MaureenH
06-26-2007, 09:30 AM
With the fun and excitement of Christmas in July coming soon, Meg asked that I write up some ideas for Christmas photos. Photographing those wonderful Christmas lights and scenes can be a challenge. Here’s some of my thoughts and tips.
INDOOR CHRISTMAS PHOTOS
Flash & Lighting. Generally, what you need to do is turn off your flash if you want a photo with that romantic softly lit feel. Turn on lights in the room, rather than using a flash. Flash can create that bright white in the front part of the photo and wash out the Christmas lights. Soft room lights might add enough light without overpowering the tree or decoration lights. Also try adding light in different ways…overhead lights, lamps or both from different directions. Here is an example of a photo with flash and the same photo without flash. If it’s during the day, you might try to position your subjects so there is window light on their faces. Both photos work but with a different feel:
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/Cecylia_Examples.jpg
Keep The Camera Steady. If you don’t use flash and it’s low light, like indoor Christmas photos, your photos will be blurry unless you steady the camera. Use a tripod if you have one or set the camera on a table or chair and use the timer. If photographing children who don’t sit still or if taking candid shots, you might just have to lean against something or use the night portrait setting so the flash goes off to capture the main subject more quickly.
Camera Setting. Mostly you need to turn your flash off and set your camera for a long exposure since you are photographing in low light. You can try automatic settings, for example, “night portrait” or “landscape”. The “night portrait” setting is usually where the flash will go off but then the shutter will stay open afterward to collect light in the background. In the first example below, I used the night setting for a long shutter speed to capture the sunset light, but my subject doesn’t have enough light on him. The second example is using the night portrait setting. The flash lit him up and the shutter stayed open long enough to still capture the sunset light. If I was using my SLR, I would put it on aperture priority with f11 to f16. Often you just have to experiment with a couple settings to find the one that works best.
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/LandscapeVsNightPortrait.jpg
Check your other settings. Usually and ISO of 100 or 200 (what you normally use), auto focus and automatic white balance will work well. If you have a digital camera, you have an advantage in that you can check your photo after taking it and see what adjustment you might want to make.
OUTDOOR CHRISTMAS PHOTOS
When photographing holiday lights outside, try doing it at twilight or dusk rather than dark. Twilight is after the sun has set but before the dark. It still looks pretty bright to us, but you should be able to capture the look of the lights without using flash. Use a tripod, lean on the open window of your vehicle or place your camera on something to steady it and a long shutter speed like “landscape” and probably turn the flash off. Again, light will vary so you should try different shutter speeds. Perhaps try both portrait and landscape. An example of lights my husband took outdoors at twilight:
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/Snow_Tree.jpg
Photographing Christmas Lights SUMMARY:
1. For most photos of holiday lights, turn off your flash unless you have a good reason to use it.
2. Avoid camera shake. Use a tripod, set the camera on a chair or table with the timer on...or at least brace the camera.
3. For outdoor lights, try taking them at dusk or twilight rather than dark.
4. Remember, all the same rules of photography apply, like the rule of thirds, putting your subject off center and getting close.
5. Sometimes blurry is fun to scrap with. Don’t be too quick to throw those away.
OK, so it’s not really Christmas, what do I do with the photos I already have?
I think this is really fun with the magic of Photoshop or equivalent program, digital graphics and digital scrap booking to give photos more of a Christmas feel than you were able to capture.
PHOTO editing program (photoshop, etc.)
In Photoshop or equivalent, you can try adjusting the exposure of a photo. I use levels. Depending on the photo you might want to darken it a bit or lighten just the midtones so you don’t make the lights too bright. I don’t want this article to be too technical so I won’t go into photo adjustments here, but check DSP’s Tutorials Page ( http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/university/tutorials/tutorials.shtml) and your own program’s help feature for how to adjust exposure in your program.
My family Christmas group is always very large so I try to get them outside to get as much natural light as possible on the group. Otherwise the faces in the back will be both small and dark. Then I add Christmas atmosphere with fabulous star and snowflake overlays & other Christmas graphics from DSP. Here is an example. You can click on the photo for a larger view.
