English Corpus

Firstly, in the tendency of thorough revelation, I need to announce that I own a number of cameras. They represent a mixture of companies. I have two Olympus’, a Fuji, as well as a Konika. Although I do have a preference for a particular manufacturer over most others, I’ll ensure that it doesn’t have an effect on my judgment of the other ones.

take the phenomenal Kodak C180 Digital Camera

In case digital camera sales are any signal of what the top brand is, then in accordabce Amazon.com Canon will be a sure-fire leader. As I write this, the aforementioned company makes 16 of the top 30 best-selling cameras as part of their best-seller list. This ropes in 3 amongst the top 5. Sharing the topmost spots with this brand are 2 of the units created by Pentax cameras. The subsequent top ones comprise of cameras by Konika. Following in the next spot are cameras offered by Minolta. And finally in a solid 20th position, that erstwhile and robust Sharp. gpoz324

A scrutiny of a topmost-camera-appraisal webiste under the five star grouping show 41 Canon cameras, 17 Panasonic cameras, 11 Pentax cameras, 7 Fuji cameras, 7 BenQ cameras, 5 Petri cameras, 3 Minoz cameras, and a Yashica camera. A subsequent site sited the cameras in the following way. The topmost was Olympus, at the seocnd spot was Pentax, third came Konika, and these were followed by Flip Video, Contax, Fujica, Aigo, Bolex, Lumix, and Leica.

By basically totaling these diverse outcomes, Nikon stood on top of the rest, Sony came in as second finest, and in 3rd position are cameras manufactured by Konika. All other brands continue to struggle for the highest positions.

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Street photography is an approach to photography rather than a location, although the streets are the usual place that it happens.

\”When I saw the photograph of Munkacsi of the black kids running in a wave I couldn\’t believe such a thing could be caught with the camera. I said damn it, I took my camera and went out into the street.\” Henri Cartier-Bresson

Alternatively it is refered to as no rules photography. The plethera of equipment (tripods, lenses,filters,lights etc etc) associated with \”serious\” photography is left at home, or better still in the camera store. Its just too heavy and bulky to cart around, takes way too long to set up and by the time it is set up the moment is gone.
Street photography is shooting from the hip.
Likewise the rules of photograph, the f stops, the shutter speeds, the rule of thirds etc etc are left in their dust jackets on Amazon shelves. By the time all the technical considerations are taken into account, the birdy is in another country.
Thank Canon, Nikon, Fuji et al for point & shoots.

It is just the camera and the photographer with their enthusiasm, intuition and open mind.

Street photography can be and often is: Out of focus; a tilted horizon; a soft focus.

Street photographers are optimists, for them the glass is always half full. They go out on a photo shoot with no plan in mind secure in the knowledge that this wide world of ours will provide. A subject, a situation, a scene will present itself all they have to have is the presence of mind to capture it when it does.

Street photography can be and often is: Odd things in the foreground; no central focus; odd crops.

Street photographers see the usual, the every day with fresh eyes. The reflection in a rain puddle, the colours in a crowd, the balance of a negative space. Their minds are open to all the stimuli that they see and they curse the days when they leave their camera at home.

Street photography can be and often is: very busy; a tilted perspective; upside down.

Street photographers are not only on the streets, they are at weddings,school concerts, next to you on the train. They look a lot like tourists, its their favourite cover but they are one without the big flash. It was left at home, the available light will do.

Street photography can be and often is: under exposed; blurred; suffering from vertigo.

Street photography is, what all photography is, a snap shot.
What shines through is the photographer, his/her interpretation of the scene, what they see in the situation, their reaction to the stimuli, the art they see in the every day.
Technicians take technically correct and often pretty pictures.
Visual artists, whatever their medium, create images that stimulate the mind, the heart and validate the human condition in all its guises. Because, after all, pretty is in the eye of the beholder and consequently very subjective, whereas art speaks to all who are prepared to listen.

Henry Bateman is an artist/photographer who finds a lot of his inspiration in the streets he wanders. His work can be seen at www.pissedpoet.com and this article with pictures at www.pissedpoet.com/art.html

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In case you propose to buy a digital camera, there are numerous aspects you must think about. For instance, for folks who would want to clicking pictures all the time, battery durability would play a crucial role. Conversely, if you are looking at this through the eyes of a specialist, your necessities will consist of image lucidity, zoom preferences, etc.

Try out the the distinguished Canon SX200IS Digital Camera

Also consider the:
* Olympus X560WP
* Canon A2000IS
* Casio Exilim EXFC100
* Pentax KX
* Nikon D700

In addition, it is imperative that you understand the key mechanics of digital prior to purchasing any one. A Very essential facet that is commonly spoken about is the camera’s mega-pixel (MP). The megapixel standard is a measurement of how clear your pictures could be, measured in pixels or points of colour. Every pixel is a single speck within the picture. Your computer’s screen also comes with pixels, and image printers have options for how many pixels per inch to produce.

