This is the realm of photography that involves tilting the lens with respect to the picture plain and taking photos in that configuration. “Tilt-shift” actually has two movements: the rotation of the lens, called Tilt and movement of the lens parallel to the image plane, the Shift.

Tilt

 On a regular camera, the image plane, lens plane, and object plane are parallel, and objects in sharp focus are all at the same distance from the camera.. When the lens plane is tilted relative to the image plane, the Point of Focus is at an angle to the image plane, and objects at different distances from the camera can all be sharply focused if they lie on a straight line.With the lens tilted, the image plane, lens plane, and PoF intersect at a common line.

Shift

In a subject plane parallel to the image plane, parallel lines in the subject remain parallel in the image. If the image plane is not parallel to the subject, as when pointing a camera up to photograph a tall building, parallel lines converge, and the result sometimes appears unnatural, such as a building that appears to be leaning backwards. Shift is a movement of the lens parallel to the image plane that allows the line of sight to be changed while keeping the image plane (and thus focus) parallel to the subject; it can be used to photograph a tall building while keeping the sides of the building parallel. The lens can also be shifted in the opposite direction and the camera tilted up to get a different effect.

The Lens 

Tilt Shift lens come under the segment of lens called perspective control lens. Basically they have a larger image circle, that is their image circle will be much larger than the real sensor or film being used. This enables the tilting and shifting of the lens to get desired effects. These lens are relatively more expensive. The main manufactures of these lens include Canon, Nikon, Schneider-Kreuznach, Hartblei, Hasselblad, Photokina etc. These lens are usually prime lens that are manual focus. They are usually manual focus because of the difficulty of getting a automatic focusing system in it. 

Adapters 

Another solution that photographers use regularly is tilt shift adapters. These allow mounting of regular lens as tilt shift or tilt alone lens on the camera. The adapter does the tilting and shifting. Though they do not give the equivalent quality or accuracy of real tilt shift lens, they are a common alternative. As they are cheaper than tilt shift primes these adapters are being used widely. 

Tilt-shift faking

This is a post process job where, a suitable image is selected so that the image contains an object that can be made to look like a miniature, then the DOF is manipulated by selective blurring to give the illusion of a very thin DOF and the image is also post processed to have a plasticy feel that makes it look like the photo of a miniature. 

What is Tilt Shifting used for ? 

Tilt shifting allows smaller depth of field in photos that usually have large DOF. These are usually photos taken at relatively wide focal lengths. The resultant application includes making real objects look like miniature models. Other use includes giving focus to an object from a clutter of objects, such images can be used in advertisements etc, examples of this would be the picture of a building to be used for its promo where the DOF is so selected that only the Building is in focus. Without tilt shift lens such narrow DOF in pictures of objects as large as a building are not possible due to financially and physicals constrains on lens designs.

If you cant afford a tilt shift lens try getting yourself an adapter. If that is also out of question then at least try experimenting with faking techniques. which can be found easily by searching on the net.

Fungal infection in the initial stage is not as serious a problem as it is portrayed in many places. Only in rare cases are lens damaged to irreparable or economically unjustified to be repaired conditions. This is mostly due to sheer negligence from the owners side. There are a lot of different type of fungicides, each with their own characteristics. For us the characteristics that matter is the secretions they produce. There are that produce very corrosive substance and that produce non at all.

Luckily, these very corrosive fungi are not the most common fungi to attack lenses, though the fact that many fungi are difficult to clean off the lens surface makes many  believe that  the opposite is true. Fungus growing into the lens cement is more problematic, as the elements have to be separated in order to clean them, and then re-cemented. Usually a job for a professional.

There are too many different variety of fungi that can affect a lens. Thus it is not justifiable to be generalizing their behavior and the damage that they  cause.

Let us get to know them better:

Know them better will give us an understanding of how to deal with fungal infections, the damage they can cause, and most importantly, how to prevent fungal infections.

They do not photosynthesis, and cannot manufacture their own sugars, or amino acids from minerals in the way green plants do. Like animals they are completely dependent on other organisms for food. Fungi require a source of organic material to grow on.

They do not  derive much  nourishment from the glass or its coatings, but live mainly off organic material  found on lens surfaces, such as oil films, or dust, and in the materials used in the construction of lens assembly.

In older lens the substance used to cement lens together have natural origin unlike the modern lens and fungi tend to thrive on these natural organic diets.

