Photo Tip Friday: 5 Minute Photography Challenge

by Mary Denman              Twitter: @MaryDenman            Instagram:@MaryFDenman

Recently, my photography business has been taking off! 

It's been amazing!

Also, I've thrown myself into  learning more about photography by being in the Headshot Crew run by Peter Hurley. It's been amazing as well! 

Sadly, my blog has suffered, but I'm getting a handle on balancing everything. I've thought about my blog and you, a lot, though. 

One thing Peter keeps saying is, "Get people in front of your camera." It's his way of telling us how to get better doing headshots. 

Then, it dawned me, I could apply that here. 

Photo Tip Friday: Backgrounds in Photography

by Mary Denman                   Twitter: @MaryDenman              Instagram: @MaryFDenman

Backgrounds make a lot of difference in photography. 

While they can show context of the picture, sometimes, they distract from the true focus of the subject. 

Today, I want to show you an incredibly simple technique to play with different backgrounds. This exercise will help teach you 2 things. 

1) How much of a difference the background can make. 

2) How lighting changes as you move an object around, or, as you move around the object. 

Let's get started. 

Photo Tip Friday: Move to get a Better Shot

by Mary Denman                   Twitter: @MaryDenman                 Instagram: @MaryFDenman

Often, when we're taking pictures, we simple take photos from where we stand. While this can yield some good photos, here are some tips to help you think more about how to get good shots. 

The overall tips? Move to get a better shot. And, learn to brace your camera to get a better shot.

Here are some poses and ideas you can use. 

Let's get started.

Photo Tip Friday: Find Interesting Subjects in the Midst of the Ordinary

by Mary Denman     Twitter: @MaryDenman    Instagram: @MaryFDenman

Sometimes we have false thinking that if we could just go somewhere gorgeous, we could get fantastic pictures and be a better photographer. 

But really, we can look for beautiful or interesting images all around us. 

So today, I want to show you a part of my yard that's a bit overgrown with weeds. 

Why in the world would I do that?

Because there is interest to be found for the looking. 

Let's get started.

Photo Tip Friday: How to Take Better Shots in Difficult Conditions, Part 2

by Mary Denman     Twitter: @MaryDenman    Instagram: @MaryFDenman

As we learned about last week in Part 1 of how to take better shots in difficult conditions, sometimes we have to shoot in challenging lighting conditions. 

Cloud cover, rain and fog present an opportunity to capture some amazing photos, and it's definitely more work. But worth it. 

So what are some things you can do to take better shots? 

Let's get started. 

Photo Tip Friday: Personalized Father's Day Gifts from your Photos

by Mary Denman     @MaryDenman

With Father's Day fast approaching here in the US, I wanted to give you some ideas of how to use your photography for personalized gifts. 

All of us know a dad who may be hard to buy for, so instead of a new tie or socks, (and my hubby has actually asked for socks before), why not spend a little time thinking about something more personal for him. 

That's where your photography can come in, to help create a memorable Father's Day gift. 

Let's get started.

Photo Tip Friday: Portrait versus Landscape, Part 1

by Mary Denman    @MaryDenman

There are two main orientations of your camera in photography: portrait and landscape. 

When composing a picture, it's good to know if one orientation will produce a better shot. 

There are rarely hard and fast rules in photography, so it's good to understand the strengths of using each orientation. 

As you learn more about when to each of them, your photography will improve. 

Let's get started.

Photo Tip Friday: Tips for Taking Great Mother's Day Photos

by Mary Denman    @MaryDenman

Throughout the year, we have very special holidays to celebrate those we love. 

In the US, Mother's Day is this Sunday, 8 May 2016. 

Often, that means family get togethers with mom. It's an opportunity to photograph your loved ones and document your time spent together. 

So today's tips are designed to help you record Mother's Day and other special family get togethers! 

Let's get started. 

Photo Tip Friday: 3 Tips for Taking Clear Action Shots

by Mary Denman   @MaryDenman

Have you ever seen great action shots and wondered how the photographer captured them? 

Well, I have a couple of tips for you today to help you learn to take better action shots. 

They may seem simple, but they can really help you get the photos you want! 

Let's get started.

Wordless Wednesday: Sleepy Cats and Puppy

by Mary Denman   @MaryDenman

Welcome to Wordless Wednesday! 

SIGN UP for email and get Monday's Musings, Wordless Wednesday and Friday Photo Tips right in your inbox!

Last week's tips was on Taking Food Pictures in a Restaurant. 

The prior week's tips was on Using Water to Create Interesting Photos.

Ramona from Create With Joy asked to see pics of my cats and puppy.

I'm more than happy to oblige! 

Photo Tip Friday: Taking Food Pictures in a Restaurant

by Mary Denman    @MaryDenman

Many bloggers who write about food love to take pictures for their blogs. Too, many people love to upload photos and reviews of their experience to sites like Trip Advisor. 

But food photography in a restaurant can be a challenge. 

