Table of Contents
Chapter 1 Pro Tips for Getting Really Sharp Photos 1
If Your Photos Aren't Sharp, the Rest Doesn't Matter
The Real Secret to Getting Sharp Photos 2
The Other Most Important Secret 3
Perhaps Even More Important Than That! 4
If You Skip This, Throw Away Your Camera 5
If You Do This Wrong, It Will Lock Up 6
It's Time to Get Serious 7
Getting "Tack Sharp" Starts with a Tripod 8
A Ballhead Will Make Your Life Easier 9
Don't Press the Shutter (Use a Cable Release) 10
Forgot Your Cable Release? Use a Self Timer 11
Getting Super Sharp: Mirror Lock-Up 12
Turn Off Vibration Reduction (or IS) 13
Shoot at Your Lens' Sharpest Aperture 14
Good Glass Makes a Big Difference 15
Avoid Increasing Your ISO on a Tripod 16
Zoom In to Check Sharpness 17
Sharpening After the Fact in Photoshop 18
Did You Resize That for the Web? Then Resharpen! 19
Hand-Held Sharpness Trick 20
Getting Steadier Hand-Held Shots 21
Chapter 2 Shooting Flowers Like a Pro 23
There's More to It Than You'd Think
Don't Shoot Down on Flowers 24
Shooting Flowers with a Zoom Lens 25
Use a Macro Lens to Get Really Close 26
Can't Afford a Macro? How 'bout a Close-Up? 27
When to Shoot Flowers 28
Don't Wait for Rain-Fake it! 29
Flowers on a Black Background 30
Flowers on a White Background 31
The Perfect Light for Indoor Flower Shots 32
Where to Get Great Flowers to Shoot 33
Stopping the Wind 34
Consider Just Showing One Part 35
Chapter 8 Shooting Weddings Like a Pro 37
There Is No Retaking Wedding Photos. It Has Got to Be Right the First Time!
Tricks for Low-Light Shooting in a Church, Part 1 38
Tricks for Low-Light Shooting in a Church, Part 2 39
Do You Really Need the f/1.4 Lens? 40
Getting Soft, Diffused Light with Flash, Part 1 41
Getting Soft, Diffused Light with Flash, Part 2 42
Use Your Flash at Outdoor Weddings 43
Finding That Perfect Bridal Light 44
Don't Spend Too Much Time On the Formals 45
Formals: Who to Shoot First 46
Formals: Build Off the Bride and Groom 47
How to Pose the Bride with Other People 48
The Trick to Keeping Them from Blinking 49
Formals: Where to Aim 50
Formals: How High to Position Your Camera 51
Formals: Don't Cut Off Joints 52
Formals: The Trick to Great Backgrounds 53
Reception Photos: Making Them Dance 54
Your Main Job: Follow the Bride 55
Shooting the Details (& Which Ones to Shoot) 56
Change Your Vantage Point to Add Interest 57
What to Shoot with a Wide-Angle Lens 58
Keep Backup Memory Cards on You 59
Back Up Your Photos Onsite 60
If Shooting JPEGs, Use a Preset White Balance 61
Chapter 4 Shooting Landscapes Like a Pro 63
Pro Tips for Capturing the Wonder of Nature
The Golden Rule of Landscape Photography 64
Become Married to Your Tripod 65
Shoot in Aperture Priority Mode 66
Composing Great Landscapes 67
The Trick to Shooting Waterfalls 68
A Tip for Shooting Forests 69
Where to Put the Horizon Line 70
Getting More Interesting Mountain Shots 71
The Trick for Warmer Sunrises and Sunsets 72
Turn on "The Blinkies" to Keep More Detail 73
How to Deal with the Dreaded Blinkies 74
How to Show Size 75
Don't Set Up Your Tripod. Not Yet 76
The Trick to Getting Richer Colors 77
What to Shoot in Bad Weather 78
Atmosphere Is Your Friend 79
Getting Rid of Lens Flare-The Manual Way 80
The Landscape Photographer's Secret Weapon 81
Keeping Your Horizons Straight 82
Shooting on Cloudy Days 83
Tips for Shooting Panoramas, Part 1 84
Tips for Shooting Panoramas, Part 2 85
Tips for Shooting Panoramas, Part 3 86
Faking Panoramas 87
Why You Need a Wide-Angle Lens 88
Want to Take Things Up a Notch? Shoot Low 89
Chapter 5 Shooting Sports Like a Pro 91
Better Bring Your Checkbook
Pro Sports Shooting Is Dang Expensive 92
Which Lenses to Use 93
This Lens Rocks for the Money 94
Stability for Shooting Sports 95
Don't Plan on Changing Lenses 96
Set Your White Balance for Indoor Sports 97
Shoot at a 1/1000 Sec. Shutter Speed or Faster 98
Shooting at Night or Indoors? Raise Your ISO! 99
Getting Burned by Indoor Lighting 100
Shoot Wide Open 101
Shooting in Burst Mode 102
RAW or JPEG for Sports Shooters? 103
Pan to Show Motion 104
Pre-Focus to Get the Shot 105
Shoot Vertically for More Impact 106
Don't Be Afraid to Crop Your Photos 107
