F-Stop: How to remember? Simple

Ever wonder what f-stop to shoot at with your new dslr or your old dslr that has a ton of dust on it?  Here is a simple method that helped me when I first learned:

• Want everything in focus (such as landscape): f/16 - f/22
• Want all your subjects in focus for group shots? f/8 - f/11
• Want a few people in focus f/5.6 - f/8
• Want that really small thing in focus and everything blurry? shoot as low as your lens allows you to go.  f/1.8, 2.8 and so on. 

Where have I been?

Traveling traveling traveling!  Four weeks, three trips and two of them with my family and potty training my youngest in the middle of that.  Call that insane!  But I have some photography thoughts coming up soon!

Technique: Framing your shot with angles

One thing I learned shooting stock photography was the importance of angles.  Angles help turn an ordinary picture into something different.  A simple technique is to turn your camera a little so you see lines hit the corner of your frame.  Here is a good example of lines hitting the corners of the frame.

See how the each corner has some lines being thrown at it?  It really helps the eye flow, and when you see a picture like this you say, wow, I've never really seen something like this before.  See more of my "Heart of San Francisco" pics.

Try taking a picture next time with a person coming from an angle. See how the camera was turned just slightly?  My good friend Steve (asiseeit) who is my iStockphoto mentor, helped me big time learn this easy technique.  See more of my iStockphoto portfollio.

I hope this helps you take better shots!

Tip: Let your picture flow

Look at this picture and why does it work for something that is so plain and boring?

Things to notice. I did not put that sign in the middle of the picture, I put it in the bottom left third of the picture so that your eye first see's this sign then draws you to move your eyes toward the plywood.  So your eyes are moving across a photograph.  That is how you can make your picture flow.  Not mention that this is actually funny!  See more of my Heart of San Francisco pics I took this past year.

Going out of town

I'll be traveling this next week so I will not post much this next week.  We'll so how exhausted I am!

Adobe Lightroom 3 Beta 2 Free Download

As to my previous post, I forgot to mention that you could actually try the Adobe Lightroom 3 Beta 2 for FREE.  Yes, not many things are free in this world but this is a temporary use.

You can read more in depth about Adobe Lightroom 3 Beta 2

You can also download it directly here.  Of course they make you sign up free first.

My Two Favorite Photography Software

I get asked a lot about the software I use.  Software to process your images is actually almost as important as shooting itself.  Many times the camera and lens take away what the human eye can see and you personally experience.  How many times have you been at a breath taking spot and taken a picture, and then got home and eeesh, you are embarrassed to show your friends.  I can hear it now....."No really guys, it was really beautiful....honest!"
 
Well, the two most important software I use in my work flow is.....

Where do I buy camera gear?

I get this all the time...Where do I buy camera gear, Shelly?
Here is what I do:
In the USA, 99% of the time I buy it from one of three places.

• B&H Photo
• Adorama
• Amazon

*Maybe one day I'll sign up to get perks from referring you to buy it from them.  But until then my profit is ZERO.  (Update, I just signed up!, Maybe after a year I can buy a Starbucks drink)

** I NEVER....