Why You Should Become a Photographer

Why You Should Become a Photographer

I became acquainted to photography only a little while ago. My friends had recently taken up this new hobby and went on and on about how great it is asking me to give it a try. I was a bit reluctant at first because the truth is I had never given it any thought.

To my surprise, my friends did not own the type of basic digital camera you are used to seeing everywhere. They had very large, high tech devices with long noses, equipped with high resolution lenses which had a such a high zooming capability that one may have mistaken them to some paparazzi. One of them had taken up photography lessons and had influenced all of the others to buying this sort of cameras. When he first came holding that huge camera around his neck we were all very curios to discover all the features it had.

This was the first step to discovering the beauty of photography. We had no idea then that mere curiosity will take us ti a totally new world that we would have never discover otherwise. Then we started to practice, taking a few pictures every now and then and learning how to use the various features of the camera. We began to practice on how to focus effectively without cutting out on balance and then moved to zooming. My first shots were not all that great, but after a few days of practicing and more practicing | started to see some progress. For one week I used the SLR of one of my friends.

When I started to really enjoy it, I decided to buy my own camera. My friends told me that was their plan all along. If I knew it back then I would have probably been mad, but now I was thankful for making me discover photography . After practicing for a week or so, we decided we could start our journey to becoming real photographers. We began with portrait photography and then decided to move on to landscape pictures. We went out on a trip just to improve our skills. The destination we chose was supposed to be a great target for photography as it featured beautiful forests, a great atmosphere and plenty of wildlife. When we got there we were more than impressed it was really breathtaking. We could't have asked for a more suitable place for taking photos.

Then I really felt something different for the first time in my life. Something that cannot be explained in words. It just felt and it was amazing.Photography can teach you to appreciate things in a totally different way, regardless of how small or big they are. You see the beauty in every detail an then how all of these little things complete each other to make a whole and this offers you a completely new vision. I now think everyone should try-photography at least once. Even if only because it gives you the opportunity to see more beauty in the world and the feeling is incredible.

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Take Great Photographs With Cameras - 7 Tips

Taking great photographs with today's automatic cameras allows anyone to produce a sharp, well-exposed image. If you are just beginning to use an 'auto-everything' camera like a 35mm compact or program SLR then your main area of control is going to be in the composition of your photographs. No one can tell you how to take a great picture because it comes down to your ability to 'see' the potential to create a picture. Never-the-less, here are 7 tips and techniques you can use to improve the final look of your photographs. You will find some of the most popular, effective and easy to implement photo techniques, that you will be able to start using right away, to improve your picture taking.

Tip 1: Read your camera manual, then read it again. Keep it with the camera and learn all of your camera's features. The more familiar you become with what your camera will do the more you will be a photographer and not just a picture taker. The more your camera automatically becomes an extension of your eyes and fingers, the more you can concentrate on your photo before you take it.

Tip 2: The Rule of Thirds. Divide the image in your viewfinder into three sections with 2 imaginary horizontal and 2 imaginary vertical lines. Place your subject near one of the intersections of those lines.
Placing your subject off-center creates an interesting, dynamic image that makes the photo more interesting.

Tip 3: Find fresh angles to take your photograph from. Change your viewpoint or the angle of view, don't be afraid to shoot from a low angle especially when photographing pets. Several years ago a single use camera manufacturer gave a camera to each of a group of younger children, the resulting pictures changed the way we look at camera angles to take photographs. When you change your camera angle be sure to get horizons horizontal. Be conscious of getting Images Straight and be sure to fill your picture frame.

Tip 4: Create active space - When photographing any object that is moving or would require space if it moved. leave space for the move. If you photographed your pet and placed the nose on the edge of the photo and left space behind, the photo would look very uncomfortable. Leave room in front and put the back close to the edge of the photo to create active space.

Tip 5: Getting backgrounds right and framing your shots. Use a dark background for taking a picture of a light object, or, alternatively, a light background for a picture of a dark object.

Caution: Absolutely light backgrounds cause flare effect that lead to reducing the overall contrast of a picture. The use of an object to frame your photo can greatly reduce this effect. For example you can use a tree limb over the top part of your photo when you take scenic photos to help improve the composition and reduce the glare.

