THE THINGS I DO…

I wrote this for the holiday edition of MyTime magazine. I thought I’d share my top ten list of photo tips for holiday shooting.

1. Turn off the red-eye reduction feature on your camera. Most image editing programs allow you to correct for red-eye, eliminating the need to use this irritating, battery draining, feature.
2. Get close to your subject. Fill the frame with the important, crop out everything else. Shoot like a pro!
3. Hold the camera steady. Most holiday happenings are indoors. Indoor lighting requires slower shutter speeds, increasing the chance of movement and blurred images.
4. Shoot a lot of photos. Your chances of getting a good shot will increase with the number of photos you make.
5. Make sure you have plenty of batteries and memory cards. Nothing’s worse than running out of juice or memory just when things are getting interesting.
6. Keep your camera close at hand. You never know when an interesting photo opportunity will happen — be ready for it.
7. Look for the candid moments instead of trying to pose everything. Don’t orchestrate your photos, go with the flow and shoot what happens in front of your lens.
8. Check your lens for fingerprints. With point-and-shoot cameras, you can’t see what the lens is seeing so you’ll need to check from occasionally to make sure your lens is smudge-free. A clean, microfiber cloth is the ticket for taking care of this chore.
9. When shooting children, work from their level. It’s amazing how this will improve your photos of the kiddies.
10. Share your moments with others. I especially recommend uploading your photos to a computer for use them as a holiday slide show for friends to view when visiting. Digital picture frames work well also.

I hope this list will help make your holiday photography successful.

Enjoy the season,

Dennis

Okay, now that you’ve identified where the dust is on your DSLR sensor, it’s time to remove it. Before we get started, it’s important that you check your instruction manual to see how to prepare your camera for sensor cleaning. This will most likely be found amongst the menu settings. What this setting does is swing the mirror out of the way and open the shutter to allow access to the sensor. Be sure to have fresh batteries in your camera! You don’t want to lose power in the middle of things and have the shutter close when you’re working…that would be bad.

Before I get too far along, I want to emphasize that there are many different ways to clean a sensor and the examples given are solutions that work for ME. Understand that the goal here is to remove the dust with as little physical contact to the sensor as possible. I start with touch-less methods, then move to dry brushing and, as a last resort, to wet cleaning. Wet cleaning is something I don’t do unless I absolutely have to.

Okay, let’s begin with finding a place to work. I look for a dust-free area that’s fairly well lit. Since most homes are carpeted, I escape to the garage or a room without carpeting. Less fibers in the room, less fibers in the air. I also try not to have the room too dry. Dry air causes static and static attracts dust. My garage is fairly humid and definitely isn’t carpeted!

I clear off a space on my workbench, give it a quick wipe with a damp cloth (to further keep the dust at bay) and position the camera under a desk lamp. Shine the light through a sheet of white paper to create a larger, more diffused, light source to reflect across your sensor (I simply tape the sheet across the front of the lamp, being careful not to touch the bulb for safety’s sake. 

Next, I hold the camera (with lens still attached), turn away from the work area and give it a blast or two from my blower to remove any surface dust that might find its way onto the sensor once the lens is removed. Turn back to your work area, remove the lens and activate the “clean sensor” option.

Angle the sensor so that the light reflects across the sensor, causing a nice, white reflection of the lamp onto the sensor. If you’ve done everything right, the dust should show up clearly against the light coming from the lamp. I use an Optivisor magnifier to better see what I’m doing, but a loupe or other hand-held magnifier will work fine also. 

With the camera held firmly, blow across the sensor with your hand-held blower to blast the particles up and off the sensor. Be careful not to touch the sensor with the tip of your blower. There are many blowers on the market but I like the Giottos Air Rocket best. Keep in mind that you are using the blower to blow on the sensor, not the entire area surrounding it. Your goal is to blow the bits off the sensor, not stir up all the bits and pieces that may be surrounding it. I use a series of targeted puffs to get the job done. You’re removing dust, not sandblasting. 

The Giottos Air Rocket

Check the sensor again with your magnifier to see if the dust is still there. If so, repeat until you don’t see any dust. The chances are good that you were successful. At the very least, you’ve eliminated most of the sensor dust. 

While I don’t carry my blower with me on assignment, I do carry it in a second bag with my laptop and other items used when away from my office. For quick cleaning, the blower is definitely the best way to go. 

Put the lens back on your camera and repeat my test from part one. If you still have dust, we escalate the process and move on to cleaning with an anti-static brush. That’s what I’ll cover next.

I’ve been busy with work and other issues for a month or so. Now’s a great time to have a photo walk and enjoy the outdoors. The walk is set for 3pm Sunday, Oct. 26 in the historic, restored area of Colonial Williamsburg. We’ll gather at 3pm in front of the Barnes and Noble Bookstore on Duke of Gloucester Street in Merchant’s Square. Hope to see you there!