup, but it’s fine for most

photographers who are just starting out. More

advanced photographers who already have an

arsenal of lenses buy camera bodies. As you gain

experience, you’ll quickly learn which lenses will

help you grow in the hobby.

When camera makers invented new digital sensor

sizes, they also invented new focal lengths for

lenses. This can be confusing until you understand

the method behind the madness.

In film days, 35mm cameras were often sold with

50mm lenses. That was considered a “normal”

lens for 35mm because it gave a natural

perspective, a field of view similar to normal

human vision. Focal lengths below 50mm were

considered wide angle. Focal lengths above 50mm

were telephoto.

Landscape photographers love wide angles

because they take in more than the eye can

normally see and make it easy to get everything in

focus. Portrait photographers rely on moderate

telephoto lenses in the 85-100mm range. They can

fill the frame with the subject’s face while standing

a comfortable distance away. Sports and wildlife

photographers buy 200mm, 300mm or 400mm

telephoto lenses depending on their needs.

Let’s put that normal 50mm lens on a few cameras

with smaller sensors. On a Nikon APS-C, the

Camera Lenses

A Lens for Every Occasion


50mm behaves like a 75mm lens. On a Canon

APS-C, it’s like an 80mm. On a Micro Four Thirds,

the 50mm doubles to 100mm.

How did that happen? Smaller sensors see less of

a scene than full frame. The smaller sensor crops

the image, and that creates a magnification effect

similar to you having zoomed closer to the subject.

The ratio between a digital sensor size and the

reference size of full frame is called the crop factor,

or multiplier. In the examples above, the Nikon

crop factor is 1.5, the Canon is 1.6 and the Micro

Four Thirds is 2.0.

In the early days of digital photography, shooting

at wide angles was a problem. A

24mm lens behaved more

like a normal lens with

digital sensors. Lens

makers scrambled to

catch up. Today, it’s

commonplace to see

10mm wide angles for digital

cameras.

At the other end of the spectrum,

the crop factor is a bonus for a photographer who

uses longer lenses to capture sports action and

wildlife.

Fortunately, camera makers and retailers always

compare their lenses’ focal lengths to what the

equivalent would be in full frame, 35mm format.

For example: Panasonic will say that it’s 20mm

pancake lens is equivalent to 40mm in 35mm.

Crop factors are something you need to be

mindful of, but you don’t need to obsess about

them. I want you to be taking great pictures - not

doing multiplication tables in your head.

When buying a new lens, you want to make sure

it’s sharp and doesn’t suffer from any distortions.

You can go into forums and read online reviews to

determine that.

You also need to consider how “fast” the lens is. A

lens’ speed is equal to its most wide-open

aperture. Aperture is denoted by f-numbers. At a

constant shutter speed, an f/2.8 lens is twice as

fast as an f/4 lens. Put another way: It gathers twice

the amount of light at the f/2.8 setting than the f/4

setting.


That’s an important distinction if you like to shoot

portraits and indoor sports without using flash.

With a faster DSLR lens, the viewfinder will also be

brighter and the camera’s metering and autofocus

systems will perform better. Of course, you’ll pay

extra for speed.

Landscape photographers often shoot at smaller

apertures of f/11, f/16, and f/22 to get everything in

focus from foreground to background. They can

save money by picking an f/4 lens instead of an

f/2.8.

Primes and zooms

You’ll see primes and zooms available for DSLRs

and hybrids. Prime lenses have a fixed focal length.

You’ll find wide angle, normal and telephoto

primes. Zoom lenses may be wide angle - 17-

35mm, for example - or telephoto 70-200mm.

Prime lenses aren’t as convenient as zooms, but

they’re less bulky and usually very fast and sharp.

Less engineering goes into making a prime, so it

costs less to make than a fast zoom.

Be careful of lenses with extreme zoom ranges,

such as 18-200mm. By trying to do too much, they

often come up short on image quality. Zooms that

stay at a constant aperture throughout the range

are usually better quality than lenses that get

slower as you zoom out - f/3.5-5.6, for example.

Be aware that Nikon DX and Canon EF-S lenses

work only on their APS-C DSLR cameras. They do

this to make smaller and lightweight zooms for

these cameras. All of Canon’s and Nikon’s full-

frame lenses will work on reduced-sensor cameras.


High-end point-and-shoots

Sometimes you don’t want to lug around a heavy

DSLR. Or maybe you don’t want to be bothered

with interchangeable lens systems. You just want

a compact, high-quality camera that’s simple and

fun to use.

You should take a look at the new breed of high-

end point-and-shoots. They range in price from

$600 to $1,200 and have larger sensors than

budget point-and-shoots. Some have fixed zoom

lenses; others have a fixed prime.

The Fujifilm X-100, for example, has a fixed 35mm

f/2 lens. The APS-C, 12 MP sensor can shoot 720p

video. Fujifilm even built a fun Film Simulation

mode into this rangefinder lookalike that mimics

the look of the company’s classic color slide films:

Provia, Velvia and Astia. The Fujifilm X10 and X-S1

have fixed zoom lenses.

Leica and Sigma also make several models of high

end point-and-shoots.

Canon just entered the category in 2012 with its

beefed-up PowerShot G1 X. Its 14 MP sensor is

slightly smaller than APS-C and can record 1080p

video. The camera can be as automatic or manual

as you want it to be. The 28-112mm zooms lens is

stabilized.

Point-and-Shoots

DSLR not for You?


Cameras you can grow with

The great thing about most entry-level and mid-

level hybrids and DSLRs is they include a lot of

automatic exposure controls and scene modes

that can help you take great pictures right off the

bat if you’re a beginner.

Let’s take a closer look at some of these helpful

features.

Auto mode will go a long way to helping you get

great shots. The camera adjusts all the settings

for you. But, there’s a downside to auto mode.

The camera may make the wrong assumptions

about the scene. Plus, it can’t read your mind. If

you’re trying to accomplish something specific, the

settings could be wrong.

Scene modes aren’t all that different from auto

mode. The camera still makes the necessary

adjustments. However, you get more control over

the shot. You specify the situation. The camera

makes adjustments based on what you specify.

Common scene modes include portrait, night

portrait, landscape, night landscape, macro and

sports mode. These cover the most common

shooting situations. Other cameras have more

scene modes: beach/snow, fireworks, sunset and

foliage. You never know what you might want to

photograph. You’ll be prepared for virtually any

situation.

Controls & Modes

Automatic Exposure Controls and Scene Modes


Take complete control over exposure

When you feel ready to leave automatic settings

behind, you can take complete control over

exposure.

Shutter-priority and Aperture-priority modes

are especially helpful. In Shutter-priority, you set

the shutter speed and the camera automatically

picks the best aperture.

For example, you’d

want to lock in a high shutter speed to freeze the

action at a basketball game. Or, you could select a

very slow shutter speed to blur a waterfall.

In Aperture-priority, you set the lens aperture and

the camera selects the most appropriate shutter

speed. When taking a portrait, for instance, you

might want to set the lens at a wide f/2.8 aperture.

That will throw the background out of focus and

draw more attention to the subject’s face.

Advanced Controls

Be in Control


This diagram shows how aperture (F-Stop) and shutter speed affect your image. A higher F-Stop restricts

the amount of light that enters the shutter, but in turn, also brings more of your picture into focus at once.

Likewise, a larger aperture (lower F-Stop) permits more light and enables you to focus on a single object in

your photo, while leaving the foreground and/or background out of focus. Similarly, the faster your shutter

clicks, the less time light has to enter the camera. A fast shutter freezes fast moving objects. A slower shutter

speed, while allowing more light to enter, also gives fast moving objects more time to blur. Finding the right

balance will depend on lighting conditions and the desired effect you are trying to achieve in your image.

In Manual, you set the shutter and aperture. When

looking at controls, you also need to consider

placement and ease of use. You want buttons and

dials that are clearly labeled. The controls should

also be easy to reach. They shouldn’t be too close

together. The controls you will use most should

be easily accessible. And look for programmable

buttons. These bring up settings that you specify.

They’re more common on high-end cameras. But

you may find them on mid-range models.

Likewise, look carefully at the camera’s menus.

They should be easy to read, navigate and

understand.


Making movies

You’re buying a digital camera because you want

to take photographs. But digital cameras have an

added bonus. They record video, as well. Hybrids

and DSLRs are capable of taking spectacular

video. And the ability to switch lenses is a budding

videographer’s dream.

You may not plan to shoot video, but you might

be surprised how convenient the feature is. To

keep the cost down, some cameras shoot high

definition 720p video. It’s pretty good. But if you’re

serious about video, you’ll want a camera that

records 1080p.

Some lower-end cameras will let you shoot only

a very short clip - a few minutes. That’s because

there’s a danger of the sensor overheating. More

expensive cameras will let you shoot longer clips.

Consider frame rates, as well. You want to be

able to record at 30 frames for second for smooth

video. The ability to boost the camera to 60

frames per second is nice for fast action.

Some cameras will let you record at 24 fps, which

can be interesting and arty. That’s the speed

movie theaters use to screen the latest Hollywood

blockbuster.

A few cameras record at 20 fps. I wouldn’t

recommend this frame rate, unless you find

jerkiness appealing. Those cameras aren’t taking

video very seriously.

Video Recording

Hollywood has Nothing on You


Buying an external flash

If your camera comes with a small built-in flash,

that’s good enough to start. It will do a decent

job for portraits and providing fill flash. External

flashes are more versatile, but they’re pricey.

Advanced flashguns give you room to grow, and

their features will help you achieve better results.

Flashes made by the same manufacturer as your

camera integrate with the camera’s metering

system to regulate the light output and take

perfect exposures.

External flashes also offer wireless capability.

You can place the flash elsewhere and trigger it

from your camera. For example, you could use

your camera’s built-in flash with an external flash

off-camera for a more sophisticated portrait set-

up. Some flashguns receive only wireless signals.

Others can also send them.

Look for a flash with a high guide number and

short recycle time. Do the focal lengths of the flash

work with the lenses you’ll be using? The flash may

not cover the entire frame in a wide-angle shot.

And a zoom feature is nice. It will adjust the flash’s

output to the lens’ focal length.

I wouldn’t buy a flash without tilt and swivel. As you

can guess, this allows you to point the flash. It’s a

must for bouncing the flash. Bouncing the flash will

give you softer, more pleasing light.

External Flash

Say Cheese ...


Buying a tripod

If all you’re going to be doing is candid

photography, you don’t really need a field tripod.

It’s convenient to have at least a tabletop tripod. It

can help you get that low-light, blowing-out-the-

candles-on-the-birthday-cake shot. A monopod is

very handy if you’ll be shooting a lot of soccer and

football games with telephoto lenses.

A sturdy tripod is necessary for serious landscape

photography, macro photography, still lifes and

product photography. A lot of photographers

balk at spending $200 or more on a good one.

So they’ll buy a $50 model and curse at it for a

few months until it breaks or gets thrown in the

garbage. Then they’ll buy a $100 tripod. That one

might last a year.

If nothing else, this book just saved you $150!

Tripod legs and heads are rated by how much

weight they can support. Compare that with

the weight of your camera and heaviest lens.

Obviously, you can save money and get by with

less tripod if you’re using a hybrid camera or

compact DSLR. If you need to support a full-size

DSLR with a big telephoto zoom, you’ll need to

make a bigger investment.

Many tripods come with a head, but it may not be

the best for your purposes. It’s possible to buy the

legs and the head separately. Aluminum legs will

save you money; carbon fiber will save your back.

Make sure the tripod will extend to your eye level

so you can compose and focus without bending

over. Also make sure it is sturdy at your working

height. Extending the center column defeats the

purpose of the tripod.

Pan/tilt and fluid heads are a good choice for many

photographers, especially those who shoot video

and panoramas. Some prefer ball heads, which can

be moved into position and adjusted very rapidly.

Quick-release systems let you quickly clamp the

camera down and remove it from the tripod.

Tripods

A Photographer’s Must-Have


Don’t worry about software, for the most part

Digital cameras typically include photo-editing

software. The software is often listed on a

camera’s product page in online stores. It’s

probably also listed on the camera’s box.

Often, you’ll find that the software is

proprietary. It was created by the camera

manufacturer. It will allow you to open the

camera’s RAW files and do basic editing.

More often than not, included software

will be inadequate and unpleasant to

use.

If a quality program like Adobe’s

Photoshop Elements is included, great.

But don’t let the software influence your

camera-buying decision. You can get

plenty of free photo-editing tools online.

These will often surpass the programs

included with cameras. Photoshop

Elements costs about $100.

Photo-Editing Software

Edit Photos like a Pro


When you buy a digital camera, there are a few

accessories that you have to buy and a few that

are nice to have. Many buyers get carried away

and spend a few hundred dollars more than

they should and end up with stuff they never

use. Others skimp and spend a few months in

photographic frustration before learning the error

of their ways.

Major retailers bundle accessory kits with cameras.

These often include a couple of memory cards, a

couple of lens filters, a camera bag, and maybe a

cleaning kit. The quality of the individual items in

these packages can be good or so-so. Accessory

kits often include a costly-to-you but profitable-

to-the-retailer extended warranty. Take a pass on

that. Here’s a rundown of accessories to consider.

Camera bag

This will keep you organized and protect your

camera, lenses, flash and filters from damage.

There are a vast variety of shoulder bags and

backpacks to suit your style.

Rechargeable batteries

Most hybrids and DSLRs come with a proprietary

Accessories

Don’t Forget to Accessorize


battery and charger. Buy an extra battery or

two. Batteries drain very quickly in cold weather

and also when you’re using flash, shooting video

and using EVFs. Batteries always go kaput right

before you’re about to take the best photo in the

history of the universe. An external flash will use

AA batteries. Get a charger and rechargeable

batteries for it, too.