If you plan on copying your photos to the computer and then printing them out as 8×10″ pictures, a five megapixel camera should be adequate. In case you’re simply going to show your images on a monitor, a television, or on the World Wide Web, then an aged three point two megapixel camera would work! Newer models come with much superior clarity and one can look forward to find cameras which come with up to 15 MP at the present.

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Reality TV is experiencing an upsurge in popularity and its presence has conditioned the public’s acceptance of a number of things:

• That lead actors being trained and polished ‘performers’ is no longer a necessity.
• Camcorder movement. As the use of ‘dollies’, ‘jibs’ and even ’steadycams’ to obtain smooth motion/tracking shots are often at odds with site and time constraints.
• Reduction in production values of video, lighting and audio.

Whilst a ‘reduction in production values’ may not inspire confidence, it bodes as a positive to the small time camcorder operator in reduced production costs. And the savvy camcorder operator can make up any shortfall with a little imagination and a lot of ingenuity.

“Anyone can be a video producer”, says Mark Sturge, of KMS Productions “technology has delivered the tools and there is an emerging group of people who know that (don’t tell anyone this) video and even television production is easy, if you have the right plan.

“Desktop video is a huge opportunity.” Mark goes on to explain “Everyday people are looking for special memories to be preserved on video tape or DVD. That family occasion/party/wedding or their children’s sports events filmed with a camcorder. And now getting their favourite sport or hobby on TV is possible. Yes… possible. And you can be the video producer that does it for them!”

Most people think that it takes big bucks to produce video for television or commercial release. The inside secret is that you can produce quality video productions with a relatively small investment - and having the right plan that can take you step-by-step through the process is a crucial component. Here are the steps Mark suggests you should follow:

1. Get yourself a high resolution camcorder.
2. Learn how to use your camcorder to produce ‘compelling’ video (this sounds obvious, but it can be where the majority of operators ‘drop the ball’).
3. Engineer cost effective solutions to produce professional production values (in particular the areas of lighting and audio).
4. Polish your production with your desktop editing system.
5. Submit your production to program managers that accept public submissions, create a professional looking DVD series to sell, shoot family/TV/commercial video in your home studio etc..

So what are you waiting for? Pick up that camcorder, boot up your pc and ‘Say It With Video’!

Mark Sturge is the owner of KMS Productions and webmaster at http://www.video-production-mastery.com/ A site where visitors can find information, training videos and manuals that help people to better their camcorder techniques or discover ways to earn an income from their video taking hobby.

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There are really great advantages in digital photography:

You can shoot till you drop

Taking digital images on your camera has no implication other then you have captured the image. Then you can review each image on the small screen on the back of your camera. You can shoot as many pictures of the same scene as you like - store them in memory - delete the ones that you do not like and print the one(s) you like.

Each image is a winner

Alternatively you can put an image up on a computer screen or email it to all you friends - can black mail be this easy?

Print at home or in a lab

You can print your image at home on a photo printer - turn your image into a greeting card, calendar, or a whole other list of photo memorabilia. Or hand over the job to the professionals.

So what digital camera should I buy?

A question we are often asked is ‘what sort of camera should I buy’? There are literally hundreds of different models available from a large number of well known manufacturers.

This is a difficult question, which might be answered in a complex way. Rather, here we have tried to emphasise the salient points and assist you in your decision.

Key components of the camera, which will influence your buying decision will include:
What do I want to use the camera for? How big an image can I print? Does the camera have a zoom? What size and weight is the camera?

How big an image can I print?

If your objective is to take a camera on holiday, take it onto the beach and up a mountain and to print memorable images of your time on 6 x 4 inch prints, then do not spend a lot of money on your camera. A small compact camera with an image resolution of 2 or 3 Mega Pixels will be adequate for your needs and should you drop the camera or get sand in its workings then you will be pleased that you did not spend too much money.
More serious photographers will want to make bigger pints or selectively enlarge. They will want a higher image resolution and will benefit from a zoom lens.
So - what is this MegaPixel thing? Well it is the image size - quality - taken by the camera. The higher the number - the better the quality and the larger the prints which can be made.

Does the camera have a zoom?

In past times zoom lenses were regarded as second best because of their distortion and fogging. This is no longer the case - zoom lenses are truly brilliant. 3 x zooms are common and 6 x zooms feature on the more expensive cameras. So you can have a single lens which covers both wide angle views and provides a short telephoto. All very usefully packaged in a lightweight camera.

Beware of Digital Zoom. This is a technique, which zooms in on a portion of the image by processing the picture and interpolating the image between pixels - a technique which always produces inferior results.

What is the size and weight of the camera?

