What can you do with the kids on a hot summers day... Why not take them to the beach and use them as your set of "little models". This will be a great opportunity to try out your new digital point-and-shoot camera, believe me you wont find a better set of models than your kids.
If you have just opened you new digital camera and just started to read up on how to use all it's features, you will be excited to put your new camera to the test and you have to hand the best models in the world... Now plan that beach trip and see how easy it is to use your new digital camera.
If your a serious minded and dedicated photographer, maybe even thinking that you would like to turn pro one day, now is the time to practice your photo technique with your new digital SLR camera and if you have already found a teen model, here is the chance for a real live teen model photo shoot.
But if you are just out with the kids and your headed for the beach with the intention of getting some great photos of them with your digital point-and- shoot camera, be careful not to expose them to much to the sun.
Here's an idea that will help. Did you know that the best time of the day for location photography is 2-3 hours before sunset, or 2-3 hours after sunrise. Apart from giving you much better lighting as the sun is low in the sky, it will also help in preventing serious sunburn to your kids.
Set your camera on the AUTO setting upon arrival at the beach and forget about all the other settings for the moment, you can learn those later on when as you gain experience with your camera.
When photographing your Kids, the number one rule is to get down to their level by kneeling, or better still lying on the ground, that's the first professional tip. Secondly take a little time to see what's in the background of your photo, for example checking that you don't have a lamppost sticking out the top of your kids head!
Here is another pro tip and this simple piece of advice will turn your photos into professional images and it's simply this. Move closer to your subject or zoom in to fill the frame of the picture. It's not necessary to include the whole of the beach in your pictures. By filling the camera frame with your kids you will give your images professional quality impact.
So take a few seconds to frame your photo carefully and make sure that the background is not cluttered and be sure to fill the frame with the faces of your kids. You will be surprised at the professional looking results you will get.
You will be aware that your Kids are not keen in staying put in one place for more than two seconds at a time, so here is a suggestion for capturing those images. Get them to build sand castles and you will have them in one place longer than a few seconds, this will allow you time to get down and compose you picture correctly, filling the frame in close up of your kids.
Another great way to capture some of your images is to set your camera to Continuous Shooting mode, capturing up to three frames a second and you may find a great image or two in the selection.
Also try to set up what looks like a candid shot, this can sometimes work well, or just follow them around until the perfect picture presents itself. Remember, you are there to get some great images not to sit around on the beach, unless of course you think you have caught some great images of the kids already, now it's your turn to relax...
Lets repeat the two main points again that I mentioned above, get down to their level and fill the frame with your kids in close up.
Now for the more advanced photographer and especially if your thinking of going pro sometime soon. At this point lets hope you have found a teen bikini model and together with her Mom your off to the beach.
You should plan your photo shoot carefully whether it's with the kids or a teen model and it's better for you to get into this way of thinking and planning. However, it's far more important to act in a more professional way if you propose to shoot a teen model on a semi pro photo beach location, especially If you are taking your photography seriously with the view of becoming a pro photographer one day.
For example, you will have to visit the proposed location a day or two in advance of the photo shoot and at around the same time of day you intend to shoot the pictures, making careful note of the backgrounds and of the lighting conditions.
Also keep in mind the best time of the day for a location photo shoot is 2-3 hours before sunset or 2-3 after sunrise, this is when the the shadows are long and the light is soft and ideal for a pro photo shoot.
You will need to use either a pro digital SLR camera, or a semi pro SLR digital camera such as the Canon EOS digital Rebel XTi, this is a great entry level SLR digital camera, delivering high quality sharp images, many pros like to use them, especially when the extra mega pixel image that a pro camera produces is often not required.
Planning your photo shoot is the most important part of your job by creating a list, writing down what digital photography equipment you need to take with you, typically a SLR digital camera, two different focal length zoom lenses, camera bag, separate flash gun, tripod. It's also very important to make a list of the shots you want to achieve and also have a list of the garments that you want your model to bring with her.
This is the way to teach yourself valuable lessons, as now your beginning to think professionally and as you progress from semi to a pro photographer, this will help with your future success, treat the whole excise as though you are already a pro and you will be surprised how soon you will obtain that goal.
Much of the above advice we have given here in photographing your kids, should be applied when shooting your teen model. Shooting from a low angle brings impact to your shots and framing your image carefully and checking out your backgrounds to avoid clutter is common sense. By applying these simple rules, you are not only making you images stand out as a professional photographer, but it will lead the eye directly to garments that you model is wearing.
Model fashion pose
Camera mode "SPORTS"
If you have a client that is interested in your work, this is exactly what he is looking for, but also show some creative flair of your own, even if you brake some of the rules.
When you set up your model in a standing pose, the rule here for fashion photography is that the camera height should be the same height as your knee. But remember rules are for braking so show some other creative ideas of your own as well. If you are working with a client he could be impressed with your style and this could be a career brake for you. If your stuck for a camera friendly pose check this out.
It will be necessary to use a separate flash unit for your pro photo shoot as the cameras built in flash is simply not powerful enough. You will also have to work with your separate flash gun set to 'AUTO', used at a ratio of 1-2.
Let's explain what is meant here. Suppose your using a Digital camera setting of ISO 100 and your can see that camera meter is telling you your exposure is 200/second at f11, a flash ratio of 1 to 2 simply means that you set the separate flash on AUTO to f8. This will reduce the power of the flash and provide the correct fill-flash balance.
If you set the flash also to f11 the same as the exposure, your image will be over exposed. Be careful not to set your cameras shutter speed faster than the cameras recommended flash sync speed.
I like to work with the camera set to Shutter Priority, then I can read the f. stop number in camera and with my separate flash unit set to AUTO, I then set the appropriate f. number accordingly.
When shooting action shots of your model, jumping, somersaults etc, turn off the flash and then set you camera mode to the "SPORTS" setting. In the summer this will give you shutter speeds of 800 - 1,000/ second, freezing the action, The f. stop setting changes to suite the shutter speed that the camera has chosen. You will not be able to use flash-fill with this setting. Many pro photographers use the SPORTS mode setting for action photography.
