Photo tips for your scrapbook

Did this ever happen to you? You are at a family event or some memorable event that you want to capture with your camera and definitely plan to use in your next scrapbook. You get the pictures developed only to find a lot of them are too bright, not centered in the frame, blurry because you shook the camera, or you even found blank pictures all together!

This is when you should think about how you use your camera before you go to the event! Most of the time we do not think about how we are going to use the camera, much less even checking if we have film in the camera before we leave our home!

So, here are the basics of what to do to prepare:

1)    Make sure your camera has new film. (if film is already in the camera, make sure you know the expiration dates of the film and change out if needed)

2)    Check the camera lens to make sure it is clean and not scratched.

3)    Check to make sure the on board batteries are still "alive."

4)    Keep the camera in room temperature setting if possible. In the dead of summer with extreme heat or the cold of winter, these extreme temperatures can affect the quality of the pictures.

5)    When aiming the camera, make sure you take extra care in centering the person or subject in the picture.

6)    Hold your camera steady!! Even with high speed or "shake proof" cameras, you can still get a blurry picture if not completely still.

7)    If you can find a setting for "day/night," use that setting because it is a general setting that can make the best picture for you.

8)    When taking film in for developing, compare photo processing charges with at least two different stores. Quite often you will be surprised at how much you can save for developing per picture costs.

So, if you follow these common sense ideas, you will be guaranteed of outstanding pictures to mount in your scrapbook.

Feel free to make comments here if you would like to add your clever ideas for making great pictures!