Back in the early days of digital SLRs, image noise became noticeable and the maximum available sensitivity was a modest ISO1600.

Today many SLRs offer standard sensitivity ranges of at least ISO100-6400, with up to ISO25600 or even more in their extended ranges.

Current sensors are typically designed so that each photosite can capture more light. This is despite featuring much higher resolutions, so the signal to noise ratio gets a boost.

With better quality available from the sensor, a powerful processing engine is able to deliver superb results, reducing image noise with less loss of fine detail.

For optimum image quality, we’d stick to sensitivity settings of up to ISO3200 in most SLRs. This should enable sufficiently fast shutter speeds to give sharp handheld results of static objects, even under dull indoor lighting.

The real challenge is when you need to freeze motion with fast shutter speeds, for example when shooting indoor sporting events. In this case, it’s best to push sensitivity to ISO6400 or higher.

A sharp shot that’s a bit noisy is better than a blurred picture. High-sensitivity quality is more of a challenge for compact cameras, because they have smaller image sensors.

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Meet our professional photographer

Lara Jade began her photography career aged 14, taking fine art and self-portrait images. At just 22 years old, she has an mpressive client list including Elle, Harper Collins, BBC and Schwarzkopf. Her unique romantic, gothic style of imagery has built a strong following and earned her a place in the fashion photography elite. See more of her work at www.larajade.co.uk, or book a photography workshop at www.larajadeworkshops.com.

Meet our apprentice

Nicki Fairall is the owner of Uber Beauty Rooms in Marlow, Buckinghamshire. As well as being a talented beautician and businesswoman, she’s also a keen photographer with a love of portraits. As she is coming to the end of her photography diploma course, she’d love to add some high-fashion images to her portfolio, but is unsure how to get the right lighting and find a willing model.

Technique Assessment

Manual mode for models
“Like many people, Nicki had been using Av mode for her portraits, but Manual mode gives so much more control,” explains Lara.

“Being able to set both the shutter speed and aperture means your exposures will always remain consistent, highly important when using studio lights. It also enables you 
to maintain your depth of field, so everything from the tip of the nose to the final strands of stylishly coiffured hair is in focus.”

Maximise detail with raw format
“I always shoot in raw format – it gives me the best quality images. I love using Photoshop to manipulate my shots and add a fantasy element, so I have to ensure I have as much colour and luminance data to play with as possible,” says Lara. “I got Nicki to shoot in raw too, so she won’t be losing important detail and introducing artefacts when she edits her shots later.”

PAGE 1: Meet our professional photographer and apprentice
PAGE 2: Fashion photography tips for during the shoot
PAGE 3: Final fashion photography tips from Lara Jade
PAGE 4: Lara Jade’s recommended gear
PAGE 5: Shot of the Day

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All images by Mark Hamblin

The light of dawn is special. At first it’s a cool blue as darkness retreats to reveal a new day. Then, oddly, as sunrise is imminent, the light is flat and almost colourless.

But just as the sun breaks the horizon the landscape is bathed in the most wonderful light, illuminating everything it strikes in hues of red and orange. For this brief period of the day the landscape is a magical place – full of atmosphere and a real tonic for those who witness it.

It is these transient moments of light, this explosion of colour and this unfolding drama that makes dawn an event not to be missed.

There’s no doubt that great dawn light will make your images extra special, but are you prepared to head out in the gloom in the hope of capturing that magic?

It’s a risk. It might be cloudy. You might get cold. You might be tired. You might not get there in time.

There are lots of reasons not to go, not to get out of bed at 3am, not to walk for an hour in the dark. But the reality is that to get the images you crave, you have to. You have to push yourself. You have to make the effort.

Shooting golden hour photography in the dawn hours is more of a physiological challenge than a photographic one. It helps a lot if you team up with someone, as you are almost certain to make the effort if you have arranged to meet a friend. You must also plan well and be prepared.

This is key because you need to be clear where you are heading, how long it’s going to take you to get there, and be confident that you can find the right spot.

A pre-visit in good light is the best way to determine this, and is useful for scouting the location for suitable viewpoints. Take a GPS with you, if you have one, to mark favoured spots.

Some landscape views may only work well at certain times of the year, depending on the position of the sun. You can determine where this will be by using a sun compass or an app that shows you where the sun will rise each day.

From this you can then work out exactly where you need to aim your camera, and also which parts of the landscape are going to be illuminated in golden light.

