Weather conditions can play a big part in setting the look of your photo. Rather than waiting for the bright light of the midday sun, a cool morning in a forest can be the perfect time of day for that unique photo. Take your time to pick the subject, then spend time analyzing the subject looking for the best angle and lighting. Don’t be afraid to take your time to set up your shot. Although it can get difficult if you have your loved ones tagging along and they’re sitting and waiting impatiently for 20 minutes for you to take a single shot of a piece of wood the beach! Photography takes time and if you want to make it into a business in place of a hobby it can take away from your vacvation time.

  • Use a flash in daylight
  • Take your time to choose the subject
  • Movement diffusion
  • Keep an eye on the weather
  • Take your time to set up the shot

If you have a camera that allows you to shoot with a manual shutter speed – try slowing the speed and increasing the F-stop. Then move your camera when taking the shot. Some very effective arty-type images can be produced with motioneffects. Not good to do all the time, but experiment with results by over-exposing the subject. Try spraying water onto a window, then take a shot through the window to a subject outside. (wet the outside of the window – not the inside of your home!) Silhouettes usually have a small range of colors, but can produce beautiful B/Wimages. Shooting a silhouette involves having the background brighter then the subject in the foreground.

We’ve all seen those amazing images of the red and orange leaves of maple trees in the fall/autumn. Thousands of leaves – all of a similar shape and color – but very awe-inspiring and beautiful. Two strikingly-different colors can be beautiful too. Picture an image of your girlfriend or wife in a red dress sitting on a field of green grass. Or your boyfriend or husband in a red shirt walking through a field of waist-high wheat stalks. Complimentary colors can bring more attention to the subject. If your camera can be fitted with colored filters – try a few. Although this effect can be made quite easily these days with photo and image-editing software.

If on vacation learn the hot photo spots. In San Antonio where I live tourist areas offer great images.Wake before sunrise and go on a San Antonio photography expedition. You’ll be pleasantly-surprised by the contrasting light and shadows bringing out the detail of the old Missions and the Alamo. The lack of tourist blocking the shot is another plus. But remember you’ll only have a very short window of time in which to shoot (usually less than an hour) before the sun rises too high and the sites get crowded. Use your flash during the daytime to fill a close subjects eyes with light. This will produce better results where the background is brighter than your subject and the automatic shutter speed on your camera shoots too fast to effectively show the detail of your subject.

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