Digital Photography Secrets For Creating Tack Sharp Shots

The most important ingredient for a spectacular photograph is to be sharply in focus.No matter how good the subject, lighting and color, if the picture is blurred it's not much good.

 

Photographers have somewhat varying opinions on what constitutes a tack sharp picture, but generally, a tack sharp photograph has good, clean lines.Instead of a soft blending of lines or even downright blurry, the picture has clear definition.

 

There are several things you can do to increase your chances of getting that coveted tack sharp picture.

 

Hand-Held Digital Photography Tips

 

If you’re hand-holding your camera, brace your arms against your sides to help steady the camera.If your camera has anti-shake technology like Vibration Reduction (VR) or Image Stabilization (IS) lens, this is the time to have it turned on.

 

You can also lean against a wall or tree or whatever sturdy object that’s handy, and help keep yourself and your camera steady.Another idea is to lean or lay your camera on some handy sturdy object to help steady the camera.

 

Steadying your camera by hooking the strap under your elbow and wrapping the rest around your forearm will also help stabilize the camera and hold it steady in your hand.

 

Getting those tack sharp photos while hand-holding your camera can be difficult, so to increase your chances of getting that perfect shot, use the burst or continuous shooting mode on your camera to take several shots at once.You have a better chance of one being in sharp focus when taking a series of pictures.

 

Tripods For Better Focus

 

There’s no getting around the fact that it’s easier to get a tack sharp photo using a tripod.A tripod holds a camera much steadier than you can hope to.  And like most things in life, with a tripod you get what you pay for.  A cheap tripod will help, but won’t hold your camera rock steady like a more expensive tripod will.To get the best results, buy the best tripod you can reasonably afford.

 

The more expensive tripods don’t come with the head attached.  You have to buy it separately, but that means you get to choose what suits you best.A quality ballhead on your tripod will keep you camera from sliding to one side and blurring the photo.

 

If you’re somewhere that carrying a tripod just won’t work, beanbags make a nice cushion for cameras in these settings.Beanbags cushion your camera, increasing your ability to move it to just the right position and keep it steady while you get a well-focused shot.

 

To improve your chances of a tack sharp photo even more, use a cable release instead of pressing the shutter.Though it might not seem like much movement, pressing the shutter can cause enough shaking to keep you from getting a tack sharp photo.

 

If you don’t have a cable release, the self timer will also work.It means that although you press the shutter manually, the camera has time to stabilize before actually taking hte picture.

 

More Advanced Digital Photography Secrets For Sharp Shots

 

If you have a digital SLR camera, there are even more ways to make sure your camera stays steady while taking pictures.

 

The first is to use mirror lock-up.This limits the movement inside the camera by locking the mirror in the up position until after the picture is taken.  This means to take a picture, you will have to press the shutter release button twice on your remote or cable release (you’re not going to all this trouble and pressing the shutter release on the camera are you?).  The first press lifts the mirror and the second press actually takes the picture.

 

The second method is to turn off the Vibration Reduction or Image Stabilization.  That may sound counter productive, but when you’ve stabilized your camera with a tripod and other methods, the vibration reduction keeps looking for shakes/movements.If the camera isn't moving, then the vibration reduction can actually cause shaking while looking for movement.A good rule of thumb is to use automated vibration controls when hand-holding a camera, but turn them off when using a tripod.

 

One last way to increase the sharpness of your pictures is to have good glass.The lens makes a big difference.Like so many things, you get what you pay for. A quality lens with good glass is expensive, but worth it.It's an investment in fantastic photography.

 

Use as many methods as you can to steady your camera, and you’ll have a much better chance of getting those lovely tack sharp photographs.