When shooting at dawn before the sun is up, the best colour is usually in the eastern sky. Try to find a focal point to set against this.

Perhaps a silhouette of a tree or building. Alternatively use calm water to reflect the sunrise. A reed fringed lake or one surrounded by trees works well. As the colours intensify, keep shooting as the light changes, and reframe your shots to capture a range of images.

To shoot the sun as it breaks the horizon, set the aperture to f/16 to get the optimum sunburst effect. It also helps if you partially hide the sun behind a tree or rock to reduce the intensity of light and overcome problems with flare.

Once the sun gets too bright to usefully work with, turn around and shoot in the opposite direction to catch the warm light on the landscape. Any surface that is angled towards the sun will catch the light.

This contrasts really well with any shadow areas, and gives the landscape depth. Choose your position carefully though to avoid your own shadow creeping into the picture!

PAGE 1: What you need to know about golden hour photography
PAGE 2: Two techniques for controlling light at dawn
PAGE 3: Three ways to give your golden hour photography an advantage
PAGE 4: Tips to remember when shooting golden hour photography

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Words and images by Ben Brain

Flowers make one of the most alluring subjects for still life photographers – not only are they beautiful to look at, they’re also easy (and inexpensive) to source.

And whether you choose to shoot them in their natural environment or in a makeshift home studio, one variety or another is available all year round.

Here, we’ll show you how to photograph a simple jar of tulips using just natural light from a window and a basic DIY reflector made of tin foil (to bounce light back onto the subject for more even lighting).

Then, to enhance the image and add a more ‘painterly’ feel to the image, we’ll explain how to add a texture.

Experimenting with home-made textures is a great way to give your photos a creative finish, so here we’ll add an image of some old paper that’s been stained, scratched and marked.

• Download our 100 free Photoshop textures

On some DSLRs it’s possible to combine your texture and flower as a multiple exposure. However, for greater control we’ll use Photoshop, where we’ll incorporate our texture using layers and Blending Modes. Follow our simple steps to find out exactly how it’s done…

How to use textures and blending modes to get your DIY still life photography looking sharp

Let there be light!
In a simple home studio, try to use a background that complements your subject matter – we used an old dust sheet, which provided the perfect neutral backdrop. Place the jar of flowers near a window and then fashion a simple reflector out of silver foil 
to bounce light back onto your subject.

Create your texture
It’s a good idea to create a library of interesting textures, which you can then raid to add instant creativity to your photos, whatever their subject. Whether it’s old paper, the grain patterns of wood, stone or even a roasting tin, keep your eyes open; 
you never know when they’ll come in handy.

Merge your shots
Open the flower and texture images in Photoshop CS or Photoshop Elements, and use Adobe Camera Raw to get them looking their best. Once you’re happy with your images, open them both into one image as layers. Place the texture layer at the top of the stack and set the Blending Mode to Overlay.

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First impressions count, and the headshot that accompanies an online profile can be as important as the words. A blurred shot taken on a night out won’t create the right impression for many sites, so we’re going to show you how you can produce headshots for a variety of uses.

Taking control of the lighting is the key to taking really effective portraits. This control also enables you to produce shots in a similar style time after time. We’ll demonstrate how to use a basic flashgun plus some simple accessories.

Once you’ve mastered the basics of taking headshots, we’ll use backgrounds and a second flash to give your headshots extra impact. Finally we’ll run through how to shoot passport photos that can be used for many types of documentation.

Remember that you should use a pose and style of lighting that suits the type of site, medium and purpose that the portrait photograph is going to be used for.

How to set up your home studio to shoot headshots

You don’t need all this kit to shoot the most basic headshots, but with it you have more versatility

01 Radio trigger
A radio trigger is the most convenient and reliable way to fire your flashgun off-camera. It gives you complete freedom to move around without having to worry about the length of cables.

02 Softbox
A softbox is an easy way to soften the light from your flashgun without losing too much light. Even with the softbox attached, you need to position the flash as close as possible to the subject.

03 Reflector
A silver or white reflector is useful for lightening the shadows on your subject. Position one on the opposite side of the subject to the flash. If necessary you can get the subject to hold one under their face.

04 Background
A coloured wall is perfectly okay as a background, but you can also use card or cloth for brighter-coloured backgrounds. Stick these to the wall or use a tripod or lighting stand to hold them in place.

