Campfires

Campfires are one of the easier fire images to photograph. However, the key here is to figure out your shutter speed. I personally use a slightly longer shutter time in order to blur the fire a bit as well as give any flying sparks an opportunity to leave a light trail.

Please note that with a longer shutter time you want to make sure your subjects remain somewhat still and mount the camera on a tripod or on a suitable flat surface. Depending on what the subjects in the picture are doing, campfire shots are excellent at conveying warmth and calm or a wild party attitude.

Please be cautious, if you leave the shutter open for too long you can lose the atmosphere of the photo as the fire will be too bright.

Big Fire

Attempting to photograph large fires, while not losing the sense of the power and generated heat, can be a tricky endeavor. Most photos of large scale fires are taken from a distance, which can cause the photo to lose its impact and scale.

When photographing large fires safety should be your first concern since they can be very unpredictable. If it is possible, try to photograph larger fires at night when you can capture the drama of the smoke and flames against a dark background.

Having the ability to highlight the smoke gives your photo a sense of volume and space to the fire beyond its attachment to the ground. One more thing to remember, shooting at night with a slower shutter speed allows for more intensity in the flames varying color and brightness.

If you have ever attempted photographing flames, whether a single candle or a raging inferno, you may have been discouraged by the difficulty it presents.

Attempting to capture those special images that communicate the power, heat, and warmth that comes from the flame can be a frustrating process though not an impossible one.

Taking a picture of a single flame is one of those projects that might appear simple at first that is until you actually try it. When photographing a single flame, birthday candles for instance.

I suggest doing so in a darkened room in order to highlight the flame; I also recommend you use a tripod or some other sturdy surface to hold your camera; and most importantly, have an abundance of patience.

I suggest you use the end of the wick as your focal point and your cameras manual focus. Please note that the flame itself is producing the light while at the same time being a three dimensional object and therefore will not be in super clear focus.

If your camera has spot metering I recommend you use it and take a reading off the flame itself. Your first attempt may turn out a bit dark, so experiment a little by slowing down the shutter speed and overexposing the image.

Try to eliminate drafts so your flame does not flicker. On the other hand, once you have the played around a bit and have the shutter speed figured out, if you want to capture the flame dancing you lightly blow on the flame.

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Most digital cameras have a variety of in-camera special features. Some allow you to take short QuickTime clips, some allow you to record sound, and some allow you to experiment with special effects, such as shooting black and white or sepia-tone images. I personally recommend that you ignore the special features until you learn the basics.

Keep in mind that some of these special features can be accomplished with photo editing software, such as black and white or sepia-toned images. Simply open a normal color image in Photoshop and, in a few minutes, you can have perfect black and white or sepia-toned photos.

Basically, if you can easily accomplish it in Photoshop, you might be better off concentrating on taking a good color photo, and worrying about special effects later.

However, you should try out other special effects. For instance you can pan your camera to track a car moving at high speed; the car will be in sharp focus but the background will be blurred, making an interesting picture.

Or you can do the opposite: focus on a particular stationary object — a child flying a kite, a freshly-painted fire hydrant — and allow a speeding car to enter the frame. You’ll then have a sharply focused center of attention with the added benefit of motion.

Try to experiment with different exposure levels. Just like film cameras, digital cameras work best in sunlight. When you take photos indoors, or in dim light, things get much trickier. So take some time and experiment with different exposure levels.

Shoot your subject from different angles, using different lighting. Try turning off the flash, if your camera allows you to do so. If your camera allows “fill flash,” try that, too. Every now and then a perfectly exposed picture is made even better with fill flash. From time to time turning off the flash and leaving the subject somewhat underexposed can add drama to the shot.

Bracket your shots, one shot somewhat underexposed, one slightly overexposed, and one “just right.” Some digital cameras will do this automatically, but even then you need to practice. If you are expecting the camera to shoot one frame and it ends up shooting three you camera is bracketing.

Here are some high-value SLR-like cameras:

Kodak P880 (24-140/2.8-4.1 lens). The 24mm widest setting on this lens gives great dramatic wide angles than the standard 35mm widest setting. The sensor records 8 megapixels which are perfect for poster-sized prints.