The fungi consist of fungal cells called hyphen, which form webs of white fibers in the infected materials. These are the white strands that we see on an infected lens surface. These fibers go into the substance of the infected area, where they produce enzymes and other chemicals to digest the material. These secretions, and the byproducts are  the corrosive agents which cause the damage.  The amount of these secretions and there corrosive all vary from variety to variety and the common fungal infections are from varieties that produce less or no corrosive by products.

Some lens repairers do not take lens with fungal infection because they are worried whether the spores from the infected lens will infect other lens. This is actually meaningless because the shop will already have enough and more spores.

They also require a little  moisture in order to grow. Some variety, such as the dreaded ‘dry rot’ in buildings, can synthesis the water they require from the oxygen in the air, and hydrogen found in the attacked organic material. Non however has spores which have this ability, and so fungal spores cannot germinate without moisture.

Tips to prevent Fungal Infection

• Keep lens surfaces clean, that is do not let them have any residue. Keep the surface as clean as possible using a proper cleaning kit. Prefer sterilized cleaning cloths.
• Keep you bags and carrying cases dry, even if they get wet on a shoot, dry them. This will ensure that they are not damp inside and they provide a dry environment for the lens.
• Keep you lens in a clean dry and well lit place, it is advised not to keep your lens in the carrying case as the environment inside it mostly supports growth of fungi even after taking a lot of care.
• Do not keep any thing other than your camera equipment in your kit bag, because they could be a source of nutrient for the fungi.
• A dry box could be a very good option in very humid areas.

• Do not use too much silica gel as they could dry out the lens lubricant, but do have some granules in your dry box or the place where you keep your lens for storage (as said before this shouldn’t be your kit bag).
• Sunlight, make sure your lenses are exposed to sunlight as often as possible as this is the best prevention one can take against fungal attacks.
• The most important tip would be to keep using your lens, take photos as often as possible as this itself can prevent fungus because when they are exposed to sunlight and when they are constantly in use the chance of a fungal attack is drastically reduced.

One major difference between SLR users and a point and shoot user is that the p&s user has not been bothered about the technical of photography, even things like ISO and aperture may intermediate him, but he has keen interest in photography. Even though DSLR’s have very power automatic modes that is not the only way to use them.

1. You do not know what is Aperture , DOF or anything of the like but you feel and SLR can take better photographs on auto mode:- They sure will give you much better results using their powerful processor and better sensor, but as  said before if you would benefit more if you would spend the money on a photography class before you invest in an SLR.
2. They give better zooms with no modifications as they have a huge lens:- This is a very common misconception, that the kit lens of a DSLR give the capacity to zoom a lot. The lens on an DSLR is huge because they have larger sensors and only large lens can provide the equivalent light. In point and shoot terms the zoom factor  of the kit lens is usually just 3x or 4x. If you are switching cameras just for better zoom and you dont have a lot of cash to spend then its always better to invest in a Bridge or a super zoom. DSLR’s are commitments they need to be maintained and they also need a lot more accessories in terms of lens, filters etc to give better performance. To get the equivalent of 10x zoom you will need to use more than one lens in most conditions(there are exceptions). In the world of SLR its not how many x the zoom is, it is the angle of view.
3. I am not that much of a photo freak, but i want to take stunning photographs on my vacation:- You would have seen many tourists walking around with huge cameras, this must have instilled an urge to do the same on your vacation. The simple answer to this is its just a shear waste of money, space and time. DSLR’s are huge and heavy they aslo cost a lot of money. When on travel you will always benefit from a point and shoot that will fit in your pocket. Until or unless you are really into photography, as in ,you understand the intricate technicalities and you will cherish the photograph more than any thing from the trip don’t take an DSLR with you. There are people who travel to photograph places, that gives them immense pleasure and some also make money from these photographs. If you enjoy being at the place and  spending time there then you will be better off with a normal p&s than a DSLR.
4. I want an all in one that takes photo and videos at the same time :-  Here again the DSLR is not for you only very few models support video. Those are the higher end models and they cost a lot may be twice as much as a camcorder and a point and shoot put together. Video mode on the higher end DSLR’s produce stunning quality due to their powerful processing engine and thier significantly larger sensor, plus the ability to use different lens, but even with all these advantages you would be better off buying a dedicated camcorder and a p&s if its just about getting the moment. If you are really into photography and you appreaciate the better qualtiy and flexibilty such devices provide then it justifies the investment. If that is not the case there is no point in this investment. Again as a proffesional vediographer you would be using a proffesional video camera and not an SLR. So vedio on a DSLR is more of a bonus than a  feature and an expensive bonus at that.
5. I need a DSLR to learn Photography:-  That is a very wrong notion, you do not need an SLR to learn photography. The basics steps like framing, composition and all take a long time to learn and they can be learnt from any point and shoot camera itself. Only after a long way into learning photography do you need the option of having advance setting so as to fine tune your picture. Remember its finetuning and not tuning in. The basic tuning in is what should be mastered first and this requires nothing more than a basic point and shoot.