Tip 6: Center of Interest. Try and keep only one center of interest having too many interest points in a photo is distracting causing the viewer to lose focus and interest. Use Tip 2 to place the center of interest in the proper place. When you shoot people portraits keep the subjects eyes around the top 1/3rd grid line.
Always use less distraction. Sometimes your mind tends to exaggerate what you see through the viewfinder of your camera. Very often things are perceived bigger than they actually are. What you end up with is a photograph with huge areas of wasted space around the edge and people with things growing out of their heads.

Tip 7: Editing: Before you show anyone all those holiday photos you took, edit your work. Take out all the doubles, all the duds, the ones that are out of focus and generally the ones you think are crap. Only show people the good stuff and your perception as a photographer immediately increases. Pro's often shoot a load of junk like anyone else, they just don't show it to anybody.

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Digital Camera Tips:

Are Special Digital Photo Printers Necessary?

Here's a question that every digital camera owner asks, "Do I need a special digital photo printer to get great digital prints?"

Not necessarily, and not if you have a computer and an inkjet printer. Regular inkjet printers that connect to a computer print out great digital pictures these days. But printer quality can vary. It's safer to avoid off-brands and stick
with the major brands. Just about all the Epson inkjets, even those that cost under $100, as well as the Canon and HP printers, do a great job with digital photos.

These days, there are some incredible new printers on the market that make printing photos a breeze. Plus, you can't beat the convenience of printing pictures at home when you need them.

But don't think you have to run out and buy a computer just to print your photos. If you don't have a computer (or don't know how to use one), you can still print digital photos. There are several models of printers that print right from your memory card. All you need to do is insert your Flash memory card into the correct slot and print.

Some cameras, such as the Kodax EasyShare have a dock that will print pictures directly from the camera (as well as recharge your batteries).

Special photo printers are great if you don't mind spending more for extra features. But they're not really necessary unless you print photos constantly.

The inks used in home digital
photo printing are not as long-lasting as inks used in professional developing. Unless you purchase special archival non-fading ink, expect your home digital prints to fade within a few months to few years, depending on the ink. You can find a good selection of excellent photo inks at photograph.com

Professional photo labs now print digital photos that last as long as traditional prints. There are many digital photo developing labs on the web.

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Digital Camera Tips: Batteries

Digital Camera Batteries are something you simply can't do
without if you have a digital camera.

Because a digital camera is essentially a mini computer, it
must have a constant source of power to run on. While power
can come from a power cord, most of the time, batteries are
the most convenience source. Digital cameras can use one or
more of the following batteries:

- AA cells
- non-rechargeable alkaline
- rechargeable nickel metal hydride (NiMH) or Nickel-cadmium (NiCd)
- high-capacity disposable CRV3s
- proprietary rechargeable batteries

The internal electronics of digital cameras can really suck up
power. Many digital cameras can drain a set of AA cells in 30
to 40 minutes. More demanding cameras can't run from alkalines
at all because they draw so much current. These cameras post a
warning in the manual that the use of alkaline batteries is
not recommended. They can cause your camera to shut down
unexpectedly. Lithium AA cells can last two to three times
longer than alkalines but cost three times as much.

Nickel-cadmium (NiCd) and nickel-metal-hydride (NiMH)
rechargeables hold their charge even less time than alkalines
and lithiums. However, they handle high output currents much better than primary
cells. And since you can use them over and over again,
they are also much cheaper in the long run. Recharging
takes a few hours so it's
advisable to have more than one set of charged batteries on hand if you'll be taking pictures for several hours.

The type of battery you choose may depend on the
manufacturer's recommendation coupled with your needs and
lifestyle. Some people prefer a camera that accepts standard-
sized batteries. That way they can always find replacements
anywhere they travel. Others prefer proprietary rechargeables
because they can be recharged repeatedly and are recommended
for their camera.

The main thing to remember is that rechargeables save money in
the long run.

Once you have a camera, batteries and a memory card, you're
going to have images to print!

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Digital Camera Tips: Buying the Right Digital Camera

Buying the Right Digital Camera

Choosing between the vast array of digital camera models can
be an overwhelming and sometimes frustrating task. There are
so many models available with so many features, bells and
whistles. How do you choose which camera to buy?

If you were hoping I'd tell you the exact brand and model to
buy, I'm sorry to disappoint you. I can't do that because
there are just too many cameras out there... and too many
people with different needs. But I will tell you what to take
into consideration to help you make a good decision.

Here are some factors that are important to consider when
buying a digital camera:

Megapixels:
Remember, not enough megapixels limits the size of the print:

- A 1-megapixel camera or under is only good for emailing and
posting on the web.

