This is my guide on how to take better and more professional photographs by using some of these very useful digital photography tricks.

Zoom in close to make an impact

If you have a telephoto lens, use it to zoom in close to make a big impact. When photographing animals such as this eagle in the photo above, focus on the eye.

The above photo was taken using the a Canon 100-400mm L USM IS telephoto lens.

Long shutter speed

This picture was taken over a duel carriageway  bridge at night. The camera was set for a long shutter speed of 30 Seconds. The picture is showing the lights from 30 seconds worth of cars all merged together in one frame. There are a number of get affects that can be achieved using long shutter speeds. You will need a tripod to mount the camera on and keep it stable for the 30 seconds. A shutter remote is also a good idea as well to prevent you from shaking the camera when you press the button.

I've also convert this picture to blue using photographic software.

 

Shallow Depth of field

The above photo has a very shallow depth of field on it. This makes the subject in focus while the background is completely blurred out. In this picture the background cannot be distracting and gives an almost 3D effect.

For an example of  a pictures take with a shallow and a longer depth of field see my other article Digital photography tips and tricks.

This picture was taken using a Canon 100-400mm USM L IS Lens.

 

Foreground Interest

The above picture was taken low down to the ground to exaggerate the scale of the rocks.  I personally like using rocks as foreground attractions in photographs.

Here is another example using the rocks in the foreground. These pictures was taken in southern Ireland where there are lots of big rocks all over the place. There is also some great scenery for photography.

 

 

Increase colour temperature

Most SLR digital camera have the ability to increase the colour temperature of the photo.

The picture above was taken with a Canon 20D with the colour temperature increased from 5200 to 6500.

 

Cropping

The photo above was cropped from the photo below. By cropping of the excess sky and foreground in puts the emphasis on the most interesting part of the photograph. This is also a good trick for creating a panoramic affect.

 

Look at your background

The picture below shows the fence in the background. This is too distracting. It also give away the fact that the picture was taken in a zoo and not in the wild. This picture also has grass in the foreground and background. I personally don't like grass in photos of animals, especially grass which is in focus.