A Better Shot II: Learn to use Your Camera

Hey guys!

This is my second, "A Better Shot" post so far, and today I will be teaching you one of the most fundamental principals to taking better photos. In today's quickly advancing technological field, cameras with dozens of crazy features are the norm. Optical image stabilization, sports mode and manual white balance can all be found on a decent camera (probably around $150). And a simple way to take better photos is to know how to access and use these modes found on your camera (I may go into greater depth in future posts about how to use specific shooting modes).

Let me give you an example. My camera is a digital Panasonic DMC LS2. It is a basic point and shoot camera and has lots of features. Here... let's see. There is auto shooting mode, "simple mode" (for beginners), macro mode, sports mode, portrait, night portrait, starry sky and fireworks mode, just to name a few. For example; sports mode increases the shutter speed from around 1/150 or 1/200 on a sunny day to around 1/500 when there is sufficient lighting. This of course, can be very useful when taking pictures of a beach volleyball match or other outdoor sports game. The portrait mode enhances the "flesh tone" of a person's skin to reduce the visibility of blemishes and other marks. And of course, starry sky mode enables you to set the exposure from 15 all the way up to 60 seconds. As you know, my profile picture was taken using that mode on a 15 second exposure.

The point is, by using the proper features and settings at the appropriate time, you can get a much better picture than by just using "auto" mode. Here is an example:
















The top picture was taken using auto mode. The bottom picture was taken using the white balance setting "cloudy skies". Which one do you think looks better? The one on top, in my opinion, looks harsher and colder. In the bottom picture, the color tone of the sand is brought out more and the whole picture has a different feel. Although this might not be the best example, you get what I mean. Using these different modes can produce totally different photos than if you just use auto mode.

Here is another example; this photo of a Burton logo is very clear and sharp. It is easy to see the details of the printing and the textures of the bag. I took this shot using macro mode which enables you to take close up shots with good clarity and detail.

So before you sling your camera for your next camping trip, take a few minutes and get to know that 20-mode dial on top of your camera a bit better. Trust me, it will pay off.

kamster

Weird Pets

Wow. I believe that since the dawn of man, people have been fascinated with animals of all types, shapes and sizes for commercial, entertainment of industrial uses. However many of us see certain animals as more than just animals, we see them as pets. Cats, dogs, canaries and guppies are all common pets that people love to take care of. But have you ever heard of people having piranhas as pets??? I had never heard of that either. I always thought that it might be illegal to have ravenous, flesh-devouring fish as companions. However after looking up youtube videos the other day, I realize that many people do indeed have piranhas as pets, and furthermore take delight in feeding them live animals! Some might see this as cruel or inhumane to those poor mice but everybody's gotta eat right? Here is the link to a video with piranhas. But be cautioned; don't watch it if you have a weak stomach.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=McjCFRnjMNo

After watching this, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't want piranhas as pets. What if one night I was sleepwalking and I accidently stuck my hand in the tank? That wouldn't be pretty would it?

kamster

Child Labour: A Sound Choice?

Child labour. What comes to mind when you hear these two words? Torture? Injustice? Prostitution? Today I will try my best to present to you both sides of this controversial topic. Should child labour be allowed? What should organizations like the Canadian International Development Agency do about these kinds of things? Should they impose bans or step back and let life take its course? Before we begin, lets state some facts. Child labour is:

1. The employment of children of children under an age determined by the country through a law or custom.



2. Considered exploitative and uncivilized by most modern countries



3. Widespread; over 200 million children aged 5 to 7 in this type of labour worldwide

But let's consider. Is it right? Well to be honest, there are lots of opinions on this topic. In general, most people when asked will respond that it is unethical and that it "violates the rights of the child". This statement is not totally true. In some cases, the child is forced to work, whether by physical or emotional threat, or by sheer need (to pay off debts is one example). However, there are also times when the labour is voluntary (in an instance where the child is earning money to pay for school supplies). Both cases are child labour but they are very different in nature. So the real answer is; it depends. Without a doubt, children should not be forced to work for 12 horus straight, chained to a loom, weavings sweaters for rich citizens in America for pennies a day. However it can, as previously mentioned, be a plausible and practical way to sustain one's education. Let's see what the UN's stance on this is.

"Child labour has serious consequences that stay with the individual and with society for far longer than the years of childhood. Young workers not only face dangerous working conditions. They face long-term physical, intellectual and emotional stress. They face an adulthood of unemployment and illiteracy."
United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan

This brings us to our second point of contest; is it safe for children to work? Most people will answer immediately "No! Do you know how many children lose limbs working with machines in a hot factory each day???". In this, they are right; certain work places can be very dangerous. Exposure to hazardous chemicals is widespread in dye factories and machines in sweatshops all contribute the the yearly work injuries statistic. However, people do err in their assumptions that all child labour is detrimental to the childrens' health. Remember that child labour is simply defined as employment of children under a certain age. And of course, employment is not confined to back breaking labour for hours on end. Employment in a family business or even a self-run business selling fruits, for example, is considered child labour. Viewed in this light, child labour is not all bad. It can be a good way to earn money to support the family and also to purchase school supplies. So, child labour can be good or bad. It is simply that the situation determines the state of the child.