- A 2-megapixel camera is nice for snapshots, emailing, web
photos, and prints up to 5x7.

- A 3-megapixel camera will
do all the above but prints up
to 8x10 nicely.

- 4 or 5-megapixel cameras
will give you larger prints,
posters, and let you crop a small section of a larger photo and blow it up without getting blurry or "pixilated."

- 8 megapixels will allow you to print much larger photos, posters
and enlargements.

Bear in mind that a camera that takes 5 or more megapixel
images requires huge amounts of storage. Some owners of 6 to 8
megapixel cameras have separate computers just for their
digital pictures. If you don't have the storage capacity and
don't want to purchase it right away, you might be better off
with a 3 or 4 megapixel camera for the time being.

Flash Memory:
Get a camera that accepts standard Flash memory cards. CDs are
also good (but slower). A digital camera without external
memory is extremely limiting and frustrating. Don't be tempted
to spend less here.

Optical Zoom:
Forget the digital zoom and opt for at least 2X optical zoom
(3X or more if you can afford it). Newer models offer higher
levels of optical zoom.

Camera Speed, Size, Weight, and Design:
Beyond megapixels, it's important to consider how fast the
camera records your pictures and how long the shutter lag is.
You can lose out on a lot of great shots waiting for a slow
camera to finish recording. But cameras are getting faster
every year and this is becoming less of an issue.

Do you want a small, ultra-thin, featherweight camera you can
tuck into your pocket and take anywhere? Or a larger, more
ergonomic model you can wrap your fingers around? The pocket
camera may be very portable, but are the buttons too tiny to
use or the print too fine to read?

Is the camera designed well or does your finger naturally
cover the flash because of the shutter button placement?

The camera may be a snap to use, but if it doesn't have some
manual controls, it may only take good pictures in one type of
lighting at a certain distance, and terrible pictures in all
other situations. If you want to take close-ups or distant
landscape shots, you'll need to get a camera with the features
that allow you to do that. That would include manual or semi-
manual focus, exposure, aperture, and white balance controls.

Ease of Use:

- How easy is it to get to the menu(s) and the common settings
like flash, resolution, macro, white balance and exposure.
- Are there too many buttons?
- Are the settings easy to access or do you have to remember a
complicated sequence to get to them? If so, you can easily
get frustrated trying to find them.
- How small is the print in the menu? If it's too small, you may
not be able to read it.
- Are the buttons comfortable for your fingers, or tiny, awkward,
or hard-to-press?

LCD Screens:
A good LCD screen is an important part of digital photography.
You can check your composition, look at the menu, and review
the photos you take on the LCD. But many lower-end cameras
don't include one. Of those that do, quality varies. Some are
too small, others fade away in direct light or become grainy
and turn gray in low light. Others change colors or fade if
the camera is tilted.

Advanced Features:
Do you regularly take fast-moving action shots and need
multiple frame burst mode? How about panoramic stitching so
you can take glorious landscape shots? Or do you long to take
intense macro close-ups? Do you want video as
well as still shots?

Is the scope, versatility and creativity offered by 8
megapixel cameras super important to you? Do you crave having
a collection of high-end lenses to get the shots you see in
your mind's eye?

These advanced features may be nice extras or critically
important to you. Only you know your lifestyle and needs.

Bundled Software:
Many cameras come with handy image editing software that
allows you to reduce red-eye and edit your photos or manage
your photos, like Adobe Elements or digital image software.
It's a big savings if this is included in your package.

Price:
Last but not least, stay within your budget. Try to get the
best deal for your money from a reputable dealer. Be on the
lookout for sales and rebates (which can provide terrific
bargains).

Needless to say, don't buy the first digital camera you see
(or the first one you see on sale). Know your needs before you
buy and take your time in making a decision. Read as many
reviews as you can on the models you narrow your choice down
to. The best way to be happy with your purchase is to buy only
when you're certain.

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Digital Camera Tips:

Digital Photography Techniques - The Secrets That Make The
Difference Between Dazzling Photos... or Boring Bloopers

So far we've talked about cameras and accessories. But there's another very important element to taking pictures that can't be ignored — the person behind the camera.

Digital photography technique may seem like a daunting term, but it's really about the basics of digital photography.

No matter how good the camera is, the critical decisions about the picture are always in the hands of the photographer. That's why today we're going to talk about the art of taking good pictures...

How Can I Improve My Digital Photography Techniques And Make Sure I Take Good Pictures?

