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May 14, 2010

Photography Hints
When using flash at night, what's the minimum shutter speed to use?

I have a fully manual SLR camera that I've had for years but have only recently started taking night pictures with flash but my first set came back with half the picture dark as if the shutter speed was too slow. What is the minimum shutter speed I can use when taking a flash picture? Any other hints for flash/night photography?

sounds like you have a camera which has a focal plane shutter which is likely synced at 1/60 of a second you'll find some synced at little higher but I dont recall one higher than 1/125 and that was a nikon. Most cameras have the sync speed marked in red or with an "x". Shooting with a longer shutter speed will allow you to pick up any available light just be wary of camera shake use a tripod.As you have found using a shorter shutter speed allows the shutter to close before the light hits the film giving you that black side.The shutter speed wasnt too slow but too fast.

Digital Photography: Texture Photography

The purpose of any image is to gain the attention of the viewers. Images can do this in a variety of ways. Bold color is often utilized for this purpose. Other photos utilize leading curves. Dramatic scenery is also used for this purpose. While these methods are very powerful, there is one method that many photographers neglect. That method is the utilization of texture. Consequently, this article will take a look at the various types of texture photography.

Let's start out with a definition of texture photography. For this article, texture photography is defined as any photography that uses texture to add impact to images.

Texture will be defined as the surface detail of an object. This detail can be composed of surface irregularities (such as the wood grain of an old plank) or of small forms on a surface (such as a mass of roots from an ancient tree).

Types of Texture Photography

There are three primary types of texture photography that will be covered in this article: detail, drama, and information.

Detail: With this type of texture photography, the detail in the surface of the object being photographed is the most significant feature of an image. The actual object is of lesser value. When this technique is used, the image is often taken as a macro shot in order to move in very close to emphasize the detail or as a partial object shot where only a portion of the object is photographed. A close up of the grain in an aged log would be one example of this kind of texture image.

Often, the best light for this kind of image is side light. Side light will enhance the detail in any uneven surface by casting shadows.

Drama: With this next approach to texture photography, the texture is utilized to add drama to an image. Here, the texture is not necessarily the most important aspect of an image. Rather, it is one component of the image that serves to spice up the image.

Since the color or contrast of the texture is what generally grabs the viewers' attention, it is important to select subject matter that has detail with appropriate color or contrast.

Images of canyons with layered rock formations offer one illustration of this type of texture photography.

Side light tends to work well with drama texture images. This is because side light helps to bring out the texture -- thus enhancing the drama.

Information: Utilizing texture to communicate information about a photographic subject is the last form of texture photography that we will examine. In this type of photography, the texture communicates information about an object that enhances the impact of the photo. A case in point would be an image of an old, dilapidated, wooden walkway at a remote beach. In this case, the aged wood hints that the beach has a history that could not be conveyed by an image of only the white, beach sand.

To increase the impact of an information texture image, it is necessary that the composition of the image shows the texture in a fashion that enables it to tell the story of the image. The result will be a much better image.

One last point is that the texture in an information texture image should help support the center of interest not overwhelm it.

Wrap up

The field of texture photography is much broader than what this short article can cover. Much more can be learned about texture photography.

About the Author

To find out how to employ the techniques of texture photography, click Texture Photography.

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