Canon PowerShot S3 IS (36-430/2.7-3.5 lens; slightly unresponsive). Not that great for wide angle photography yet very good for super telephoto (birds, sports), especially with the built-in image stabilizer.

Panasonic DMC-FZ50 (35-420/2.8-3.7 image-stablized lens).

Sony makes a couple of higher-end SLR-like cameras that have very good lenses, but the $750+ price makes you question whether you wouldn’t be better off buying a real SLR. The latest is the DSC-R1, which has the same APS-C size sensor found in the true digital SLRs.

A larger sensor means exceptional performance in low light (though not as good as the Canon Digital Rebel and Nikon D-series). The DSC-R1 has a 24-120/2.8-4.8 lens that would be an expensive addition to a digital SLR. The R1 rounds out its bid for “best digital camera” with a very responsive processor.

SLR cameras are typically larger cameras, usually created to house large, high-quality lenses. “SLR” stands for “single lens reflex” and is basically a camera in which the viewfinder and the sensor see through the same lens.

A SLR film camera has a mirror behind the lens which directs the light up into a beautiful bright optical viewfinder. When the shutter release is pressed, the mirror flips up and light is let through to the sensor. The one main drawback to SLR’s is that the LCD display on the back of the camera cannot offer a continuous preview.

SLR-like cameras get rid of the optical viewfinder which is usually found on the standard compact digital camera. In its place you have the screen on the back of the camera and an electronic viewfinder.

The electronic viewfinder works well in dim light but purists may have a difficult time adjusting to it.

One main advantage of an SLR-like camera over a true SLR is that the rear LCD display offers a continuous preview.

Please note that if you are serious about sports photography, or any fast action photography, you’ll find the true SLRs more responsive.

SLR-like cameras have lenses that zoom to significant telephoto magnifications, usually up to 200mm. Unfortunately when you magnify the scene you also magnify any shake of the camera body, so unless it is very bright out, you could risk blurry pictures at long telephoto settings.

The best way to avoid blur is to use a tripod. In-lens image stabilizers are also quite effective if you cannot use a tripod.

Details of the phenomena and shooting conditions under which they are likely to occur are as follows.

1. “Black dot” phenomenon (the right side of point light sources becomes black)
When shooting night scenes, the right side of point light sources (such as lights from building windows) may become black. The phenomenon may become visible if the images are enlarged to 100% or above on a monitor or if extremely large prints of the images are made.

2. Vertical banding noiseIf the recording format is set to sRAW1, vertical banding noise may become visible depending on the camera settings, subject, and background.
Vertical banding noise is not noticeable if the recording format is set to sRAW2.
Vertical banding noise does not occur if the recording format is set to RAW or JPEG.
Noise can be reduced if C.Fn II-3: Highlight tone priority is set to 0: Disable.

Canon has made a statement regarding concerns that have been raised about the EOS 5D Mk II. The message addresses the widely discussed ‘Black Dot’ and ‘Vertical Banding’ issues that have been reported by current and prospective owners who have been studying the camera’s output.

The company says it is looking into both issues and is planning to develop measures to reduce or eliminate these phenomena.

Canon statement:

We have learned that some users of the Canon EOS 5D Mark II digital SLR camera have identified two types of image quality phenomena that appear under certain shooting conditions.

1. “Black dot” phenomenon (the right side of point light sources becomes black)
2. Vertical banding noise

We are currently investigating and analyzing the causes, and examining measures to reduce or eliminate these phenomena by providing correction firmware. An announcement will be made on www.canon-europe.com as soon as measures have been determined.

A marketplace favorite is the Canon PowerShot A640 (2.5″ screen; 35-140mm F2.8-4.1; should be responsive); WP-DC8 should be the SCUBA case. For my part I don’t like the Canon PowerShot A6xx cameras for the following reasons:

(1) It uses four AA batteries, which typically last for only 50 pictures (you can go out and buy four rechargeable NimH batteries, but these are even heavier than the regular batteries),

(2) the A6xxx cameras have a record/play switch (if you are going through photos that you’ve already taken and something interesting catches your eye, pressing the shutter release does nothing–you must first remember to switch the camera from playback to record mode)

Another great camera is the Canon PowerShot A710 IS; it’s chunky but has a useful image-stabilizer for low-light photography; 35-210mm (equiv.) lens