Memory cards

Your camera will come with one low-capacity

memory card. Buy several more. All you really

need to know about memory cards is to buy the

correct size for your camera and buy high-quality,

brand-name cards such as SanDisk and Lexar.

Don’t skimp! These are your treasured family

memories.

Better and more expensive cards will write

data much faster than standard cards. Keep

that in mind when you’re shooting video or

bursts of exposures to capture action. You’ll pay

progressively more for storage capacity, of course.

Don’t rely on just one card. What if it failed or you

dropped it off a cliff? Get a mix of 4, 8 and 16 GB

cards.

Card reader

You’ll need a card reader if you buy a higher-

end camera that takes the large Compact Flash

(CF) cards. A card reader is a very cheap USB

peripheral designed to transfer images from

a memory card very quickly to your computer.

Hooking your camera up to the computer to

download pictures is clunky and slow. Many

hybrids and compact DSLRs use SD cards. Most

laptops have SD card slots.

Air blower

This rubber gadget that you squeeze to produce a

stream of air will help you blast dust and particles

from your lenses.


Lens cloth/sensor swabs

Some cameras can vibrate their sensors to shake

off dust, but you’ll still need to clean the sensor

occasionally. You’ll also need to clean fingerprint

smudges and the like from your lens. Resist the

urge to clean your sensor and lenses obsessively.

Wait until they are truly dirty.

Lens filters

Protect your investment in good lenses by putting

UV filters on them. UV filters were used with film

to cut down on haze. They have no effect at all on

digital sensors or color balance. Everybody buys

them just to protect lenses. It’s better to crack a

$35 UV filter than a lens element. The front of your

lens is a dangerous place. Use lens hoods, too, to

prevent lens flare and stray light from reaching the

sensor.

A polarizer will help control the glare and strong

reflections you often see on water and glass.

It’s like a pair of good sunglasses for your lens.

A polarizer is the one filter that can’t really be

duplicated in image editing.

A neutral density filter and a split neutral density

filter are nice to have. A neutral density filter

reduces the amount of light that enters the lens.

It lets you use a slower shutter speed or a wider

aperture that wouldn’t be possible on a bright day.

The upper half of a split neutral density filter

reduces light while the lower half is clear. Say

you’re shooting a mountain scene. The best

exposure for the mountains will overexpose the

sky. The split neutral density will help tame the

contrast. This may also be called a graduated

neutral density.




Photo Composition .................... 2

Lighting ....................................... 7

Flash ............................................10

Focus ..........................................14

Exposure ....................................17

Metering Mode ........................ 23

Portraits ..................................... 26

Group Photos ........................... 30

Landscapes ............................... 31

Macro & Panoramic .................. 34

Motion Blur ................................ 38

Sports ........................................ 40

Fireworks ................................... 43

Halloween ................................. 45

Christmas .................................. 46

Public Photography .................. 49

Looking Ahead ......................... 51




1Kim Komando’s Guide to Taking Great Photos

In the first part of my Digital Photography Guide: The Essential Guide to Digital Cameras,

you learned about cameras inside and out. If you’ve recently taken the plunge on buying

an entry- or intermediate-level DSLR or hybrid camera, congratulations! You’ve already

taken a giant first step on the road to taking great photos.

Every photographer learns at a different rate and in different ways. Eventually, however, a

great photo won’t happen by accident. You’ll know exactly why it happened. Then, great

photos happen more often. One day, you’ll find that you even have your own distinctive

style. Your photos have a “look” that says they were taken by you.

That’s the goal of this book. It will get you to that point more quickly and easily. I know you

can’t wait, so let’s get started!

How to take the very best photos THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO TAKING GREAT PHOTOS

Introduction


Good composition makes your shots more exciting

The subject is the most important aspect of a

photograph. You take a photo because you

want to remember a particular moment. It may

be your son’s graduation or your daughter’s

prom.

But many people concentrate too intently on

their subject, letting other aspects slide. Paying

attention to other details can take a photo from

ho-hum to wow. Technical skill can make or

break a photograph. But technical expertise

doesn’t make a photo truly memorable.

Composition is what makes a photo truly stand

out. Composition is the way you arrange

elements in a photo. Pay more attention to

composition, and your photos will improve

dramatically.

Let’s look at some tips that will help you

compose better photos.

Photo Composition


Rule of thirds

Many people place the subject dead center in the

frame. It seems like the perfect way to draw

attention to your subject, right? Unfortunately, this

can make for a boring photo.

Instead, you want to use the rule of thirds. Imagine

the frame divided by two horizontal and two

vertical lines. The lines create a 3 x 3 grid. Place

important elements in your photo along the lines

or near the four points where the lines intersect.

For example, say you’re photographing a sailboat

on a lake. You would place the horizon along the

top or the bottom horizontal line, whichever looks

best. Then, you would place the sailboat along the

left or right vertical line, depending on which

direction it’s moving. (Place an object on the left

vertical line when it’s moving left to right - and vice

versa.)

Many cameras can superimpose gridlines in the

viewfinder to help you with composition. If not, it’s

easy to imagine the lines as you compose. In time,

the rule of thirds will become second nature.

Balance

The rule of thirds is one of the best ways to

improve composition. But it can also lead to an

unbalanced photo. The rule of thirds places your

subject off center. That can leave a significant

portion of your photo empty. Sometimes that’s

desirable; most times it isn’t.

Try balancing the photo’s subject with another

object of less importance to create a stronger

composition. For example, say you’re

photographing your child on the beach. You’ve

placed your child along the left vertical grid line.

You could balance the composition by placing a

sand pail to your child’s right.


Leading lines

Lines lead the viewer’s eye through the

photograph. So, use the lines in your photo to

your advantage. Have them point toward the

subject of interest. Or, use them to draw the

viewer deeper into the photograph.

“S” curves are particularly effective. Their

rounded, meandering shape is pleasing to the eye.

You’ve probably seen photos of a road or stream

curving through a landscape. Think about how the

photographer used the elements to draw you in.

Symmetry

Symmetry can help make your photos more

interesting. Imagine your photo divided in half

vertically or horizontally. Each side is a mirror

image of the other. Both halves will have objects of

similar size, shape and color in the same location.

You will see symmetry virtually everywhere you

look. For example, think of the human face. Or,

think of the front of a house. It is common for

windows to be positioned in the same place

relative to the door.

There is also radial symmetry, when elements of

the composition radiate from a center point in a

circular fashion - a flower or starfish, for example.

A break in symmetry can add tension and interest

to a composition.


Repetition

Repetition is a great way to add visual interest to

your photos. In fact, repeating patterns often make

interesting subjects. Think of a skyscraper. The

repeating window shapes can make an interesting

abstract photo.

But, be careful with repetition; you can have too

much of a good thing. Repetition is often more

interesting when the pattern is broken. For

example, a row of windows is more interesting if

one is open.

Likewise, repeating shapes are often more

interesting with objects of different sizes. Imagine

a cluster of mushrooms photographed from

above. The repetition of the round caps is

interesting. But, if the caps are various sizes, they

become even more interesting.

Framing

A great way to draw attention to the subject is

through framing. You use an object in the photo to

surround your subject. By framing your subject,

you’re isolating it from the rest of the world. The

viewer’s eyes will immediately be drawn to the

subject.

You’ll find frames virtually everywhere. Doorways

and trees make great framing devices. Just place

the frame around the edges of your photo and

focus on your subject. Then, snap your photo.

Experiment with framing to see what you like. You

don’t have to frame your subject completely. In

fact, you can frame your subject on only one side.

For example, use branches to frame just the top of

your photo.


Triangles

The triangle is one of the most helpful

compositional tools. It can be an actual triangle

created by solid lines. Or, look for a grouping of

objects that is somewhat triangular. You can also

create an imaginary triangle from three points in

your photo.

The triangular shape can be interesting on its own.

But there are other ways to use it. You can frame

and encapsulate your subject. Or, think of the

triangle as an arrow. Use it to point to your subject.

Viewpoint

You should also think about viewpoint when taking

photos. For the most part, human height doesn’t

vary greatly. Many people tend to take photos at

eye level. That means most photos are taken from

a height of 5 feet, 7 inches, give or take.

Make your images more interesting by varying

your viewpoint. Crouch once in a while. Move to

higher ground. You might be surprised at what you

see

Vary your distances from subjects, too. Many

people tend to stand in one place when

photographing a subject. If the subject is too far,

they zoom to get closer. Instead, get closer to your

subject physically, when possible. You’ll see things

you may have otherwise missed. You may also

discover a new angle for photographing the

subject.

When it comes to viewpoint, there are virtually

limitless options. Experiment. Try to find a new

way of looking at your subject. You may not always

be successful. But when you are, it will be

worthwhile.


Light is the most important part of photography.

After all, the word “photography” is a

conglomeration of two Greek words. It literally

means “light writing.” A photo is created when

light hits a light-sensitive object, like a digital

camera sensor. Painters use brushes to apply paint

to a canvas and create an image. Photographers

use cameras to capture light to create an image.

Lighting can make or break your photos. It affects

the way objects in your photos will appear. And

the right light can go a long way toward making

your photos more interesting. There are many

ways you can use light. There are also many types

of light.

As a photographer, you’ll want to pay careful

attention to light. Over time, you’ll get better at

making the most of light. You’ll also learn to spot

good lighting situations. You’ll also learn to

compensate for poor lighting. But if you don’t

think about lighting, you’re doomed to so-so

snapshots.

Use natural light

Natural light is best for taking most photos. It is

the most flattering light for your subject. You’ll get

more accurate colors and better contrast in your

photos. That means your subjects will look more

natural.

Lighting

The importance of light


When you’re taking photos, think about natural

light. If you’re outdoors, natural light is all around

you. But you can also use natural light indoors. Use

a window to light your subject and create dramatic

shadows on the other side of the face. If the light

or the shadows are too harsh, soften the light with

a diffuser and bounce light onto the shadow side

of the face with a reflector.

In the evening, there isn’t enough natural light to

light your subject properly indoors. Ambient light

from lamps and candles is the next best thing. Try

to avoid a mix of color temperatures, however. A

blend of fluorescent and incandescent lights in a

room will create an odd color balance in a photo

that will be very difficult or impossible to remove in

editing.

Avoid harsh light

Harsh light is your enemy. It can cast ugly shadows.

It can wash out colors and surface details, like

texture. Harsh light will also rob your photo of

depth. Objects will look flat and lifeless.

If you’re taking photos outside, try to avoid

midday. The best times are the golden hours - the

hour after sunrise and the hour before sunset. The

light will have a warmer, dreamier tone. The sun

will be at a lower angle, so you won’t need to

worry about harsh shadows. And your photos

won’t have too much contrast.

If you must grab a shot at high noon, position your

subjects in open shade. They’ll be lit by diffuse

light, and you’ll avoid harsh shadows. If you can’t

use shade, you’re not out of luck. Position your

subjects so that the sun is behind them. Use your

fill flash to add light to their faces. This will help

eliminate unflattering shadows from their faces.


Overcast days work well for photographing people

outside. The clouds will diffuse the light. You’ll get

consistent lighting without harsh shadows or

highlights. Your photos will also have pleasant

color saturation and contrast.

Shooting in dim light

Dim lighting is the bane of amateur

photographers. Even many professionals struggle

with it. Your photos can come out shadowy and

underexposed. To get decent photos, you’ll have

to use a slow shutter speed. So, blurriness from

shaking hands is a problem.

Use a tripod. That will avert the shakes. You can

use a standard tripod or a smaller, tabletop one.

Tripods are less than ideal when shooting kids and

work best with stationary subjects.

If you don’t have a tripod, stand with your feet

shoulder-width apart. Hold the camera in both

hands, with your elbows against your sides. Better

yet, stand against a wall, pillar or similar object.

Boost your camera’s ISO to its highest usable

setting. This will make the sensor more sensitive to

light. Of course, your flash can be useful in dim

light. Keep reading for help mastering your

camera’s flash.


People tend to use flash in the wrong situations.

They also neglect to use it when the situation calls

for it. One of the best ways to improve an outdoor

portrait on a sunny day, for example, is to use fill

flash.

Beginning photographers tend to use flash as a

primary light. There isn’t enough ambient light, so

flash illuminates the entire scene.

In general, flash is a less-than-ideal primary light

source. It has a limited range. On-camera direct

flash often causes red eye and unnatural skin

tones. Texture and depth disappears. Meanwhile,

there are murky shadows behind the subject.

Often, there are harsh hot spots in the background

where the flash reflected off glass or a mirror.

Try to think of flash as more of an indirect,

secondary light source. Use flash to supplement

other light. For example, it can soften contrast and

shadows in harsh light. Or, use it to balance the

light on the front of a backlit subject.

Using flash the right way

Flash


Flashguns are more powerful and versatile than

built-in flashes. You can bounce the flash. Or, place

it off-camera to get light in the right place.

Bouncing your flash is a great way to get better

results. You’re less likely to bleach out faces. And

hotspots will be less problematic with mirrors or

reflective objects.

Flashguns can usually be swiveled and turned.

That makes it easy to bounce light off a white wall

or ceiling. Bouncing your flash isn’t terribly difficult.

Just keep in mind that light will reflect at the same

angle it is transmitted. Try to avoid dropping light

too far behind, in front of or off to the side of your

subject. With practice, you’ll be placing bounced

light exactly where you want it.

If you still have trouble with harsh shadows behind

your subject, move your subject away from the

background. The shadows will fall on the floor

instead of the background.

Some camera systems offer an optional accessory

called an off-camera flash cord. One end of the

cord slides into the camera’s hot shoe and the

other plugs into the flashgun. This allows you to

hold the flashgun off to the side with one hand

and hold the camera with the other. It gives you

more possibilities for bouncing the light.

Of course, built-in flashes don’t offer this luxury.