Today's tips are designed to help you understand what to do to improve your food photography. 

Let's get started. 

Photo Tip Friday: Using Water to Create Interesting Photos

by Mary Denman    @MaryDenman

In photography, one medium that I really love to explore is water. There are so many interesting properties to it that can create such varied results. 

Water is easy to find. You can go in your kitchen and turn on the faucet, go to the beach or find a river. Puddles are available after a rain. 

Why do I enjoy water photography? 

Because it changes. Water can be still or moving. Green or brown. Clear or reflective. 

There is always something unique or different when you start photographing a body of water.

Let's look some examples.

Photo Tip Friday: Quick Tips to Transform your People Photos

by Mary Denman    @MaryDenman

Some of the mistakes that we make taking people pictures are very easily correctable. 

Let me give you a few quick tips that will help transform your people photos immediately.

A little awareness can go a long way to improving your photography skills. 

Let's get started!

TIP 1: Look in the camera right after you take a shot. 
This may not seem obvious, but you can make corrections very quickly because your subject is right there and you can snap another shot to improve it.  

Photo Tip Friday: Be Prepared to Take Great Photos

by Mary Denman  @MaryDenman

If you've been doing photography for any length of time, you've probably found yourself in a situation where you weren't prepared for a great photographic opportunity. 

I know I have. Kind of like a fisherman's story about the fish that got away. I have one of those too! 

So, what photography tips can you learn from my mistakes?

Let's get started! 

Photo Tip Friday: Understanding your Digital Camera and Photography

by Mary Denman    @MaryDenman

With a new year dawning and lots of new cameras for Christmas, I thought I'd start out with walking you through an assessment of what you want to do with your photography. This will lead to you figuring out what your strengths and weaknesses are. 

There are so many aspects to learn about photograph. Exciting isn't it? Or maybe overwhelming?

Let's try and get rid of the overwhelming part so you can enjoy your camera and capture special moments of your life. 

Even before we get into the technical or artistic parts of photography, I want to think about your experience with it so far.

PART 1: Ask yourself these questions:

Do you just want to take pictures for yourself? Your family?
Do you want to use your photography on your blog or for social media?
Do you want to enjoy your own photographs more?
Do other people ask you to take pictures for them?
Would you like to become a professional?
Would you like to learn more technical tips to help control your camera or the artistic parts?

Wordless Wednesday: A Day in my Life

by Mary Denman   @MaryDenman

Welcome to Wordless Wednesday! 

SIGN UP for email and get Monday's Musings, Wordless Wednesday and Friday Photo Tips right in your inbox!

Last week's Photography Post: Tips for Active Pet Photography

Monday's Post: Life Lessons from a Morning Glory

Photo Tip Friday: How to Photograph Ghosts, Part 2

by Mary Denman    @MaryDenman

Photo 1: Guess how this was done.

Today's tips are part 2 of how to photograph ghosts. Last week, I explained about needing a trip-pod, using a high aperture value, and using a longer exposure. A link to that post will be at the end of today's post. 

This week, I'll show you a couple of other ways to create ghostly pictures for Halloween and how to use long exposures to make people do a double take at your photos!

I'm not going to tell you how I took the shot I used here (photo 1). But after reading the post, offer your best guess as to how I did it. The only change was the color. I made it sepia post processing, otherwise, this is straight out of my camera.

Let's get started with learning how to photograph ghosts.

Photo Tip Friday: Using Perspective in Photography to Create Better Photos

by Mary Denman   @MaryDenman

Brookgreen Gardens

Today's tip is about using perspective when taking photos.

I'm going to use one subject that I walked around to show you how much difference perspective can make. In this case, I took all the shots at the same eye level, but the entire way around the subject.

We were able to visit Brookgreen Gardens in South Carolina. These are some of the many amazing pieces of artwork on the property and my example for today. This statue of Dionysis is covered in gold. Yes, real gold.

I was able to get shots from so many directions. I also photographed the statue at slightly different times of day, over two days while visiting the gardens to try and get the best shots I could. 

I hope these photos get you thinking about how to actively look for new and different perspectives.

Let's get started.

Photo Tip Friday: Why Photos Turn out Blurry and Tips to Help

by Mary Denman  @MaryDenman

Have you ever experienced the frustration of taking shots that turn out blurry? 

There are several different reasons why your photos can end up blurred. 

Today, we're going to cover the 4 most common causes of out of focus pictures and what to do to correct for each one. 

Let's get started.

Photo Tip Friday: What to do with all your Photos

by Mary Denman @MaryDenman

Photo Tips

Once you've been taking pictures for a while, whether it's months or years, you may start wondering what to do with all the photos you've taken. 

While this may first make you think of storage and organization solutions, I'm talking about putting your shots to good use. 

Today's photography tip is seeing how many different ways you can use your photos for both yourself and for others. 

If you think of your shots as a way to bless others, it's more fun to figure out how to put them to good use! 

Let's get started: