 | Last login: 7 months agoPat is a woman from East Quogue, New York, USA. I'm Pat Manning, a teacher of art and a photographer. Actually photographing nature is my passion. I've photographed a lot but nature is an inexhaustible source of new images that are different because of the light , the climatic conditions, the time of day and the time of the year. Nature is always new, always exciting and always an opportunity for creative exploration. |
- Apr 5, 2008 1:17pm
- Your Hiking Camera May Become Your Best Friend
You'd like to have a camera to tuck into your backpack as you prepare for your hiking season. Here are a few suggestions before you go out to purchase a camera. There are hundreds on the market and so making the proper choices now will help you with your photographing experience on the trail. Space is an issue for hikers and so you might look for a smaller size camera. Here are some details that appear to be minor, but are worthwhile decisions to make before the point of purchase.
Viewfinders. Many of the very small digital cameras do not have a viewfinder attached and so you will have to use the LCD screen on the back of the camera to compose your picture. Since what you frame in is the essence of photography, you will want to compose the visual elements within the picture plane in the most effective way. Composing on the LCD screen is often more awkward and inconvenient because you have to be concerned not only with the elements that you see before you, but also the angle that you are holding the camera. Your forehead is an automatic bridge upon which you can rest your camera. It is a flat, even plane. So, resting the camera on your forehead sets the camera at the right angle. What you see through the viewfinder rests in a stabilized position by holding the camera there. This not only helps to stop your own movement, becoming a kind of tripod so to speak, but also allows you to be mindful of the most important thing, which is, placement of the elements within the composition.
Camera Size. Before purchase, hold the camera in your hands. When shooting, the camera should always be held with two hands to reduce the possibility of movement. When I say this, I mean two hands gripping the camera. Merely holding the camera in your fingertips doesn't quite cut it. If the camera is so small that only your fingers can grip it, you may want to look again. Shots taken with one hand gripping the camera, or even with the fingers of two hands, often create a blurry snapshot, not a well-integrated photograph.
Megapixels. A megapixel refers to one million pixels and is an indication of the resolution capability for digital cameras. A pixel is a tiny square on a computerized display screen that is so small it appears as a dot. The more dots that make up the screen display, the clearer the resolution. In 1996, the highest megapixel camera on the market was 3.2. Today you can select a camera with a megapixel rating of 12! Of course, unless you expect to enlarge a shot to a huge dimension, you may not need 12 megapixels. You will get excellent quality with even a 6 megapixel camera, which, in fact, is what I have used to photograph the images on my website at focusingonnaturephotography.com [focusingonnaturephotography.com] . Visit my site to see the high resolution of a 6 megapixel camera! In a word, the 12 megapixel camera will cost more and will require more memory, thus eating up space on your camera's memory card with each shot. It will also be necessary to scale down the size of each image later when downloading your photos to your computer in order to send your best shots to your friends via the internet. The 12 megapixel camera may not be a practical piece of equipment for the person who wants to capture a family gathering or a hiking expedition or the kids playing in the pool and then email those images to family and friends.
More on megapixels, flash storage cards and batteries to follow in my next blog.
- Apr 5, 2008 1:05pm
- I was cut short in the space allowed in my previous blog so this is a continuation of some thoughts on purchasing a digital camera specifically for hikers.
Storage Devices. There are several kinds of storage devices called flash memory cards that can be used with digital cameras. Only one type comes with the camera you choose. You may want to look for the best type while you are making your purchase. You can't decide later to change the type card. Usually they fit into a slot within the camera. The card will hold the memory of the photos you have taken. Of the cards that were introduced in the mid 1990s, Compact Flash has one of the largest memory card formats of them all and they are rugged and durable in the field. There are many kinds of cards available in today's cameras and some are better than others. Check to see how many photos will fit on the type card that comes with the camera you are considering. Because you are roughing it when hiking, you may want to check out the durability of the card as well. Be sure that the camera will be able to hold a memory card for as many photos as you may want to take on your hiking trip. A 2mg card can hold about 300 photos depending upon the shooting mode of the selected camera. Taking a second card along with you, in case you need it, makes sense. The cost for cards is relatively little, since you can download your pictures when you arrive home and erase the pictures from the memory card and use the same card repeatedly. I have used one card every day for 6 months when traveling around the rim of the United States, taking 20,000 photos during that time. Each evening, I would simply download my photos of the day to my laptop and clear the card for the next day's photo shoot. Since then, I have continued to use that same card taking at least 10,000 additional photos on that card and my Compact Flash still lives on!
Battery Type. A lithium ion battery, that is rechargeable, appears to be the best deal available in terms of the battery rather than using alkaline batteries. If you are camping out on your hiking trip you may not have access to AC current. Taking a second fully charged battery pack along will not take much room and will be available when the first one peters out.
Shooting Modes. It is advisable to purchase a camera that has several shooting modes. You will see a dial with several images printed on it. Look for an Auto setting. I suggest you use the camera in that Auto mode until you are comfortable with handling the camera, focusing in on your subject, adjusting the wide-angle and telephoto settings, etc. At a later stage you will want to work in some of the other modes that are designed for your camera. You might see a mountain icon, a group icon, a close-up icon, etc. The icons designate a variety of variables like shutter speeds and apertures for your camera.
I would like to suggest some ways of making use of these shooting modes in future articles. For now I am merely making these suggestions from one who truly believes that no matter what camera you use, the important thing is how you compose your subject within the viewfinder. There are some practices that I would like to include in future articles that will make your compositions dynamic and successful.
Choose the right camera and you will have chosen a lifetime companion!
- Apr 4, 2008 8:19am
- This is my first blog on Stumble Upon and I'm not quite sure how this site manages blogs. The good thing is if I make a mistake, I make it among friends!
I've been asked to write about how to choose a good digital camera. The amazing thing is that there are so many great digitals on the market now that almost everyone can have a camera suited to one's particular needs. Some prefer telephone cameras, others point and shoot cameras and still others, like myself, will choose only a single lens reflex digital camera. The positive is that the quality of most of these cameras has improved dramatically over the past 10 years.
I will try to write in a few blogs about features to look for in the newer digital cameras based on certain lifestyles and ways in which the user may plan to use them. The first one will be aimed at hikers and backpackers. In time I will add blogs about camera choices with the hope that I will be able to anticipate your questions and answer them adequately. I will also comment on some practices that might be helpful in using your new digital camera. You can react, make additional suggestions and/or ask questions, I believe, right here on this site and I will be able to dialogue with you about them. Keep in mind, too, that what I contribute are merely suggestions from one who truly believes that no matter what camera you use, it's what you put into the composition that will really make a great photograph.
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