Cell Phone Photography

I've read in several places that the best camera is the one you have with you, as opposed to the one that is in the closet at home, because no matter how fancy that one at home is, it won't capture that perfect moment if it isn't there. One camera many people have with them just about all the time is one in their cell phone. This article, but the authors of The Basic Book of Digital Photography give some tips on getting the most out of that camera you do have with you:

Simple Ways to Make Better Pictures with Your Camera Phone

By Tom Grimm and Michele Grimm,

Authors of The Basic Book of Digital Photography: How to Shoot, Enhance, and Share Your Digital Pictures

As camera phones become more prevalent, they are expected to become as popular for casual photography as regular point-and-shoot digital cameras. Unfortunately, camera phone photos are often poor or mediocre. But that is usually the fault of careless shooters, not the quality of the phone's camera.

Here are five simple ways to instantly help you make better pictures with your camera phone. Professional photographers Michele and Tom Grimm offer these and many more tips in their brand-new handbook, The Basic Book of Digital Photography.

1) Keep the Camera Phone Steady. Many cell phones are small, lightweight, and awkward to hold for shooting. In order to prevent blurred pictures, use both hands and brace your arms against your body. For additional support, lean against something solid, such as a tree or a wall. A common problem is the delay after you press the shutter release until the camera fires, so remember to remain motionless until you are certain the shutter has opened and closed.

2) Get Close to Your Subjects. Move closer physically, or adjust anoptical zoom lens (if available) toward its telephoto setting. Note that shooting close up at a wide-angle setting can distort your subjects, which is particularly unflattering for people. Do not use a digital zoom function; it only enlarges the pixels in a picture, which degrades the image.

3) Make Sure Your Subjects are in Good Light. That way your pictures will show the most detail. Beware of harsh sunlight that creates dark shadows and high contrast in phone photos. If available, use the built-in light or flash even in daylight to give more clarity to your subject. Or, when indoors, turn on more lights if you can. Try to avoid backlighted subjects, unless you want them to turn out as silhouettes.

4) Keep the Lens Clean. Most lenses are protected only by a see-through plastic or glass cover, which can quickly get dirty when carrying your camera phone in a pocket or purse. Also, the lens is quite small, so dust or finger smudges will be more evident in your pictures. Wipe the lens gently with a microfiber cleaning cloth designed for regular camera lenses or eyeglasses.

5) Always Shoot at the Highest Image Quality. The names of the quality settings vary with the phone manufacturer. For example, the choices might be called: high, medium, low; or super fine, fine, normal; check your phone's user guide. Image files are automatically compressed to save space in the phone's internal memory or on a removable memory card; the higher the image quality you set, the less compression.

You'll also find settings for image resolution, which may be called image size. We recommend you always select the highest resolution, especially if you expect to print your photos. The higher the resolution, the larger the picture will be displayed on a computer or television screen. Also, more detail will show in the image. Image resolution/image size in some camera phones ranges from 320x240 pixels (low) to 1600x1200 pixels (high).

By the way, do not confuse image resolution with the resolution of the image sensor in a camera phone, which is expressed in megapixels, abbreviated MP. Little attention is paid to image sensors and their maximum megapixels (MP) in camera phones, but higher-end models range from 5 MP to as many as 10 MP.

If you are serious about getting quality photos and are buying a new camera phone, look for a model with high-resolution capability, autofocus, an optical zoom lens, built-in flash, and a large LCD screen to compose and review the images. For the most versatility, the camera phone should also have a slot that accepts a removable memory card. As you might expect, top-end camera phones can be expensive and often cost more than regular non-SLR digital cameras.

Most user guides for mobile phones have minimal information and instructions for the camera, but read carefully to learn as much as you can about its various features, as well as any limitations. For example, most camera phones can be set to shoot in black-and-white or old-time sepia tones rather than color.

Try out all the different settings by shooting practice photos, and then analyze the results. It is worth the time to become familiar with the camera operation so you won't be fumbling with the phone and pressing the wrong buttons when a photo opportunity suddenly appears.

Photos you make with a camera phone are automatically saved in theJPEG (.jpg) image file format. They can be viewed on the phone's LCD screen as a group of thumbnail photos or as larger individual images. On the screen, you can select images to delete, or to send to another mobile phone, a Web site, desktop printer, photo kiosk, or computer.