There is only one chance to capture each magic moment. It's impossible to re-play the scene if you're disappointed with your picture. That's why it pays to be prepared and ready. Here are several tips to help you make sure your digital pictures turn out memorable:

Get The Lighting And White Balance Right:
Lighting is much more important to digital cameras than to film cameras. If your digital camera has settings for
different lighting conditions, such as daylight, cloudy,
fluorescent, incandescent, make sure you use them-it
can make or break your pictures. Never aim a digital
camera at a light source (unless it's a sunset or candles). Make sure that bright lamps, sunshine, glare, etc. are out of the frame.

Use a flash for indoor shots and dim outdoor lighting. If the flash is too bright, lower the intensity a couple of f-stops, or use a homemade diffuser by placing a one-ply tissue over the flash.

Be Sure To Get Close Enough:
One of the biggest reasons digital pictures look bad is
because they were taken from too far away. Avoid vast expanses of boring "dead" space (like the walls, ceiling, grass, pavement). Move in and get close to your subject. Fill the frame with the scene, the people, or the faces you want and leave the background out.

Reduce Red-Eye:
It's almost impossible to completely eliminate red eye with a pocket or compact digital camera. But it can be reduced by using the "Portrait" setting, turning up the house lights, and having the subject face the light while turning slightly away from the flash. If all else fails, use image-editing software to remove red-eye.

Compose Your Pictures:
Before pressing the shutter, take a quick, objective look at the composition and background. If there's clutter, distraction or a confusing subject, make changes before taking the picture.

Steady The Camera:
Prevent "camera shake," by using a wall, table or tripod to hold the camera steady, especially at night. And be sure to wait until the camera completes the shot before you put the camera down can take 5 seconds or longer if the light is low.

Be Prepared For Shutter Lag:
Digital cameras are really small computers-they require time to capture the scene. Plan ahead when shooting people and especially children or your two-year-old's smile could be a scowl by the time the shutter snaps. Anticipate the perfect moment and press the shutter just before it happens. It's tough to do, but with practice, you get better at it.

Use High Resolution:
High resolution and low compression produce smoother and more detailed images. For best results, get 3.2 MP or higher and use the highest resolution for important pictures you plan to print.

Have Battery Backups And Extra Storage On Hand:
Running out of batteries or room on your storage card puts a quick end to your photo fun. Be prepared with spare batteries and another memory card so nothing puts a damper on your memories.

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Digital Camera Tips:Terminology

"What You MUST Know To Get The Right Digital Camera!"

Digital Photography Terminology — What Do All Those Strange Words Mean? This sction on digital photography terminology brings us to the last lesson in our mini-course — the language and terminology of digital photography.

Digital photography includes many terms not used in
traditional photography. If you've been wondering what some of them mean, here's a short glossary that could help you better understand advertisements and reviews of digital cameras:

Digital Camera Terminology — What Do All Those Words Mean?

Aperture — An adjustable diaphragm of overlapping
blades that adjust the size
of the lens opening.

Automatic Mode — A setting that sets the focus, exposure and white-balance automatically.

Burst Mode or Continuous Capture Mode — a series of pictures taken one after another at quickly timed intervals with one press of the shutter button. It's perfect for action shots because it eliminates lag time for a series of pictures.

CCD — A light sensitive chip that converts light into
electrical charges.

CMOS — Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductors (pronounced Seemoss). Refers to a standard manufacturing process of making chips for computer microprocessors and memory. This process is also used in digital cameras.

Compression — The process of compacting digital data, images and text by deleting selected information.

Digital Zoom — Cropping and magnifying the center part of an image.

Dynamic Range — The ratio between the brightest and darkest parts of an image or scene.

JPEG — The predominant format used for image compression in digital cameras that compresses digital picture information to its lowest common value. It produces relatively small files from large amounts of image data by discarding certain information (lossy).

Lag Time — The pause between the time the shutter button is pressed and when the camera actually captures the image(exposes the shot). Lag time varies according to camera model.

LCD — (Liquid-Crystal Display) is a small screen on a digital camera (like a miniature computer monitor) for viewing images. Once the image leaves the CCD sensor, it can be viewed on the LCD to check for accurate composition and exposure.

Lens — A circular and transparent glass or plastic piece that has the function of collecting light and focusing it on the sensor to capture the image.

Megabyte — (MB) Measures 1024 Kilobytes, and refers to the amount of information in a file, or how much information can be contained on a Memory Card, Hard Drive or Disk.