Shop around. You should be able to buy a bounce

attachment. You can make your own bounce card

by fixing a piece of white card stock to the flash

with a rubber band.

Using flash the right way


Diffusers are also made for most flashguns and

built-in flashes. Diffusers soften the light,

eliminating hot spots and deep shadows.

Commercial diffusers are often made from plastic.

If you’re handy, try making your own diffuser from

a plastic container. Use white plastic to avoid

tinting the light and experiment with different

opacities. You may be able to attach it to the flash

using tape, rubber bands or Velcro. It may be

easier just to hold the diffuser over the flash.

Remember that bouncing and diffusing the flash

significantly weakens the light. If your images are

under-exposing, bump up the ISO or increase the

output of the flash if you have that capability.

Flash compensation

More advanced cameras feature flash

compensation. It lets you adjust the flash output.

That way, you can better mix the flash with

ambient light. You’ll get background details, and

your subject won’t be so bleached out.

Flash compensation increases or decreases output

by stops of light. You should be able to do this in

1/3-stop increments. One full stop of light doubles

or halves the light.

Do not confuse flash compensation with exposure

compensation. Exposure compensation lets you

make adjustments based on the light meter’s

reading. It affects the entire frame. Flash

compensation adjusts only the flash output. Lower

flash output if your subject is bleached out. Or,

increase flash if your main subject is dim.

More advanced cameras feature several flash


modes. Understanding how they differ will

improve your results.

Slow sync

Slow sync combines a slow shutter with a small

burst of flash. The slow shutter lets the camera use

ambient light to pick up background detail. It also

prevents the colors in your main subject from

bleaching out. The camera uses flash to illuminate

your subject.

Slow sync will dramatically improve your night

portraits and other low-light situations. You’ll be

less likely to get dark, shadowy backgrounds. You

also won’t have to worry so much about bleaching

out your subject. However, you may still want to

use a tripod and have your subject stay still to

prevent blur.

Front-curtain sync

Front-curtain sync is the standard flash mode. The

flash fires the moment the shutter curtain is

opened. It works great in most situations where

you need flash. This mode is generally not ideal

when there is motion, though. The motion will

appear ahead of the subject.

Rear-curtain sync

With rear-curtain sync, the flash is fired right before

the shutter closes. A moving object will be frozen

at the end of the exposure. Say, for example,

you’re photographing a moving car at night. You’ll

see the trail of lights behind the car with rear-

curtain sync. With front-curtain sync, the trail of

lights will be in front of the car.

Fill flash

With fill flash, most of the photo is lit by ambient

light. Flash is used to remove shadows from a main

subject. For example, it will help remove shadows

around a subject’s eyes and nose in bright light. It

can also be used to illuminate a backlit subject.


Most of the time, the autofocus (AF) systems on

modern cameras will focus more quickly and more

precisely than you can manually. But you should be

aware of the different types of autofocus and the

occasions when it might be better to use manual

focus.

Single servo

In single servo autofocus, the lens focuses once

when you partially press the shutter release. The

focus is held until you release the button or press it

all the way.

This is great for static objects. As long as you keep

the camera the same relative distance from your

subject, focus will be fine. But you won’t want to

use it with moving subjects. By the time you press

the button all the way, the subject could be out of

focus.

Single servo mode has a distinct advantage when

composing shots. You can aim the focusing point

(usually in the center of the frame) at the subject.

Press the shutter release button to lock focus.

Then, reframe your shot while continuing to hold

the button. Your subject will be in focus.

Better cameras allow you to customize focus and

focus lock to different buttons. Program whatever

feels most comfortable and natural to you. You can

Focus

Getting it all in focus


also select off-center focus points to help you with

composition and the rule of thirds.

Continuous servo

Your camera will offer continuous AF. Like single

servo, the camera will focus when you partially

press the shutter button. But partially pressing the

button does not lock AF. The lens will continue to

focus as you hold the button.

Continuous servo is ideal when you’re

photographing a moving subject. It will help you

take sharp pictures when photographing fidgety

children and pets, for example.

Some cameras even have predictive autofocus.

The camera tries to predict the subject’s next

move. The camera will focus the lens accordingly.

This can be handy when photographing sports,

animals or anything moving fast. The trick with

predictive tracking is to focus on your subject, then

hold the shutter release button halfway. Wait a

second or two before pressing the shutter release

all the way. This gives the camera time to “learn”

the direction and speed of the movement.

Manual

Manual focus lets you control exactly what’s in

focus. In some cases, that’s the only way to go. AF

systems often have trouble in low light. They can

also be iffy when shooting macro/close-up photos.

You’ll save a lot of frustration with manual focus.

Rely on your judgment when using manual focus.

The more you use it, the better you’ll get at it.

Some cameras’ viewfinders have an indicator to

let you know when your subject is in focus. Check

your manual for details.


Many lenses now allow the photographer to

manually touch up the focus while still in AF mode.

This is a nice, time-saving feature to look for when

buying lenses.

Zone focusing can come in handy in when

shooting parades and crowd scenes. Lenses

include distance markings for focusing. You can

set the focus for 15 feet, say. Anything 15 feet from

the camera will be in focus.

Combine zone focusing with a small aperture

(larger f number) to increase depth of field. That

will make objects that are a little closer and

somewhat farther than 15 feet in focus. With

practice, you’ll get a feel for which parts of a scene

will be in sharp focus.

Zone focusing can also help you in sports

photography. At a basketball game, you’re

guaranteed to capture some good action shots

by focusing on the rim. At a race, focus on the

finish line or any spot you know the participants

will cross. You can worry more about capturing the

right moment than getting the focus right.


You’ll hear a lot about exposure when reading

about photography. It simply refers to the amount

of light that reaches your camera’s sensor. You’ll

also hear terms like overexposed and

underexposed. If an image is overexposed, too

much light hit the sensor. If it is underexposed, too

little light reached the sensor.

It is relatively easy to spot overexposed or

underexposed photos. They will look washed out

or dark and muddy, respectively. But it can be

difficult to tell when you have the exposure exactly

right.

Correct exposure is a matter of preference, at least

to an extent. You want dark, yet detailed, blacks.

You also want clean whites that have not lost their

detail. And you want a range of mid-tones.

Shutter speed and aperture are two of the most

important elements of photography. An

understanding of how they affect exposure is

fundamental for any photographer. Let’s look at

them.

Shutter speed

The camera’s shutter opens and closes to control

the length of an exposure. It is activated by

pressing the shutter release button. The shutter

speed is the time between the opening and

closing.

Shutter speeds are expressed in seconds or

fractions of seconds. For example, you’ll see 1/30,

1/60, 1/125, 1/250 and so on. Each increment halves

the amount of time the sensor is exposed to light.

Your camera may include 1/3- and 1/2-stop

incremental shutter speeds.

Understanding exposure

Exposure


Some cameras offer a bulb (B) setting. It’s best

used with a cable release and when the camera is

on a tripod. When you press the cable release

button, the shutter stays open until you release it.

It’s a useful setting for shooting fireworks, lightning

and taking exposures longer than 30 seconds - the

maximum timed shutter speed of most cameras.

Aperture

Aperture refers to the size of the opening in the

lens. This opening controls how much light comes

through the lens. F-stops are used to denote

aperture.

Full f-stop increments include: f/1.4, f/2, f/2.8, f/4,

f/5.6, f/8, f/11, f/16, f/22 and f/32. Your lens probably

will offer a subset of these f-stops.

Each full stop doubles or halves the light coming

into the camera. Say, for example, that you go

from f/4 to f/5.6. The amount of light is cut in half.

Going from f/11 to f/8 doubles the amount of light.

Importantly, aperture also affects depth of field, or

the area of your photo that is in focus. With a

smaller aperture, more of the photo will be in

focus; you’ll have a greater depth of field. Objects

in the foreground and background may be in focus

in addition to your subject.

A wider aperture gives you a narrower depth of

field. Wider apertures are often used to blur

background distractions in portraits.

Balancing aperture and shutter speed

To get a properly exposed photo, you must

balance aperture with shutter speed. Smaller

apertures will call for slower shutter speeds. Wider

apertures need faster shutter speeds. Your


camera’s light meter will determine how much light

is in a scene.

If you’re using auto mode, it will set the aperture

and shutter speed. In aperture or shutter priority

mode, you specify aperture or shutter speed. The

camera then adjusts the other for you. And in full

manual mode, it will indicate if the photo will be

over- or underexposed. You make the necessary

changes.

Of course, you can use different combinations of

settings in any given situation. You can shift the

aperture up or down a stop, if you adjust shutter

speed to compensate. For example, you may

decide you want to use a wider aperture. In that

case, you would increase the shutter speed to

compensate.

If you have any difficulty at all grasping the

concept of depth of field and the relationship

between aperture and shutter speed, I highly

recommend spending some quality time with an

online camera simulator. (Here are a couple of

good ones: camerasim.com and kamerasimulator.

se.) Adjust the simulator’s settings and see how the

photos change. Very quickly, you’ll be saying,

“A-ha!”

ISO

ISO also has an effect on exposure. ISO settings

let you adjust the sensitivity of the camera sensor

to light. You can use a higher ISO to make your

camera sensor more sensitive. Or, use a lower ISO

for less sensitivity. Adjusting the ISO can help

when you need control over both aperture and

shutter speed.

You’ll see ISO settings like 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600

and 3200. Each step doubles the sensitivity of the

sensor. Some cameras will have incremental steps.

http://camerasim.com/

http://www.kamerasimulator.se/eng/?page_id=2.

http://www.kamerasimulator.se/eng/?page_id=2.


Using the histogram

We all like the ability to review a photo on the

camera’s LCD immediately after taking it. You

might see problems in the picture. Maybe a

telephone pole is growing out of Aunt Mabel’s

head. The LCD is a great aid to composition, but

it’s a poor tool for judging exposure. For exposure,

look to the histogram instead.

The histogram is a bar graph that displays the

exposure range and brightness values of an

image. Learning to read a histogram may seem

complicated and confusing at first. However, it’s

actually pretty simple.

The histogram’s horizontal axis shows the

exposure latitude or the distribution of brightness

across the image. The left side of the graph

indicates dark pixels. The middle shows mid-tones.

On the right are the light pixels. Don’t worry about

the vertical axis. It measures the number of pixels

in each tone.

Generally, you want to avoid an exposure where

the bars are all bunched up on the left or all

bunched up on the right. That indicates the photo

will be woefully under- or overexposed. Although

there is no such thing as an ideal histogram, an

HISTOGRAM


evenly distributed graph is desirable in most

cases. It indicates an image with a good mix of

tones and pleasing contrast.

You don’t want evenly distributed histograms in

certain situations. In a snow scene, for example, a

majority of the bars will push toward the right-

hand side of the scale. As long as they aren’t

pushing past the border and blowing out

highlights, that’s OK.

With a low-key image of a man in a dark suit

against a dark background, most of the tonal

values will shift to the left-hand side of the graph.

Again, avoid pushing past the border or you’ll

lose detail in shadow areas.

In either of the above situations, a perfectly

centered histogram would actually under- or

overexpose the image. Checking the histogram

after taking a shot is a good habit to develop.

But don’t forget to also read what the scene is

telling you.


High dynamic range

Sometimes, it’s impossible for a digital camera

sensor to capture the dynamic range of a scene.

The stretch from the darkest to the brightest levels

is just too great. The correct exposure for the

mountain blows out the sky. Expose for the sky,

however, and the mountain turns into a black

silhouette.

A split-neutral density filter can often solve the

problem. Not always. Often, you don’t have the

option of waiting around several hours for sunset.

Try producing a High Dynamic Range (HDR)

image. The HDR process starts in the field by

taking 3-5 pictures at different exposures. The

differently exposed frames are blended together

later with specialized software.

In our mountain scene above, you would take one

shot that perfectly exposes the sky. You would also

take a shot that gives you the best detail of the

mountains. Finally, you will take at least one

intermediate exposure. If the dynamic range isn’t

too great, you might be able to get away with

using a 2-stop deviation in auto-exposure

bracketing.

This is a good time to shoot Raw because you’ll

need all the information you can get from the

digital negatives when they’re blended together

later. Obviously, you must use a tripod and keep

your aperture consistent. HDR won’t work if

wildflowers are swaying in the breeze, boats are

sailing across the lake or waves are crashing

against the shore. The blended images will never

match up in post-processing.

When done right, a merged HDR photo can be

spectacular. If not converted correctly, HDR

images can appear bland and washed out. Some

artists purposely push the boundaries of HDR

processing to create ultravibrant, surreal

landscapes.


Your camera’s built-in light meter is the brain

behind the operation that simultaneously

measures lighting conditions and determines

aperture and shutter settings.

On top of that, your camera offers several different

types of light metering. Understanding how these

options differ can help you select the best

metering method for the situation.

Evaluative

Evaluative metering is also called matrix,

honeycomb or multizone metering. The camera

will look at the entire scene. It sets exposure based

on the distribution of light. It takes color,

composition and distance into consideration.

Of course, there are drawbacks to evaluative

metering. It does not let you expose for a

particular object in your photo. Say you’re

photographing a white flower in bright light. You

want the flower properly exposed, but you don’t

care about the rest of the photo. Evaluative

metering will try to get the right exposure for the

entire scene. It will look for mid-tones, which are

neither bright nor dark. The white flower might be

overexposed.

Likewise, evaluative metering isn’t right for

situations with tricky lighting. For example, you

may be photographing a scene with a lot of

contrast. There are lots of dark areas and lots of

light areas. But, there are few mid-tones. This can

trip up evaluative metering.

Metering Mode

Select the right metering mode


However, evaluative metering is sophisticated and

works well, for the most part. Of your metering

options, evaluative works most like the human eye.

So, this setting is ideal for most situations.

