- Ten Tips to Make Your Shooting More Productive Right Out of the Box
- Ten Tips
- Chapter 1 Assignments
Chapter 1 Assignments
Let’s begin our shooting assignments by setting up and using all of the elements of the Top Ten list. Even though I have yet to cover the professional shooting modes, you should set your camera to the P (Program Auto) mode. This will allow you to interact with the various settings and menus that have been covered thus far.
Basic camera setup
Charge your battery to 100% to get it started on a life of dependable service. Next, using your newfound knowledge, set up your camera to address the following: LCD and electronic viewfinder display modes, image quality, and Auto ISO.
Selecting the proper white balance
Take your camera outside into a daylight environment and photograph the same scene using different white balance settings. Pay close attention to how each setting affects the overall color cast of your images. Next, move inside and repeat the exercise while shooting in an incandescent lighting environment. Finally, find a fluorescent light source and repeat once more.
Focusing with Flexible Spot and Single-shot
Change your camera setting so that you are focusing using the Flexible Spot autofocus area. Try moving the focus spot around the frame to see how it works in focusing your scene. Then set your autofocus mode to Single-shot, and practice focusing on a subject and recomposing before actually taking the picture. Try doing this with subjects at varying distances.
Evaluating your pictures with the LCD display
Set up your image display properties, and then review some of your assignment images using the different display modes. Review the shooting information for each image, and take a look at the histograms to see how the content of your photo affects their shapes.
Get a grip: hold it steady
This final assignment is something that you should practice every time you shoot: proper grip and stance for shooting with your camera. Use the described technique and then shoot a series of images. Try it with improper techniques to compare the stability of the grip and stance.
Share your results with the book’s Flickr group!
Join the group here: flickr.com/groups/sonya7-a7rfromsnapshotstogreatshots