Key for cleaning and maintenance of your SLR camera

Cleaning and maintenance of our SLR is important . With the heat we feel like our SLR 's take a walk to capture the highlights of our holiday and that more than one can be spotted in the sensor or the mirror that must be overcome to enjoy photography.

Today , we bring you four tips cleaning to give a review of the most important parts of our camera to learn how to clean delicate parts such as the sensor or the mirror.

#1 The body , dials and buttons

Cleanse the body of any visible dirt is easy. The plot thickens when we tried to access the small gaps left dials , buttons and the optical viewfinder , which seem to magnetize dirt.

The solution to clean these difficult areas is to use a stick and a cotton cloth like an old T-shirt or microfiber washcloth dipped in alcohol. Dismiss using ear buds because besides they may be too thick for these zones may be counterproductive because of the cellulose off when cleaned with them .

Personally I do special emphasis on cleaning the optical viewfinder as an important but difficult area to access. To clean the LCD screen recommend to always carry a microfiber washcloth to remove facial fat that can be adhered when we make use of the gallery or the Live View.

#2 Shining glass

Another cleaning critical areas is the lens. There are many photographers who despite wiping the front lens element , they do wrong. For example , some people gives one pass with the shirt he wears , which is almost worse than not cleaning.

For normal cleaning , as normal is to use a microfiber washcloth to remove small spots , I can moisten water if we talk a little more stubborn stains . We do not forget that the target has two elements to look at, and often forgetting clean the front rear . Occasionally it is advisable to take aim and give a pass to the rear element and contacts , checking the following passage from our list : the mirror and the sensor.

#3 The guts : mirror and sensor

The photographers are meticulous people . We like that everything is in perfect condition and therefore know how to clean the sensor is vital for our pictures look perfect .

When we remove the lens, the first thing we see is the mirror, that piece that redirects the light to the optical pentraprisma. The mirror has a speck of dust will make it look through the viewfinder immediately, but not to worry as this will not speck in the final photograph.

To clean the mirror, we should just remove the lens and a slight decline, we have a very fine brush, soft bristles for specks peeling off and falling out of the camera. If only dust and not move him out of the chamber, it is useless.

When we speak of sensor we talked about big words. Personally, I would recommend ordering the cleanup of a special service to a professional element. If we decide to venture ourselves, the best option will probably be the type wiper rods.

After moistening with isopropyl or the like of the parts alcohol and make one pass, dry it and check the effectiveness photographing a uniform and well lit surface with the iris closed to the maximum. If all went well, we should not see any spot in the photograph. If you still see flaws in the picture, we can try to make a second pass with alcohol to strengthen cleaning.

We must never introduce air or a pear sensor, since we risk damaging the sensor or introduce more crap in the guts of the camera, which will only aggravate the problem.

#4 Water and cameras, bad combination

In summer us feel closer to the beach with our camera and ...splash !. Unless that we have a tight suit to protect our team would not recommend or approach the water with camera in hand . In fact , I not even recommend going to the beach because the wind can sneak small grains of sand inside the body .

In any case , the main thing passes before a splash off the camera and turn it on immediately or remove parts such as the battery, memory card and lens. It is important to aerate the shade, as direct sun can damage the body and even cause damage to the circuit. You can use the hair dryer at a very safe distance , low heat , making sure that the team is hot, with the sole purpose to ventilate and remove moisture .

If turned on after a reasonable time and not turn unfortunately our solution is the technical service.

Tips to improve your outdoor sessions

You must take into account other aspects that will help you achieve a good session and, like everything in life, practice, practice. Things often do not go to the first . So then we suggest five practical tips to improve your outdoor sessions .

#1 The location and light, an important combination

Whenever possible, if you have a photometer ( worth one single) , measures light on your model to see the lighting scheme you're doing if you're making shots correctly. Despite having a good eye , you can take any surprises later. In case of not having it , it interprets the histogram well . Indicating reads well . You can take a picture close to the face of your model and so do their fair share to the shadows and lights on her face. After that you can go back to composing again .

#2 Shady spots can be a good resource for " attempting to" control the ambient light

In many places ambient light can change rapidly within minutes , also changing climatic conditions must be taken into account  too. So if we are not comfortable , find a place in shadow can be a resource to not spoil our session and continue. You have to be reading the ambient light at all times. For that you can measure " promptly " on trees or a lake to get a rough idea of ​​the ambient light and from there to expose.

#3 The ambient light is essential

Find the right moment, the light is not the same throughout the day. Not the same a session at noon with the sun just above us who seek the session at dawn or dusk when the light is much lower and we can use that light to outline our model from behind and use our lighting external to illuminate his face or take the softer light of those moments as the main light.

#4 The background matters

The background matters a lot. Really in a session outside looking out for our model study environment so we looked , too, an interesting background and bring something to photograph.  If the background of the scene does not contribute to it , you better not go outside.

In many cases if the fund does little can overexpose or subexponerlo to get more dramatic or interesting spin while maintaining good exposure to our model.

#5 Soft light against hard light, what is more natural?

Although it may seem that in a session outside one softbox or window can be as suitable as main light we must consider that in nature soft lights scarce and so it may be better sometimes use bare flash or focus without any diffuser ( power control ) or , in case, a very soft . Keeping some aspect of hardness in the shadows of our model. A reflector is also a great help in many cases .

# Conclusions

In short: when it comes to finding a location in interesting outdoor session not only have to consider the place, note the time of day , ambient light and other issues that you have discussed. Of course , in these days of much heat , consider the weather forecast and not seek , if possible , the moments of maximum heat .

Ultimate tips for taking pictures with snow

The snowy landscapes are something spectacular but, how good your tecnique is? We hope this tips are usefull and help you improve it.