On many cameras, evaluative is the metering

default. Beginning photographers usually should

stick with it. If you want to get creative, look to

other metering methods. Or, if you’re not getting

the shot you want, switch to a different metering

method.

Spot metering

With spot metering, the light meter

does not consider the entire scene.

Rather, it looks at a small portion of

the scene. It usually measures light

in 2 to 3 percent of the frame.

On many cameras, you can use

only the center focusing point for

spot metering. That often requires you to

meter something in the scene and reframe the

shot. Check your manual to be sure.

In tricky lighting situations, use the spot meter to

read an object or portion of the scene that looks

like a close match to middle gray - green grass or

weathered barn wood, for instance. Sometimes, a

mid-tone may not be available. Advanced

photographers often use a gray card in such

situations. The card is placed in the scene, and the

photographer spot meters it. Metering the card

should yield the correct exposure for everything in

the scene.

Center-weighted metering

Center-weighted metering measures light in the

entire frame. However, it gives preference to the

center part of the frame.


Some cameras let you select the weight given to

the frame’s center. You may also be able to select

the area given the most weight. The size of the

weighted area may vary between cameras.

Center-weighted metering is more predictable

than evaluative. It is ideal for high-contrast scenes

- a landscape with bright skies and dark ground,

for example. In that case, I would center weight the

bright sky. Remember, the ground would also be

metered. It would just be given less weight. Lock

the exposure and reframe the shot. This will

prevent overexposed highlights.

Exposure bracketing

Usually, your light meter will determine the right

settings. But not always. You can ensure a usable

shot with exposure bracketing.

When you set the camera to auto-bracket, it will

take three shots at different shutter speeds. You

can specify the variance: 1/3-, 1/2- and 1-stop

increments, for example. One shot should have the

correct exposure. You generally want to avoid

bracketing by aperture settings. That will affect the

depth of field for each shot.


Most people buy cameras to capture important

memories. That means they probably will be

photographing people often. Whether they’re

shooting friends or family, they want the best shots

possible. Fortunately, practicing is fun! And no

special equipment is needed.

In portraits, the subject should be the center of

attention. Be wary of objects in the background

that could distract or draw attention away from the

subject. The last thing you want is an appealing

background!

Shooting against simple backgrounds will give you

the best results. That’s not always possible,

though, especially outdoors. Fortunately, you can

minimize distractions by blurring the background.

Portraits

Taking stellar portraits


It’s easy to throw the background out of focus if

you use a portrait lens or moderate telephoto

zoom in the 85mm-135mm range and shoot at a

wide aperture, such as f/2.0. Experiment with the

lens you like to use for portraits. It might not be

very sharp or pleasing at its widest aperture. If so,

test it at f/2.8 or f/4.0.

With portraits, you always want to focus on the

subject’s eyes. At an extremely wide aperture,

such as f/1.4, depth of field might become so

shallow that your subject’s eyes will be in focus and

the tip of the nose will be out of focus. You or your

subject might not like that effect. Find the sweet

spot for your favorite portrait lens.

Using a moderate telephoto lens for portraits puts

you at a comfortable distance of about 6 feet from

the subject. The key to getting great shots of

people is to make them feel relaxed. You don’t

want them to feel that you’re crowding them.

Think about camera height, too. The best

photographs are generally taken at eye level.

That’s not much of a problem when

photographing adults. But, if you’re

photographing kids, you’ll need to kneel or crouch

to get down to their level.

Remember the rule of thirds to help you with

portrait composition. Place your subject’s right eye

at or near the intersection of the left vertical line


and the top horizontal line (vice versa for left eye).

That almost always results in a pleasant

composition.

For most people, a partial profile will yield the best

results. However, if your subject has, um, a big

nose, avoid this angle. It will only accentuate the

nose. Instead, shoot your subject more straight on.

This will compress the subject’s nose, making it

less obvious. Stepping back a little and using a

longer focal length will also help.

Portraits can be a little like shooting sports. You

never know when the perfect photo is going to

happen. You just want to make sure you don’t miss

it. That means taking a lot of photos. The more

you take, the more likely you’ll capture “the one.”

Help your subject loosen up

Cameras are often intimidating to the subject.

That’s particularly true if you’re using a big DSLR.

This discomfort can result in stiff and unattractive

photos. To overcome this, you will need to help

your subject loosen up.

Talk to your subject as you’re shooting. This can

help the subject become less self-conscious. You’ll

also get more natural facial expressions. When

people feel tense, they usually show it in their face

and shoulders. Pause occasionally and let the

subject take a deep breath. Playing music often

helps to relax models.


You’ll want to direct your subject for some of the

shots. Tell the subject how to stand and how to

pose. Avoid overly formal and stiff poses, if

possible, unless you’re taking a business portrait.

Candid shots are fun. Your subject’s guard will be

down. The camera may catch something the

person might not otherwise show. So, keep taking

pictures when your subject isn’t aware of it.

Have your subject stand, sit and change positions.

Give those hands something to do, such as hold a

book or a pair of glasses.

Take intentionally goofy shots. This can relax the

subject. And, you never know, these shots may be

more interesting than formal photos.

Get the lighting right

Lighting is important no matter what your subject.

But correct lighting is particularly important for

portraits. You’ll want to avoid harsh lighting. This

can bring out imperfections in your subject’s skin.

It can also cast deep, unflattering shadows on your

subject’s face.

Outdoors, light is more pleasing in the early

morning and late afternoon. Use fill flash to

eliminate shadows on your subject’s face.

Try to use natural light when shooting indoors, too.

Position your subject close to a window. The

natural light will be more pleasing than artificial

lights. At night, you may have to use a mix of flash

and lamplight. You can change the color of your

flash’s light with accessories called gels. An orange

gel will help you match the color of incandescent

lights. Green gels are made to match fluorescent

light sources. (A warming orange gel can also help

when you’re using fill flash to take a portrait of

someone outside during sunset.)


Getting a good group photo is more challenging

than photographing a single person. You have to

make sure that everyone is smiling with eyes open.

For groups, you’ll need to use a 50mm lens or

wider. Like a single portrait, the idea with group

shots is to fill the frame with the subject and to

avoid backgrounds that are distracting.

Try to put the group at ease. Start by taking some

fun photos to warm up. Give your subjects props

or ask them to strike unusual poses. You may get

some interesting shots. And having your subjects

laugh a little will loosen them up. Don’t be afraid

to experiment. That’s good advice for any

situation.

When photographing groups, take multiple shots.

That increases your chance of everyone having

their eyes open at the same time. If your camera’s

processor offers face-, smile- and blink-detection

features, now’s the time to use it. When you’re

really struggling to get everyone’s eyes open, try

an old trick. Tell everyone to close their eyes. Then,

tell them to open their eyes. Take the photo

immediately.

Getting everyone in focus can also be a challenge.

Try to place everyone more or less equidistant

from the camera and use a small aperture, such as

f/11. This is one of those times when you might

want to bracket by aperture rather than shutter

speed. Remember that you won’t be blurring the

background because you’re using smaller

apertures and wider lenses. Make sure the

surroundings are interesting.

Taking group photos that wow

Group Photos


There’s nothing quite like capturing the beauty of

nature. Many photographers focus solely on

landscape photography.

We’ve all seen dramatic landscape photos of

exotic locations in National Geographic and in

books. But you don’t have to travel far to get great

landscapes. There’s wonderful scenery near your

home. You just have to see it. Good technique is

essential, too. You can’t just point your camera at a

breathtaking vista and expect breathtaking results.

Depth of field

With landscape photography, you usually want

tack-sharp focus. Most of the time, everything in

the scene should be in focus. That means objects

a few feet away in the foreground and objects

hundreds of feet away in the background. You can

accomplish this with wide-angle lenses and small

apertures, such as f/11, f/16 and f/22.

Recall what I said in the portrait chapter about how

a lens’ widest aperture may not give optimum

performance. That’s true at the other end. A shot

taken at f/22 might be slightly fuzzier than one

taken at f/16, for example. This is known as

diffraction. As light passes through successively

narrower openings, it tends to diffract, or scatter.

It’s good to know if and when a drop-off occurs in

a lens’ image quality.

Landscapes

Capturing spectacular landscapes


Use a tripod

Smaller apertures mean slower shutter speeds.

With slower shutter speeds comes an increased

chance of blurring. Landscape photography isn’t

the time to be increasing ISO and hand-holding

the camera.

The best option is to use a tripod. Not only does it

hold the camera still during longer shots, it also

slows you down. It gives you time to think about

composition and pay attention to details.

Follow the lines

Landscapes often include the horizon. As a rule of

thumb, don’t place the horizon in the middle of

your photograph. Ask yourself: What’s the most

important part of this scene? If it’s the land, place

the horizon high in the frame. If it’s the sky, move

the horizon lower. The horizon should be level -

not tilting one way or the other.

The horizon isn’t the only line in your photograph.

Pay attention to all lines. In particular, look for

diagonal lines - a trail, a stone wall, a fallen tree -

that will help lead the viewer into the photograph.

Have a stream enter the frame at one of the

bottom corners and meander through the

composition in an S curve.

Conversely, try to avoid including a strong line that

offers the viewer a way out of the picture. That will

weaken the composition.

Create a strong foreground

Many beginning landscape photographers

become attracted to an interesting scene off in the

distance and neglect the foreground. The

background and middle ground need to be

strong, of course, but the foreground of a


landscape photo is just as critical. It’s where the

viewer starts. If the foreground isn’t interesting, it

won’t draw the viewer in.

Flowers, boulders, shrubs and other objects add

interest to foregrounds. Try placing your camera

low to the ground to make them look bigger. It can

add real depth and impact to a photo.

Choose the right time to photograph

The best time to photograph landscapes is usually

during the golden hours. This is roughly the 60

minutes after dawn and the 60 minutes before

dusk. That’s when the sun is at the most pleasing

angle for landscapes. You’ll get warmer tones, lush

color saturation and long, interesting shadows.

The light of golden hour also brings out the

texture of trees and rocks and adds dimension and

depth to the landscape.

Bad weather often equals great photography.

Looming storm clouds or fog can turn an average

landscape into an atmospheric wonder.

Take advantage of an overcast day to shoot

streams and lakes. The water won’t reflect harsh

highlights as it does in bright sun. A boring sky is

also a good time to try macro shots.


Are you fascinated by close-up photos of flowers

and insects? Then you’re interested in macro

photography. “Macro” probably brings up images

of large, majestic photos. But macro shots are

really close-ups of small objects.

Choosing your macro gear

With a standard 100mm lens, the closest you can

stand to a subject and keep it in focus is about 3

feet. In macro photography, you need to work 6-12

inches away from your subjects. That’s how you

get small objects to fill the frame and appear

life-size.

The easiest and cheapest way to do that is to

attach a close-up filter to that 100mm lens. It’s like

putting a magnifying glass on the end of your lens.

Better close-up filters use two glass elements to

reduce distortion.

You’ll get the best image quality with a dedicated

macro lens. A macro lens is a prime lens that has a

lot of elements to correct for distortion. It usually

has an effective focal length of 100mm. For that

reason, macro lenses often make very good

portrait lenses as well. If you have a zoom lens that

claims it’s also a macro, don’t believe it. It won’t

Getting up close with macro photography

Macro & Panoramic


have the magnification of a true macro lens or be

able to focus as close.

Taking macro shots

Macro photography can take time to master. It’s a

magnified world. It will magnify your focusing and

composition mistakes. Don’t worry, though. You’ll

get the hang of it with practice.

Macro lenses are too heavy and bulky to hand-

hold. Use a tripod and cable release. The slightest

shake of the camera will cause a blurry photo. If

you’re shooting flowers, work on a calm day.

Spend a little time walking around the subject and

looking through the viewfinder to find the most

appealing camera position. Soft light coming from

the side or back of the subject can result in very

dramatic macro shots. If the sun is behind you,

take care that you or the camera doesn’t cast a

shadow on the subject.

When the available light isn’t perfect, use a

reflector to bounce more light into shadow areas

or a diffuser to soften harsh light. You can also try

using a flashgun with an off-camera cord to pop a

little fill flash into the scene.

Let’s say one of your prized roses in the backyard

has just bloomed. Treat it like a portrait and use a

wide aperture to throw the background out of

focus.

Careful, though. Depth of field is very limited when

doing macro photography. If you focus on the

stigma, for instance, the petals closest and farthest

away from the lens could be way out of focus at

f/2. You may need an aperture of f/8 or f/11 to get

everything you want in focus.


You have to make these decisions and

compromises all the time when doing macro. You’ll

quickly develop the habit of bracketing your focus

and bracketing your apertures. This will give you

more options to choose from when you’re looking

at macros later on your computer.

Set your camera on aperture-priority so you can

let it worry about shutter speed and exposure.

You’ll probably find manual focus easier. At close

range, autofocus tends to struggle.

Seeing the really big picture

Panoramic photography is a lot of fun and can

produce some truly stunning prints. Like HDR, it

requires taking a set of good pictures in the field

and using specialized software in the digital

darkroom. Unlike HDR, great panoramas are easier

for beginners and intermediate photographers to

pull off.

Stitching software now is so sophisticated and

easy to use that you can often capture great

panoramas while hand-holding the camera. It will

be less hit-or-miss if you use a tripod with a

panhead, however.

For panoramas, it’s better to use a normal focal

length lens (50mm equivalent). With a wider angle

of view, the stitching software will crop more. You’ll

lose detail and resolution.

You also actually want to avoid strong foregrounds.

You’ll be rotating the camera from left to right in a

slight arc. Without a special panoramic head to

correct for parallax error, a tree or bush in the

foreground will get misaligned by the stitching

software. It’s like what happens when you look at

an object with your left eye while your right eye is

closed, then suddenly switch eyes. The object

appears to change position, even though it’s

stationary.