The main features that distinguish then from DSLR’s are: they have fixed lens and you cannot change it, they have electronic view finders, they have small sensors, they generally have older processors. These are just few of the features that distinguish between the two categories. Reading those might make you feel as though bridges have all negatives.

The first thing to understand is that Bridge category came into being so as to make professional like (not professional but professional like) photography previously addressed by entry level DSLR’s more affordable. This lead to the opening of this realm to a larger crowed which means more money to the companies. The design of bridges does make sacrifices to bring the cost down. The major cost of DSLR’s involve the Lenses but bridges don’t need any they have a versatile but lower quality lens that addresses all ranges from wide angle to super telephoto. They have smaller sensors but these are much larger compared to normal point and shoot cameras. Most allow some kind of manual focusing system and so on lets now see the advantages in going for a bridge in comparison to P&S and SLR.

Advantages over Point and Shoot cameras :

1. More Zoom: most bridge cameras offer more than 10x zoom which is way more than what point and shoots usually have. This is a major advantage in comparison to normal point and shoot cameras. The increase in zoom is for a relatively smaller price difference than the one between p&s and DSLRS with a range of lens that would enable the kind of range given by the bridge segment.
2. Generally more ISO: Due to the fact that they have better processors than normal p&s and also the fact they generally they have larger sensors they give much better ISO performance than p&s. Their larger sensor also give better ISO performance than the spec like sensors found on Point and shoot cameras.
3. Large sensors: They have large sensors this amounts to a lot of advantages including better noise performance etc. A major advantage a larger sensor gives is that they give smaller DOF and thus better bokeh. So they give much better pictures in terms of focus etc than point and shoots.
4. Larger flash: Most bridges have larger and more power full flash than p&s and some even allow use of external flash. This allows the use of these cameras on a lot more occasions. There are people using bridges for even wedding and such photographic applications where flashes play a very important role.
5. More control: They give control over the different settings like aperture, ISO, shutter speed etc. They also allow things like bracketing and so on. They generally have controls equivalent to DSLR but at a smaller range.
6. Optical Stabilization: Most p&s have digital image stabilization where as bridges usually employ optical stabilization due to the fact that they offer larger focal lengths. They also some times have a combination of the two to give better stability. With large focal lengths its always important to have OS otherwise shooting at lower light settings will become next to impossible.

Advantages over an DSLR, these are mostly in terms of economics than quality:

1. No cost of lens: The single lens or non interchangeable lens address a wide range of focal lengths, that a hobbyist would most likely use. This call for a large reduction in investment than a DSLR kit with lens to address the same range of focal lengths which would easily cost 5-10 times the amount.
2. Smaller to carry: They give better result than p&s and address a larger focal range and have better Low light performance than a p&s. They are much smaller than a DSLR kit, thus are handy and much more versatile to carry around during holidays, parties etc than a full DSLR kit.
3. Live view Mode: only the higher end DSLR’s have live view mode which is handy in many situations. This feature is usually a standard on bridges as they use electronic shutters rather than real shutters.
4. In Camera Editing: Again only higher end DSLR units have many in camera editing options which can be found on most bridges. These range from cropping to color fixing and special effects. The range of in camera functions found on bridges are vast and some time more than what is found on DSLR’s
5. Swivel LCD: Many bridges have swivel LCD or LCD’s that can be moved around to give various angles. This allows shooting at angle that is not possible when looking through the view finder. Only higher end or actually very few DSLR’s have this capability. This is a very hand feature allowing one to take stunning pictures and unimaginable angles. This might affect the build quality though.
6. In Camera OS: Most bridges have in camera optical stabilization, this feature is either built into costly lens or are found only on a few bodies in the DSLR realm. OS is a very important feature when it comes to tele to super telephotos. This feature is a very important when we consider the price range we are getting this at.

There are many disadvantages a bridge has over a DSLR but there are some distinct advantages including cost that makes then a positive addition to even photographers having high end equipment. To p&s cameras these are bulkier and some times costlier but bridges definitely have more under thier sleeve than p&s cameras.

