The Beauty of Black and White Photography

It's called black and white photography, but it's so much more. There's the black at one end of the spectrum, white at the other end, and a whole lot of beauty in between. Just like the old black and movies of the 1940s, black and white photographs can appear classic and romantic.

Black and white photography is all about contrast. Texture creates a great deal of interest in a black and white picture. Shooting from different directions and different times of day will produce shadows and shading and result in an entirely different picture of the same subject.

If you're new to the world of photography, beginning to photograph in the simplicity of black and white allows, or forces, you to focus on the real subject of the photograph and nothing else. You're not distracted by the color, which can sometimes detract from the picture. Whether you use film or digital, black and white photography is at your fingertips.

Consider investing some time doing research. There are some good books devoted to the art of black and white photography. But nothing can replace experimenting as one of the best ways to learn. Most beginners look for bright, sunny days to grab their camera bags and head out for a day of photography. These conditions aren't what will produce the most striking black and white images. To get some really amazing shots, take your camera bag and go out early in the morning when there's some frost or fog across the field, lake, or mountains and take as many shots from various directions to capture the pure beauty of the landscape. Take some shots during an active thunderstorm from your porch or on a gray, misty day in the forest.

Portraits are another photographic category that lend themselves nicely to black and white photography. Where color shows every blemish and blotch on the skin, black and white tends to lessen the flaws of the skin tone and presents a softness. Many brides choose to have some black and whites included in their wedding albums. It adds an elegance and, again, there's the undeniable romantic touch it lends to the collection of photos.

So watch the weather channel and keep your camera bag stocked and ready for those cloudy, overcast days to shoot some of the most perfect black and whites possible. Have some places already selected that you want to photograph so you don't waste your day looking for a subject. Make sure you have charged your camera or have extra batteries. And most importantly...HAVE FUN!

Suzanne VanDeGrift has developed this article for M-ROCK.COM, manufacturer of a Fanny-Pack Camera Bag

Film vs Digital - Which is Better?

Ever since digital photography was first introduced to mainstream photographers in 1990 there has been a never-ending debate on which format is better -- film or digital.

Many photographers will swear by film and some have even vowed to never use digital as a testament to traditional photography and developing. They believe that using film produces much better results and is much more natural than digital cameras can achieve. To a certain extent this is true, but digital is growing fast and, much to the dislike of many photographers, film will eventually die out.

Digital cameras have opened up a whole new range of possibilities for photographers. They allow the photographer to take as many shots as their storage card can fit until the perfect shot is achieved. Once the images are then uploaded onto the computer, they are then able to further manipulate the image and color correct it -- something that was not previously possible with film. It allows for the photographer to easily weed out the bad images and only print the good.

With the introduction of digital cameras came digital labs. While the concept is still relatively new, digital labs are able to print with near perfect precision (in regards to color). Images are able to be printed exactly how they appear on the photographer's LCD monitor.

So which is better? While both have their advantages and disadvantages, digital comes out on top. The possibilities with digital photography are endless -- the only restriction is the photographer's creativity.

What is the Best 35mm Slide Scanner For Older Slides?

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The 35mm slide scanner is a boon for people who were born well before the advent of digital era and have stocks of 35mm slides and negatives stored away in cupboards, garages, attics or under the stairs with lots of memories captured in them. The purpose for doing so is to re-live and commemorate those precious moments again on special occasions and family gatherings. However, that seldom happens and the negatives and slides are left untouched for years. This is mainly because it is just not that easy to recover and set up the 35mm slide projector and the screen. Well, today you don't have to go through such troubles every time you want to share the forgotten memories with your friends and family.

With the advancement in the technology, you can now very easily resurrect your older slides and negatives by using a 35mm slide scanner. A negative and slide scanner allows you to convert your older slides and negatives into a digital format that can then be stored on your PC. You can easily share these saved files with your friends, relatives and family members in different ways like you can email them, post them on social network sites like MySpace or Facebook, burn them to CDs or DVDs, or just get them printed in different sizes and formats.

So, if you have loads of 35mm slides and negatives, and want to restore them so that you can share them with others then you should get a slide and negative scanner. That brings us to the important question - "What is the best 35mm slide scanner for older slides?"

Well, there are lots of models and brands of slide scanners that are available in the market. Fundamentally, they can be classified in two categories - dedicated slide scanner and multi-purpose flatbed slide scanner. The difference between the two is that the dedicated scanner can only scan slides and films while the flatbed one cannot only scan slides and films but also documents and photos.

