Guest Post: The following is a tip that came my way from overseas, I do not claim ownership of the idea nor its content. But Halloween being around the corner, this may be a fun photographic activity.
If you have just bought a digital camera, you might still be trying to get your head around all the buttons and settings. Manual is the most flexible setting because this allows you to change many things such as the shutter speed and the ISO. Each setting will change the outcome of the image, which makes it much easier to create the perfect photo. Keeping the camera on Auto is recommended to begin with until you have learnt what all the settings do. However, if you are desperate to start taking some fun or artistic photos, playing with the shutter speed is a technique well worth learning.
A digital SLR camera has an endless amount of settings, perfect for customising your camera to capture the perfect shot. You will find it is a huge step up from using your O2 or Three camera phone or even your compact camera. The mega pixels of a compact camera determine its photo quality, however, when it comes to DSLR’s, it is the lens which will determine the crisp quality of your photo. A fixed lens is best recommended for taking creative slow shutter speed photos. Lets see how you can create a spooky ghost photo.
Step 1 – Find a spooky backdrop, like a church or a graveyard and position your camera on a tripod.
Step 2 – Set your camera to shutter speed priority (marked with an S on your dial). Then set your ISO to 800 and turn your shutter speed down to -10 which will give you a ten second exposure. This means the lens will absorb as much light as it can within that time, which gives you an opportunity to have fun.
Step 3 – Point the camera towards the gravestones and simply wear white clothes and very slowly walk between the graves. The camera will remember every movement you make which will show up on the photo, making it look like a blurred white ghost haunting the graveyard.