- More tips on people pictures - by travel authority Howard Hillman

people tips & insights

Additional
camera pointers
on people

Note: For my unbiased camera buying advice, view my pages on buying cameras & equipment (see buttons in left column).

Lock in the focus

Almost all digital cameras now have the lock-in-focus feature. It lets the camera use your main subject for calculating the focus and light even though that person is standing off center. Read your manual.

Children

Don't over pose - Instead, encourage a child to have fun doing what he likes, such as playing with a souvenir.

Be quick - Don't make a child wait. Start clicking right away - and take many shots to get one great one.

Shoot eye-level - Photograph a child at his eye level. If you shoot peering down at him, his head will seem disproportionately large and his body, the opposite.

You

Don't forget to put yourself in some of your pictures. You can do it by using the camera's self-timer feature.

Or, you could ask a stranger to take the shot. But don't ask anyone to use your camera or your photo may end up tilted, unfocused or poorly composed. Look for someone with a camera who seems to know the ropes.

Warning: Watch out for a "I'll take your picture" ruse. It's common. A stranger volunteers to take a picture of you and your spouse together. How nice of him. You hand him your camera and he begins backing up (ostensibly to take your picture). Once he has created a safe distance between him and you, he turns on his heels and dashes down the street with your camera.

Common courtesy

Chances are you would find it intrusive if a foreigner came to your town and started snapping pictures of you without first asking your permission. Remember that feeling when you are about to take a picture of a stranger abroad, whether it's in a big city or at a small rural marketplace.

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