The holiday season is the time for families to get together to eat, drink, and be merry.
With the decorations in place and everyone looking their best, this time of year is always worth remembering.
What better way to capture the moments than to create the perfect holiday photo album! Use these tips to get the best photos and start your holiday photo album this year.
First things first The first thing you need to create any photo album is a camera.
Digital cameras come in many styles and with many features but for the beginner a basic model should do fine.
Many cell phones even come with suitable cameras built right in.
One feature to look for is a suitable zoom function.
There are two main types of zoom, digital and optical.
Optical zoom is the preferred type and works by magnifying the image and maintaining the quality of the shot.
Digital zoom works by cropping and enlarging the photo to focus on the desired area and causes a significant loss of quality.
When choosing a digital camera, pay attention to the megapixels.
High megapixels aren't necessary for taking great pictures for photo albums and can waste storage space.
Staying between 3-6 megapixels is more than enough for the normal photo sizes with a little wiggle room for editing.
Storage space is also an important consideration.
Nothing is worse than missing a picture-perfect moment because your camera ran out of memory.
A 256mb memory card can hold around 140 pictures at 5 megapixels.
If you plan on taking lots of photos, make sure to have spare memory cards on hand.
Zoom in on what Matters Getting up close and personal is important if you want detail oriented pictures.
Rather than standing face to face with the object you are photographing, keep several feet between you and use the zoom function to hone in on the details of the object or the person you are photographing using the Macro or Magnify button.
Your photos will really pop then.
By effectively using the zoom, you can fill your pictures with the focus of the photo and cut out background clutter that will draw attention away from what is important.
This is one of the most important things to remember.
Always fill your shots with what you're trying to photograph and your holiday photo album will really be impressive! Click at Random Taking candid shots is well worth the effort if you want to capture fleeting moments that can last a lifetime.
Keep your camera batteries charged and your equipment (or lenses) nearby so that you don't miss one of these jewels.
For instance, snapping two people (or a group) talking with one another can allow you to capture expressions and energy that fail to come up in posed pictures.
You can do this by tweaking your camera's Motion or Sports settings.
This way, even if they are walking or running, you can snap an undistorted image easily.
Set a higher shutter speed to reduce that blur as much as possible if you don't want a ghostly image.
To best capture moments of intense emotion, like a child opening presents, take pictures before the emotion fades.
Don't wait till they settle down and pose them for a picture, capture the moment in it's intensity for the best effect.
Use the Light to your Advantage The light can be your best friend or your worst enemy depending on the way you use it.
The people in your pictures will have a permanent case of red eye if you can't play with the light like a pro.
However, if this happens to your snaps, you can fix this easily by editing them out using the Windows Live Photo Gallery.
On the other hand, you can always keep mirrors or other reflective surfaces around them to reduce that risk as well.
Plus, make sure they are not standing in front of an open window unless you are using flash.
You may get dark photos otherwise.
Paying attention to lighting is critical to give your holiday photo album that professional feel.
Play with the Angles Taking pictures head on can get boring after a while.
If you want to spice up your album, take pictures of your subjects from different directions to give the viewer a whole new perspective of your trip.
You can also take dramatic shots by filling the frame.
Tilt the camera 1/3rd of a frame down to create a very different effect for each image you snap.
Make sure to pay attention to background objects and other props to make your photos really stand out as well.
Including the right setting pieces can really build intensity in your photos and make your shots picture perfect.
Editing your holiday photo albums After everyone leaves, make sure to upload your photos into your favorite editing software, such as Adobe Photoshop or a similar program.
These tools have plenty of built-in features for the home photographer that really give your pictures that professional look.
Crop your photos to drop unwanted background space.
Use a red-eye removal tool to eliminate red eye or touch up small blemishes.
Depending on your skill level, you can also correct under/over exposed photos, adjust highlights, apply special photo filters, and add your own creative touches to personalize your photos.
By applying these tips to your holiday photo albums, you will be able to capture memories that will last a lifetime.
Print your pictures out and frame them, store them in your phone to show your friends, or use a digital photo album that can hold thousands of your photos.