Scenic overlooks and mountain tops are good

vantage points for panoramas. You also want to

avoid having any moving objects in your


composition. Watch out for rapidly changing light

conditions; that could lead to surprising exposure

mismatches when your photos are stitched

together later.

Once you’ve identified a composition, set your

tripod down and level it. Decide about where you

want your panorama to start and where you want it

to stop. You’ll want to take at least two photos,

maybe as many as five or six.

Take a couple of tests shots to determine the best

exposure. Keep your aperture setting, exposure

and white balance consistent throughout the

sequence. Don’t use a circular polarizer. Although

a polarizer can give you a more pleasing blue sky

in a single shot, it will create inconsistent results in

a panorama. For best results, you’ll also want to

shoot in Raw.

Focus on a distant object - at infinity or near

infinity. As you take the series of pictures, make

sure each shot overlaps the adjacent photo by

about 25 percent. This will help the stitching

software connect the photos and blend them

together without visible seams.

Landscape photography is an area where

minimalism and asymmetry can be your friend.

Want to emphasize the isolation of a windmill on

the prairie? Place the windmill on the far left of the

frame and show nothing else but sky and negative

space.

Not everything has to be representational, either.

Look for interesting patterns, colors and textures

on forest floors, sand dunes and creek beds that

you can turn into abstracts with your macro lens.


Generally, you don’t want blurry photos. Your want

your child’s face to be in focus. And you want your

landscapes tack-sharp.

Blurring can be caused by poor focus. It can also

be caused by shaky hands.

Then there’s the third cause: movement. A fast-

moving subject will blur if the shutter speed is too

slow. Usually, you want to avoid motion blur.

But blur isn’t always a problem. You can use it for

creative effect. We’ve all seen photos of waterfalls

in which the water is blurred. The rocks and

surrounding scenery, meanwhile, are in sharp

focus.

To use blurring creatively, you need manual

controls or shutter-priority mode. Let’s talk about

how a waterfall picture would be shot. You’d need

to put your camera on a tripod. It would require a

relatively long shutter speed - 1 or 2 seconds.

This might be difficult to achieve on a sunny day. A

neutral density filter will help. Because they are

gray, they cut light of all colors. They allow slower

shutter speeds.

With a long exposure, the moving water will blur

and look dreamlike. The background and rocks will

be in sharp focus.

This technique isn’t just for photographing moving

water. Think of a Ferris wheel at night. Try to

creatively blur a spinning ice skater or a dancer.

When blurry is good

Motion Blur


Panning

You’ve probably also seen photographs where a

moving object is in focus but the background is

blurred. This effect is common in photos of

bicycles and cars.

These photos are taken through panning. They’re

much more difficult than the long-exposure

waterfall shot. Beginning photographers may find

panning particularly difficult. But keep trying.

Panning also requires a long shutter speed. So,

put your camera in shutter-priority mode (or

manual mode). Use a shutter speed of about 1/15

of a second. Slightly slower or faster shutter

speeds might provide the effect you want.

Hold the camera close to your body. Press the

shutter release and turn your torso. Follow the

moving object with the camera. Make sure you’re

moving the camera horizontally, not vertically. You

can also use a tripod with a panning head. The

tripod will hold the camera level. You turn the

camera with a handle.

Panning can be difficult with an SLR. While the

shutter is open, the SLR’s mirror flips up and the

viewfinder goes dark. Use Live View if your camera

has it; you can watch the action on the LCD. Or,

look over the top of the camera’s prism box while

panning.


Shooting sports is very challenging but also very

satisfying when you nail a great action shot.

You’ll want a DSLR if you find yourself shooting a

lot of sports. Most DSLRs are capable of rattling

off four or more frames per second in burst mode.

You won’t see many sports pros shooting with

hybrids because of shutter lag.

You’ll also need a good zoom lens or two. If you

shoot a lot of indoor sports, such as basketball, a

fast telephoto zoom is essential; 70-200mm is a

good choice.

For outdoor sports such as soccer and football,

you’ll appreciate the reach of a 70-300mm zoom.

You can use slower lenses for outdoor sports.

Camera settings

You’ll probably use shutter-priority mode most of

the time when shooting sports. Indoors, you may

need to crank up the ISO to get a shutter speed of

1/500. That’s about the bare minimum for freezing

sports action. If you’re close enough for it to be

effective and it’s allowed, flash will also freeze

motion.

Sports

Sports photography


Use your camera’s continuous or burst shooting

mode. As you hold the shutter release button, the

camera will continue to take photos. You’re more

likely to get the shot.

Consider shooting large JPEGs instead of Raw

files. In burst or continuous mode, you can shoot

more frames without the buffer filling up so fast.

You’ll go longer between memory card changes,

too. You don’t want to be changing a memory card

as a receiver plucks the football out of the air for

the winning touchdown.

Understand the sport

Timing isn’t just about having a fast camera and

lens. You need to anticipate the action. To do that,

it helps to understand the sport. Knowledge of

your sport will help you choose the best locations

for shooting. You’ll know where interesting action

is most likely to occur.

It also helps to understand the team you’re

photographing. If you know the coach, you can

better predict the next play. If you know the

players, you know who’s going to get the ball in

clutch situations.

Keep your eye on the ball

Sports are all about capturing strong, up-close

action shots. You have to get as close as you can,

even with a telephoto. If a majority of your shots

include the ball in them, you’ll be pretty successful.

Isolate opponent against opponent to

demonstrate conflict. Do the best you can to get

faces in focus and properly exposed, even if

they’re hiding under helmets. Faces portray a lot of

emotion during sports games. It’s a great feeling

to capture your daughter scoring a goal. Often, a

player’s expression after a score or a near-miss

makes an outstanding shot, too.


Look behind you

Sports action isn’t limited to the playing field. The

contest also electrifies the crowd. Take photos of

the fans. Catch the excitement surrounding the

game.

You’ll also want to watch the cheerleaders, coach

and mascot. They will also be showing emotion.

It’s just another part of the game story.

Be patient and keep shooting

When starting out, you may not get good action

shots. Even professional sports photographers

often fail to get good action shots. So, keep

shooting while the action is slow. You’ll at least

have shots to remember the event. Slow moments

are great times to get tight shots of players. And, if

things explode, you’ll be ready.

Remember, taking more shots increases your odds

of good shots. You may get only one good shot

every 20 or 30 frames. So, don’t stop at 10 or 15.

Give yourself the chance to get something great.


Fireworks help communities celebrate national

holidays and other special occasions. With a little

planning and preparation, it’s easy to capture the

rocket’s red glare and great family memories.

Since fireworks require exposures of about 1

second, you’ll need a tripod and cable release for

best results. Dial in a low ISO setting of 100. You

don’t want noise to speckle the black portions of

the sky and distract attention from the colorful

patterns of light. A low ISO setting will prevent

that. Fireworks can also look a little washed out

when using a wide aperture. Use a moderate

setting of f/8 or f/11 to help intensify the colors

If your camera has a bulb (B) setting, try using that.

If you don’t have bulb, take a mix of one- and

two-second exposures.

Use manual focus. Fine-tune your focus on the

fireworks at the start of the show and forget about

it for the rest of the show. You’ll probably be at

infinity or near it. Put your camera in the vertical/

portrait orientation. You want to avoid cropping

the tops and bottoms of starburst patterns.

Fireworks

Photographing fireworks


Your camera’s auto-white-balance function will go

crazy trying to correct the colors of fireworks. It’ll

give you dull, de-saturated streaks of light. Set white

balance to Daylight for better and more consistent

results. (Daylight refers to color temperature - not

time of day. It’s a cooler temperature setting than

Shade or Cloudy.)

With a 100mm lens, the fireworks should fill the

frame. To capture city buildings and more of the

surroundings, use a 50mm lens. A zoom lens can be

adjusted as you like.

Positioning is everything. Try to pick a spot where

smoke from the fireworks will blow away from you.

Smoke will make your photos hazy. You should also

watch for distractions like street lights and tree

branches.

Timing can be difficult. Try opening the shutter as

the rocket nears its apex, then closing it before the

pattern breaks up. Take plenty of shots and check

your results periodically. You’ll bring home plenty of

keepers. Remember one more thing: Don’t fill up

your memory card before the finale!


Taking ghoulish Halloween photos

Halloween is always a fun family event. Too often, a

family’s record of the evening is a series of pictures

of kids and adults who have that washed out,

deer-in-the-headlights look.

Start taking better Halloween pictures by turning

off the flash. Halloween is supposed to be dark

and eerie! Boost your camera’s ISO setting and

use wide apertures. Turn on the table lamps and

light some candles.

I told you in the chapter about portraits that

candid photos are usually the best. That’s

especially true on Halloween. Group shots are easy

on Halloween because everyone’s having a good

time and hamming it up anyway. Remember to

kneel or crouch when shooting pictures of kids.

Don’t wait until the kids are in their costumes to

take photos. Get shots of them applying gloppy

makeup and getting ready. Be ready to capture

spontaneous saber fights and zombie attacks.

Take shots of the kids inspecting their hauls at the

end of the evening.

Experiment with lighting faces from below. Use a

table lamp, flashlight or off-camera flash. You’d

never do this with a normal portrait because it has

such a ghoulish effect!

If it’s your job to follow the kids around the

neighborhood with a camera, you’ll probably have

to resort to flash. Go out at twilight if you can,

before it is pitch black. Try using a slow sync speed

and fill flash to capture a little ambient light and to

illuminate faces and costumes.

Get yourself in a position to get reaction shots of

your child receiving candy. Don’t forget to take

pictures of spooky jack-o’-lanterns and the houses

of those neighbors who always go all-out on

decorating for Halloween.

Halloween


Being together as a family is what it’s all about at

Christmas. You’ll want to remember everything

about this most special day of the year with

photos.

There’s always so much to do during the holidays,

but if you spend a little time preparing to take

photos, it’ll pay off with a Christmas album you’ll

treasure for years to come.

You don’t want to be fumbling around with camera

settings on Christmas morning. You might miss a

few great shots of the kids opening presents. Take

your camera into the family room on a morning

before Christmas. What’s the light like? Hopefully,

you have big windows and the room is bright

enough to take photos without a flash. Find the

ISO setting and aperture that will let you use a

shutter speed of about 1/125 or 1/60. That will let

you capture most of the action.

If the room you keep the tree in is just too dim - or

if your kids get up before sunrise - you’ll have to

take pictures with flash. Composition at Christmas

can get a little tricky. You want to fill the frame and

minimize background distractions, but not lose the

context that this is Christmas day. You can crop a

photo later to create a really tight portrait if you

prefer. Remember to focus on the eyes. You’ll

probably be using a wide aperture. Parts of the

Christmas

Taking Christmas photos to remember


background or foreground might get a little soft.

That’s OK as long as the eyes are sharp.

When friends and family members visit, let them

get comfortable for 15 or 20 minutes, then start

taking candid shots of them while they’re

interacting with the kids and other guests.

If someone insists on a group shot, follow the old

advice of putting tall people in back or in the

middle of a single row. Let people put their arms

around others’ shoulders or cross their arms -

whatever comes naturally. You’ll end up with a

better result than the family portrait where

everyone looks stiff and lined up like soldiers.

Tell a story of the whole day. Take a picture of

Christmas dinner, the kids enjoying an outdoor toy,

the family going to church and the kids going to

bed. This will give your story a beginning, middle

and end.

Finally, don’t become too obsessed with taking

pictures. Take time to enjoy your family and

celebrate!


Shooting holiday decorations

Decorated Christmas trees and displays of

outdoor lights add to the holiday magic.

Take a portrait of your tree at night with all its

lights glowing. Put the camera on a tripod and

expose for the available light. Your tree also offers

a world of close-up opportunities. Get in there

with your macro or a portrait lens and compose

vignettes of ornaments. Use a wide aperture to let

branches and other background elements go soft.

The key to capturing outdoor lights is shooting at

twilight with the flash off. If it’s too bright outside,

the lights will look washed out and will barely

register. If it’s too dark, you’ll capture the lights but

little else. Use a tripod for best results.

This is another situation where automatic white

balance could lead to dull results. Try using your

camera’s Shade or Cloudy setting to enhance the

warm glow of the lights.

Your camera’s exposure meter might also get

fooled, especially if there’s a lot of snow in the

scene. Keep an eye on the histogram and bracket

your exposures.

Know the rules for taking


photos in public

Many people snap photos in public without

thinking much about it. But this can lead to

problems. The police may question you. Business

owners may confront you. You may be told to stop.

If you’re unsure whether you can take photos, ask.

But I can tell you certain situations where it is

generally OK. This should not be construed as

legal advice. See an attorney for that. Remember,

laws may differ from place to place.

Say you’re vacationing in New York. You’ve found

an interesting angle to shoot the Empire State

Building from a sidewalk a few blocks away. You’re

in the clear. It is legal to take photographs in public

places. That includes sidewalks, public parks and

streets. Just don’t obstruct passersby; this may

preclude the use of a tripod.

Things are different for military bases and nuclear

power plants. It doesn’t matter if you’re on public

property. The military and Department of Energy

can prohibit photos because of national security

concerns.

Standing on public property doesn’t give you the

right to slap a telephoto lens on your camera and

peer into bedrooms, changing rooms, or

restrooms. People have a reasonable expectation

of privacy in those situations. You could get into

Public Photography


legal trouble for invasion of privacy.

National, state and local museums and other

public buildings can set their own rules regarding

interior photography. It’s best to check websites in

advance for what is allowed. Some may ban flash

photography, for example, in order to protect

historic documents. Some sites might allow

cameras but not tripods.

Private property owners can allow or restrict

interior photography however they see fit. If you’re

snapping away inside a shopping mall and a

security guard asks you to stop or leave, you must

obey. He can’t, however, demand that you delete

photos or hand over a memory card.

Most professional sports arenas restrict or ban

photography. Look for posted notices. Don’t be

surprised if point-and-shoots are allowed but

DSLRs are not.

