Transcripts

Jim Miotke:
Some of the biggest mistakes are that people simply don't analyze the scene and decide what is the one element that they really want to capture and then move in very close to that.

Jim Miotke, author of the book, The Better Photo Guide To Digital Photography…

The tendency is often to try to get the whole scene, whether it's the Grand Canyon or your whole backyard with your kids playing in it. But if you decide, no wait a minute, I've really got to make sure I maximize my subject, get in very close.

When taking pictures of people, particularly children, Jim says, don't say, "Say cheese, or smile." Instead…

Simply talk to them, make conversation, get them to talk about what they're interested in- whether it's dinosaurs or dolls or whatever. You'll get these fun natural expressions- that's much more effective than saying, "Smile."

And when it comes to using your flash, Jim says, think backwards.

When I'm photographing indoors I try to avoid flash unless I absolutely need it. And then outdoors you would think that it would be bright enough, but actually the flash outdoors will often fill in shadows and add a little sparkle to the eye of your subject and it evens out the light.

You can link to Jim's website from ours: somethingyoushouldknow.net- I'm Mike Carruthers and that's Something You Should Know.