With the decorations in place and everyone looking their best, this time of year is always worth remembering.
What better way to capture the moments than to create the perfect holiday photo album! Use these tips to get the best photos and start your holiday photo album this year.
First things first The first thing you need to create any photo album is a camera.
Digital cameras come in many styles and with many features but for the beginner a basic model should do fine.
Many cell phones even come with suitable cameras built right in.
One feature to look for is a suitable zoom function.
There are two main types of zoom, digital and optical.
Optical zoom is the preferred type and works by magnifying the image and maintaining the quality of the shot.
Digital zoom works by cropping and enlarging the photo to focus on the desired area and causes a significant loss of quality.
When choosing a digital camera, pay attention to the megapixels.
High megapixels aren't necessary for taking great pictures for photo albums and can waste storage space.
Staying between 3-6 megapixels is more than enough for the normal photo sizes with a little wiggle room for editing.
Storage space is also an important consideration.
Nothing is worse than missing a picture-perfect moment because your camera ran out of memory.
A 256mb memory card can hold around 140 pictures at 5 megapixels.
If you plan on taking lots of photos, make sure to have spare memory cards on hand.
Zoom in on what Matters Getting up close and personal is important if you want detail oriented pictures.
Rather than standing face to face with the object you are photographing, keep several feet between you and use the zoom function to hone in on the details of the object or the person you are photographing using the Macro or Magnify button.
Your photos will really pop then.
By effectively using the zoom, you can fill your pictures with the focus of the photo and cut out background clutter that will draw attention away from what is important.
This is one of the most important things to remember.
Always fill your shots with what you're trying to photograph and your holiday photo album will really be impressive! Click at Random Taking candid shots is well worth the effort if you want to capture fleeting moments that can last a lifetime.
Keep your camera batteries charged and your equipment (or lenses) nearby so that you don't miss one of these jewels.
For instance, snapping two people (or a group) talking with one another can allow you to capture expressions and energy that fail to come up in posed pictures.
You can do this by tweaking your camera's Motion or Sports settings.
This way, even if they are walking or running, you can snap an undistorted image easily.
Set a higher shutter speed to reduce that blur as much as possible if you don't want a ghostly image.
To best capture moments of intense emotion, like a child opening presents, take pictures before the emotion fades.
Don't wait till they settle down and pose them for a picture, capture the moment in it's intensity for the best effect.
Use the Light to your Advantage The light can be your best friend or your worst enemy depending on the way you use it.
The people in your pictures will have a permanent case of red eye if you can't play with the light like a pro.
However, if this happens to your snaps, you can fix this easily by editing them out using the Windows Live Photo Gallery.
On the other hand, you can always keep mirrors or other reflective surfaces around them to reduce that risk as well.
Plus, make sure they are not standing in front of an open window unless you are using flash.
You may get dark photos otherwise.
Paying attention to lighting is critical to give your holiday photo album that professional feel.
Play with the Angles Taking pictures head on can get boring after a while.
If you want to spice up your album, take pictures of your subjects from different directions to give the viewer a whole new perspective of your trip.
You can also take dramatic shots by filling the frame.
Tilt the camera 1/3rd of a frame down to create a very different effect for each image you snap.
Make sure to pay attention to background objects and other props to make your photos really stand out as well.
Including the right setting pieces can really build intensity in your photos and make your shots picture perfect.
Editing your holiday photo albums After everyone leaves, make sure to upload your photos into your favorite editing software, such as Adobe Photoshop or a similar program.
These tools have plenty of built-in features for the home photographer that really give your pictures that professional look.
Crop your photos to drop unwanted background space.
Use a red-eye removal tool to eliminate red eye or touch up small blemishes.
Depending on your skill level, you can also correct under/over exposed photos, adjust highlights, apply special photo filters, and add your own creative touches to personalize your photos.
By applying these tips to your holiday photo albums, you will be able to capture memories that will last a lifetime.
Print your pictures out and frame them, store them in your phone to show your friends, or use a digital photo album that can hold thousands of your photos.
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