Menu — A listing of camera functions usually displayed on the LCD screen.

Metering — The autoexposure mechanism that "measures" the light in the scene and determines the optimum exposure for the image, which allows compensation for difficult lighting situations.

Noise — The visible effects of electronic interference in the final image from a digital camera appearing as random spots, dots, or flecks of dust.

Optical Zoom — The magnification difference between minimum and maximum focal lengths in the lens system.

Pixels — Tiny units of color that make up digital pictures. Pixels also measure digital resolution. One million pixelsadds up to one megapixel.

RAM — Random Access Memory, the volatile memory used to temporarily store information for processing.

RAW —A lossless image format that captures raw data as it comes directly off the CCD, without in-camera processing, resulting in smaller files than TIFF. (Lossless means pixels are not discarded.) RAW files require a plugin to open.

RGB — Refers to Red, Green, Blue colors used on computers to create all other colors.

Resolution — Camera resolution describes the number of pixels used to create the image, which determines the amount of detail a camera can capture. The more pixels a camera has, the
more detail it can register and the larger the picture can be printed. Monitor and printer resolution are different from camera resolution.

Scene Modes — Preset exposure/shutter speed combinations which include white balance and exposure compensation.

Storage Card — The removable storage device which holds images taken with the camera, comparable to film, but much smaller.
Also called a digital camera memory card.

Thumbnail Index — A page that displays 9 or more miniature digital pictures in a grid. It can be compared to "contact sheets" of traditional photography.

TIFF — Tagged Image File Format (TIFF), an industry standard raster file format consisting of the image and header information. It is a "lossless" image format that doesn't throw away information in the compression process.

Viewfinder — The optical "window" to look through to compose the scene. It can be optical, electrical, or TT.

White Balance — White balancing adjusts the camera to compensate for the type of light (daylight, fluorescent, incandescent, etc.,) or lighting conditions in the scene so it will look normal to the human eye.

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TIPS TO PICTURE PERFECT DIGITAL PHOTOS THIS HOLIDAY SEASON

This holiday season, you’ll have only one chance to capture each magic moment. It’s impossible to re-play the scene if you’re disappointed with your picture. That’s why it pays to be prepared and ready. Here are several tips from expert Rufina James to help you make sure your digital pictures turn out memorable:

Get The Lighting And White Balance Right. Lighting is much more important to digital cameras than to film cameras. If your digital camera has settings for different lighting conditions, such as daylight, cloudy, fluorescent, incandescent, make sure you use them—it can make or break your pictures. Never aim a digital camera at a light source (unless it’s a sunset or candles). Make sure that bright lamps, sunshine, glare, etc. are out of the frame.
Use a flash for indoor shots and dim outdoor lighting. If the flash is too bright, lower the intensity a couple of f-stops, or use a homemade diffuser by placing a one-ply tissue over the flash.

Be Sure To Get Close Enough. One of the biggest reasons digital pictures look bad is because they were taken from too far away. Avoid vast expanses of boring “dead” space (like the walls, ceiling, grass, pavement). Move in and get close to your subject. Fill the frame with the scene, the people, or the faces you want and leave the background out.

Reduce Red-Eye. It’s almost impossible to completely eliminate red eye with a pocket or compact digital camera. But it can be reduced by using the “Portrait” setting, turning up the house lights, and having the subject face the light while turning slightly away from the flash. If all else fails, use image-editing software to remove red-eye.

Compose Your Pictures. Before pressing the shutter, take a quick, objective look at the composition and background. If there’s clutter, distraction or a confusing subject, make changes before taking the picture.

Steady The Camera. Prevent “camera shake,” by using a wall, table or tripod to hold the camera steady, especially at night. And be sure to wait until the camera completes the shot before you put the camera down. It can take 5 seconds or longer if the light is low.

Be Prepared For Shutter Lag. Digital cameras are really small computers—they require time to capture the scene. Plan ahead when shooting people and especially children or your two-year-old’s smile could be a scowl by the time the shutter snaps. Anticipate the perfect moment and press the shutter just before it happens. It’s tough to do, but with practice, you get better at it.

Use High Resolution. High resolution and low compression produce smoother and more detailed images. For best results, get 3.2 MP or higher and use the highest resolution for important pictures you plan to print.

Have Battery Backups And Extra Storage On Hand. Running out of batteries or room on your storage card puts a quick end to your photo fun. Be prepared with spare batteries and another memory card so nothing puts a damper on your holiday memories.