Camera phones with WiFi, Bluetooth or IrDA (infrared) technology make it easy to download images to a wireless-enabled computer or printer, or to a photo kiosk that makes prints. Some phones have a port to plug in a cable that connects to your computer to download the image files. Of course, if your camera phone has a removable memory card, it can be inserted into a memory card reader that is built in or connected to your computer.

However, you probably will be sending most images from your camera phone directly to another mobile phone or to a Web site or in E-mails. The fees to transmit image data from a camera phone can add up quickly. If you shoot and send many photos, we suggest you buy an unlimited media package from your mobile phone service provider in order to save money.

Finally, as with any camera you use, remember to be respectful of your photographic subjects and situations. Despite the temptation, don't take voyeuristic photos or use your camera phone in places where photography is prohibited, as in health club dressing rooms, and many museums, theaters and concert halls.

©2009 Tom Grimm and Michele Grimm, authors of The Basic Book of Digital Photography: How to Shoot, Enhance, and Share Your Digital Pictures

Author Bios

Tom Grimm and Michele Grimm, authors of The Basic Book of Digital Photography: How to Shoot, Enhance, and Share Your Digital Pictures,are a husband-and-wife photojournalism team who have spent nearly four decades traveling the globe; the couple has visited every continent and more than 130 countries in search of the perfect photographic image. Their photographs and articles have been published worldwide in magazines and newspapers and on the Internet. The Grimms are authors and illustrators of thirteen adult and children's books.

For more information, please visit www.TomGrimm.com

To Purchase on Amazon: The Basic Book of Digital Photography: How to Shoot, Enhance, and Share Your Digital Pictures

Photography Tips

Well, did you use last week's tips to take great pictures for your holiday cards? Not into holiday cards, but still want to take great pictures? Well, buy the book--the Amazon link is at the bottom of the post. For another sample of the type of things you'll see inside, see below:

Top Ten Tips for Dynamite Digital Photography
By Tom Grimm and Michele Grimm,
Authors of The Basic Book of Digital Photography: How to Shoot, Enhance, and Share Your Digital Pictures

Here are 10 easy ways to greatly improve your digital photographs and avoid the pitfalls that are common with today's automatic cameras. Professional photographers Michele and Tom Grimm offer these and many more tips in their brand-new handbook, The Basic Book of Digital Photography.

1. Pay Attention to Composition.
Too often a picture lacks impact because your subjects seem too far away. Move closer or zoom in to concentrate attention on your main subject and to avoid unwanted elements that are distracting. Make certain you see nothing in the viewfinder or on the LCD screen that you don't want in the final picture. Be especially alert for cluttered backgrounds. Finally, just before you shoot, check that the horizon appears level in your camera's viewfinder or on the LCD screen.

2. Vary the Format of Your Pictures.
Cameras make pictures that are rectangular, not square, so you should remember to turn your camera vertically for appropriate subjects, such as portraits of people. In other words, don't be so lazy that you always hold the camera horizontally. Appropriately, horizontal images are in the format called landscape, while the format for vertical shots is known as portrait.

3. Shoot, Shoot, Shoot.
If you used to shoot with a film camera, break the old habit of just making one or two exposures. The memory cards that are substitutes for film in digital cameras will hold hundreds of pictures and you can easily erase the images you don't like. So shoot away until you get the perfect picture. A big bonus is that you won't have to spend extra time at your computer fixing up mediocre shots with image-editing software.

4. Press the Shutter Release Button . . . Don't Jab It.
More pictures are ruined because of camera shake than for any other reason. The main offense is jabbing or snapping your finger down on the shutter release (which jars the camera). It's easy to avoid blurred pictures: Just remember to arch your shooting finger and slowly press or squeeze the shutter button. Also, be sure to hold your camera with two hands to help keep it steady.

5. Shoot with Flash Outdoors.
Pictures taken outdoors, especially of people and pets, are frequently better when you use your camera's built-in flash. That's because direct sunlight often causes annoying shadows on faces, particularly around the eyes. Flash "fills in" those shadows to provide uniform illumination and a more pleasing portrait. Also, to keep your subjects from squinting in bright sunlight, ask them to turn their backs to the sun. That puts their faces in shadow, which you'll then illuminate with the flash.

