Digital Camera Mistakes To Avoid

(photo: PauloBrandao/flickr)

Consumer Reports featured some quick and simple tips to avoid some common mistakes when using a digital camera. However unlike when we used camera film, today we shoot many shots and choose the best ones when we return home. But as we all know this becomes a chore after a while. Better heed these tips to save time while on vacation and when reviewing the photos back at home.

Not reading the user manual. This will deprive you of features that could greatly improve the shots you take. You should brush up on it at home or while traveling to your destination.

Not bringing a spare battery. Even if you charged the battery the same morning, reviewing shots on the camera can deplete it by late in the day. Exposure to cole can also reduce battery life. Charge a spare and keep it on hand.

Trying to squeeze too many photos on the storage card. You can do this by lowering the resolution or increasing compression, but both will reduce the quality of larger prints. Memory cards are cheap. It's better to bring extra along.

Using a flash when you shouldn't. Flash can cause red-eye, wash out skin tones, and flatten scenes. To avoid using flash, shoot with the sun or light source to your back or move the subject closer to a window or other sources of light. Never use flash on a subject more than a few feet away as you'll get a dim subject with a black background.

Using a very high ISO. If your camera has this option it's tempting to crank up the ISO to the highest setting. But this will degrade the quality of the photos you snap.

Click HERE to view the full article.

Panoramic Photos of Waikiki Using Pano App

Click on either photo for a larger view.

A friend sent these which he made using the Pano app on his iPhone. Click on either panoramic photo above to view larger versions of both. You'll see that these photos offer great views of the the ocean along Waikiki and peak through the hotels of the area with Diamond Head in the distance. The top is taken from the Hilton Hawaiian Village and the one beneath it is taken from the Embassy Suites Waikiki Beach Walk. Click HERE to purchase and download Pano from the iTunes App Store for your iPhone or iPad2. The developer claims it's easy to use. Pano looks worthwhile for those moments that deserve a panoramic view.

Features of Pano:
- Take 360-degree panoramas with up to sixteen photos.
- Guide helps the user to line up each shot.
- Advanced alignment, blending and color-correction provide seamless images in seconds.
- Finished panoramas saved directly to camera roll.
- Final resolution up to 6800x800.
- Panos can be resumed if interrupted.

Times Square at Night (view looking south on 7th Ave & Broadway).

The first post. As an inspiration I thought it would be nice to start with a view of Times Square in New York City. It's one of those places when you visit for the first time you realize "wow" i'm there.