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Cell phones boost digital photography's image.

Digital cameras are getting an image boost from an unlikely source: cell phone cameras.

Interest in digital cameras is going up in direct relation to the growth in sales of cell phones that also take pictures, a new survey by technology market analyst IDC shows.

The Mobile Imaging Survey, made public this week, shows that well over a quarter of camera phone users were inclined to buy a digital camera because their experience with the camera phone made them less intimidated by digital photography.

The findings refute earlier speculation among market and industry analysts that camera phones eventually would replace digital cameras. Since the first camera phone appeared in late 2000, the image quality has improved, approaching that of some digital cameras.

Camera phone users like to snap pictures anywhere, anytime and send them immediately by e-mail.

Still, users prefer a digital camera for "keepsake" pictures, such as family portraits and vacation snapshots, IDC discovered.

Those keepsake images also are the pictures that camera phone users are most likely to save and print at home, the survey found. Consequently, fewer camera phone images are being printed, dropping to an average of one every three months now from one a month last year.

IDC's research appears to match, in part, studies cited earlier this year by Eastman Kodak Co. on camera phone habits. The company discovered that more than 70 percent of camera phone users rarely move images into a computer for archiving or printing later.

Camera phones outsell digital cameras about four to one, but they aren't the source of most digital images. About 7.5 billion images will be taken with camera phones this year, compared with an estimated 40 billion from digital cameras, IDC said.

The survey analyzed responses from 150 people nationwide, mostly 25- to 44-year-olds; it was weighted to reflect the nation as a whole.

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Ten Tips for Better Flower Photographs

1. BE SELECTIVE. At a flower show , there is an enormous number of beautiful flowers. Don’t rush to photograph the first blossom you see. Find a plant with the best combination of form, color, lighting and background.
   
2. ISOLATION. For impact, isolate your subject. Find a camera angle that minimizes distracting elements, such as other flowers or spectators. Take the time to try low angles, high angles, or moving to the right or left. A wide lens aperture ( a lower-numbered f-stop on and SLR camera) will enhance this effect by softening the background.
   
3. COMPOSITION. Pay attention to the position of your subject in the viewfinder. Putting the subject in the dead-center of the picture is often the first instinct, but is not always the most aesthetic composition. Concentrate on what you see in the viewfinder, and recompose the picture until it looks the best to you. And don’t forget to try vertical framing, as well as horizontal.
   
4. TRIPOD. Because the light in parts of the Conventions Center (or building) is varied, you may be forced to use slow shutter speeds. In this situation, hand-holding your camera might result in vibrations and unsharp pictures. Use a tripod to steady your camera if it has a tripod screw-socket. If you don’t ( or can’t) use a tripod, try to steady your camera in other ways- nestle it on a bean bag or your coat; brace the camera against a wall; or at the very least, take a firm stance while shooting, with your legs slightly apart and your elbows braced. When using and SLR camera on a tripod, cable a release can significantly reduce unwanted vibrations.
5. PATIENCE. When photographing flowers outdoors, be aware of small breezes that might set the flowers in motion. Likewise, breezes can be caused indoors by the opening of a door or the brisk movement of people. For sharp picture, you must be prepared to wait for all movement to cease before releasing the shutter.
   
6. ENVIRONMENT. Wonderful photographs can be created by showing the relationship of you subject to its environment. A simple way to achieve this is with a wide- angle lens on a SLR camera, or the wide mode on a dual-lens or zoom lens point-&-shoot camera. Position your subject as close as possible in the foreground.
   
7. EXTREME CLOSE-UPS. Flowers take on an entirely different look when viewed in extreme close-up. Use your viewfinder indicators to move in as close as possible, while still maintaining sharp focus. If you are using a 35mm SLR camera, your macro (close-up) capabilities can be extended with accessories such as a macro lens, a macro teleconverter, or even screw-on supplementary close-up lenses or extension tubes for your present lenses.
   
8. THE WHOLE PICTURE. Consider the whole plant when you photograph, and not just the colorful bloom. Examine the fascinating textures and geometries of leaves, seed pods and fallen petals.
   
9. EXPERIMENT! Don’t be afraid to shoot a few extra pictures. Try different angles and different lighting. Also depict your subject from several different viewpoints.
   
10. LEARN FROM YOUR MISTAKES. If your picture don’t convey what you saw in your mind’s eye, ask yourself: “What went wrong?” If you study your mistakes, you will be rewarded wit a greater number successful photographs on your next outing.

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