Some of the leading brands you can choose from include Cannon, Nikon, HP, Epson, Kodak, Polaroid, Olympus, Microtek, Minolta and Leaf. The scanners from are available in different price ranges from low to high end. However, focusing only on the price and brand won't help you get the best. You also need to consider the features, quality and the use of product before buying one.

One of the important aspects you need to consider when buying a scanner is the purpose for which you are going to use it. If you simply want to scan the older slides that you have, then a low end product will do. On the other hand, if you are a photographer who takes pictures regularly, then you should opt for a mid-range product. However, if you run a publishing and printing business that requires you to scan huge quantities of films and slides, then you should certainly need a high-end product.

The resolution of the scanner is another thing that you should consider. The higher the resolution is, better the end product will be. The software that comes along the scanners is another important feature that you need to look for. Make sure that it will help you to accomplish your tasks like scanning, storing and editing easily.

Selecting a best 35mm scanner for older slides not only depends on pricing and brand name of the product but also its features and purpose. Go for one that fits in your budget and fulfills your needs.

Different Types of Lenses For Your DSLR

There are many types of lenses available in the market to suit your photography needs. For beginners, it can be painful to decide what lenses to get. Before cracking your head on this question, it is important to first to identify what you like to photograph.

Different lenses will suit different types of photography, thus it is important to get the right tool for the right task! Zoom lenses are getting very common and popular with respectable results as technology advances. They are very convenient to use and you do not have to keep switching between lens for different needs.

In this articles, I will share with you a few common type of lenses used, namely Standard zoom, Telephoto zoom, Wide-angle zoom, Prime and Macro lens. It is important to understand the difference between them, so that you will know what type of lenses to get for your photography needs.

Standard zoom lens normally have a focal length between 18mm to 55mm or slightly more. Such lens is commonly offered as kit-lens and is a good lens to get started with for beginners. This wide range of focal lengths are most suitable for landscapes and portraits.

Telephoto zoom lens offers longer focal length typically from 70mm and beyond. This type of lens is perfect when you want to get close to the action and isolate your subject. Photographers who likes shooting sports or wildlife, will get a telephoto lens with focal length of at least 400mm.

Wide angle lens is a lens every landscape photographers will want to have. Dedicated wide angle lens offers focal length as short as 10mm to 12mm. This will be good if you want to get everything into your frame or if you want to get up close to the subject.

Prime lens offers single focal length example 35mm, 50mm, 200mm, etc. 50mm prime lens is many photographers' favorite, commonly used for portraits. As prime lens offers single focal length, its construction is simpler and thus expect less distortions to the imagines.

Macro lens is useful when you want to get really up close to the subject. Macro lens is able to let you achieve a life-size shot, where the subject will be recorded as the same size it would be if it was placed directly on the sensor. You will commonly see photographers taking close-up of insects, flowers, etc using macro lens. Macro lens can also be used as portrait lens too.

Now that you have a general idea on the characteristics of different types of lens, you are able to make a better choice, once you know what you like to photograph!

SLR Camera Batteries

Picking a SLR battery for your camera is not something you have many options for. Each camera does not fit every SLR battery. More specifically, each SLR camera generally has a few batteries that fit it. Some cameras let you use rechargeable batteries, and some others allow you to use AA batteries. No matter what, it is always best to have a spare battery, as the worst feeling is when you are in the middle of taking amazing photos, and your battery dies. Many of us have been there, and at that moment you wish you had a spare. Here are some of the best SLR camera batteries that you should definitely consider:

SLR digital cameras use a lot of power every time you take a picture, unlike film SLR cameras. Every time you take a picture with an SLR

Getting good SLR camera batteries, is never an easy thing, due to the constantly changing technology. Fortunately, there are plenty of helpful websites online, that can narrow down your search and help you find the camera batteries with all the features important to you.

Fuji Digital Cameras

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Fuji digital cameras entered the market in the late 90's. Started in Japan in 1934, Fuji has always tried to stay ahead of the pack. The history of this company is rather interesting so let us take a look at it.

Started in a small Japanese in the foothills of Mt. Fuji, the Fuji Film Co. Ltd was founded in the year 1934. At that time, no one could imagine that such a small camera making company would become a million dollar global name known all across the globe within a span of 50 years. Today, Fuji is known for its great digital cameras and innovative technology.

It took Fuji 35 years to come to the USA. In the US, Fuji again started small with the establishment of a six person office in the Empire State Building in New York City. Within a span of four years, in 1969, the company had expanded itself so fast that the

Morgan Guaranty Trust Company issued American Depository Receipts (ADRs) on Fuji Photo Film stock.

