Use filters to significantly improve the quality of your photography.
The advent of digital photography and sophisticated computer photo-editing software has combined to vastly curtail the physical application of filters. Although you can apply most filters via software, there are several which remain hard to digitally duplicate. These include polarizing and neutral-density filters, and proper use of the two can take result in stunning images. These filters are almost exclusively designated for use with single-lens reflex cameras.
Instructions
1. Polarizing filters work best with the sun at a 90-degree angle.
Thread the polarizing filter directly onto the end of the camera lens. The polarizer serves several purposes including brightening colors (especially greens), cutting glare and reflections, and simultaneously darkening blue skies and brightening clouds. To achieve maximum effectiveness, the sun should be at a 90-degree angle to the photographer. When you are in a position to shoot your picture, spin the polarizer until you see the desired results. Polarizers, which serve an additional purpose of protecting the camera lens, are much less effective on overcast and poorly lit days.
2. A neutral-density filter will counteract bright sun for a better exposure.
Slide the neutral-density filter into an adapter threaded onto the end of the camera lens. Getting a perfect exposure when one portion of your image is dark and the other extremely light is a common problem for photographers. If the camera meters for the highlights, the resulting picture will yield no detail in the darkest areas. If the camera meters for the dark sections, the resulting picture will yield blown-out highlights or no color value in the lightest areas. Neither scenario will produce an exceptional image. Great Landscape Photography, an online photography guide, notes that a neutral-density filter works because "one half of such a filter (grad) is darker than the other, while the other half--in most cases--is completely clear." The photographer is able to position the dark area of the filter to counteract or tone down the brightest sections of the scene. Neutral-density filters come in a variety of strengths to compensate for different lighting conditions.
3. Set your camera to apply digital filters when shooting in black and white. While not as common on point-and-shoot cameras, most digital single-lens reflexes offer a variety of filter choices including yellow, orange, red and green. These filters will mainly affect the sky in the photo, but can also affect other objects. For example, a yellow filter will make white clouds pop, orange will intensify a colorful sunset, red will darken a fair sky, and green will both enhance skin tones and deepen the color of foliage. Read your camera manual to determine activate the filters.
4. Employ the filters available with your photo-editing software to improve or alter your photos after you take them. The filters offered usually fall into two categories--colored and special effects--but the actual number and type depend on your software.
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