Do consider a bridge in you kit if you already have a high end kit, as they will allow you some flexibility. If you currently have a p&s and is serious about photography, then it might be time to consider an upgrade.

16:9

4:3

The above two images are of 16:9 and 4:3 aspect ratios respectively, clearly the amount of the scene shown in the two images are different. The second has little more sky than the first and the first is wider than the second. Basically there are two important points at which aspect ratio becomes important, one when printing and two when the image is to be used on a display device. In the first case the aspect ratio can be chosen to an extent most printing service have a wide range of aspect ratios they can print in. The factor to consider here is how the image looks in different ratios. The image can look completely different from one aspect ratio to another.

When coming to display devices there is less choice as we have to stick to a largely standard format. This means that the image can get cropped or the image might become distorted. The image may also be re sized maintaining the current ratio, in which case there can be black areas on the display.

The aspect ratio is very important in video also, as a wide screen ratio (16:9) gives something similar towards a cinematic experience. There is a clear and evident migration towards wide screen ratios in video. However the world of still photography still get to choose their aspect ratio, as  majority of the works are being printed and printing lets one choose the desired aspect ratio.

Next time you print your photo graph do be careful when selecting the aspect ratio as that can make or kill a picture.

Never choose an aspect ratio on the camera as that is like reducing the possibilities one has to work with. The best option is to change the aspect ratio at editing phase and not at the shooting phase. Shoot at the default aspect ratio and then change to the required ratio later.

Now let us come to the topic. when not to upgrade your camera. Let us look at it from two or three different angles. Let us list the major reasons as :

• Marketing influence
• New technology
• Peer Pressure
• Expectation to do better with better equipment
• Compulsive Buying
• Having too much money lying around

1. Read Read and Read

When you are signing up on a site usually the license agreement is showing to you, and you are asked to agree to it to proceed. Most people make it a habit to just click on the agree button and continue. Some people are under the impression that all these agreements are the same, which is the main reason why people don’t bother to read them.  Understand that each LA can be unique and mostly have statements that need to be analysed carefully. So spent some time and read it carefully and if there is any confusion read it again until what they have stated is clear.

2. Do not ignore the words in Bold

Some words in the agreement might be given in bold. Do understand that the author wants you to give importance to those words. So do make sure that you understand the words in bold and also that there could be something hiding in those words. It could help noting down all the words in bold, which will give a basic idea of what the agreement pertains to.

3. Analyze according to what is at stake

The amount of time and effort to be dedicated to the LA should depend on what is at stake. If you are uploading preview copies of you priced work then there could be little damage done than if you where uploading the originals. That is the severity of damage if misused  should be analyzed.  There is little to be worried if you are just uploading some random shots that you took while strolling in the park as the amount of damage that can be done because of rights conferred upon the site by the LA is limited.  Depending on the LA your photos can even become theirs, the point is to analyse what is at stake and work accordingly.

4. Do not keep on creating accounts in different sites

Even though when you sign up on more sites the exposure of your photos increase, it is not advised. The main reason is that most people have accounts on the famous sites plus auxiliary accounts on other sites, so if you are on the more famous sites its most likely that the audience you have from other sites are just repeats, thus you have no or little damage from signing up on other sites. The second reason being that it is better to have read and understood all the terms conditions and the LA of fewer sites than to simply have accounts that are not safe all around. The point is when ever you create and account be sure you know what you are getting your self into.

5. Use privacy settings properly and read about what is said about it in the Agreement

Most photo sharing services have privacy settings, which can be used effectively to block unwanted people from viewing your photographs. These setting can password protect or put the photos on encoded links so that you can control who has access to the photographs. The albums on social networking sites also have such settings. Now about  the second part, the LA should be read carefully to make sure that the site will keep to the privacy settings selected by you under all likely circumstances. If not there is no point in having these privacy settings.

Most famous sites do keep to standards and there is little to worry about when only non commercials are at stake but when dealing with commercial stocks it is always advised to be careful and detailed analysis of agreements highly recommended.

Insects have lots of colors and fine details that need to be captured to get an interesting photograph, to get these finer details the subject should be properly light. There are many methods one can use to light this type of subjects. The built in flash usually fails due to large shadows the lens cast when they are used. Ring lights that can be fixed in front of the camera, they give some what clinical lighting that lacks a natural look. The better option would be to use dual flash mounted in front of the camera. They give lots of flexibility in the lighting.