05 Seat
Your subject will probably be more comfortable sitting down than standing up. When seated they are also much less likely to change position, making it easier to get consistent lighting.

06 Tripod or stand
Most radio triggers have a socket underneath to allow you to attach an off-camera flash to a standard tripod. If you are using an umbrella attachment bracket you’ll need to use a lighting stand.

07 Get close
When firing a flash directly at the subject, the light gets softer the closer the flash is to the subject and harsher the further it is away from them. For the most flattering results, position the flash as close as possible to the model.

PAGE 1: How to set up your home studio to shoot headshots
PAGE 2: How to set up your flash to shoot headshots
PAGE 3: Shooting headshots with a one flash setup
PAGE 4: Shooting headshots with two flashguns
PAGE 5: How to shoot passport photos
PAGE 6: Capturing informal looks for social media profile pictures

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In our latest instalment underwater photographer Franco Banfi reveals how he captured this stunning image in the freezing waters of a Swiss alpine lake.

Hidden depths
Banfi’s image shows an unusual, fish-shaped iceberg. It’s located under the surface of a small, freshwater mountain lake: Lake Sassolo, located in the south of Switzerland.

Sense of proportion
By including his partner Sabrina holding a torch in the image, Banfi created a crucial extra point of interest and enabled the viewer to appreciate the scale of the iceberg.

Challenging conditions
“It was very cold in the lake, so having the right diving equipment was essential,” says Banfi. “That included a good dry suit and a pressure regulator that worked well in low temperatures.”

Tried-and-tested kit
Banfi shot close to the iceberg using a Canon EOS-1Ds Mark II with a 15mm f/2.8 fisheye lens, contained in a Seacam underwater housing. Settings were 1/100sec at f/5, ISO 100.

Insider Knowledge
“In spring this lake is still covered with ice,” says Banfi, “but the temperature rises and the ice melts quickly. Usually there are only 2-3 weeks in which to shoot the ice.”

We Say
As water absorbs colours at the red end of the spectrum, underwater photographers often like to shoot with strobe or flash for a more balanced range of colours. However, shooting with ambient light, as Banfi has done here, uses the resulting blue hue to create a much more subtle and atmospheric image.”
Chris Rutter, technique editor

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Meet our professional photographer

Jakob Ebrey runs Silverstone-based Jakob Ebrey Photography, the UK’s leading national motorsports photography agency. He’s the official British Rally Championship photographer and also shoots many other high-profile motorsports events. See more of his work at www.jakobebrey.com

Meet our apprentice

Trucker Dave King hails from Essex. He’s been taking photos since he was 15, and used to help out pro photographers at Arena Essex Raceway shooting all sorts of motorsport photography in the ’80s. Now using a DSLR, he asked for our help to improve his sports action shots.

Technique Assessment

Set Shutter Priority Mode
“Taking control of your shutter speed is critical when shooting motorsport photography,” advises Jakob, “so I got Dave to use Tv (Shutter Priority) mode, so he could set his shutter speed while his camera takes care of the aperture. I generally want a shutter speed of 1/250-1/500 sec to freeze the action in my motorsport photography, unless I’m panning for motion blur.”

Manage your ISO
“To make sure Dave’s DSLR is letting him set a good and fast shutter speed I got him to manually increase his ISO,” says Jakob. “It was a dull day, so we were shooting at ISO400 and 800 for most of the day. If you don’t increase your ISO, even shooting on your lenses widest aperture (such as f/2.8 or f/5.6) won’t achieve a resulting fast enough shutter speed.”

PAGE 1: Meet our professional photographer and apprentice
PAGE 2: Motorsport photography tips for during the shoot
PAGE 3: Final tips from our professional photographer
PAGE 4: Our professional photographer’s recommended gear
PAGE 5: Shot of the Day

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For artists and draftsmen learning how to create a sense of perspective is one of the first disciplines to master. In a nutshell it’s the art of rendering the three-dimensional world that we see around us onto the two-dimensional surface of paper or canvas.

Of course, this is also what we do when we take photographs, but because the camera essentially does the work for us it tends to get overlooked.

However, being aware of some the basic principles will help you understand how the elements of your composition work. Knowing how lines draw the eye in and can be used to create a sense of distance can make you a better photographer.

While it’s tricky to manipulate perspective ‘in-camera’ in the way a draftsman might play with it using pen and paper, there are aspects that you can control through your choice of lens, angle-of-view and your distance from your subject.

