Time and again, I’ve heard people put the blame on the poor quality of their photos on their point-and-shoot cameras. Now don’t look at me and say, “Sure, easy for you to say. You’ve got yourself an expensive high-tech DSLR camera while I only have this ordinary point-and-shoot camera.” I can assure you that great photos are possible with a point-and-shoot.
Here is an excellent example of a great photo taken with — believe it or not — a point-and-shoot camera:
One of the 112 gates of Masjidil Haram. Photo taken with a Nikon Coolpix camera (a point-and-shoot!), just a few minutes before sunset.
Yes, Virginia. It’s not the tool that matters; it’s how you use it. The tool only makes your job easier but it’s what you do with the tool that matters more.
I may not be an expert on photography but after giving the subject much thought, I realise that, once you strip photography bare of all the fancy-schmancy equipment and intimidating technical terms, the key elements to a good photo boil down to three basic things:-
1. LIGHT
Light is the main thing makes or breaks a photo. With the right amount of light and the right type of light, your subject will take on a more beautiful appearance. Insufficient light will result in grainy images, too much light (e.g. outdoors at midday) can make the image look flat and the colours washed up.
The wrong type of light, such as fluorescent lamps, would make your photo look pale, unnatural, uninteresting.
The angle at which light hits your subject also adds depth and drama to your photos.
I personally like the half hour or so before sunset when colours take on a more vivid hue. Just as my photo above illustrates so beautifully.
Avoid using your camera’s flash.
Here is a sample photo that failed (one which *I* took) because (i) the only light source at the time was a dim fluorescent bulb; and (ii) I used my camera’s built-in flash.
2. COMPOSITION
Before you shoot, ask yourself: “What is my subject? What do I want to show here? What message am I trying to convey?” That helps you decide whether to zoom in on your subject’s face, zoom in further to focus on her eyes, zoom out to include the background behind him/her, or focus on the items (flowers, food, etc) in front of him/her.
Look for curves, colours, recurring shapes. They can have a significant effect on the impact that your photos make. Remember this photo that I took with a camera phone? It’s the vividness of the reds, greens and yellows that gives this photo so much impact and oomph.
Look for lines and patterns that draw the eye. Just take a look at these two photos that were taken within minutes of each other, using the exact same subject and the exact same camera under the exact same settings:-
The photo on the left was taken by T. The photo on the right was taken by me. It’s just a small shift in perspective but I find that, in the shot that I took, the lines made by the rows of chairs give more interest and dimension to the photo without veering away from Twin1, the main subject of the photo.
There are many articles on the internet that talk about composition. Check out Digital Photography School’s 5 Elements of Composition at this link just to give you a headstart. But as you continue your journey in the world of photography, eventually you will realise that composition is as much an art as it is a science.
3. SHARPNESS
A steady hand is a must in order to get a sharp, clear image. Even if you use the most sophisticated and most expensive camera in the world, it won’t do you any good if your hand can’t be steady enough.
Use a tripod for low-light situations or prop your camera on books, a table, a ledge and use the built-in self-timer option.
Check out this link for three excellent tips on preventing camera shake.
Sometimes, some blur is necessary to show movement but generally speaking, the main subject of your photo must be in focus in order for the photo to work.
Now go out there and shoot, shoot, shoot until you get the photo that conveys exactly what you had in mind.
Encourage one another*,
Mimi
(*Line borrowed from Miz Booshay)
Tags: tips
Excerpt from Running Mom’s blog:-
“Blogger Raden Galoh, a breast cancer survivor and fighter, died this morning after losing a battle with breast cancer metastasis. Not every woman, not especially in this country, has the courage and empowerment to document every detail about a terminal illness such as breast cancer. She did, and educated many a soul with her written words. She was a fighter till the end.”
I never knew Raden Galoh personally. I just happened to stumble upon her blog one day while looking for articles on breast cancer on the internet. Despite not knowing her, her battle was very close to my heart, given that my own mother is a breast cancer survivor.
Her final blog entry, written exactly a month before she passed away, still brings tears to my eyes every time I re-read it. Despite her pain, she was still able to remain thankful (!) to God for her family, for a good night’s sleep, for friends who took the time to visit her, for the peace and calm that she felt despite her ordeal.
May her soul rest in peace. Inna lillah wa inna ilayhirajiun. From God we came and to Him we shall all return.
