Tack Sharp Digital Photo Secrets

The most important ingredient for a fantastic picture is for it to be in sharp focus.Even with the best subject, lighting and color, a picture can be reduced to ho-hum status by blurring.

Photographers have somewhat varying opinions on what constitutes a tack sharp picture, but generally, a tack sharp photograph has good, clean lines.The picture will have clear definition, intead of being soft or downright blurred.

There are several things you can do to increase your chances of getting that coveted tack sharp picture.

Hand-Held Digital Photography Tips

If you’re hand-holding your camera, brace your arms against your sides to help steady the camera.This is the time to have your camera's anti-shake technology such as Vibration Reduction (VR) or Image Stabilization (IS) lens turned on.

You can also lean against a wall or tree or whatever sturdy object that’s handy, and help keep yourself and your camera steady. Alternatively, lean or lay your camera or lens on some readily available sturdy object to help steady the camera.

Steadying your camera by hooking the strap under your elbow and wrapping the rest around your forearm will also help stabilize the camera and hold it steady in your hand.

Getting those tack sharp photos while hand-holding your camera can be difficult, so to increase your chances of getting that perfect shot, use the burst or continuous shooting mode on your camera to take several shots at once.The series of picture will increase the chances of at least one being tack sharp.

Tripods For Better Focus

There’s no getting around the fact that it’s easier to get a tack sharp photo using a tripod.There's no way you can hold a camera as steady as a tripod does.Tripods are like other photography equipment, and the quality is usually connected to how much you paid for it.Cheap tripods are helpful, but won't hold the camera as stil as a more expensive tripod does.Buying the best tripod you can reasonably afford gets the best results.

The more expensive tripods don’t come with the head attached.You must buy it separately, but that gives you the chance to pick out what you like.A quality ballheads are a good investment for your tripod, as it will keep your camera firmly in place so the picture stays sharply in focus.

If you’re somewhere that carrying a tripod just won’t work, beanbags make a nice cushion for cameras in these settings.Beanbags cushion your camera, increasing your ability to move it to just the right position and keep it steady while you get a well-focused shot.

To improve your chances of a tack sharp photo even more, use a cable release instead of pressing the shutter.There's enough movement when pressing the shutter, though it may not seem like much, to keep you from getting a well-focused picture.

If you don’t have a cable release, the self timer will also work.Although you press the shutter, the camera has time to stabilize and steady before actually taking the picture.

More Advanced Digital Photography Secrets For Sharp Shots

If you have a digital SLR camera, there are even more ways to make sure your camera stays steady while taking pictures.

The first is to use mirror lock-up.This limits the movement inside the camera by locking the mirror in the up position until after the picture is taken. This means to take a picture, you will have to press the shutter release button twice on your remote or cable release (you’re not going to all this trouble and pressing the shutter release on the camera are you?). The first press lifts the mirror and the second press actually takes the picture.

The second method is to turn off the Vibration Reduction or Image Stabilization. That may sound counter productive, but when you’ve stabilized your camera with a tripod and other methods, the vibration reduction keeps looking for shakes/movements.Vibration reduction can actually cause some shaking looking for movement that isn't there.The best thing to do is use the automatioc vibration controls when hand-holding your camera, but keep them turned off when using a tripod.

One last way to increase the sharpness of your pictures is to have good glass. The lens you use makes a big difference.Like so many things, you get what you pay for. A quality lens with good glass is expensive, but worth it.Consider it an investment in great photography.

Use as many methods as you can to steady your camera, and you’ll have a much better chance of getting those lovely tack sharp photographs.