You can photograph accident scenes, fires and

emergency workers if you’re on public property.

You cannot, however, interfere with the police or

emergency workers. If asked to move, do so.

There are times when it’s just unwise to take some

photos, even if you have the legal right to take

them. If you go around taking pictures of kids in a

park without parents’ permission, you’ll raise

suspicion - and possibly ire. Likewise, you probably

don’t want to specialize in photographing public

transportation, strategic bridges, chemical plants

and oil refineries.

Do you want to spend your time taking pictures or

answering police questions?

As you’re out taking pictures, keep in mind that


you’ll likely want to make prints of your best

images and share them online. Most advanced

cameras let you shoot at a JPEG + Raw setting.

This is very convenient.

The JPEG image format is the standard for the

Internet. The file sizes are small and compressed

so Web pages load faster. You can upload and

share a JPEG immediately. If it’s a large enough file

size, a well-exposed JPEG can also make a fine

print.

So why shoot Raw files, too?

When you take a JPEG, the camera makes a

decision about which data are going to get

discarded. That’s how the smaller file size is

achieved. Subsequent edits and saves of a JPEG

file will also degrade the image. This is called lossy

compression. If you have a JPEG that’s

underexposed or has a bad color cast, it will be

very difficult to save in post-processing.

A Raw file is more like a digital negative. It contains

every bit of data and dynamic range that your

camera’s sensor captured. A Raw file gives you

more flexibility in the digital darkroom. You can

adjust white balance and make exposure

corrections without degrading the image.

Of course, the tradeoff is larger file sizes. You’ll fill

up your memory cards and hard drives faster. Raw

images are more time-consuming and require

specific conversion software to open and edit.

I think you’ll find that the advantages outweigh the

disadvantages, however. And when you’re ready to

take your photo-editing skills to the next level, I’ll

be there with Part 3 of my Digital Photography

Guide: Creative Photo Editing.

Looking Ahead

File Format




Before You Begin ........................ 2

Photo Editing Sites ..................... 5

Build a Workflow .........................7

Image Editors ............................12

Raw Image Editing ....................17

Using RawTherapee ................. 19

Layers ......................................... 24

The Three Rs ............................. 26

Sharpening ................................ 30

Printing ...................................... 31

Color Management .................. 33

About Kim .................................. 34




1Kim Komando’s Guide to Creative Photo Editing

In the first part of my Digital Photography Guide:

The Essential Guide to Digital Cameras, you

learned all about DSLRs and hybrid cameras and

how they can help you take better photos.

And thanks to my Digital Photography Guide: The

Essential Guide to Taking Great Photos, you’re

shooting at a whole new level. You consistently

bring home beautiful landscape images. Family

members and friends love the pleasing portraits

you take of them. You understand the rules of

good composition and know when to break them.

You’ve reached a point now where you’d like to

make expressive prints of some of your images,

and share them in online galleries. To do that, you

need to develop your digital editing skills.

After reading this book, you’ll be making swift and

dramatic improvements to your digital captures.

You’ll also discover that you’re taking yet another

fun and creative journey - an adventure that began

when you tripped the shutter.

Let’s get going!

How to edit your photos like a pro THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO CREATIVE PHOTO EDITING

Introduction

http://books.komando.com/photoediting


Before you start working on digital photos, it’s a

good idea to have a filing system in place that

makes sense for you. I know - you’d rather spend

time being creative. But it’s hard to be creative

when you want to work on a photo you took a year

ago and can’t find it.

Most image-editing programs have very effective

built-in organization tools that let you geotag and

face-tag images as you import them.

If you have a Mac, for example, you can use the

included iPhoto software. PC users can tap into

the free Windows Live Photo Gallery. Google’s

Picasa is an excellent third-party image-organizing

program that also includes very basic editing tools

such as crop and red-eye removal.

What’s important is getting into the habit of

arranging your photos into descriptive folders and

sub-folders. Use a combination of dates and event

names or location names. That works well for most

photographers.

Let’s say you’ve made it a project to shoot the

Saturday Farmers Market over the summer. You

Before You Begin

Getting Organized


just got back from the first one of the season and

need to get your 47 photos off the memory card

and filed away on a hard drive.

Create the folder Farmers Market 2012. Next,

create a month-day sub-folder: 0526. At this point,

you could choose to rename your 47 image files

something like Farmers Market 2012 Week 1. The

program will give each picture that name plus a

sequential number, 1-47.

That won’t help you much in a search later, but it’s

better than the meaningless alpha-numeric

numbers your camera assigns to image files. It’s

too tedious to give every picture a unique name at

this point. You’ll only end up working on a handful

of them anyway.

What will really help you find these photos later are

keywords. Keywords are tags or descriptions that

become embedded in the image files.

Maybe you took some nice photos of strawberries

and bunches of asparagus the first week. Add

those as keywords when you import this batch.

You can add more keywords later to individual

images and groups of photos.

Sometimes, splitting an import into separate

operations can help the organizational cause. Say

27 of your 47 pictures from the first week are of a

jazz band that was performing at the market.

It would be difficult to remember two years from

now that those band photos are in Farmers Market

2012>>0526. Create a new top folder with the

band’s name. Select the 27 band photos and

import them to the folder. Then select the 20

vegetable/vendor photos and import them into

0526.

If most of your photos are of family and friends,

you’ll definitely want to take advantage of your

organizing program’s face-matching technology.


As soon as you start tagging photos with names,

the software learns how to apply those name tags

to all your other photos.

When you’re done importing a batch of photos,

take a few minutes to review them. Delete obvious

clunkers, such as those accidental shots taken of

your feet.

If you’re just beginning photo editing, however,

don’t get too zealous about deleting photos.

Something that looks hopeless now might be

fixable down the road when you have more

experience.

Organization programs always include a method

for rating image files with stars or other labels.

While you’re reviewing, flag images you know

you’ll want to work on later. Ratings can also be

used as a search filter.

Finally, don’t trust your computer’s hard drive to

keep your image library safe. Hard drives can fail

- often with no warning. Backup your collection

regularly to external hard drives. For the ultimate

in backup - and peace of mind - store your photos

online at a photo-sharing site or use a cloud-

based backup service.


Thanks to online photo editing sites, you don’t

need any software other than a browser to begin

working on digital pictures. These services are fine

for editing small JPEGs that you want to share on

social networking sites. They also provide a

convenient way to retouch photos you’ve already

posted online.

PicMonkey is a good example. It was created by

the same team behind the wildly popular Picnik,

which was gobbled up by Google. Photoshop

Express condenses Adobe’s flagship Photoshop

program into a quick and easy online experience.

Signing up for a free account also gives you 2GB

of online storage.

For something a little more powerful, look at Pixlr

or Phoenix. Phoenix is part of the Aviary suite of

media-creation tools and the built-in image editor

of Flickr.

With a click of a mouse, online image editors allow

you to straighten horizon lines and automatically

enhance colors and exposure. You can also

instantly fix red eye and remove other blemishes.

These tools alone are enough to save many family

snapshots and scenic travel photos.

The most creative tool you have at your disposal,

however, is the humble crop tool. Many times, the

crop tool gives you a second chance to create a

pleasing composition.

The tool superimposes a 3 x 3 grid over your

image so you can crop with the rule of thirds in

mind. Place important elements in your photo

along one of the two vertical lines, one of the two

horizontal lines or the points where the lines

intersect. This will keep your horizon line or subject

from being dead center in the frame.

Photo Editing Sites

Basic Online Photo Editing


Many casual portraits lack impact simply because

the subject doesn’t fill the frame. There’s too much

space around the person. Crop to remove

extraneous or distracting information and to

emphasize faces.

A landscape photo might benefit from a

“panoramic” crop that reduces the amount of

visible sky and foreground. Just because a

camera’s native aspect ratio is 3:2 or 4:3 doesn’t

mean you can’t crop to a dramatic 2:1 or 3:1 aspect

ratio.

Stick to common aspect ratios, however, when you

want to make standard 4 x 6-inch, 5 x 7-inch prints,

and 8 x 10-inch prints. The crop tool can be

constrained to preserve a specific aspect ratio and

print size.

Be careful how much you crop, especially if you’re

going to be printing later. Today’s 16+ MP cameras

allow quite a bit of room for cropping. Just don’t

expect to make a decent print after cropping a

tiny portion of a photo. There won’t be enough

pixels left to form a detailed image.

Images that have a resolution of 72-100 ppi (pixels

per inch) are fine for the Web. Ideally, you want to

be at 240-300 ppi for a sharp, detailed inkjet print.

You can’t save every photo with a crop. But you’ll

learn what works and what doesn’t - and this will

impact your shooting. Soon, you’ll find that you’re

cropping less frequently because you’re creating

better compositions in the camera.

That’s the true power of the crop tool.


Build a Workflow

Building an Editing Workflow

When you feel ready to use more-sophisticated

editing tools, you’ll want to step up to desktop

software. There are several very good programs

that are open-source and free. Not all paid

programs cost an arm and a leg; most also offer

30-day free trials.

After test-driving free and commercial programs

for a few weeks, you’ll find the image editor that’s

the most comfortable fit for your skills and your

budget.

Whichever program you choose, you’ll edit more

effectively if you follow a logical workflow. The

workflow concept isn’t designed to stifle your

individuality and creativity. It’s just that it’s better

to perform some tasks before others when editing

digital photos.

For example: Adjusting a photo’s color balance

first often corrects poor saturation and contrast.

Here are the general steps to take when editing a

JPEG photo. Keep in mind that every photo is

different. You won’t need to perform every step on

every image. Always work on a copy of the file so

you can return to the original and start over if

necessary.

Crop

If necessary, crop your image before moving on to

more-advanced edits. When you adjust things like

color balance, exposure and saturation later, your

editing software won’t be influenced by unwanted

pixels. You also don’t want to spend a lot of time

correcting a flaw that ends up being cropped out

of the image.


Color balance

Color Balance controls usually include a

Temperature slider to make a picture’s overall

ambience cooler or warmer. A Tint slider will

correct images that shift too far toward magenta

or green.

Color casts occur when you take photos in shade

or inside using fluorescent or incandescent light. If

there’s a white fence, white shirt or similar object in

the photo, examine it closely. If it looks a little

reddish-yellow or greenish-blue, your photo will

benefit from a color balance adjustment.

If the software offers a “dropper” tool, take

advantage of it. If there’s an area of the picture you

know should be white or neutral gray, click on the

appropriate dropper and click on that point in the

picture. This will re-balance the entire image.

Exposure

It’s not always possible or practical to get a perfect

exposure when you’re out shooting. If an image is

slightly underexposed or overexposed, you should

be able to save it.

The image’s histogram will identify clipped

shadow pixels in blue and clipped highlights in

red.

For an underexposed photo, use the exposure

compensation slider to slightly increase exposure.

Don’t overdo it. If you increase exposure too

much, noise will get worse in the shadows. Try

using the Shadows slider on an underexposed

photo if your software allows it.


For a slightly overexposed photo, decrease

exposure and use the Highlights slider if available.

Decreasing exposure too much will draw even

more attention to blown highlights.

At this stage of the workflow, you’ll know whether

you can move on with an image, or stop and try a

different photo. Raw images and Raw image

editors give you more leeway in recovering detail

from overexposed and underexposed images.

We’ll take a closer look at that in the next chapter.

Contrast controls

When you hear someone say “that photo really

pops,” he’s talking about contrast. Unless you’ve

purposely captured a moody fog or rain scene,

most low-contrast images feel flat; the colors seem

washed out. It’s time to unleash the magical Levels

and Curves tools.

In an overexposed image, too many pixels bunch

up against the right boundary of the histogram. In

an underexposed image, too many pixels bunch

up against the left boundary of the histogram. In a

low-contrast image, the pixels tend to bunch up in

the middle of the graph.

Levels allows you to remap the histogram. Move

the white point slider to the left and the black

point slider to the right. The image will now have a

full tonal range and exhibit dramatically better

contrast. (Be careful not to go too far and

introduce clipping.) To fine-tune, adjust the mid-

tone slider slightly to the left or right.

Feel like the image could still use a little more

oomph? Open up the Curves tool.

Levels Tool from GIMP


Although it doesn’t look like it at first, Curves is

very similar to Levels. The anchor point (small

square) in the lower left corner of the graph is the

black point. The anchor point in the upper right

corner is the white point. Go ahead and click on

the middle of the curve. You’ve just created an

anchor point that corresponds to the mid-tone

slider in Levels.

Unlike Levels, Curves allows you to put as many as

16 points along the curve. That’s rarely necessary,

of course, but it demonstrates why Curves is such

a powerful tool. Even tones that are very close to

each other on the curve can be teased apart.

For now, put an anchor point on the quarter point

and an anchor point on the three-quarter point.

Moving these anchors up or down with the

anchored mid-point will create a gentle S curve or

an inverted S curve.

The S curve will darken the shadows a bit in the

quarter tones and bump up the three-quarter tone

highlights. The inverted S curve will do the

opposite. This simple adjustment alone will rescue

many images.

Saturation

Boost Saturation if the overall colors in your image

still seem a little dull. Don’t overdo it, though.

Oversaturation seldom benefits either landscape

photos or portraits. The Vibrance slider, if your

image editor has it, is a terrific tool. It increases or


decreases the saturation of skin tones and other

less-saturated colors without affecting colors that

are already saturated. The Saturation slider adjusts

all the pixels in an image.

Selective Enhancements

Up to this stage, all your edits have affected the

image globally. Now it’s time to inspect the image

for smaller areas that can benefit from local or

selective enhancements.

Get out the healing brush or clone tool to remove

blemishes such as dust specks that were on your

camera’s sensor. (They look like UFOs in the sky.)

