2011 November | More Satisfying Photos

Archive for November, 2011

Anti-Shock

By Jeff Kontur on Monday, November 28th, 2011 | No Comments

Last week we talked about Image Stabilization, also variously referred to as Vibration Reduction, Anti-Shake and Anti-Blur. This week let’s look at a different feature that is often confused with Image Stabilization. Its name may sometimes sound similar but its function is completely different. This menu option, which is available only on SLR cameras, may [...]

Image Stabilization

By Jeff Kontur on Thursday, November 24th, 2011 | No Comments

Does your camera have image stabilization (sometimes abbreviated as “IS”)? It’s becoming more common, even among compact point-and-shoot models. It may sometimes be called something like anti-shake, anti-blur or vibration reduction (look for “VR” on your lens.) But do you know when and how to use it? Do you know what it does? Do you [...]

Noise Reduction

By Jeff Kontur on Monday, November 21st, 2011 | No Comments

Some cameras have a menu setting to turn noise reduction on or off. “Noise” is the random white or colored specks you sometimes see with long exposures. Noise may sometimes be referred to as “artifacts”, though technically these are something different. The technical name for the noise reduction process is called “Dark Field Subtraction”. (Clearly, [...]

Rule of Thirds

By Jeff Kontur on Thursday, November 17th, 2011 | No Comments

The rule of thirds is perhaps the most basic and most often quoted of compositional rules, as applied to photography. It’s very easy to understand, remember and use. Imagine there’s a tic-tac-toe board superimposed over your viewfinder or LCD screen (some cameras actually have this as a feature). When a scene is divided into thirds in [...]

Painful Crops

By Jeff Kontur on Monday, November 14th, 2011 | No Comments

It’s almost a stereotype to see someone with a camera stepping back and trying to zoom as wide as possible to get it all in. Especially while on vacation with the family lined up in front of some famous landmark. My advice is to not always try to cram every bit of information into your [...]