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2009 NDPC Conference

Digital SLRs offer infinite possibilities

Michael Linnell is sold on the single-lens reflex digital camera.

Your photos will be leaps and bounds better if you have the ability to switch lenses, as you do with SLRs, the Minot Daily News photographer told NDPC members attending his photo workshop during the organization’s spring conference in Minot.

Another advantage of an SLR digital camera is its ability to take photos in all kinds of situations.

“That’s one of the things with SLRs – the versatility,” he said.

With an SLR, you can buy the basic camera and add lenses to make it better, he advised his audience. He also suggested photographers not scrimp on the equipment they buy.

“The more you spend, the better off you are with product,” he said.

He also offered this advice:

• Practice, practice, practice. Get to know your camera and what it will and won’t do.
• Shoot photos at extreme settings and then at settings in between. You should be able to find a happy medium.
• Try underexposing photos so they will be a little dark. That might create a more dramatic photo.
• Find ways to make your photos more visually interesting. Try taking photos from unusual angles, focusing on a tiny area, letting some parts of the photo blur.
• When cropping photos, tighter is better. You don’t need a huge amount of sky in the background if you are focusing on a particular flower, for instance.
• Concentrate on what is in the photo. That way you won’t have a telephone pole or tree branch looking as though it is sticking out of your subject’s head.
• Don’t always take a photo of a person straight on. Have the person turn his or her head to the side slightly.
• If you’re using a flash, bounce the light off a wall or ceiling to create shadows or other interesting lighting.
• Use a flash when shooting in a room with fluorescent lighting. Otherwise, fluorescent lighting will make the photo look yellow.
• Photo editing programs such as Photoshop can be frustrating, but you can do a lot to your photos with them.

Linnell added that digital technology is great for photographers because they can take lots of photos and discard the ones they don’t want without worrying about wasting film.

“I shoot, shoot, shoot and something’s going to turn out.”

– Ellen Crawford