Part of the Whole

One trick that works really well to make a photo look a lot more professional is to get in and take a shot of the most interesting part of what you want to shoot.

The imagination is a wonderful thing. In this example, we know it's a flower. For those who know a bit more about culinary arts, this is a sugar flower, all made of sugar. That detail aside, we know it's a flower, and our mind can go beyond the petals and stems to complete the picture.

One of the greatest advantages of using this technique is that you can easily cut out any distracting backgrounds and draw your audience's attention to what caught your eye.

Enjoy!

Marc - www.thedarkroomcafe.ca

Public Galleries

Just a quick note to show you my public galleries.

Enjoy!

Fun Angles!

Hello Friends,

One simple trick to make a photo interesting without using fancy gear is to simply turn the camera few degrees. In this shot, I turned the camera counter clockwise instead of just shooting stright on. What this does is create an interesting composition of the photo. When I saw the looks I wanted from the couple - click, and it was done.

Bonus tip: Get someone (friend or relative) to stand by the cake and take a few shots to get the right light readings for skin tones, and flash intensity. This will help you be ready for the only few precious seconds you will get to take one or two shots.

Have fun being creative in your composition and have fun! Marc - www.thedarkroomcafe.ca

Attention to the details...

Hello Everyone,

Today's tip is all about capturing those little details. Sometimes just catching a few of the small and important details from the day will catch the mood.

1. Find the subject: Look for things like cards, or favours that might have a significance, or just caught your eye.

2. Get close: Don't be afraid to get as close while keeping in focus.

3. Clean up the junk: If you can set up your object in on a chair, or get rid of napkins on the table, you will have a less distracting photo.

This photo was simply taken on a chair which worked as a seamless backdrop.

Wishing you beautiful shots! Marc - www.thedarkroomcafe.ca

"Focus Danielsan..."

Hello Friends,

Here's today's quick tip on focus. Whether you are using an $8,000.00 top notch DSLR camera with all the bells & whistles, or the film 'point & shoot' camera from your high school Eurotrip, there are two tricks to focusing - push the trigger halfway down, and follow-through.

By pushing the shoot button down halfway it gives your camera's internal functions a chance to focus on the scene. Many people just snap the trigger like a video-game shot gun when in actual fact you should think of it as a two stage sniper rifle (even if you have a low-end camera).

Step 1: Gently take up the slack in the trigger, then squeeze the shot off.

Step 2: Follow-through: In the same way that Danielsan chopped through the 8 sheets of ice in Karate Kid Part II, follow-through will reduce shake and minimize the chance of a blurry shot.

Bonus tip: Keep your arms tucked into your body, and not extended out (even if your camera is a digital point & shoot). This again will reduce shake and minimize blur.

Happy shooting!
Marc - www.thedarkroomcafe.ca

With a little patience...

With the on-set and reality of the digital world it is soo easy to get carried away with the machine-gunning... however, the patience of our film fore-fathers shall always prevail. Timing is everything too - if you wait too long for the perfect shot it my fly by, if you get too excited you won't get the moment that you can achieve.

In wedding situations love is in the air, and as most "non-emotional" men will say dust tends to get in your eyes... so, you will likely either find a smile or a tear. Luckily this father of the groom had no problem showing his emotion.

Even though the composition is just "ok" (VERY tight quarters at this wedding ceremony), I think the emotion was captured.

Keep your eye out for that moment, be discrete and snap a great shot.

That's today's 'Photo-food for thought'.

Marc - www.thedarkroomcafe.ca

Capture the mood...

One of my favorite tricks is to catch the 'unexpected shot' and to know when to expect it. If you are not the official photographer or the assistant - and your photographer is not too much of a control freak - you might be able to get it. Here's the secret...

When the last official shot is taken get ready to snap a shot or two that split second when it's all over. In this photo you can see that the shoulders have droped the hands are clapping, and a few authentic smiles & laughs are had by all.

Tip #1

Make sure your camera is set to the right setting for the situation.

Tip #2

Ensure that your flash is ready to take the shot (if needed... and in most cases you will need it).

Tip #3

If you can sneak the shot without anyone suspecting that you are about to snap a candid the results will be that much better.

Well, that's my tip of the day.

Marc - www.thedarkroomcafe.ca

Disposible cameras on the table...

This is almost a staple for any wedding... now the unfortunate thing about the photos taken with disposible camera is that about 90% of the photographs do not turn out.

When you buy disposible cameras for your guests keep ISO in mind. 200 or 400 ISO is find for outdoors weddings; however, 800 is more recommendable for indoor weddings.

Here are a few tips you can tape to the cameras in big letters to your guests to read:

1. The sweet spot is between 3 and 10 feet indoors. Under 3 feet the photo will be out of focus, and beyond 10 feet, the flash will be useless and the photo will be too dark... unfortunately it will not get that million dollar shot of you dancing 75 feet away from your guests table.

2. Use the flash all the time inside otherwise the photo will not turn out.

Final tip...

When you bring the box cameras in to get them developed, simply get them to develop the film, and put them on a CD. You will save money (since the majority of the shots will probably still be not too hot), and the digital format will be handier for you to share with your friends.

That's it for today! Marc - www.thedarkroomcafe.ca.

Wedding Shot Tips & Tricks!

Thanks for stopping by. I have created this blogg to have a dynamic and interesting place to visit and possibly give you tips and hints on not only booking your photographer, but also for your friends and family to think about a few things when taking photos at your wedding day.

Today's tip is about getting richer skies when taking shots on a sunny day.

The day that this photo was taken, the sun was very strong - and on those sunny days, it's easy to get a sky that is completely whited out. As you can see from the shadows and and light falling on this couple the sun is at 90 degrees from where I took the shot. That's the key - 90 degrees to the right or left of your subject. If the sky is on your back, the sky will be white (and your couple will be squinting), if the sun is on your couple's back, you will have nothing but silouettes.

This trick works well for any kind of camera - digital or film, expensive or a box camera - no special equipment or post processing necessary! No position yourself well to get that great shot of your favorite people on a sunny day.