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SALT LAKE CITY -- Have you ever taken a picture outside at night, and for some reason the picture comes out grainy?
Tom Thompson, owner of Saans Photography, says,"It's just a matter of the quality of your sensor, basically."
Thompson says the flash on many digital cameras isn't strong enough, so some cameras increase their sensitivity to light, making the picture look grainy or "noisy," as they say in the digital world. He says people should try to take nighttime pictures indoors whenever possible, but if you have to take them outside, make sure the camera isn't set to its highest light sensitivity.
Another thing to worry about is the camera's focus. Most cameras have auto-focus now, but there's a limit on how much it can do. If something is too close, the camera can't focus on it. So, that picture may come out blurry. Simply stepping back a little could help solve this problem.
Thompson says people need to learn the range on their camera's focus and flash, and taking a lot of pictures is one way to do this.
If you're shooting pictures in the day, he says you should leave the flash on.
"It helps fill in the shadows and it makes very nice ‘people pictures,'" he says.
Taking good pictures revolves around buying the best quality camera for the money. How can you tell you're buying one of the best? Thompson says there are many independent websites that review how well different cameras perform. He says you should look at the comparison of light sensors and optics, and never buy a camera solely based on megapixels.
"Megapixel is only one, tiny part of how good your camera is. It's way overrated in terms of how people rate cameras by the megapixel," he says.
If you can, buy a camera with an optical view finder. Thompson says looking through the view finder can help you brace the camera on your face.
"That goes a long way toward avoiding camera motion and it also helps maintain the frame that you want to choose," he explains.
He says it's much easier to hold the camera steady when it's pressed against your face than it is when you hold it at an arm's length.
E-mail: pnelson@ksl.com
