Awe Scrap!

photographing kids' sporting events

If your kids are athletic chances are you are out at games pretty often this time of year.  It's really hard sometimes to get any good shots stuck out in the crowd.  Your kid might not be thrilled but you might want to show up early and ask the coach for permission for you to take photos during warm ups or pratice.  This way you can get up a bit closer.  Good luck!

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photo tips for holiday cards

You can save money by having a friend or family member take your family photo for your holiday greetings.  Here are a few tips to help make your photo session go smoothly.

Take the pictures early in the day:  Everyone is fresher and morning light is best for outdoor shots.  Especially avoid direct sunlight on your faces.

Get close together:  Try to have everyone almost touching without being smushed together.  A little space in the lens will be a bigger space in print.

Block out distractions:  Zoom in to focus on your faces and use a dark blanket as a backdrop.  The results will look really professional.

Show your best angle:  Take the shot from slightly above eye level  Look up slightly to eliminate double chins.

Go it alone:  It might be fun to do individual shots with each member holding a festive letter to spell out a word like NOEL or MERRY.

Kids go last:  Situate adults and older kids before posing the kids to avoid them having to be still so long.  Tell a joke and give a little tickle to help catch a fun reaction. 

I hope you find these helpful.  I love all the family photo greetings I receive every year.  Thanks for visiting www.awescrap.com.

get better photo panoramas

I just read an article in Popular Photography (Sept 2009) written by Kathleen Davis.  She shared her tips on taking dazzling panoramas.  Here's what she suggests:

The basic trick is to be sure and capture the photos correctly so that when you merge or stich them together they are ready to go.  Make sure to shoot it level.  Take a few test shots to be sure.  Ensure that your horizon or any horizontal line in the frame is straight across.  Position so that the images overlap by between one-third and one-half of the previous frame.

I hope this helps next time you are photographing.

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photographing groups

Summer is the time for family reunions so let's review ways to get a great shot!

Groups look friendlier when close together.

Try to have your subjects interact and not just stand in an arranged pose.  Give thought to your background and consider "props" or a family pet.  Sometimes catching kids interacting with a pet will make the moment more relaxed.  Try to "catch" children in their natural rhythms for the best facial expressions. 

Shoot from different angles.  Reject the straight eye-level.

photography how-to

When photographing a person outdoors near water, to be sure to capture the entire reflection in the water remember to step back a little ways.  

top shots

Did you know that most cameras crop a part of the picture you can not see through the lens?  When you look through the frame, you get 10% to 15% more than what you can actually see through the frame of the camera.  It's wise to peek around the edges before pressing the shutter.

Thanks for stopping by www.awescrap.com, enjoy your visit!  

your pet with Santa

Park Meadows Mall welcomes your friendly dogs and cats for a photo op with Santa 6-8 PM tomorrow December 15th from 6-8 PM

Photo Guidelines

Remember the three elements of a photograph: foreground, subject and background.  Where is the subject located?  Use objects, colors and shapes in the foreground and background to make a frame around the subject or to direct attention to it.

Try to make either the foreground or the background take up a larger area of the image; for example, by having the horizon low and the subject silhouetted against the background, or by standing above the subject and having them in the foreground with the horizon at the top of the image or even out of the shot.

Photo Help

Strike a pose with these photo tips

• Avoid a plastered on grin by glancing down at the ground andthen back up just before the flash goes off
• When standing, angle your body 45 degrees to the left or right to create a more flattering and slimming shot.
• Open eyes up wide for a few seconds before your photo is taken.   

Don't let the memory fade.

Use Preserve It! by Krylon, available at most craft stores to protect and double the life of your digital prints.  It protects against fading and smudges.  It can also be used to preserve scrapbooking materials like newspaper articles and traditional photographs.