Achieving Better Focus and Sharpness in Your Images Twice a month we revisit some of our reader favorite posts from throughout the history of Phototuts+. This tutorial was first published in October, 2009. The most common complaints I hear from most photographers of any experience level is "my images aren't sharp", and "I can't get my focus to lock". 1. My what? You can adjust the eyepiece to a fairly large degree, but if you need more eyesight correction, there are replacement diopters available for DSLR/SLR's from many of the major manufacturers in a range from -5 to +4 as needed. 2. What the heck are all those things in there anyway? There are two types of focus points, single plane and cross point. Cross point focus points will work with lines of contrast that align either way. Each focus point also has a particular sensitivity. So if you are working in a low light situation, you may obtain better AF using the centre focus point. 3. An advantage that higher end lenses have is full manual operation even when AF is locked. 4. 5. 6. 7.
How To: Take a Picture In a Restaurant Without Looking Like a Jerk By now, you've probably seen the New York Times report about restaurants that have put a ban on photographing their food. To many of us, it seems a bit crazy. But, if you've ever sat next to someone who insisted on flashing away at their foie gras before eating, you understand at least a little. 1. This is what iPhone flash does to beef. This is by far the most important thing to remember. If you're shooting with a camera, use the widest possible aperture and don't be afraid to jack up the ISO a bit. 2. The flash isn't the only thing on your camera or smartphone that's throwing light all over the place. 3. To photographers, the sound of a camera shutter is a beautiful thing. If you're shooting with your phone, turning the shutter sound off should be a no-brainer even if you're not in a restaurant. After all, it's a plate of food. 4. It was an incredible meal, but it's a bad photo. Yes, part of the reason restaurants are banning food photography is because of the distraction element.
7 Easy Ways to Freeze Motion with Your Camera | MCP Photoshop Actions and Tutorials Blog for Photographers September 01, 2009 | 6 Comments |Add a comment As photographers there are times where we want blurred background and beautiful background separation. But other times stopping speed is our primary concern. We may want to freeze motion of a car, a plane, a bird, an athlete at a sporting event, or even with snapshots of our own kids running, jumping, diving, etc… If you have been shooting for years, you may already know all of this. If that is the case, I would love you to add comments with more ideas on the subject. Settings for the above shots: ISO 100, Speed 1/500-1/1250, Aperture f/4.0-5.6 – using Tamron 28-300mm lens (manual with no flash) Here are some of the many ways to capture a fast moving object or person without any blur or sense of motion (panning and other techniques will show purposeful motion – another post for another time). Using an SLR – a digital SLR is going to help you a lot here.
Two Ways to Remove the Background From a Photo The other day, as we were looking at our Christmas photos, my daughter said, "The background is too cluttered because of the tree and presents. You should take me out of this picture and put me against a plain white backdrop." I pointed out that 10 years ago, no one would have even thought of such a thing. In the past, we've talked about how to do things like tweak your depth of field and clean up a messy background. Choose a Method As with most things in life, there's an easy way and a somewhat less easy way to do this. Using the Magic Extractor If you've ever tried "punching out" the subject from a photo, you'll find that Photoshop Elements' Magic Extractor makes it dramatically easier than using manual methods. The idea behind the Magic Extractor window is that you mark the subject you want to keep with the Foreground Brush tool and then mark the background that you want to discard with the Background Brush tool. Using BasicSelection Tools Hot Pic of the Week Get published, get famous!
Screenshot 2014 05 01 07 39 57 How to Change the Background in Any Photo Sometimes you want your digital camera to slavishly record exactly what you see throughits viewfinder. But there's no reason to be satisfied with ordinary reality when your imagination is so much more interesting. Digital tools let you replace the background in any photo. Here's how to do it using a standard photo editing program like Adobe Photoshop Elements. To put your face on any backdrop, all you need is a photo editing program that has a selection tool--ideally, a selection tool that "magnetically" snaps itself to the edges of an object as you trace it. In Photoshop Elements, for example, select the Magnetic Lasso Tool (it shares the same cubby with the Lasso Tool and the Polygonal Lasso Tool). Use the Lasso Tool to carefully click on the edge of your subject and slowly move the mouse around, letting the tool automatically "snap" to the edges. When you're done, click OK and you'll have a nicely separated subject, even including hair and other subtle edges.
PowToon, free business presentation software animated video maker and PowerPoint alternative James Cameron's The Abyss - How'd They Do That? Tribute to James Cameron's "The abyss" by sarampo Basics Although there are many ways of shooting water drops, and some are more professional and / or practical, this is how I've done it with my setup. It just requires patience, and it helps to have an external flash, because we'll be doing 1/200 shutter speed and f/13 aperture, and there aren't many natural light sources to accomplish that and still control where your lighting hits. Materials The before mentioned flash and remote trigger; A wired / wireless remote for the camera (almost a must for shooting water drops); As can be seen below, it will set you back around $5. The Seutp The final setup should look something like this: (Disclaimer: I've done all the shot in my kitchen, that for lack of tidiness :-P was not used for this tutorial. Placing the Camera When positioning the camera regarding the tray, you should try to get as low as possible without having the front or back of the tray to appear in the picture. The Bubble The Drop To this:
Zaption - Interact With Video 16 Vintage/Retro Photo Effect Tutorials Do you have a craze for designing? Start with changing the old and odd looking photos into a new and fresh one, while leaving the vintage feel. There are 16 vintage/retro photo effect tutorials to learn the Adobe Photoshop. Download one of them and see how you get different amazing tutorials to create customized design with a vintage or retro feel. It feels different to see a new application merging with a retro look. The 1990s and 19980 retro look are still on demand in case of both web designing and print designing. Different vintage Photoshop tutorials have certain features. Create Aging (Old Photo) Effect The Aging Photo Aging photos – quick and simple Photochrom Vintage Postcard Create a Vintage Polaroid Effect How to Make Your Pictures Look Old Antique and Vintage How to Create a Retro Boxing Poster in Photoshop Give Your Photos a Retro Comic Book Effect Old photo, vintage effect Photo Transfer Edge Effect Breathtaking Dreamy Vintage Photoshop Tutorial Creating an Awesome Retro Collage