In 1976, Fuji Film launched the world's first ISO 400 color print film. This was the fastest color still photo film present in the world during that time. Then, in 1980, Fuji launched the fastest color motion picture film - the A-250. After this, Fuji became the official sponsor of the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984.

One of the biggest launches in camera history made by Fuji was the QuickSnap in the year 1986. The QuickSnap was a one-time-use camera and it became an instant hit in the market. Due to its usefulness, easy-to-use convenience and price, the QuickSnap became the market leader during its time. Improvising on the QuickSnap, Fuji introduced the world's first one-time use 35mm camera with a flash in the year 1988.

Fuji was not a company which could be left behind as far as digital technology and digital cameras was concerned. Even though Sony overtook Fuji in the race of introducing the first digital camera, Fuji gave the world the first digital camera with removable media in the year 1988.

Today, Fuji has firmly established itself in the digital revolution. It has continuously innovated itself and made several product launches such as the MX-700 in the year 1998, which was the world's smallest and lightest mega pixel digital camera at that time. Fuji has also made forays into digital printing technology.

Not only this, but Fuji is a conscientious of the environment as well. In the year 2000, Fuji made a $7.8 million contribution in the construction of the Fuji Film Giant Panda Conservation Habitat in Washington DC in order to bring two giant pandas from China to the USA.

From the NANO CUBIC Technology which allows digital videotapes to increase their recording capacity to 1000 two-hour movies in 2001 to the xD-Picture Card, which was the smallest storage media in the market in 2002; Fuji continues to introduce newer and newer digital technologies today. Some of the newest digital cameras introduced today are:

A-Series : Automatic point-and-shoot cameras for basic users.

E-Series : Full featured, compact cameras with manual control as well.

F-Series : Ultra compact cameras in different styles with full features.

S-Series : Advanced cameras with optic controls for advanced users.

S-Pro Series : Extremely advanced cameras for professionals.

Advantages and Types of Digital Cameras

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Advantages: Digital cameras are fast growing in popularity over the old 35mm film cameras. The digital ones are designed to capture and store images digitally rather than on film which has to be developed and processed. With a digital camera you have the option of immediately viewing the picture you just took to see if it came out good.

If not, there's the option of deleting the image and retaking the picture. With the 35 mm film cameras once you took the picture, there was no way of knowing how it turned out until after it's been developed and that's when you realize that Uncle Jimmy's head had been cut off from the picture. With the onset of digital cameras, one can now ensure perfect pictures every time.

Digital also has the added bonus over 35mm in that it's in digital format and stored in a computer rather than on paper or film which grows old and brittle over time. Another feature digital cameras have is that they also have the capability of recording sounds and videos as well as pictures. Imagine being able to record your baby's precious laugh as you're taking pictures without having to run for the video camera.

Types

Video Cameras The main purpose of these are to record actual moving images. Aside from the professional video camera used in professional movie productions, there are the camcorders and webcams. The camcorder is generally used by the general public to capture memorable pictures and sounds of their lives.

One can watch playback directly from a liquid crystal display on the camcorder itself or connect it to their television set or computer for viewing. Webcams are cameras that are attached to computers and usually used to view the person you are communicating with via instant messaging.

Live-preview Digital Camera One has the ability to frame and preview a photo before taking the picture. These have the capability of making mini movies although they're typically used for small spur of the moment type of filming as the quality is not quite as good as an actual camcorder. These are divided into two different types of categories

Compact Digital Camera Small and easy to carry, these cameras are widely popular with the majority of amateur photographers. An excellent camera for capturing personal moments to be cherished for years to come. Due to having a smaller zoom capability than your DSLR cameras and a larger range of depth to be in focus, professional photographers tend to think the images are flat looking.

Bridge Cameras Similar to SLR type of cameras, these share the advanced features of the DSLRs while still sharing the live-preview capability and smaller sensor sizes of the compact camera. They provide zoom lens capability to allow some creativity in taking photos. Bridge cameras are considered in a class that falls between the compact and the professional DSLRs.

Digital Single Lens Reflex Camera (DSLRs)

These professional cameras allow for greater flexibility in photographing subjects with interchangeable lens, sensor size and quality, control among many other features. With the DSLRs one has the capability of taking professional looking photographs and the ability to resize to larger views for professional looking pictures.

Whatever your needs are, you are sure to find a digital camera to fit your lifestyle.