Thirdly, what is the effect of child labour on the child's education and his chances at getting future jobs? Obviously, working in a coal mine for 10 hours a day will have a serious detrimental effect on both his health and his chances of getting an education. Assuming that he survives the years of coal dust building up on this inside of his lungs, he will probably be turned down from many job opportunities because he never had a chance to go to school. However, other child labour like family employment or weekend jobs do not conflict with morning or afternoon classes during the week, and are a plausible course of action for a child in need of money.

Now, what are developed countries like Canada doing about child labour, and is what they are doing having a positive effect on the situation? As previously mentioned, child labour can be either beneficial or detrimental to a child's economic and financial status. However, what should always be protected are the children's rights. The CIDA (A CanGov agency) protects children's rights through its Action Plan on Child Protection. Because of the number of children who work around the world and the effects that work can have on children's development, helping child labourers is one of CIDA's priorities. Protecting the children's rights and respecting their decisions to work is key to preventing black market deals that include selling children into the slave trade and the prostitution business. First hand experiences have shown that imposing strict bans on child labour does not work in most cases, and in fact will worsen the situation. However, working together with local governments is a good course of action and may lead to a sound, plausible compromise.

So now that you (hopefully) know a little more about this widespread phenomenon, think before you immediately shout "CHILD LABOUR? YOU BARBARIAN!" to your neighbour the next time he mentions it =P

kamster

leave comments please!

A Better Shot I : Take Lots

Hey readers!

I was thinking, and since I'm really interested in photography that I'd start a weekly or so feature called A Better Shot. The goal of this feature is to show to prospective photographers and casual camera-toters how interesting and fun it is to bring your camera with you always. In this feature I will be giving you tips on how to literally, take better shots! So, here we go!

The first thing I must say about photo taking that is extremely important is to take lots of photos. Yes, that's right. Take lots. Although you may think that this is hassle, that it will take up space on your SD card and also on your computer's hard drive, it is well worth the few extra seconds spent uploading them. There is a very simple and rational reason for this. Yes, you may be a great photographer with an amazing camera but sometimes its really tough to get that perfect shot with the perfect lighting to use for your display picture. If you constantly think "OK I'll just take on shot and be on my way", many times you will miss opportunities to capture great sights just because you are afraid of filling up your camera's memory. But just think; isn't one or two great shots better than a load of crappy ones?

One good way to get around this is to simply increase the volume of pictures that you take daily. Don't be afraid to snap some shots of whatever catches your attention; those orange leaves perfectly positioned in that maple, the mist shimmering on the lake, whatever! Bring your camera with you always and instead of taking one shot of that Maserati, take ten! In this way, you increase your chances of getting that great shot that you will be able to treasure for months and years. I have a perfect case-in-point over there; my display picture (blur) was one of many that I took one night during a city drive. And it turned out great!

So, whadya waiting for? Get out there and get shooting!

kamster

[ Exposure ] Compensation

The first digital camera that I ever owned was a Panasonic Lumix DMC LS2. This was a camera that I purchased for my student activities and for casual picture taking. However, now that I look back, I realize I could have made a better choice. This camera is a decent "point and shoot", as they call them; however, it is not good enough for a professional photographer (this is why I am upgrading soon). However there are some good features to this camera. It has:

• 3x (to a maximum of 3.8x) optical zoom
• 5.0 megapixels (this was decent a few months ago when I acquired this camera but the standards are higher now)
• Many different scene modes (sports, food, portrait and night shooting to name a few)
• Motion Capture capability
• Simple Mode (for beginner camera users)

All of these features were attractive to me when I first was looking at cameras. However, after purchasing the camera, there are some things that I also dislike, and contributed to my decision to buy a new camera. Some of these are:

• Slower than I would prefer shutter speed (when using AUTO mode for taking pictures)
• Blur
• No sound capture for videos
• Some glitches (sometimes it freezes and tells me to turn it off and on)
• Sports mode doesn't increase the shutter speed enough to make it worthwhile
• Maximum ISO setting is 400 whereas it is 800 for most other cameras of the same line and/or quality.
• Picture acquiring program (included with camera) is sometimes difficult to use

This camera is good for the casual photographer, but I would personally recommend using it in daylight where the shutter speed will be higher (AUTO mode, outdoor shooting white balance) and a clearer picture will be produced. However, if you're more serious about capturing memories, then this is not the camera for you. Go for something a bit more expensive (or perhaps in the same price range, now, because as we all know, technology gets cheaper everyday) that will for sure have more features. Hopefully my next camera will have around 10 megapixels and sound capture as well. Hope this information was of help to any prospective camera buyers out there.

If you have further questions or need advice on how to take a good photo, give me a shout or leave a comment.

kamster

*edit*

My profile picture was taken with the Panasonic. I used the starry sky mode (because it enables you to set the exposure time from 15 seconds all the way up to 1 minute). I think it was set for 15 seconds when I took that shot.

No. 1

Hello and welcome to Up the Ante, my personal blog!

This site will be many things. Here is where I will occasionally write about my everyday happenings and different things I come across. This will include tips on photography, software, hardware, work and lifestyle choice reviews. Basically this is something that I like to call my "thoughtspace". Anything that piques my interest during the course of the day will be unloaded here and put into words. As well, you may find other tasy tidbits here; politics, social issues and work may recieve occasional posts on this site. Check back as often as you wish.

thanks!

kamster