6. Memorize the Shooting Range of Your Flash.
Although they are convenient, built-in flash units are not very powerful and underexposed flash pictures in dark places are often the result. To avoid underexposures (or overexposures) with your flash, memorize its operating range. How distant (or close) can your subject be for a proper exposure? The flash range of a point-and-shoot camera may only be 3 to 12 feet. Caution: the flash range will change as you adjust your camera's zoom lens; check the instruction manual.

7. Set a Higher ISO for Sharper, Non-blurred Images, and Greater Flash Range.
Keep in mind that adjusting your camera's ISO to a higher number, such as ISO 800 instead of ISO 100, automatically sets smaller lens openings for more sharply focused images, as well as faster shutter speeds for stop-action, non-blurry pictures. It also extends the maximum distance range of a built-in or dedicated flash unit. Unfortunately, a very high ISO, such as ISO 1600 or 3200 (if available) may cause unwanted effects in digital images called artifacts. Take some test pictures at different ISO settings to compare the results.

8. Read and Reread Your Camera Manual (and our Digital Photo Book).
Most new camera owners look at the instructions only once or twice, if at all. But modern digital cameras, whether point-and-shoot or SLR (single lens reflex) models, are not as simple as their advertisements suggest. Study the instruction booklet until you're familiar with all of the camera's buttons, symbols, and picture possibilities. If you lose the instructions or forget to bring them on a trip, log onto your camera manufacturer's Web site and download a copy of the manual.

9. Compose Pictures with Your Viewfinder, Not the LCD.
Unless you're taking close-ups, it is easier, faster, and steadier to compose pictures by using your camera's viewfinder (if available) instead of the LCD screen. There is more support with the camera pressed to your face as you look through the viewfinder instead of trying to hold it steady at arm's length while composing subjects on the LCD screen. Also, you won't be bothered by bright light that makes it difficult to see images on the LCD.

10. Don't Let the Date and Time Deface Your Pictures.
Make sure your camera is not set to automatically print the time and date of your shots on the front of your pictures; it will ruin their appearance. Besides, you should be aware that the time and date are embedded in every photo image file as hidden metadata that can be viewed at anytime with image-editing software on your computer.

©2009 Tom Grimm and Michele Grimm, authors of The Basic Book of Digital Photography: How to Shoot, Enhance, and Share Your Digital Pictures

Author Bios
Tom Grimm and Michele Grimm, authors of The Basic Book of Digital Photography: How to Shoot, Enhance, and Share Your Digital Pictures,are a husband-and-wife photojournalism team who have spent nearly four decades traveling the globe; the couple has visited every continent and more than 130 countries in search of the perfect photographic image. Their photographs and articles have been published worldwide in magazines and newspapers and on the Internet. The Grimms are authors and illustrators of thirteen adult and children's books.

For more information, please visit www.TomGrimm.com.

To purchase from Amazon: The Basic Book of Digital Photography: How to Shoot, Enhance, and Share Your Digital Pictures

Photography Time!

Today I was fortunate to receive this lovely book about digital photography from Julie at FSB Media. I haven't had time to do much more than thumb through it, but since this week starts what we've come to call the "holiday season", I thought I'd pass on some articles by the authors of this book (yes, I have permission to do so, as a matter of fact, I'm encouraged to do so by the publicist who so kindly provided me with a free copy of the book).

Ten Tips for Making Great Photo Greeting Cards for the Holidays
By Tom Grimm and Michele Grimm,
Authors of The Basic Book of Digital Photography: How to Shoot, Enhance, and Share Your Digital Pictures

If you want your family's photo greeting card to impress your friends this holiday season, here are 10 helpful suggestions from professional photographers Michele and Tom Grimm, authors of a brand new handbook, The Basic Book of Digital Photography.

1. Plan Ahead. Eye-catching photos take some thought, so envision the card you want to send before you take any pictures. Pick a setting with an uncluttered background. Decide what type of clothes to wear (causal or dress-up?) and what colors might be appropriate (red and green will enhance a Christmas theme). If you want to shoot outdoors, consider the weather and the time of day for the best light. Cloudy or overcast days are perfect for portraits without shadows; avoid bright sunlight that causes people to squint.

2. Get Your Camera Ready. Be sure to install new or freshly-charged batteries so the camera won't stop working in the middle of your shooting session. Also check that there is room on the memory card to hold plenty of new exposures. And remember to carefully clean the camera lens of dust and fingerprints; use a microfiber lens cloth. For pictures of the best technical quality, adjust the camera's "image quality" and "image resolution" to their highest settings. Finally, make certain the "date/time" setting is turned off so those numbers won't appear on the front of your family and ruin every picture.

