Category: Technology

Just as with exposure compensation, flash compensation allows you to change the flash output in increments of 1/3 of a stop. You will probably use this most often to tone down the effects of your flash, especially when you are using the flash as a subtle fill light (Figures 8.6 and 8.7). The Flash Exposure…

There will be times when you have to turn to your camera’s built-in flash to get the shot. The flash on the G12 is not extremely powerful, but with the camera’s advanced metering system it does a pretty good job of lighting up the night…or just filling in the shadows. The controls for the built-in…

We’ve covered some of the techniques for shooting in low light, so let’s go through the process of capturing a night or low-light scene for maximum image quality. The first thing to consider is that in order to shoot in low light with a low ISO, you will need to use shutter speeds that are…

Occasionally the light levels might be too low for the camera to achieve an accurate focus. There are a few things that you can do to overcome this obstacle. First, you should know that the camera utilizes contrast in the viewfinder to establish a point of focus. This is why your camera will not be…

Thanks to the image stabilizer (IS), you can squeeze two stops of exposure out of your camera when shooting without a tripod (Figures 8.2 and 8.3). Typically, the average person can handhold their camera down to about 1/60 of a second before blurriness results due to hand shake. As the lens is zoomed, the ability…

Let’s begin with the obvious ways to keep shooting when the lights get low. One option is to use the flash, but its limited range (15–20 feet) might not work for the situation. Also, the light from the built-in flash can too often be harsher than what you’re looking for. You could be in a…

For most of this book, I’ve focused on how to take a great shot—one exposure, one image. But shooting digital opens other options that combine several shots into one better photo. The following two sections, covering panoramas and high dynamic range (HDR) images, require you to use image-processing software to complete the photograph. They are,…

As a photographer, it’s your job to lead the viewer through your image. You accomplish this by utilizing the principles of composition, which is the arrangement of elements in the scene that draws the viewer’s eye through the image and holds their attention. As the director, you need to understand how people see, and then…

There’s nothing quite as satisfying for the landscape shooter as capturing a silky waterfall shot. Creating the smooth-flowing effect is as simple as adjusting your shutter speed to allow the water to be in motion while the shutter is open. The key is to have your camera on a stable platform (such as a tripod)…

There’s no denying that the automatic focus features on the G12 are great, but sometimes it pays to turn them off and go manual. This is especially true if you are shooting on a tripod: Once you have your shot composed in the viewfinder and you are ready to focus, chances are the area you…