#33 – Try something different every time out.

Garbage day had the potential to cost me a lot of money.

We put our house up for sale yesterday and being a photographer-sort, I offered to take photos of the place for the agent’s listing.

Problem was, we’d spent three weeks cleaning the place and there were 14 boxes of recycling on the lawn out front. I had to run to a morning meeting and was in a whole lot of a time crunch. This sort of thing happens to me (and to you) all the time. Something in the photo isn’t right – there’s an obstacle, you’re running out of light, the kids won’t cooperate.

In a situation like this, you need to imagine something new. Use your growing photo skills to try something different out:

Kids won’t cooperate?

·      Bribe them. Surprise them (shout when you take the photo).

·      Make them laugh.

·      Talk to them so they forget about the camera.

Running out of light?

·      Play with ISO, aperture and/or shutter speed.

·      Move somewhere where there’s more light.

·      Put your camera on a tripod/rock/something and go for a longer shutter speed.

·      Turn on your flash (if you haaaaaave to).

Something in your way?

·      Look for a different angle.

·      Get closer and zoom way out.

·      Shoot part of the object/landscape instead of the whole thing.

Me? I got closer and moved to the opposite side in two separate shots. I did cheat a bit by using my SLR – but you can make the same thing happen with your point-and-shoot or phone. Now let’s hope this place sells.