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/2006_12_BreiningerChristmasGroupsOutside2.jpg (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=155117&cat=2491)
If you must take the photo indoors, try to do it during the day with lights on, window light, overhead lights and probably flash since your main subject is the people, not the lights. My original indoor during the day Christmas photo (I set my compact camera on the kitchen pass through counter and put the timer on.)
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/2004_12_Christmas_in_NC_43_original.jpg
Many people just want 4x6s, so DSP graphics to the rescue made this a much more prettier photo. I especially like the star overlay adding sparkle and covering up the bare ceiling.
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/2004_12_ChristmasNCGroupPhotoLayout.jpg
Finally for myself I wanted a 12x12 layout and also added the photos of the individual families that I also took then (click on any of these layout photos to get to larger version).
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/2004_12_ChristmasInNorthCarolina.jpg (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=117893&cat=2491&ppuser=4243)
I took this photo during the day putting up the tree so I blurred the background in Photoshop to get rid of the distracting non-Christmas background.
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/2006_DecoratingCrewBeth_Lynn_Laurie_Maureen_John.j pg (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=151258&cat=2491)
Another technique is to use a photo as background.
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/1991_12_Ron_Maureen_Christmas_Tree_Cutting.jpg (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=23301&cat=2473)
If your Christmas photo doesn’t look Christmasy, you can still decorate it for Christmas. and maybe use a photo that wasn’t even taken at Christmas. This one was at Christmas but could have been taken anytime.
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/2005_12_Maureen_RonChristmasWilmingtonNC.jpg (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=148836&cat=2491)
Thanks to the magic of DSP scrapbook graphics, this photo that doesn’t look at all Christmasy becomes a Christmas photo.
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/2005_12_Beth_MaureenChristmasCooking.jpg (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=117150&cat=2491)
Even if the photo isn’t real sharp, I still keep the long shutter speed to get the effect of the lights.
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/2004_12_Maureen_RonChristmasAtFireside.jpg (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=116933&cat=2491)
Finally if you don’t have any Christmas photos, here’s one I created with all DSP graphics, including adding the Santa hat to my passport photo.
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/2006_DecoratingAChristmasTree.jpg (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=116758&cat=3973)
I've also posted a summary of camera settings (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=196728&cat=2287&ppuser=4243)and what they do.
If you’d like a Word document of this article, send me a pm with your email address.
Hope you have a lot of fun at DSP’s Christmas in July! Maureen
INDOOR CHRISTMAS PHOTOS
Flash & Lighting. Generally, what you need to do is turn off your flash if you want a photo with that romantic softly lit feel. Turn on lights in the room, rather than using a flash. Flash can create that bright white in the front part of the photo and wash out the Christmas lights. Soft room lights might add enough light without overpowering the tree or decoration lights. Also try adding light in different ways…overhead lights, lamps or both from different directions. Here is an example of a photo with flash and the same photo without flash. If it’s during the day, you might try to position your subjects so there is window light on their faces. Both photos work but with a different feel:
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/Cecylia_Examples.jpg
Keep The Camera Steady. If you don’t use flash and it’s low light, like indoor Christmas photos, your photos will be blurry unless you steady the camera. Use a tripod if you have one or set the camera on a table or chair and use the timer. If photographing children who don’t sit still or if taking candid shots, you might just have to lean against something or use the night portrait setting so the flash goes off to capture the main subject more quickly.
Camera Setting. Mostly you need to turn your flash off and set your camera for a long exposure since you are photographing in low light. You can try automatic settings, for example, “night portrait” or “landscape”. The “night portrait” setting is usually where the flash will go off but then the shutter will stay open afterward to collect light in the background. In the first example below, I used the night setting for a long shutter speed to capture the sunset light, but my subject doesn’t have enough light on him. The second example is using the night portrait setting. The flash lit him up and the shutter stayed open long enough to still capture the sunset light. If I was using my SLR, I would put it on aperture priority with f11 to f16. Often you just have to experiment with a couple settings to find the one that works best.
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/LandscapeVsNightPortrait.jpg
Check your other settings. Usually and ISO of 100 or 200 (what you normally use), auto focus and automatic white balance will work well. If you have a digital camera, you have an advantage in that you can check your photo after taking it and see what adjustment you might want to make.
