Digital Photography Tip - Get Closer

This tip is most suited when taking informal photographs of people where their surroundings is of no relevance or where image detail is important. Getting closer to your subject also adds impact to your images.

Almost any shot will look better if you take two or three steps closer to your subject. Filling the frame entirely with your subject will make a terrific difference to your photos.

Alternatively, instead of moving closer, use the Optical or (only if you really have to) the Digital Zoom of your camera to get a close up shot.

When taking shots of family and friends, instead of placing the subject's full body in the frame, it's far better to take a picture of the head and shoulders of your subject. Better still, fill the frame with your subject's face only - particularly if they are smiling or are in a moment of reflection.

With less clutter in the image, there's less to draw the eye away from the main subject of your photo. Also, human faces (particularly children's faces) are something we all feel pleasure looking at.

If you can't get close enough when you're taking the shot, you can zoom in later using photo editing software - crop out everything except the subject's face and see what a difference it makes.

When using the viewfinder for close shots, be careful of Parallax. Because the viewfinder is not at the same position as the camera's lens, centring the subject in the viewfinder may mean it is not centre for the lens resulting in an off-center final picture. Most digital cameras now come with an inbuilt LCD screen. You can eliminate this problem by using the LCD - which shows you what the lens sees - rather than the viewfinder.