Digital cameras do not have to be bulky or heavy. Indeed there are some very small models available, which will fit inside a handbag. However the more sophisticated gear tends to be bulkier - and heavier. Professional models with interchangeable lenses and external flash guns will require their own hold all.

Making the Right Selection

There is a fantastic range of digital cameras available on the market. Nonetheless manufacturers focus on their customers and target specific models at certain sectors of the market. The table below summarises the information, which we have discussed.

Basic camera

A fixed lens camera priced at less than £50 [Or $90 USD] which takes digital images of up to 1 MegaPixel - will be adequate for computer or television screen display.

Party Camera

A compact design camera with a fixed lens - cost up to £150 [Or $280 USD] - taking images of up to 2 MegaPixel - will generate good quality images suitable for printing up to 4 x 5 inches

Holiday Camera

Another compact design but with a 2 - 1 zoom lens and costing between £200 and £400 [$350 - $800 USD] taking images or between 3 and 5 MegaPixel which will be suitable for printing up to 10 x 8 inches

Serious Camera

A SLR style camera with a 5 - 1 zoom lens costing between £600 and £1000 [$1000 - $2000 USD] and producing images of up to 6 MegaPixel which will produce prints of up to 12 x 16 inches

Professional Camera

An SLR camera with interchangeable lenses and costing upwards of £1,500 [Or around $3000 USD], which will take images of up to 8 MegaPixel, which will print to poster size.

SLR stands for Single Lens Reflex. These are cameras, which do not have a separate viewfinder. Rather the operator looks through the lens of the camera. Momentarily before the shutter is opened a mirror flicks up and the light passing through the lens is allowed to hit the sensitive surface of the camera. In many cases the lens at the front of the camera can be changed for another type. A variation on this presents the image as seen by the camera in a digital liquid crystal display either on the back of the camera or through a viewfinder.

Flash. Many of the inexpensive cameras will have on board flash - remember that these will only work up to about 10 feet, and they might produce red eye. More expensive cameras will expect the user to use an independent external flashgun.

Camera Accessories

Most digital cameras come with interface cables and PC software bundled. So if you have a PC at home or work you can ‘download’ images from your camera to your PC, do basic editing such as removing red eye and delete the images you do not want! Your valued images you can store for future generations on CD Rom or another recording medium.

Digital Memory Media

Sometimes known as Smart Card, Compact Flash, Multi Media Card, Memory Stick. These are the memory chips on which your images are stored - some people refer to them as digital film. The larger the capacity of the media, the more images it can store. So buy one larger then you need - for now. Images can be deleted from the media - but back them up on a CD Rom or DVD before you erase the card.

Final Hint - Keep lots of batteries handy. Digital cameras use a lot of power!

Christopher Thomas is a keen photographer and company director of Viewlink Ltd based in Amersham, Uk. The company provides digital photo developing for both amateur and commercial photographers. For more articles by Christopher Thomas please visit the company website at http://www.view-link.com/guides.html

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All the world’s cameras, films and other photographic equipment are no more than tools for making landscape pictures. Cameras don’t think for themselves. Whether we use digital or film camera, the same photographic principles apply.

We don’t have to stick to many rules to produce great landscape images, but knowing what they are will make your pictures more successful. There are two salient points in landscape photography: how to compose your image, and how to use available natural light in any given situation.

Lets start off with light: There are three basic qualities of light: intensity, direction and colour.

Intensity: refers to the strength of light. If the sun is high in the sky, light can be harsh and too strong. Cloudy days bring soft and defused light.

Direction: this refers to light placement. There are three categories of light placement: front, back and side-lighting. Side lighting produces more texture between light and shade.

Colour: the colour of sunlight varies depending upon conditions and time of day. If the sun shines at the beginning or the end of the day, the colour of the light will be much warmer, and will lead to a much more dramatic scene.

Understanding natural light will develop your ability to see. You will start to see the beauty of light in a different and exciting way.

In landscape photography it is very important to take care with composition. A normal scene can be transformed by paying close attention to detail. Composition is all about how you arrange the elements in front of you.

Here are a few ideas in which you may find useful.

Lead with lines: To lead with lines into the main part of the scene will draw your viewer into your image. These lines don’t have to be straight. Lines, such as tracks, riverbanks or fences, may work successfully.

Foreground interest: Simple foreground objects can give your landscape a greater sense of depth. Use a small aperture (f/22) to keep the entire scene in focus.

Natural frames: Frame your scene with the elements all around you. This will focus attention on the main part of the picture. Trees make great natural frames.

These are just a few essential guidelines, and combined with a good eye, you have all you need to get the best out of photography - especially landscape photography. These are just a few rules to get you started, but like all rules, they are there to be broken.

TJ Tierney. Irish Landscape Photographer. www.goldprints.com

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