OUTDOOR CHRISTMAS PHOTOS
When photographing holiday lights outside, try doing it at twilight or dusk rather than dark. Twilight is after the sun has set but before the dark. It still looks pretty bright to us, but you should be able to capture the look of the lights without using flash. Use a tripod, lean on the open window of your vehicle or place your camera on something to steady it and a long shutter speed like “landscape” and probably turn the flash off. Again, light will vary so you should try different shutter speeds. Perhaps try both portrait and landscape. An example of lights my husband took outdoors at twilight:
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/Snow_Tree.jpg
Photographing Christmas Lights SUMMARY:
1. For most photos of holiday lights, turn off your flash unless you have a good reason to use it.
2. Avoid camera shake. Use a tripod, set the camera on a chair or table with the timer on...or at least brace the camera.
3. For outdoor lights, try taking them at dusk or twilight rather than dark.
4. Remember, all the same rules of photography apply, like the rule of thirds, putting your subject off center and getting close.
5. Sometimes blurry is fun to scrap with. Don’t be too quick to throw those away.
OK, so it’s not really Christmas, what do I do with the photos I already have?
I think this is really fun with the magic of Photoshop or equivalent program, digital graphics and digital scrap booking to give photos more of a Christmas feel than you were able to capture.
PHOTO editing program (photoshop, etc.)
In Photoshop or equivalent, you can try adjusting the exposure of a photo. I use levels. Depending on the photo you might want to darken it a bit or lighten just the midtones so you don’t make the lights too bright. I don’t want this article to be too technical so I won’t go into photo adjustments here, but check DSP’s Tutorials Page ( http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/university/tutorials/tutorials.shtml) and your own program’s help feature for how to adjust exposure in your program.
My family Christmas group is always very large so I try to get them outside to get as much natural light as possible on the group. Otherwise the faces in the back will be both small and dark. Then I add Christmas atmosphere with fabulous star and snowflake overlays & other Christmas graphics from DSP. Here is an example. You can click on the photo for a larger view.
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/2006_12_BreiningerChristmasGroupsOutside2.jpg (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=155117&cat=2491)
If you must take the photo indoors, try to do it during the day with lights on, window light, overhead lights and probably flash since your main subject is the people, not the lights. My original indoor during the day Christmas photo (I set my compact camera on the kitchen pass through counter and put the timer on.)
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/2004_12_Christmas_in_NC_43_original.jpg
Many people just want 4x6s, so DSP graphics to the rescue made this a much more prettier photo. I especially like the star overlay adding sparkle and covering up the bare ceiling.
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/2004_12_ChristmasNCGroupPhotoLayout.jpg
Finally for myself I wanted a 12x12 layout and also added the photos of the individual families that I also took then (click on any of these layout photos to get to larger version).
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/2004_12_ChristmasInNorthCarolina.jpg (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=117893&cat=2491&ppuser=4243)
I took this photo during the day putting up the tree so I blurred the background in Photoshop to get rid of the distracting non-Christmas background.
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/2006_DecoratingCrewBeth_Lynn_Laurie_Maureen_John.j pg (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=151258&cat=2491)
Another technique is to use a photo as background.
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/1991_12_Ron_Maureen_Christmas_Tree_Cutting.jpg (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=23301&cat=2473)
If your Christmas photo doesn’t look Christmasy, you can still decorate it for Christmas. and maybe use a photo that wasn’t even taken at Christmas. This one was at Christmas but could have been taken anytime.
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/2005_12_Maureen_RonChristmasWilmingtonNC.jpg (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=148836&cat=2491)
Thanks to the magic of DSP scrapbook graphics, this photo that doesn’t look at all Christmasy becomes a Christmas photo.
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/2005_12_Beth_MaureenChristmasCooking.jpg (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=117150&cat=2491)
Even if the photo isn’t real sharp, I still keep the long shutter speed to get the effect of the lights.
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/2004_12_Maureen_RonChristmasAtFireside.jpg (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=116933&cat=2491)
Finally if you don’t have any Christmas photos, here’s one I created with all DSP graphics, including adding the Santa hat to my passport photo.
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/data/2287/2006_DecoratingAChristmasTree.jpg (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=116758&cat=3973)
I've also posted a summary of camera settings (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=196728&cat=2287&ppuser=4243)and what they do.
If you’d like a Word document of this article, send me a pm with your email address.
Hope you have a lot of fun at DSP’s Christmas in July! Maureen