3. Move in Close. Remember that friends mostly enjoy seeing the faces of your family and pets. Get close to them by moving the camera physically closer or adjusting the zoom lens to fill the viewfinder or LCD monitor with their faces. Aim the camera's autofocus target on the eyes; be careful it isn't pointed between the heads of people because the background will be in focus instead of the family's faces. Also, make sure there are no windows or mirrors in the background that are distracting or cause reflections, especially if you are shooting with flash.

4. Forget About Red-eye. If the sun is causing shadows on the faces of your family, or you are shooting indoors in dim light, we recommend using the camera's built-in flash or an external flash unit to provide "fill" light that illuminates your subjects more evenly. Avoid the "red-eye reduction" flash setting, if your camera offers it, because this makes a series of pre-flashes or a steady light that causes some people to blink or shut their eyes. "Red-eye," an annoying bright red spot occasionally seen in the pupils of the eyes, is easily eliminated later with your computer's image-editing software.

5. Use a Tripod, and a Friend. Put your camera on a tripod so it will remain in the same position after you compose the family picture. Recruit a friend to trip the shutter release instead of using a remote control or the self-timer to fire the camera yourself. Remind everyone to keep looking toward the camera and not glance away to see if the baby or dog is behaving; depend on your friend to snap the shutter when everybody looks their best.

6. Keep On Shooting. Someone in the family group is certain to blink, yawn, scratch or look away just as a picture is taken, so shoot again and again. One of the joys of digital photography is that it costs nothing extra to make a dozen or so exposures rather than just one or two. A warning: Your subjects will quickly get restless, so don't spend time between shots checking images on the camera's LCD monitor to see how they turned out. Pick the best image later when you view all the shots at full size on your computer.

7. Create a Collage When Family Members are Absent. Can't get everyone in your family together for a holiday card photo? A solution is to get and assemble individual photos of each family member into a collage or montage that becomes a single image. Many image-editing software programs -- probably including the one that came with your camera -- have a feature for easily merging photos. First choose a template from various designs that hold different numbers and sizes of images, then arrange your family's photos as you like.

8. Dress Up Your Holiday Photos with Borders and Type. Your computer's image-editing software also enables you to add borders and to type captions that become part of the family's holiday photo. Pick a border with a design and colors appropriate for the season. You can select different typefaces, sizes and colors, and position the text wherever you wish in the picture. Also, local and online photo centers offer holiday-themed templates for greeting cards that are easy to fill in with your own photos and text.

9. Print Your Own Holiday Photo Cards. Remember to design your photo card so it can be printed on standard sizes of photo paper and will fit in standard-size envelopes. To save money, select a "Picture Package" in your image-editing software to make several prints on one piece of photo paper -- such as two 5 x 7-inch or four 4 x 5-inch prints on a single 8-½ x 11-inch sheet -- and cut them apart. Also consider HP Holiday Photo Card packs with 20 sheets of 5 x 7-inch glossy photo paper and matching envelopes for $9.99.

10. An Easier Option: Order Your Cards at a Photo Center. If your mailing list is large, it usually is more convenient and economical to have your holiday photo cards printed at a local or online photo center. Many allow you to upload the photo image file online to a selection of card templates that you can personalize with family names and greetings. The cards and envelopes can be picked up a few hours later, or will be mailed to you. Search online for "photo greeting cards" to find a wide choice of photo-finishing companies, including shutterfly.com, snapfish.com, and photoworks.com.

©2009 Tom Grimm and Michele Grimm, authors of The Basic Book of Digital Photography: How to Shoot, Enhance, and Share Your Digital Pictures

Author Bios
Tom Grimm and Michele Grimm, authors of The Basic Book of Digital Photography: How to Shoot, Enhance, and Share Your Digital Pictures,are a husband-and-wife photojournalism team who have spent nearly four decades traveling the globe; the couple has visited every continent and more than 130 countries in search of the perfect photographic image. Their photographs and articles have been published worldwide in magazines and newspapers and on the Internet. The Grimms are authors and illustrators of thirteen adult and children's books.

For more information, please visit www.TomGrimm.com.

To order from Amazon: The Basic Book of Digital Photography: How to Shoot, Enhance, and Share Your Digital Pictures