If an area of the image is a little too hot exposure-

wise, tone it down with the burning tool. Grab the

dodging tool if there’s an area of the print you

wish to lighten. The dodging tool is also a good

way to whiten teeth and brighten smiles. Do the

subject’s eyes seem a little fuzzy? Spot-sharpen

the area with a brush.

Create a master file

By now, you should feel as though you’ve taken

this image about as far as it can go. This is a good

time to stop and save it as a master file. Let’s call it

Sylvan Lake MF (for Master File).

Everything you do subsequently to Sylvan Lake MF

will involve downsizing it for sharing or optimizing

it to make a print. You don’t want to repeat all the

hard work you’ve just done. Work on copies of

Sylvan Lake MF to create Sylvan Lake Web, Sylvan

Lake 8x10, etc.


Photobie

This is a good step-up program for photographers

who outgrow Windows Live Photo Gallery. It has

tools for all the most-needed picture-editing

functions. More-advanced users can work in layers

for more precision.

Photoscape

Another good intermediate photo editor for

Windows users. It supports Raw files and animated

GIFs in addition to other standard file formats.

It contains most of the photo-editing tools you

need, plus fun templates for creating comics and

collages.

Pixelmator

A full-featured, layers-based image editor that

appeals to the artistically inclined. Use Levels,

Curves and a host of other color-correction tools

to perfect your photos. There are also dozens of

tools for making selections, drawing, painting and

retouching. Create special effects with more than

150 filters. 30-day free trial.

Image Editors

Popular Image Editors

Photo Editor Photobie

Cost • Free

Compatibility • PC

Some of the Best Features

• Basic photo editing tools• Layers• Photoshop filter plug-in support• Photo image browser• Templates and scrapbooking

Photo Editor Photoscape

Cost • Free



• Intermediate photo editing tools• Layers• Batch editor• Special effect filters• Raw image converter

Photo Editor Pixelmator

Cost • $15 after 30-day free trial

Compatibility • Mac


• Advanced photo editing tools• Painting and drawing tools• Layers• 150 special effect filters• Sharing to social sites


PaintShopPro X4

Despite its paint-centric name, this is powerful

photo-editing software that supports a Raw

workflow and adjustment layers. With this version,

Corel added HDR tools and a tilt-shift effect

to create miniatures and photos with extreme

selective focus. 30-day free trial.

Adobe Photoshop Elements 11

This slimmed-down sibling of Photoshop allows

you to quickly and easily fix common photo

flaws. More-advanced tools offer sophisticated

blending and layering capabilities and support

for Raw editing. There’s also a stitching function

for panoramas and a basic tool for creating a

High Dynamic Range photo from two exposures.

Guided Edits walk you through some of the more

involved editing tasks. Family memory keepers

love Elements for its organizational powers and

ease of creating text and scrapbook pages and

cards.

Aperture 3

Aperture combines the streamlined Raw workflow

that busy pros need with the easy learning curve

Photo Editor PaintShop Pro X4

Cost • $80 - $100 after 30-day free trial



• Advanced photo editing tools• Photo organizer• Layers• High Dynamic Range tools (HDR)• Raw image editing• 162 effects and adjustment filters• Screen capture• Batch editing• Sharing to social sites• Learning center

Photo Editor Adobe Photoshop Elements 11

Cost • $100

Compatibility • PC and Mac


• Advanced photo editing tools• Photo tagging and organizer• Layers• 100 effects and adjustment filters• Batch editing• High Dynamic Range tools (HDR)• Panoramic stitching tools• Raw image editing• Templates and scrapbooking• Video support• Sharing to social sites• Adobe online services


of iPhoto. With the unified photo library, you

can move back and forth between iPhoto and

Aperture without having to import, export or re-

edit photos. Aperture includes powerful one-click

white balance and curves adjustments, plus brush-

based edits on selective portions of photos.

Lightroom 4

Photoshop has a lot of stuff that professional

graphic designers, 3D artists and illustrators

need - and photographers don’t. Adobe built

Lightroom from the ground up for photographers.

It’s a powerful catalog management program and

Raw image processor in one. The nondestructive

editing environment encourages experimentation.

The newest version offers superior lens-correction

and noise-reduction tools, plus enhanced highlight

and recovery algorithms. A new module makes it

easy to create photo books.

ACDSee

TThis program has been around a long time

and is a favorite of many photographers. The

Pro 6 version for PC ($100) and Pro 2 version for

Mac ($100) aim to compete with Aperture and

Lightroom with nondestructive Raw editing and

Photo Editor Aperture 3

Cost • $80

Compatibility • Mac


• Advanced photo editing tools• Advanced photo tagging and

organization• Nondestructive environment• Raw photo editing• Set auto buttons and quick tools• Batch editing• Expansive effects library and

custom effects• Photo books and slide shows• Video support• Sharing to social sites

Photo Editor Adobe Lightroom 4

Cost • $150



• Advanced photo editing tools• Advanced photo tagging and

organization• Nondestructive environment• Raw photo editing• Special effect filters• Advanced hue, saturation, and

luminance editing• Batch editing• Photo books and slide shows• Video support• Sharing to social sites


speedy workflow. Look at ACDSee 15 (PC, $50) if

you want a home photo editor and organizer more

akin to Elements.

RawTherapee

This is a robust Raw editor. Better yet, it’s totally

free to use. It sports a lot of the same features

as pricey programs like Lightroom and Aperture.

Make sophisticated adjustments to exposure, tone

curves and highlight and shadows. There are also

multiple ways to sharpen and enhance details, as

well as reduce image noise. RawTherapee works

with most DSLR Raw files, but check compatibility

with your camera before downloading.

GIMP

If you want to take your pictures to the next level

without taking your credit card there, too, give

GIMP a try. It’s a free photo editor originally

created at UC Berkeley. It has many of the same

features as Photoshop, but it’s 100 percent free. In

the past, GIMP was notorious for its steep learning

curve and hard-to-use floating window palettes.

Thanks to a recent overhaul and a new single-

window mode, the user interface is easier. The

next upgrade should provide support for 16-bit

image editing.

Photo Editor ACDSee Pro

Cost • $140 after 30-day free trial



• Advanced photo editing tools• Photo tagging and organization• Nondestructive environment• Raw photo editing• Special effects and filters• Batch editing• Sharing to social sites

Photo Editor GIMP

Cost • Free



• Advanced photo editing tools• Advanced color correction tools• Drawing and painting tools• Layers and channels• Customizable interface• Special effects and filters• Edit Photoshop files (PSD)• Extensive plugins and support

Photo Editor RawTherapee

Cost • Free



• Basic photo editing tools• Photo tagging and organization• Advanced color correction tools• Raw photo editing• Special effects and filters• Batch editing


Adobe Photoshop CS6

Photoshop is the gold standard and the

professional’s choice in image-editing software.

Content Aware technology allows photographers

to patch, move objects and retouch images with

incredible ease and precision. Automatic Saves

in the background speed up the workflow and

reduce the chance of losing edits. Add creative

blurs to images with new tools. Photoshop

includes Adobe Camera Raw - the same Raw

editing engine that Lightroom is based on - and

Bridge for organizing your photos.

Photo Editor Adobe Photoshop CS6

Cost • $700



• Advanced photo editing tools• Raw photo editing• Drawing and painting tools• Layers and channels• Auto corrections• Superior High Dynamic Range

imaging and toning (HDR)• Preset migration and sharing• Special effects and filters• Customized workspaces• Video Support• Auto-recovery• Adobe Marketplace and

Community Help


When you shoot a JPEG, your camera sets the

white balance, sharpens the image and makes

some decisions about color saturation and

contrast. Depending on the level of compression

you choose, pixel information may get thrown

away in order to make a smaller file.

A Raw file is more like a digital negative. It contains

every bit of data and dynamic range that your

camera’s sensor captured. A Raw file gives you

more flexibility and editing latitude in the digital

darkroom.

Let’s see why

First of all, a Raw file starts its journey in the editing

process as a 16-bit image. A JPEG is always an

8-bit image. An 8-bit image can produce 256

unique colors, while the 16-bit image has 65,536

discrete colors available in its palette. The 16-bit

image is capable of producing a lot more subtlety.

Because it contains more information, it also holds

up better in processing.

Aggressively manipulating the histogram of an

8-bit image with Levels and Curves runs the risk of

causing posterization. Unsightly bands run across

a posterized image because there’s too little tonal

information and the tones are too far apart.

Posterization is revealed in the histogram, too, as

spaced vertical spikes that resemble the teeth of a

comb.

Even if you don’t want to work in Raw, editing in

16-bit mode where possible will minimize the risk

of posterization. If you have a JPEG that needs

some hard editing, for example, change it to a

16-bit TIFF before you begin, if your image editor

supports it. (TIFF is a standard file format in

Raw Image Editing

Raw Workflow & Nondestructive Editing


publishing and can be either uncompressed or

compressed without losing information.)

In our basic JPEG workflow, everything we did to

fix blemishes and correct color and contrast

destroyed pixels and degraded image quality.

That sounds scarier than it actually is. A well-

exposed, large JPEG that has been minimally

compressed won’t require a lot of editing. It will

contain more than enough information to make a

fine print.

For those times when you need it, though, a Raw,

nondestructive workflow really comes in handy.

You can change white balance and perform other

edits without destroying any of the image’s pixels.

Your changes appear in a live view of the image,

but the adjustments aren’t actually applied until

they’re exported from the Raw imaging processor.

Everything you do in Raw is reversible - and you

always have that pristine, data-rich Raw file to fall

back on.

In a Raw editor, you can take advantage of built-in

tools to reduce a photo’s noise, apply sharpening

and correct lens distortion.

Here’s how to adapt your workflow using a Raw

editor such as RawTherapee.


RawTherapee is a robust - and totally free - Raw

editor. Getting started with the program is simple.

Once it’s installed and opened, you’ll see it’s made

up of a few different parts.

First is the file browser in the lower-left corner. Use

it to search your computer for your Raw files. In the

center is the main image viewer. Here you can see

the picture you’re editing. And finally, on the far

right is the adjustment panel. This is where you’ll

tweak most of the settings to edit your photos.

Once you’ve chosen a photo to edit, you can start

adjusting it. Click on the Transform tab to bring up

the crop panel and to experiment with different

options. You can also rotate, flip and straighten the

image.

Next, click on the Colour tab (the program uses

British spelling). You can adjust White Balance

quickly and easily by using the Spot WB button.

Click a portion of the photo that should be white

or neutral gray. You’ll see the image automatically

fix itself. This typically does a pretty good job on

Using RawTherapee

Edit Raw Images Using RawTherapee


its own. But you can adjust the Temperature and

Tint sliders to fine-tune it.

Under the Exposure tab, you’ll see a long list of

tools for fixing exposure. The big ones here are

Exposure, Tone Curve and Shadows/Highlights.

Using the different sliders in Exposure will help

brighten or darken photos. Keep in mind that this

isn’t the same as adjusting Brightness. Instead,

Exposure works to simulate the picture if more or

less light hit the sensor. It will give you more or less

detail.

Tone Curve is an advanced way to control contrast

for the overall image. Like Curves in other

programs, you just click and drag on the curve to

create gentle S-curves and other tonal

adjustments. Each point on the curve affects a

certain tonal range. As you move from left to right,

you affect darker to lighter tones.

Shadows/Highlights will let you adjust the

brightest and darkest areas of your photos. In this

section, you can make the blacks in the photo

Exposure tab from RawTherapee


darker. Inversely, you can make the whites in the

photo brighter.

Now is a good time to reduce noise if the image

needs it. If you took the shot in low light at a high

ISO setting, it’s likely that the image will benefit

from de-noising.

Click on the Detail tab. You’ll see two noise

reduction options: Luminance and Colour.

Luminance Noise Reduction will blend noisy pixels

based on their brightness value. Colour Noise

Reduction will blend noise based on the pixel’s

hue. The goal is noise reduction - not noise

elimination. A little noise adds character and

increases the perception of sharpness. An absence

of noise will make your subjects look unnaturally

smooth.

All Raw images benefit from “capture sharpening,”

so this important function is built in to Raw editors.

Unlike JPEGs, Raw captures are not sharpened in

the camera. Don’t get the idea that you can save

Detail tab from RawTherapee


an out-of-focus photo with sharpening. All you’re

doing is bumping up the acutance level of your

photo.

Despite its name, the Unsharp Mask tool is the

classic way to sharpen an image. Derived from an

old darkroom technique, Unsharp Mask lays a

fuzzy copy of the image over the original to help

the algorithm detect the presence of edges. The

unsharp overlay is subtracted away and contrast is

selectively increased along these edges. The result

is a sharpened image.

You can control the overall effect of Unsharp Mask

with the Radius, Amount and Treshhold sliders.

Radius affects the size of the edges; too much

Radius will produce halos around edges. Amount

controls the strength of the sharpening. Threshold

controls the minimum brightness range that will be

sharpened. If set to 0, everything is sharpened,

including noise. A value of 0.8 to 2 works well for

most pictures. Enabling Sharpen Only Edges will

prevent any sharpening of noise pixels.

Transform tab from RawTherapee


When you’re done with sharpening, correct for

lens flaws if your image needs it. Some lenses

cause vignetting, chromatic aberration and

distortion that can be corrected - to varying

degrees - in RawTherapee’s Transform tab.

Vignetting often occurs when using a low f-stop,

such as f/1.8. Light falls off at the corners, making

the corners darker than the center of the image. A

little vignetting can be desirable in some cases,

since it tends to draw attention to the subject. If

you want it gone, however, this tool will take care

of it. Be aware that this adjustment can increase

noise in the corners.

Bargain lenses often suffer from chromatic

aberration, a failure to correctly focus different

wavelengths of color. It appears as purple fringing

along boundaries that separate dark and light

parts of an image. This tool will reduce the fringing

- but don’t expect miracles.

