Naturally the photo workshop instructor, David Luria, recommended that I turn the dial on my new Panasonic point-’n-shoot to “P,” so that I could control my camera.
Naturally, after class I turned it right back to iA, meaning intelligent automatic. This super-fast Lumix DMC-ZS7 (with a Leica lens) takes the best photos I’ve ever shot, and I’ve used some superb cameras.
With iA, I can focus on other techniques. Says Luria:
1– Get close and get low. Note to self: need stronger thighs.
2 — Stabilize yourself by standing with your legs apart with one leg ahead. Note: And squat low at the same time?
3 — Telephoto always blurs the background; wide-angle always gives a sharp background.
4 — Move the center-of-interest out of the [damn] center.
5 — Golden hours when everything looks beautiful: hour before/hour after sunrise and sunset. Note: Kindest time to shoot friends, not in dark restaurants after a wine or two.
Set the Speed (S) to 1,000-2,000ths of a second and you can capture raindrops falling.
Set S to 2 or 3 seconds, put your camera on a tripod, and passing cars will disappear from your photos — they are traveling too fast to be recorded!!!!
~~~~
Penn Camera Classes: “Photo Safari – The Essence of Good Photography,” Newseum, August 1, 2010.