You Need Two Eyes and a Ball 108
Don't Always Focus on the Winner 109
Composing for Sports 110
The Pros Know the Game 111
Chapter 6 Shooting People Like a Pro 113
Tips for Making People Look Their Very Best
The Best Lens for Portrait Photography 114
Which Aperture to Use 115
Using Seamless Backgrounds 116
Using Canvas or Muslin Backgrounds 117
The Right Background Outdoors 118
Where to Focus 119
Where to Position Your Camera 120
Positioning Your Subject in the Frame 121
Tip for Framing Portraits 122
Getting Great Light Outdoors 123
Getting Great Light Indoors 124
Taking Great Photos of Newborn Babies 125
Great Sunset Portraits 126
Better Natural-Light Portraits with a Reflector 127
Aiming Your Reflector 128
Use a Reflector When the Lighting Is Flat 129
Chapter 7 Avoiding Problems Like a Pro 131
How to Avoid Digital Headaches
Pro Tips to Avoid White Balance Problems 132
Cold Weather Shooting Means Extra Batteries 133
Don't Change Lenses in Dusty Weather 134
Apply for Permits to Shoot with Your Tripod 135
Be Careful What You Shoot 136
A Tip for Shooting on an Incline 137
The Other Reason Pros Use a Lens Hood 138
Keeping Your Lens Out of Trouble 139
Limit Your LCD Time to Save Battery Life 140
Bracket If You're Not Sure About Exposure 141
Avoid Red Eye 142
Remove Red Eye 143
Chapter 8 Taking Advantage of Digital Like a Pro 145
It's More Than Just a Replacement for Film
Level the Playing Field: Press That Button 146
The LCD Monitor "Gotcha!" 147
Edit as You Shoot to Get More Keepers 148
Take Advantage of the Blinkies 149
The Viewfinder "Border Patrol" Trap 150
No Penalty Fee for Experimenting 151
Don't Cram Too Much on One Card 152
Take Advantage of Poster-Sized Printing 153
You're Probably Going to Lose Your Lens Hood 154
Is It Better to Underexpose or Overexpose? 155
Keep from Accidentally Erasing Memory Cards 156
Which Brand of Camera Should You Buy? 157
Chapter 9 Taking Travel & City Life Shots Like a Pro 159
Tips for Travel Photography
How to Be Ready for "The Shot" 160
Shoot Kids and Old People. It Can't Miss 161
Hire a Model (It's Cheaper Than You'd Think) 162
What Time to Shoot 163
Look for Bold, Vivid Colors 164
Shooting Travel? Visit 500px.com First 165
Don't Try to Capture It All: Shoot the Details 166
The Best Shot May Be Just Three Feet Away 167
Shoot the Signs. You'll Thank Yourself Later 168
Showing Movement in the City 169
For Maximum Impact, Look for Simplicity 170
The Monopod Scam 171
What to Do When It Has Been "Shot to Death" 172
Including the Moon and Keeping Detail 173
Shooting Fireworks 174
If You Have a Laptop, Take It With You 175
Want a Rooftop Shot of the City? Try This 176
Getting "Nearly Tourist-Free" Shots 177
Chapter 10 How to Print Like a Pro and Other Cool Stuff 179
After All, It's All About the Print!
The Advantages of Shooting in RAW 180
How to Process RAW Photos in Photoshop 181
Compare Your LCD to Your Computer Monitor 182
Organizing Your Photos with Lightroom 183
How Many More Megapixels Do You Need? 184
Printing Lab-Quality 8×10s 185
Printing Lab-Quality 13×19s 186
Printing 17×22s-The Pros' Choice 187
Which Paper Should You Print On? 188
What Determines Which Paper You Use? 189
Getting Your Monitor to Match Your Printer 190
Download the Color Profiles for Your Paper 191
Selling Your Photos as "Stock" Online 192
A Quick Peek at My Gear 193
There Are Three Other Books in This Series 194
Learn More with Me Each Week on The Grid 195
Chapter 11 Ten Things I Wish Someone Had Told Me 197
When I First Started Out in Photography
#1: Buying a More Expensive Camera Doesn't Necessarily Mean Better Photos 198
#2: You Need to Sharpen After the Fact 199
#3: The Pros Take Lots of Bad Photos 200
#4: Learn Exposure Compensation 201
#5: Don't Worry About Manual Mode 202
#6: Today You Should Probably Shoot Wide 203
#7: Nothing Has Impact Like a Print 204
#8: Ignore Your Histogram 205
#9: Figure Out What Type of Photographer You Are 206
#10: Do What It Takes to Get the Photos You Want 207
#11: You Need a Portfolio 208
#12: Stop Reading Books About Photography 209
Chapter 12 Photo Recipes to Help You Get "The Shot" 211
The Simple Ingredients That Make It All Come Together
Index 227