(Text in the photo is a translation from a Malay quotation that I found from the late Raden Galoh’s blog. The original Malay text read:
Bila Tuhan segera makbulkan do’amu, itu tanda Dia kasihkan dirimu…
Bila Tuhan lambat makbulkan do’amu, itu tanda Dia mengujimu…
Bila Tuhan tidak makbulkan do’amu, Dia ada perancangan lain buatmu.)
Tags: cancer
It has been raining almost daily in KL lately. Not that I’m complaining. I’m just…confused. I can’t tell anymore if it’s the wet season or the dry season. One minute, the sun is blazing down with a ferocity that can only be equaled by my temper on a bad day; the next minute, ominous dark clouds blot out all traces of blue from the sky and huge blobs of rain trample upon everything with fury, with thunder and lightning punctuating the steady drumbeat of the downpour.
And the moment everything gets all wet and cold and gloomy, a certain hunger is stirred inside of me — the hunger for comfort food like steaming hot Indonesian bakso…
Excellent bakso that I had in Jakarta. Sorry if the colours are a bit off. Shot with a Nokia N82.
There’s a certain je-ne-sais-quoi in the genuine Indonesian version that just makes it so hard to replicate. Perhaps it’s something in the meatballs. Perhaps in the bumbu (spices). Perhaps it’s only the Sasa/Ajinomoto (popular brands of MSG in Indonesia). Or perhaps it’s all in the special brand of Vitamin D — Vitamin Debu (dust) — that unwittingly gets into the bakso as it is being prepared by the roadside hawker!
This shot of the Petronas Twin Towers that I took yesterday using my HTC Desire (from a moving car at that!) somehow reminds me of the late John Denver’s song “Sunshine On My Shoulders“.
Hope your Monday’s not too toxic :)
SUNSHINE ON MY SHOULDERS
- John Denver
Sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy
Sunshine in my eyes can make me cry
Sunshine on the water looks so lovely
Sunshine almost always makes me high
If I had a day that I could give you
I’d give to you the day just like today
If I had a song that I could sing for you
I’d sing a song to make you feel this way
Sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy
Sunshine in my eyes can make me cry
Sunshine on the water looks so lovely
Sunshine almost always makes me high
If I had a tale that I could tell you
I’d tell a tale sure to make you smile
If I had a wish that I could wish for you
I’d make a wish for sunshine for all the while
Sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy
Sunshine in my eyes can make me cry
Sunshine on the water looks so lovely
Sunshine almost all the time makes me high
———————————————-
Copyright 1971 by Cherry Lane Music
Tags: KL, Malaysia, Petronas Twin Towers
Twin1 (left) and his younger brother (by 15 minutes), Twin2
I was driving one evening, with the twins sitting in the backseat. Out of the blue, Twin1 blurted out a question that totally caught me by surprise.
Abang: Mama, bila kita nak ada swimming pool? (Mama, when are we going to have a swimming pool?)
Adik: A-ah!
Me: Umm…we don’t have enough money for a swimming pool lah. Sebab tu Mama kena pergi Jakarta selalu — untuk cari duit. (That’s why Mama has to go to Jakarta frequently — to look for money <i.e. to earn money>.)
(A few seconds of silence)
Abang: Abang tak nak swimming pool lah! (I don’t want a swimming pool!)
Me: Kenapa? Sebab Abang tak nak Mama pergi Jakarta? (Why? Because you don’t want me to go to Jakarta?)
Abang: A-ah.
Adik: Alaa…Adik nak swimming pool sebab Adik nak cannonball. Abang! Nanti Mama boleh beli apa-apa. (But I want a swimming pool because I want to make like a cannonball when I dive into the water. Big Brother! If Mama goes there, she can buy us all sorts of things.)
Abang: Abang tak nak Choki-Choki. Abang tak nak Nyam Nyam. Abang nak Mama je. (I don’t want <brand names of food stuff from Indonesia>. I only want Mama.)
A few days later, I asked him if he wants a swimming pool. He answered: “Tak nak! Sebab swimming pool tak best!” (I don’t want one. Because swimming pools are not nice.)
Now you know why I haven’t been to Jakarta for quite some time now…
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Postscript: “Antara Mama Dan Jakarta” — which means ‘between Mama and Jakarta’ — is a wordplay on the title of a song called “Antara Anyer dan Jakarta“, popularised by Malaysian jazz queen, Sheila Majid.
Tags: working mother
