Photographer Akshata Joshi tells you how you can click professional looking photographs on your next vacation Shooting Outdoors Good Light Is Crucial Your best friend in the great outdoors is good lighting. The time of day is crucial. Morning light (available till 11 am), and evening light (after 4.30 pm)offer the best possibilities. The midday sun creates a raccoon effect, and can also cause your subjects to squint. <img alt="" src="/imagedata/2010/apr/sunset.jpg" border="5" /> If you cannot avoid shooting at this time of day, it is best to find a shady spot. The ideal scenario the warm yellow glow of the setting sun. Use the flash if you are shooting people at midday; this removes traces of shadow from their faces. But avoid using flash while shooting scenery in beautiful ambient light. u00a0 If you are faced with a low light situation, use a tripod or a still surface to rest your camera on. Shootingu00a0A Tora Tora, And Other Moving Images Slow Shutter Speed Is Key Let's say you want to shoot a horse in motion. If you are using a digital camera, increase your ISO settings (denotes how sensitive the image sensor is to the amount of light present); this automatically increases your shutter speed. u00a0 If you are using a point-and-shoot or an SLR with preset mode, set the mode to action or sports. <img alt="" src="/imagedata/2010/apr/shutter.jpg" border="5" /> This way, you can capture the movement perfectly. Similarly, if you are at the beach and want to capture someone splashing around in water, use a fast shutter speed (if you are using a DSLR) or use the flash mode (if you are using a point and shoot). This will freeze the person, along with the slashed water so that every drop is crystal clear. And if you are photographing the ocean, use a slow shutter speed and place the camera on a tripod or any still surface to get a soft, blurry, dreamlike quality. Shooting Landscapes Useu00a0A Small Aperture When capturing nature, high vantage points give you an advantage. If you are using an SLR, a small aperture of f/11 or f/16 will let you keep everything in focus. <img alt="" src="/imagedata/2010/apr/group.jpg" border="5" /> Most photographers use wide-angle lenses for landscapes so that you can include a lot more picture in the frame. A wide-angle zoom lens gives you more freedom in framing the scene and cropping out distracting elements. u00a0 If possible, place an interesting subject in the foreground to create a sense of depth. Similarly, use a small aperture to keep everything in focus. Shooting Still Life Use Telephoto Setting Rather than using direct, flat lighting, opt for slanted, low-angled early morning light, or even a mid-winter light. Both are ideal for revealing texture. <img alt="" src="/imagedata/2010/apr/colours.jpg" border="5" /> When you are shooting in close-up, let go a little and experiment with a range of different compositions. u00a0 If you can't find a worthy close-range subject, try a telephoto setting and find a target you can isolate from a distance. Shooting Indoors Set Your Camera On Manual Mode Before you click, ask yourself if you are using all the possible natural light you can. Open every window in the room and let the light in. Avoid using flash, so that your shots don't carry annoying orange overtones (which could happen when you are in auto flash mode and shooting an image from a distance). <img alt="" src="/imagedata/2010/apr/natural.jpg" border="5" /> Incandescent bulbs create an orange tint, while fluorescent ones, give off green. Some cameras come with a manual white balance feature to offset colour shifts. If you've got one, use it in rooms that have mixed lighting. Remember that a subject that's white will be bleached out if the flash is too close to it, while other parts of the picture will look dark. Set your flash on manual. This makes your camera sensitive to light and will help expose more of the background. As told to Diana Kotwal 4 Easy-To-Implement Tips Ensure the background doesn't overwhelm the subject, visually. Maintain a distance between the subject and background and keep the background mildly out of focus (if you are using a DSLR). Look for interesting light. There is no substitute for beautiful ambient light falling on your subject. In low light situations, opt for a higher ISO or a wider aperture. This will allow you to keep your shutter speed fast enough to get clear images. Make sure there is no visual overlapping between the background, foreground and your subject.

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Photographer Akshata Joshi tells you how you can click professional looking photographs on your next vacation

The amateur photographer's guide to a picture perfect holiday

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The amateur photographer's guide to a picture perfect holiday

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