I have no idea how to take good photos of myself in dresses etc. I have a digital camera and a smart fone, but no full length mirror in my house and dim interiors. Any tips on how to take good photos of myself would be very welcome, especially how not to take blurry ones. I've never thought about it before as I always only dressed for myself but so many of you girls manage to take such wonderful shots xxx
If your digital camera has a self timer, use a tripod and then take a picture close to a wall with a flash. The camera will focus on the wall and you should be in focus.
June told you the main thing about taking your own pictures solo. I just think you should always take many and I mean many of each pose or setting. You can always delete but you have to have them to make the best choices! So snap,snap, snap!
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]Fran
It's worth something just being around to Fuss!
Using multi shot cameras you can strike various poses and choose the best ones to keep.
Take photos outdoors in the shade of a tree with reflected light behind the camera.
A big white board will suffice and you can use fill in flash.
Inside with a mobile phone you need to use a mirror or have very long arms.
You do need to get some light inside even through a lightly curtained window is good.
Work on your elegance,
and beauty will follow.
Try with various settings of lights on or off in-doors, with and without flash.. As already said, take several in each pose as a digital camera should have a multi setting. Mine, a Canon PowerShot A490, so nothing special, has a 3 shots / 10 second timer setting, so I basically use that. Allows me to delete the ones where I don't look like an oil painting by a great master. Actually, I haven't managed ONE like that yet.Originally Posted by yonimeister
To avoid blur, you can focus it on an object where you intend to stand or sit, hit the button, run to said position within 10 secs, eject original object of focus, prep for photo. Alternatively, it should have an auto focus.
Rebecca (smart @**e)
I use a tripod, a very small remote control, and set my camera to autofocus. After I take about a bazillion pictures of myself, I am usually able to find one or two that are somewhat half-way presentable and decent.
You need to support the camera somehow and then you need to use the self timer function. You might need to focus the camera manually. One way to do that is to use auto focus on something that is the same distance to the place you will be and once focused, switch to manual focus so the camera doesn't refocus when you take the picture.
Chickie
sorry.. my head was in the gutter and read "need help with pornography". Why did I click the link to read this anyways ahhh!
Thanks girls, will try out the various suggestions xxx
LOL Aylineira. Next time I need some help with pornography I know just the girl to ask xx
Last edited by Lorileah; 02-01-2013 at 04:15 PM. Reason: when responding to multiple posts please merge them. Use the multiquote
And keep in mind that you ought to learn a bit about photography so that you'll know how to solve the problems you will encounter. For instance, if you're standing in front of a white or very light wall with a lot of the wall visible around you, your camera is probably going to underexpose the image to one degree or another, so learn how to use exposure compensation to bring the exposure up to where it should be. Same with a very dark background, only this time it will overexpose.
Carol
My name is Carol.
[SIZE="3"]Two more things. First, take a picture with your new tripod and self timer. Take a look at the shot and move your tripod so that you frame the picture properly with you as the main subject filling most of the frame with a little backgroud included to give the picture a sense of place. Second, be brutal with your editing. Narrow all your shots down to one picture per location and one picture per outfit. Just the very best and delete everything else. Who needs to save rejects? Then publish the very best one only. The one that makes you look spectacular.[/SIZE]
Lynn Marie
Click here to see me on Flickr
Other tips...
If you are tall the take your shots with the camera above you angled down and it will make you appear shorter. Vice versa if you are short and want to appear taller.
If you are plus size and want to be thinner then always pose at an angle to the camera, never square on to it.
Make sure your background doesn't clash with your outfit...try to always use a light colored background so that your outfits stand out and don't disappear into the background.
Don't look right at the camera unless you are taking closeups. If you look at something off to the side of the camera it won't appear that the shot is too "posed". You'll notice that this is always what is done in yearbook individual shots so it looks more natural.
Happy shooting...
I don't wear women's clothes, I wear MY clothes !
1] Avoid using flash if possible. Also avoid front lit ouside shots [especially] in the middle of the day unless you shoot in the shade and/or use fill flash.
