10 Tips for Taking Sharp Photos - June 1, 2008 -

Youve spent your cold, hard cash on a great camera; yet capturing a crisp, sharp image still escapes you. Whats the catch? A professional photographer will tell you that the secret to sharp photos requires hours of practice and the proper technique.

Here are ten tips for taking sharp photos:

1. Do what professionals do: Use a tripod or monopod, especially when the light gets low.

2. When using the tripod with the camera shutter speed at a slow setting, use a remote release or the self-timerthat way you dont have to touch the camera at all.

But what about those times when you really cant do that?

3. Then become a tripod by keeping your arms and elbows close to your sides to steady the camera. Lean on a wall if one is handy.

4. As you shoot, press the shutterdont poke it.

5. Make sure that the camera has confirmed that the auto focus has locked on your subject (otherwise the camera might actually take the picture after you think you took the picture).

6. Set the ISO to a higher number, such as 800 or 1000. You may get increased noise (which looks like grain), but the camera will fire at a higher shutter speed, and that promotes sharpness.

7. If your camera has selectable auto-exposure modes, shift to Shutter Priority mode and set a faster shutter speed.

8. When it gets too dark, use a flash. Flash exposure freezes camera shake and subject movement because the burst of light from a flash is so very fast.

9. Watch for the peak of action and carefully time your shotthis is especially useful when shooting sports. If someone is jumping, for example, catch the person at the instant when he or she has leaped the highest and is about to settle back down to earth.

10. Consider a new camera with image stabilization. This can be built into the lens or camera to compensate for camera movement during exposure that will make subjects blurry. Its the ultimate remedy for a case of the jitters.

Kristine Knight is a professional nature photographer who specializes in Southwestern landscapes. As an Arizona native, shes been honing her art since childhood and in her free time teaches photography workshops.

Read more tips for better photography and improve the quality of your photos.

Taking Better Portrait Digital Photography Tips
Digital photographs of people are the most common type of photography around currently. It's not pictures of landscapes, dogs, or anything like that. Just because of that, it does not mean that most people photos are good. Most photos of people are lacking, missing something, and not really very attractive to look at. Hopefully by the time you fini...

Taking Photos In The Outdoors - Digital Photography Tips
Taking photos outdoors can be really fun. Be prepared though, as a lot of obstacles can come and prevent you from taking great photos. This article will give you specific obstacles I have faced and how I overcame them. Hopefully you can use this info to your advantage.Obstacle 1:The first obstacle I have faced when taking photos in the outdoors suc...

Easy Photo Taking Tips
Taking great photos is easy when you follow simple tips like the ones I'm about to give you. When you follow these tips, you'll start seeing improvements right away. Lets begin.Taking great photography is based on the way that you compose your photos. It is how you frame the shot. Every photographer will frame a shot differently. Even when both use...

Digital Photography Training -Digital Photography Tips
There are many different digital photography training programs out there nowadays. Unfortunately, most of them are not very good. They have handfuls of courses and all they want you to do is sign up for one after the other. This article will give you some photography information that should help you get better at taking shots easily.When taking pho...

Taking Pictures of People - Digital Photography Tips
Taking pictures of people is not as hard as it can seem at first. Of course, when first starting to take pictures of people it can seem very difficult. I remember when I first started taking pictures of people. They all came out awful and were all missing something that I couldn't pin down.One of the best benefits of taking people pictures digitall...

Nice Camera Tips for Enhanced Digital Photos!!
Just bought a new camera ?? And very excited to start taking photos with your new gadget??But Alas, why does the picture not look as good as you wanted to !! Fret no more, stay tuned below for 4 new tricks to taking more interesting and memorable photos.Trick #1 - Try out different camera exposure settingsBy exploring the exposure settings of your ...

Taking Great Digital Photos of Your Home
There are many reasons why you would like to photograph your home. No matter what the reason is there are a few simple tips you can follow in order to get better quality home photos that look like photos taken by professional photographers. This article lists few such tips.The most common reason for taking photos of your home is when planning to se...