2. Make sure there are no reflections

When using flash the chance of reflections are high, the eyes or some parts of the body can be shiny and they reflect. These reflections spoil the picture, they mask the details and also takes unwanted attention.To avoid them we can use indirect illumination that is, one could bounce the flash of another surface such that the direct light does not fall on the subject. Another option would be to use diffusers on the flash.  One could avoid the use of flash completely and use a reflector. The idea is to make sure there is no reflection from the subject.

3. They are quick but you have to be slow

Do not intermediate the insect, these are small creatures and they do not know why you are getting dangerously close to them. Look at the situation from thier perspective and act accordingly. They can move very quickly and you will loose the moment. The best approach is to move slow and with caution. It would help to have Macro lens that can shoot from a distance.

4. Catch the expression

Insect do have expressions or they seem to have capturing the right moment is important. For example if you are photographing ants they keep fidgeting around and the larger varieties tend to stand and look at you while moving their antlers. They do have distinct postures and movements, capturing the right moment is of great importance.

5. Eyes have a story

Insect photos that show the insects eyes are lot more expressive than those that dont. Basic idea is to get the perspective right. When the eye is there in the picture it gives the picture a human touch or people tend to connect to the picture better.

The basic idea is to get the ligthing correct, be carefull not to intemedaite the insect, and get the perspective right. So keep shooting until you get the right combination.

These are some tips that can help you get better pictures. These mobile phone cameras are however becoming more and more advanced by the day but these tips will help you even with the best mobile phone cameras.

1. Have Lots of Light

It is very important to have enough light, as the cameras have very small sensors, they have very small per pixel size. This means that the pixels get very little light to sense from due to this reasons most camera phones need good ambient light to perform well. They also tend to easily have burnouts, so too much light can also be a problem. Burn out as cause by the low Dynamic Ratio they have.

2. Shoot at low ISO

You may have bought your phone after reading the advertisement saying that it can handle ISO of 3200 or so,but do understand that these are only marketing gimmicks. The fact that these have very small sensors and are made with optimum power usage as the most important considerations makes them have very high noise levels even from the lowest ISO. This means that the high ISO ratings are practically unusable as they produce too much noise or the noise reductions makes the image unusable. So choose the lowest ISO possible and always avoid using auto as mostly the auto setting will drive up the ISO towards the higher levels.

3. Keep the lens clean

The mobile phone being a device that is constantly in use tends to get scratched and smudged easily. Make sure the lens is not smudged before you take pictures, many bad photos taken on a mobile phone camera are results of smudges. A more serious problem is the one of scratches, being something that is kept in the pocket or a handbag most of the time the chance of the lens getting scratched is very high. Thus we should be really careful about the lens as scratches tend to be permanent and can be hard to remove.

4. Flash On Mobile Phones are not that effective

The flashes that we find on mobile phones are mostly LED based lights, they are effective only in the darkest of conditions and thus, they do not provide sufficient lighting for cases like filling with flash to avoid back light problems etc. The best method would be to utilize some other source of light also along with the built in flash to provide sufficient lighting. Generally a torch or even a candle can provide an amount of lighting that will supplement the flash. If you happen to have more than one mobile at hand, they could be utilized to provide combined lighting, as the flashes are LED based they stay on.

5. Always Shoot at Full Resolution

The camera’s full resolution should be utilized always because already the quality of image is lower than other camera. The resolution should be set to the highest and the quality should also should be set to best. The quality usually determines the compression to be used and if you apply higher compression that will lead to loss of image details. Thus always shoot at highest resolution and lowest compression to maintain as much details as possible.

6. Take as many Photos as Possible

The results on phone can vary from one photo to another, this is mainly because of the relatively slower processor they use and also because of the metering system they use are not as effective. To counter this take as many pictures as possible. This will guarantee that at least some pictures will come out good. With relatively large memory cards being used in phones today this shouldn’t be difficult to do.

These are some of the precautions you can take so as to get good pictures from mobile phone cameras. The best way to learn photography is to take picture so keep clicking.

Why does the subject become darker when there is  backlight?

The light from the backlight is not falling on the subject, but it is very high in intensity. The photo sensitive material be it a film or a sensor, registers the highest amplitude of light that falls on it. So when you have a low intensity subject and a high intensity background the higher intensity from the background will be registered and the subjects details are lost.

How to get around it ?

There are different ways to get all the details of the subject when there is backlight. The four ways we are going to look into are

1. Fill Flash
2. Direction of Shooting
3. Reflectors
4. On Camera Backlight Compensation