2] LIGHTING is everything in photography. Open shade outdoors is good or backlit or sidelit preferably in the morning or afternoon hours. Even cheap cameras should have a backlit setting but you must set the camera for it or use manual exposure adjustments if possible. Use manual focus if you can [prefocus] and nothing less than 1/30th second if shooting manually.
3] If shooting indoors...anytime during the day is OK preferably in a corner of a lightly colored room with a window nearby. You'll get good fill light in a corner. IMO, shots handheld and/or shot in a mirror are just plain lame because even w/o a tripod a folded towel on a box on a chair or a stool or kitchen counter etc. can be used along with the self timer. I can guarantee you, no one ever died from reading their camera or phone manual to learn how to use the self timer. Unless you are extra photogenic, expect at least 20 "bad" [relative] ones for every "good" one. You can probably get a decent used tripod on Amazon for less than 20 bucks.
Keep the BACKGROUND simple/clutter free or blur it with a large aperture/fast shutter speed. It's easy to "soften" any pic by selecting a high ISO if your camera allows it which applies more voltage to the sensor. 1600 or higher will do a pretty good job.
In essence, LIGHTING is everything and you get quality from quantity.
If you have second hand shops, charity or thrift shops near, check them out and look for an old used tripod. Just make sure that you camera can be screwed onto it, or buy one of those small cheap folding tripods that are just a few inches high and put that on a table or chair. Also look for those cheap mirrors that are about 60 cm by 100 cm ( ft by 3 ft). Here in the USA they are super cheap and can help you get those full length shots too. Hallways and stairs are good places for pics to get the looking up or down poses. Good luck.
first you need to get a (phone) not a "fone" just kidding im one of the worst spellers on here
do what most of us do take a billion pics and keep the best ones.
One thing that I see a lot of is people taking pictures with a window, lamp or an overhead light in the picture
and the light gets all the attention not the subject.
Having my ears triple pierced is AWESOME, ~~......
I can explain it to you, But I can't comprehend it for you !
If at first you don't succeed, Then Skydiving isn't for you.
Be careful what you wish for, Once you ring a bell , you just can't Un-Ring it !! !!
Whilst we are on this subject please can someone tell me how you take a photo small enough and few enough pixels to put as an avatar.
Thank you.
Maria
most cams have timers right?
Maria, you have to take an existing picture and resize it with a photo editing program like irfanview (easiest I know of) or something similar.
Incidentally, if one has a Canon Powershot and wants to have more tighter control over the settings used to take your picture , try the (temporary, not permanently installed) CHK firmware. It adds lots of features (including raw file support) and the ability to add a USB remote trigger.
Last edited by Vickie_CDTV; 02-01-2013 at 08:12 PM.
I'll politely disagree about using a flash, unless it is the one stuck on the camera. Even then, it you are backlighting, or side lighting a subject, force the flash and it will illuminate the front of the subject and compensate for the bright background.
If your camera has a flash shoe, then beg, borrow, um, don't steel an accessory flash. Using this type of flash straight on the subject will over illuminate, but by bouncing the flash off a ceiling or wall will provide a very nicely illuminate subject
I realize many of the girls here won't have a DSLR, but if you have a friend with one, try to borrow it. You'll take much better pictures.
When writing the next chapter in your life, start with a pencil and eraser - my first page as Miki is full of eraser marks.
Yep, good point. A light in the photo or a bright window can really mess up the camera's ability to expose correctly. NO LIGHTS OR BRIGHT WINDOWS IN THE PICTURE, VERY IMPORTANT!
And be sure to not mix different light sources other than daylight and flash, which is usually okay. Don't mix indoor lighting and flash or natural daylight and indoor lighting, makes it really hard for the camera to get the color right.
Carol
Last edited by Julogden; 02-01-2013 at 08:46 PM.
Mine has the multi setting what does that mean?
Maria, if you are on a Mac, open the picture in Preview, not iPhoto, and choose TOOLS; Resize. Choose the "custom" drop down in the windoid and select 640 x 480. Easiest way. If you are on a PC, choose any editing program and do the same. 640 x 480 will almost always get you below 60Kb
Last edited by Jenniferathome; 02-01-2013 at 09:52 PM.
God I miss my 35 mm SLR's!
Be nice; It don't cost nothing.
What type of Digital camera do you have ?
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