You can choose whether buildings appear plumb-straight or ‘keystoned’ in your shots, and decide how much of the background to include in photographs of people and objects. You can even play with perspective to create entertaining optical illusions.

So let’s see how you can use perspective to take control of your picture taking…

PAGE 1: What perspective means to photography
PAGE 2: Photography composition tips – Linear perspective
PAGE 3: Photography composition tips – Background
PAGE 4: Photography composition tips – Perspective of scale

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Find out below how to capture the refraction of light using a glass of water and a cool background!

In this tutorial we’re going to use the refractive properties of glass and water to make a striking arty abstract. The chances are you witness this effect every day, and it can be clearly seen by simply looking through a glass of water.

But we’re going to take it one step further and control the effect for creative results.ding light

Using a background of diagonal black and white stripes, we’ll use the distorting properties of water and glass to bend, twist, rotate and skew the lines to form intriguing abstract shapes.

This is a relatively easy technique to get to grips with. Simply fill a glass container with water and look through it – you’ll instantly see the distorting effects of refraction in action.

Layer several glasses in front of one another and you’ll add layers of distortion to the overall effect.

The lighting is straightforward, and a regular camera mounted flashgun bounced off the ceiling will be more than adequate. You don’t need any fancy equipment or complicated camera techniques to achieve amazing results.
A simple table top is all you’ll need. So let’s get started and see how it’s done…

How to photograph the refraction of light

Get started
For this project you’ll need to make a simple background. We’ve created a diagonal black and white stripe in Photoshop and printed it out on a regular office laser printer. It doesn’t need to be too fancy. It’s worth experimenting with different designs, or you could even introduce some colour.

Perfect your settings
Position super-clean drinking glasses in front of the backdrop, and fill them with water to varying levels. Use a small aperture such as f/16 to maximise the depth of field and ensure everything’s sharp. Use a tripod, as small changes in camera angle will affect how the glass and water refracts the pattern.

Prepare the lighting
Daylight can work perfectly, but we’ll be using a flashgun here as we’re shooting in lowlight conditions. Ideally you want to avoid any unsightly reflections on the glass – you can easily achieve this by bouncing the light off the ceiling. To do that, simply point the flashgun in the up position.

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Reason No. 1. Your Photos Aren’t Sharp: Shutter speed too low

In the days of film photography there was a general rule that in order to get sharp images from a hand-held camera the shutter speed needed to be at least one second divided by the focal length of the lens.

So if you were shooting with a 100mm optic the shutter speed needed to be at least 1/100sec, which because of the way shutter speed is set usually translates to a setting of 1/125sec or faster.

This rule still holds today, but it is somewhat complicated by the focal length magnification factors of sub-full-frame sensors and image stabilisation systems.

For example, if a 100mm lens is mounted on a Nikon APS-C format SLR like the D5200, which has a focal length magnification factor of 1.5x, the photographer would need to set a shutter speed of at least 1/150sec.

Canon APS-C format DSLRs like the EOS 650D have a 1.6x focal length magnification factor, so the shutter speed would need to be at least 1/160sec.

The image stabilisation systems built into some lenses and cameras have a mechanism to compensate for accidental camera movement and this allows slow shutter speeds to be used when the camera is handheld.

Many lenses now claim a 4EV compensation, which means that the shutter speed can be reduced by 16x. That’s the difference between 1/125sec and /18sec.

Even with image stabilisation some people are better at handholding a camera steady than others. The amount of coffee and alcohol that you’ve drunk can make a difference as well.

Reason No. 1. Your Photos Aren’t Sharp: Shutter speed too low
Reason No. 2 Your Photos Aren’t Sharp: Camera shake
Reason No. 3 Your Photos Aren’t Sharp: Vibrations from touching the camera
Reason No. 4 Your Photos Aren’t Sharp: Mirror-slap
Reason No. 5 Your Photos Aren’t Sharp: Subject movement
Reason No. 6 Your Photos Aren’t Sharp: AF focused on wrong subject
Reason No. 7 Your Photos Aren’t Sharp: Continuous AF not selected
Reason No. 8 Your Photos Aren’t Sharp: Continuous AF selected
Reason No. 9 Your Photos Aren’t Sharp: Depth of field too shallow
Reason No. 10 Your Photos Aren’t Sharp: Aperture too small

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