#1 Forget about the flash

Only use it if is really necesary. You have to keep in mind that snow is very bright and will reflect light well . Using flash run the risk of saturating the image with lights , losing all the detail that makes something special snow and leaving poor and blurred results with high contrast and where shadows and details are lost .

Look for fresh snow.

In the pictures of snowy landscapes this is the protagonist of the pictures as much as is in the background, so we must try to find virgin snow without touching or soiling , for spectacular and striking photographs , since it enhances the beauty and delicacy of snow. Therefore it is important that we get out for a walk,and what better excuse to take some pictures !

#2 Watch your photographic equipment

We refer particularly to the camera and batteries. Did you know that the cold affects batteries so that they download faster? Pay attention to load them well before hand and always keep a spare battery .

The same must take certain precautions to expose our camera to winter weather conditions , usually the lens may fog and excess moisture with low temperature may create certain problems especially if we withdraw from the case and use immediately. Take time to acclimate to the cold chamber , it will be easier and help us to preserve and long life.

#3 The best time to photograph snow

To get the best pictures with snow , the ideal time is dawn. Not only have more diffuse reflections of sunlight to capture the snow, but may even be mist or fog , which will give a more wintry touch to photos .

Alhough at the moment the picture may become very curious , we recommend you do not stop taking pictures all day , any time . Immortalizes the landscapes that are discovered before you try the different manuals and plays with light .

#4 Pay attention to the contrast

As you are talking about the attention that must be put to natural light and prevent flash whenever possible, do not forget the contrast because as opposed lights and shadows will be v peryresent in this type of landscape . All you have to do is graduate exposure , nothing more and nothing less.

#5 Don´t forget about the colour

For there is much snow do not forget the color. You can take pictures in black and white that capture all the emotionality of an image, focus on the white snow or you can save a few pictures on your memory card to capture the contrasts that offers nature with snow : a flower , a bird, a field that has not yet been covered in the white mantle ..

#6 Feel the shoot before you take it

Sometimes it is not wrong to let the camera aside , first enjoy what your eyes see , allow yourself the opportunity to feel the image you have before you and when you're ready , inmortalízala , there will be a big difference in the outcome.

How to search skies without light pollution

If you like astrophotography you know that one of the prerequisites for success is take pictures in places with a starry sky free of light pollution. The Starlight Foundation certifies locations with minimal light pollution. In addition we present two websites to also locate places with starry sky more visible.

The first is lightpollutionmap.info/map.info . It is based on data from NGDC Earth Observation Group ( EOG ) specializes in observations of nighttime lights and ignition sources around the world and used, also engine Bing maps .

The page is maintained by Jurij Stare and in it you can see the data for the years 2010, 2012 , 2014 and 2015 .

The second option is a French website , maintained by the astronomical information and light pollution Avex association . This site has a forum with a section of the weather and light pollution maps . Although it is quite focused on their country of origin, also it has a map with light pollution in Spain.

Ultimate Food Photography Tips

# 1 The light and the dramatization of the food

The most important thing  to take under consideration in food photography, is how you light the food. If you light from the sides or from behind it will look more dramatic. The shadows will improve the texture of the food. If you can, place it next to a window with good side light.

Avoid mixing diferent tipes of light like florescent in the ceiling won´t give you good results.

#2 Background

The food has to be the main character so dont let other objects to get to much atention in the scene like the tablecloth or the plate it self. Keep a simple background and use one-color plates. Let the food get all the atention.

Use neutral backgrounds and with sandy tones. The sandy tones make the food shine but if you can´t, try to use opposite color palettes in the background and in the food you are photographing.  For example, some tomatos could be set in a light green bowl and  they will stand out very good.

#3 Play with the angles

Dont take only one photo. The digital world has the advantage that the try, does not cost anything so move around and look for different angles. From the side, from the top or from wherever you want.

Come close with the food, and take notice that the food wont last fresh too long so if you are cocking at home, prepare the plates and the table along with the ligting you want first. When you have everything ready, prepare the dish and start shooting.

#4 Use every tool at your reach

The handling tools are very usefull. Cooking calipers, brushers, sprays  or any tool that allows you to manipulate the food will improve it easily allowing you to place every piece of the dish in the perfect place to make a piece of art out of it and this tools will do a clean job.

A common photographer trick is to use a spray water bottle to make little drops in certain places of some tipes of food to make it look more fresh.

And of course dont forget about the new technologies like photoshop or Instagram. I fact Instagram is one of the places where more food pictures are shared on line.

Use every tool at your reach and make the food shine in colour.

#5 Don´t cook the food much

If you are at home is much better to take the pictures when the food is not yet cooked. The vegetables for example sometimes lose colour when cooked too much. You will get better results when using food that is been cooked very little.

Meat and fish do matter. The turkey, for example, gets smaller when cooked too much. We have to try to make it look as good as possible.

#6 The ingredients have to be seen

If you want that soup, that stew or that sanwich to stand out the picture there are some tricks photographers use for everything they shoot.

For example for soups, how to stop the ingredients to sink in to the liquid so they can be seen? Well you can use mash potato or other elements in the bottom of the plate so the ingredients half step out the water. 

Normally, sandwich are photograph placing all it components jumping out the bread. But when you go to the restaurant, they dont look the same do they? They look much smaller and plain.

Try to move the brread and the ingredients to make it show off to the camera.

#7 Drinks

Is much better to dilute the drink before taking the photo specially the dark drinks so they dont look so dim. Applying some movement is a good idea specially because drinks are not very gratefull unless they are very elaborate cocktails with nice garnishes.

If they are capture when been serve and with good light, they can have much more liveliness. 

Of course lots of practice and follow the work of good photographers will help you to take amazing pictures of food.