Extreme wide-angle lenses can distort horizontal

and vertical lines in an image. This usually only

presents a problem in architectural photos. Use

the horizontal and vertical perspective tools to

straighten up buildings.

Once you’ve finished all of your edits in

RawTherapee, you can either save the image or

export it to another editor to make selective

adjustments. Save it as a 16-bit TIFF if your image

editor supports it; make it an 8-bit TIFF otherwise.

To do this, click on Preferences. A new window will

pop up. Select the Output Options tab at the top.

In the file format area, use the dropdown menu to

select your desired format.


By using layers in GIMP, Photoshop and some

other image editors, you can make further

nondestructive changes and create composites by

combining different photos. Layers can be a little

puzzling at first, but once you get used to them,

they will become one of your most powerful

editing tools.

Layers are like sheets of plastic that you stack over

an original image. You can increase or lower the

opacity of a layer to show less or more of an

underlying layer. Brushes that paint black (to

obscure) or white (to erase) can be used to block

or reveal an element from a different picture. This

is how black-and-white photos with selective areas

of color are usually created.

Levels, Curves, Brightness/Contrast, Hue/

Saturation and other adjustments can also be

done on layers.

In programs such as Aperture, Lightroom and

Adobe Camera Raw, you can fix sensor dust spots

and other local blemishes nondestructively. You

can’t make selective corrections like that in

RawTherapee. In Photoshop or GIMP, however, you

can create a duplicate background layer to

perform tricky healing, cloning and patching edits

without damaging the original background pixels.

If you edit yourself into a corner, you can always

delete the layer you’re working on and try again.

Layers can be turned on an off with a click so you

can make quick judgments about the effects your

actions are having.

With layers and your available selection/extraction

tools, it’s possible to pluck a nice shot of a bird or

a cloud formation in one photo and paste it into a

Layers

Working with Layers


layer for a landscape photo that needs added

interest.

When an object’s shape is simple and well-defined

against the background, it’s pretty easy to remove.

If the subject blends into the background or is very

detailed - you’re trying to trace around a person’s

hair, for example - you’ll be looking at hours of

painstaking work.

That’s why pros who know a background will be

removed later shoot against a green backdrop.

That way, they can select the background color

with a single click and remove it.

A duplicate background layer is a great way to

selectively sharpen parts of an image. Sharpen the

entire image on this layer. If you overdo it, scale

back the layer’s opacity. Next, add a black layer

mask. Use a soft-edged brush and a white

foreground color to reveal portions of the image

you want sharpened. If you make a mistake and

reveal too much, switch to black and re-paint.

Layers don’t permanently take effect until you

flatten the image. If you wish, you can save the

master image file with all its layers open. That way,

you can always fine-tune the adjustments. When

you go to print, save a copy of the master and

flatten the image.


The Three Rs

The Three Rs confuse many photographers who

are just beginning to upload photos to the Internet

and make inkjet prints. With a little practice,

however, you’ll get to the “aha” moment in no

time.

Every digital image contains a specific number of

pixels along its width and height. The pixel

dimensions are governed by your camera’s sensor

size and the capture quality settings you chose

when taking the image.

Let’s use an 18MP camera as an example. When

image quality is set to Raw or Large/Fine JPEG,

your image size will be 5184 x 3456 pixels. (Multiply

those numbers and you get 17.9 million pixels, or

18MP.) A Small/Normal JPEG will come into your

editing software with a pixel dimension of 2592 x

1728.

Even the small JPEG is overkill for posting on the

Web. You need to downsize and resample it.

In Adobe Photoshop or Elements - GIMP handles

resizing differently, which I’ll explain later - open

the Image Size dialog box.

You’ll see an upper box for Pixel Dimensions and a

lower box for Document Size. The boxes for

Constrain Proportions and Resample Image

should be checked.

Resizing, Resolution & Resampling Images


Change the Resolution value to 100 ppi (pixels per

inch). Specifying a resolution any higher than that

won’t improve the display quality of the image on

a computer monitor.

Most Web images don’t need to be any more than

600-800 pixels on the longest side. Enter a value

for the longest side, and Constrain Proportions will

automatically adjust the other side to preserve the

photo’s aspect ratio.

Resampling instructs the software to throw away

pixels - or add them when you’re upsizing.

Whenever you add or take away pixels, image

quality deteriorates to some extent.

It’s OK to throw out data for Web pictures. You

want them to be a small file size so they’ll load fast

on a webpage.

Adobe offers a variety of interpolation methods

when resampling. These algorithms more or less

intelligently decide which pixels are best removed

or added. Bicubic Sharper usually works best when

reducing image size for the Web. Click OK and

you’ll have an image that’s resized for Web use.

Use GIMP’s Image Scale dialog box to accomplish

the same thing. Make sure the interpolation

method is set to Cubic. GIMP uses a separate Print

Size dialog box for printing, which disables

resampling.

Now let’s run down how to prepare an image for

printing. Although a digital image contains a

specific amount of pixel data, its specific output

size and resolution is negotiable.

Return to that 18 MP image with a pixel dimension

of 5184 x 3456. If you uncheck Resample Image,

you’ll see that you’re now prohibited from adding

or throwing away pixels. To keep the total number

Image Size box from Adobe Photoshop


of pixels the same, the image editor compensates

by increasing or decreasing the resolution and

document size.

At a resolution of 240 ppi, an 18 MP image will

make a very nice print measuring 21.6 x 14.4

inches.

What if you want to send this image to a custom

lab, and it requires a resolution of 300 ppi?

Change the resolution to 300; print size decreases

to 17.3 x 11.5 inches.

What if you just want to print a 6 x 9 on your home

photo printer? Adjust the width and height;

resolution will increase to 575 ppi.

When resolution increases, pixels become smaller

so more of them can be packed together. The

tradeoff for smaller physical size is a smoother,

higher-quality print.

The trouble is that a 575 ppi image looks exactly

like a 100 ppi image on your computer monitor.

Because it looks like resolution doesn’t matter,

many beginning photographers think they don’t Image Size box from Adobe Photoshop


need to shoot at higher resolutions; or, they

downsize and resample an image at the beginning

of the editing workflow. This can compromise the

image for printing later on.

For most prints, it’s best to resize your image

without resampling. Depending on the quality of

the printer, most larger prints will look good at 240

ppi. Aim for 300 ppi or higher if you’re making a

photo book or making smaller prints that will be

viewed at a close distance.

Many images can be enlarged 10-20 percent

without too much harm. In this case, you want to

resample the image to add pixels. The Bicubic

Smoother interpolation method usually works best

for upsampling.

If your image editor allows, switch your document

size measurement from inches to percent and

enter 110, then repeat. It doesn’t take much

enlarging before a picture starts looking blocky

and blurry.

Adding pixels is a much more complex job than

removing data for editing software. If you’re really

keen on making poster-size images, check out

third-party programs, such as Perfect Resize

(formerly called Genuine Fractals).


Before printing, your image will benefit from one

last sharpening pass - especially if you upsampled.

Be aware that effective output sharpening can

take a lot of trial and error and will often make an

image appear oversharpened on screen. It can be

done on a duplicate background layer.

For an average image - one that’s neither high

detail nor low detail - a Radius setting between 1.0

and 1.5 is a good starting point. Set Amount

between about 125 and 175, and Threshold

between 4 and 8. Tweak from there.

A finely detailed image requires a much lower

Radius - under 1.0 - to avoid halos. You may have

to go down to 0.3 or 0.4 for some images. To

compensate for the smaller radius, increase

Amount to 200-300. Set Threshold at 4 or less.

It’s important to not oversharpen a portrait or a

smoothly textured image. Use a low Amount

setting of 75-125 and a high Threshold of 8-12.

You’ll probably need a larger Radius of 2-3 to find

and bring out those edges, though.

It’s not a coincidence that automated sharpening

solutions are among the most popular plug-ins for

GIMP, Photoshop, Lightroom and Aperture.

These complex algorithms calculate optimum

sharpening based on print size, resolution, and the

type of printer and paper you’re using.

Topaz InFocus, PhotoKit Sharpener and Sharpener

Pro are some of the leading commercial

contenders in this category. If a plug-in

undersharpens or oversharpens to your taste,

“trick” it by telling it to sharpen at a slightly higher

or lower resolution.

Sharpening

Output Sharpening


It’s very satisfying seeing one of your images come

to life on paper as a finished print. Thanks to huge

improvements in paper quality and inkjet printer

technology, it’s easier than ever to make large,

professional-quality prints from the comfort of

your home office.

The first step to success is buying a photo printer.

You can make good prints with multifunction 8.5 x

11-inch inkjet printers in the $100-$200 range from

HP, Canon and Epson. Stepping up to a dedicated

13-inch photo printer offers a corresponding leap

in quality, and price - $300 and up. A 13-inch

printer can handle cut paper sheets of 13 x 19 and

11 x 17 in addition to 8.5 x 11. Some printers in this

class can also use roll paper 50-100 feet in length.

Although small printers handle standard photo

papers OK, they’ll balk at heavier premium papers.

Prosumer photo printers have 6, 8 or more ink

cartridges in their arsenals to produce exhibition-

quality prints. Ink cartridges are larger, too, making

larger format printers cheaper to operate than

smaller printers over the long haul.

Once you decide on the size of your printer, you

need to make a decision about ink type - dye or

pigment. Pigment inks can’t quite match the color

gamut and high saturation levels that dye inks can,

but they’re much more stable and archival.

Paper Choices

Most color landscapes and portraits look best on

semi-gloss papers. These are more subtle than

glossy papers and may even include a bit of a

textured surface. You’ll also see them described as

luster, pearl, silver or satin. They’re capable of a

wide color gamut and produce deep, rich blacks.

Matte papers offer wonderful surface textures,

Printing

Basic Inkjet Printing


which benefit some photos, but produce more

muted colors and weaker blacks.

When you first start printing at home, buy paper

from the same manufacturer as your printer. The

major manufacturers go to great lengths to

develop profiles that will help you make prints that

match what you see on your computer screen.

When you call up a specific paper profile in your

print menu, it tells the printer how much ink to

spray on the paper and how fast the print head

should pass across the paper.

After you’ve made some great prints this way, go

ahead and dive into the wonderful ocean of third-

party inkjet papers. Vendors supply profiles of their

papers for the most popular printer models. Most

of them are good but may require some tweaking.

Printing an Image

Printing is handled in your editing software’s print

dialog box. First, check that your document is set

to the right color space - sRGB or Adobe RGB.

Next, make sure your editing software is in charge

of managing the color - not the printer. If the

software allows you to choose a rendering intent,

Perceptual works well for images with intense

colors. Portraits and prints with more subtle tones

will benefit from the Relative Colorimetric setting.

Make sure the Black Point Compensation box is

checked.

Don’t hit Print yet. It’s also very important to go to

the Print Driver dialog box and make sure that the

printer’s Color Mode is turned Off. If On, the

printer will take over color management. The Print

Driver dialog is also where you choose your paper

type and print quality.


Entire books - and an entire industry - have sprung

up to help photographers get a grasp of color

management. The goal of color management is to

get a very good approximation - not a perfect

match - between what you captured with your

camera, what you see on a monitor and what

comes out of your printer.

It starts with your camera. Most DSLRs and

advanced hybrids allow you to set a color space

when taking photos - either sRGB or Adobe RGB.

sRGB is the standard for color on the Internet and

works great for a JPEG workflow and all-in-one

printers. Most online printing services also prefer

the sRGB color profile.

Adobe RGB is a wider color space that produces

vivid greens and reds. It’s a good choice for

landscape and travel photographers who edit in a

16-bit workflow and use mid- to upper-range inkjet

printers.

If you shoot Raw, color space doesn’t matter until

post-processing. You can decide on a color profile

when you take your photos from Raw to JPEG or

TIFF.

When prints come out of the printer with a sickly

green cast, the computer monitor is usually the

culprit. Calibrating it using your computer

operating system’s built-in controls is better than

nothing. You’ll get better and more consistent

results if you invest in a calibration software

package with a colorimeter. Calibrate your monitor

two or three times per year. Don’t fiddle with any

contrast or brightness settings after you calibrate.

The last stop in the color management journey is

the printer. However, advances in printer

technology have largely eliminated the need for

custom printer and paper profiles. Using profiles

supplied by printer manufacturers and third-party

paper vendors usually provides excellent results.

Color Management

Color Management 101


Kim Komando’s interest in the digital landscape dates back 20 years to include both her first business

venture and her college education. Ms. Komando attended Arizona State University, which offers one of

the leading Computer Information Systems degrees in the nation. She left her first major in architecture

when research convinced her that the opportunities in CIS were better.

During her college years, Ms. Komando started her first business. She taught people how to use

personal computers. In her classes, she realized how confusing these machines were, especially to

adults. She knew that if she could make things easy and fun, people would listen.

After college, Ms. Komando accepted a position with IBM selling computers. She later

marketed computerized phone systems for AT&T, then mainframe computers at

Unisys. But her dream was to go on the radio and teach many more people to

improve their lives through computers.

Ms. Komando’s reality far exceeded the dream. Her network radio shows

run on more than 470 stations in the USA and around the world on American

Forces Radio. Her Digital News Network delivers more than 10 million

informative and up-to-the-minute digital newsletters to subscribers each

week.

And, as the digital world has expanded far beyond computers, so has

Ms. Komando’s coverage, unraveling the mysteries of smartphones,

apps, tablets, Wi-Fi and more. Leading a multimedia empire, Ms.

Komando, in addition to hosting radio and television shows,

offers a deep, informative and newly redesigned website; offers

the best of digital solutions in her specialized boutique shop

online; and is a prolific writer of books, e-guides, and author of

two weekly columns appearing in more than 100 newspapers

including USA Today.

About Kim


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Documents

Complete Digitl Photography Guide