My tips for better blog pictures

Hello Lovelies,
I've had quite a few comments over time complimenting me on the photos I take for my blog, and (while I don't think I'm any sort of expert on the subject) it does make me happy to be able to take a pretty decent photograph.

So today I thought I would share some of the tips and wisdom I've picked up along the way. It's a different sort of tutorial and I hope you find it helpful :0)



1. Take lots of Pictures
I feel  so lucky to live in the age of digital photography . Remember having 24 exposures on a roll of film and half of them turning out to be duff !
In those days you had to ration your pictures to one or two of each subject due to the cost of photo development, but not any more. I will generally take half a dozen shots of the same subject from differing angles ..........

This goes for all subjects....not just crochet :0)

It's easy to delete any I'm not happy with later.

2. Good Light This is such an important factor in getting good images. I always try to take pictures on bright days and I know the best spots in my home to get good light.  It's great to take your projects outside to photograph when the weather is kind . Or choose a well lit part of the room .



 It's best to be patient and wait for good light if you have a completed project to share.
 If you finish it a 11pm don't take a hurried flash photograph and then expect your readers to really be able to tell how lovely it is .
Wait till a sunny, or at least bright day, then have fun taking lots of pictures in different positions.
You have put a lot of effort into creating your project so do it justice with some detailed, well lit photos.

3. Turn off the Flash. Cameras often flash automatically when it's not really advantageous . I hardly ever publish a flash photo on my blog as I really dislike them. They wash out colour and make everything look so harsh.

4.Get to know your Camera and take it Everywhere. Play about with your camera , test out different settings to see if you can improve your pictures. My own camera is a  Canon IXUS  simple compact.

 I chose it because Lucy has the same make and I so admire her pictures.

 It's not perfect and struggles to capture red clearly .

It also hates too much contrast ....like capturing the true colours in the sky and land at the same time . But despite those shortcomings I still LOVE it. We are like old friends.It's great at Macro pictures, has a setting called foliage that heightens the colour in most pictures ( I leave it in that setting most of the time as to my eyes it makes the colours more true to life).

For pictures in low light I've found the "Aquarium" setting works well. Your camera will probably have something similar though it may use different names. 

It's small enough to carry everywhere ( in a protective case ) and still works well after nearly three years of blogging and several thousand photos. Including getting shaken around when I take it running !

Part of me would love a digital SLR but I know I would still end up using a compact most of the time when I'm out and about.

5.Think about the Background If you are taking a picture of something movable then  position it against a pretty background. Or if the subject doesn't move take your picture from an angle that has the best possible background.

6.Staging This follows on from background. It's not cheating to make up a bit of a "set" to add interest to your pictures. My home has lots of clutter,family stuff and boring bits, but I don't think my readers want to look at them.....this is my pretty space.

 I choose my angle carefully and maybe add flowers,ornaments,books,crockery, magazines,food, crochet or fabric to my pictures .
Staging is  creative and fun in it's own right and all the home magazines are experts at it. It simply gives your readers more pretty things to look at...........

7.Get Close up. If your camera will take macro images ( it's the button with a flower on mine ) then make the most of it. It's wonderful to be able to enlarge tiny details on so many things. I especially love taking close ups of flowers.Mother nature is amazing viewed close up............

8.Interesting Angles As I mentioned before I take lots of pictures from different angles. Things look completely different viewed from different perspectives.........

9. Copy those that Inspire you. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and all that. Really look at photo's you love and think about what it is that attracts you about them.

10.Upload Tips.....THINK BIG I visit many blogs that have lovely pictures but they are tiny so just don't have the impact created by a larger image. I write my posts and upload images in Bloggers "compose" option. The pictures are small but if you click on them you can re-size...I choose "extra large".

11. Enjoy as you practice and find your results improving hopefully you will get real enjoyment from this simple , free (once you own a camera obviously) hobby.

My top blogs for wonderful Photography
Attic 24
The Quince Tree
Posy Gets Cozy
Country Rabbit
Curlew Country
Tales from a happy house
Foxes Lane
Of course there is more to a blog than just  photographs, and these beautifully written blogs are so much more than just a series of great photos. I'm just concentrating on the photography aspect of blogging for this post.

I hope these tips will help any of you lovelies who struggle with photography to get better results this year.
I'm always happy when I can record pretty things or family moments.
Like my craft , being able to share pictures here adds greatly to my enjoyment of photography....so thank you :0)
Jacquie x

Edited to Add :- Since June 2013 I have mostly been using THIS camera. It's picture quality is very similar to my old IXUS but I do love it's better Zoom.
Jacquie x

Edited again :- Since January 2105 I have been using THIS camera. Not quiet as good a zoom as I would like, but I'm generally very happy with it's pictures....and I love the purple :0)
Jacquie x