Suggested Reading:
• The Digital Photography Book by Scott Kelby

• Photography for Dummies by Russel Hart


1. Move In Closer
• The closer you are to your subject, the more interesting the photo will be – and your audience will appreciate your subject more.

• Also, when you move in closer, there is more detail, and detail is more interesting than an overall view.


2. Snap Quickly
• Your subject or your scene may change, so make sure you snap right away. You may not even have time to have all the right measurements and correct settings!


3. Use Care
• Be purposeful where you place your subject in the photo! Use lines for your advantage, crop out parts that don't belong, and keep the horizon level.

• Consider the Rule of Thirds.


4. Be Selective
• Choose what goes into the photograph strictly by what interests you. If anything in the frame distracts from the subject, simply remove it.

• Once you choose your subject, spend your time on it to produce the best photograph possible.


5. Focus!
• If you are taking a picture of a subject, use a smaller depth-of-field to make the background blurry so that the subject will stand out. If you are taking a picture of a landscape, use a larger depth-of-field in order to make everything seemed focus.

• Learn how your camera focuses. If you are using a smaller point-and-shoot camera, put your subject in the center, focus by pushing the shutter button halfway, point the camera the way you'd to position the subject, and then finally press the button all the way.


6. Adjust Shutter Speed
• Longer shutter speeds can be used for pictures of streams or waterfalls, but make sure you use a tripod when you experiment with longer shutter speeds. For shorter shutter speeds, you can capture subjects in motion, and in combination with a longer lens, sports photography becomes a possible hobby.


7. Consider the Light
• The lighting will make or break a photo and depending on where the light is coming from, can change the mood of the subject.

• If the light if directly on the subject, details will be visible and the colors will be enhanced. Indirect lighting can provide a gentle glow for your subject, rendering a quieter photograph. Lighting from the side can create interesting effects as well, but may generate difficulty in contrast control.


8. Look at Weather
• Look at the weather before you go for your shoot. Overcast skies should be left out of color images, but if the weather is looking perfect, make the most of it and shoot away!


9. Simple!
• Don't get too complicated with your camera settings. Although Automatic may be a bit too far, picking a semi-automatic setting will help make taking photos simple. Getting used to those settings and making the most of them may be a better use of time than trying to master every possible setting on a camera.

• Plus, by using a RAW file type and utilizing SILKYPIX, your photos will turn out great – maybe even better than your camera's perfect settings could do.


10. Boldness
• What will set apart your photos from the rest of the world's? Your sense of creativity. Be bold and take photos that you want to take. Go places few photographers have gone, and if you want to take photographs of a person, simply ask politely. You'd be surprised by the results.