What A Photograph Means

In the most basic terms, a photograph is a still image representing a scene and captured on film by a camera, but of course it means a whole lot more than that. The truth is that any photograph can have as many different meanings as there are people who look at it. While a photograph depicting a holiday scene can bring back wonderful memories of the holiday for one person, it can have a different meaning for someone else.

The definition in the first sentence above is – without looking at a dictionary – the most prosaic way of describing what a photograph does. But as soon as you allow yourself to admit that there is more to making a definition than the most basic facts, you must admit that a photograph is more than that. It is a representation of a moment, a time, a bond.

This is why we keep photographs in albums, or frames, or somewhere safe, and look at them years after they were taken. As times move on, we experience different times, different places and friendships, but the photographs remain as a document of that time, and they can have an important part to play in encouraging us to seek out old friends who we haven't spoken to in too long.

Photographs can bring back all sorts of memories – good, bad, important or throwaway – but they are important because when all we have is our memories, they allow us to ensure that those memories are accurate.

The Practical Use Of Photography

It is commonplace to think of photographs as being just a simple document of times that we have enjoyed in the past, but the fact of the matter is that photography is a versatile medium and has various uses for different people. While there is no better way to document a holiday or a wedding, photography has played a major part in many other ways over the years.

In the case of crime fighting, any sealed-off crime scene will soon be attended by photographers who take pictures of potentially important scenes. They will look to capture pieces of evidence, show the crime scene as it looks to someone who was there and look to preserve the scene for the defence, prosecution and jury to have some idea of what they are dealing with.

In sport, the importance of photography goes well beyond the illustration of game day reports. For example, athletics places a great importance upon the use of photographic technology to help separate two athletes that appear to have finished dead level. A photo finish can separate athletes to the nearest thousandth of a second, and even closer.

Then, of course, there is the use of photography in medicine. There are a few different ways that this can be applied. Pinhole cameras can be used to get an internal picture of a patient to find the cause of an illness or to guide surgery, as well as X-ray photographs which are often essential for diagnosing bone fractures and other injuries.

The Diversity Of Photography

Photographs are a lot more versatile than we really take time to consider. From their initial invention as a way of depicting a scene, usually artistically, they concept of photography has gone off in several other directions, making the technology which is used to capture a scene indispensable in many different ways.

For instance, thermal imaging cameras have become vitally important in various scenarios. As an example, in the aftermath of an earthquake there will be a necessity to find what survivors remain and seek to free them. By detecting body heat, thermal imaging allows this to happen. Thermal imaging is also used by police and by armies to detect suspects and adversaries who are hidden.

Night vision cameras perform a similar job to thermal imaging, by using a different form of light to bring things into sharper image. When night falls, it becomes a lot easier for people to hide and a lot harder for anyone to see movement and individuals. For early detection of a potential threat, night vision is vitally important, and is also useful for use as evidence at a later date.

Who knows, when the use of photography was innovated all those years ago, whether anyone saw the eventual extent to which the use of other forms of photography would become essential in such important situations? It is certain that, today, we would be a lot further back without the many and various innovations that have taken place. That, and we wouldn't be able to look at funny cat pictures!

The Basics of a Photography Camera

The field of photography is very wide and there is something for every kind of photographer, whether you are a novice or a seasoned veteran. The difference in experience can often be observed by the camera you decide to use. The following is a breakdown of some of the photography cameras commonly used today.

Point and Shoot

This is probably the simplest device of them all and can be used by virtually anybody. Just like the name suggests, this camera does not have a lot of operations and user simply has to point it at the subject and capture the image by clicking on the shutter release. Most of these basic cameras have a fixed focus meaning that the shooter cannot control the distance and focus quality of the subject. These cameras are often made for the mass market.

SLR (Single Lens Reflex)

This kind of camera is characterized by a prism and mirror system that is used to create a direct optical path to the subject. By using this form of camera the photographer can view the exact image compared to viewfinder cameras that may not give an accurate representation of the image that is to be captured. The modern forms of SLR cameras are the digital single lens reflex cameras that differ from the film-based cameras which are installed with imaging sensors instead of film. Most professionals use SLR - based photography cameras due to their accuracy and superior image quality. They also offer flexibility by allowing users to use add-ons such as lenses, filters and flashes to enhance image capture.

There are certain factors to consider when purchasing a photography camera and they include some of the following:

Use

Think about your photographic needs; do you need a basic camera for domestic use or do you require high quality photos that can be published in various publications.

Budget

You will need to consider how much you are willing to spend on a camera before you can go ahead with your purchase.

Explore

Once you have narrowed down your list of cameras you intend to purchase, you will need to get information about the device and understand its specifications.

Accessories

A camera cannot work on its own and requires additional components; this means that you will need to find out what accessories will be needed to ensure image capture is done appropriately.

Nikon D4 Hands-on Review

Almost 5-years since the D3 was released and with the D3X and D3S sandwich fillings in between, Nikon finally bring out their latest top of the line professional DSLR, the Nikon D4. We arranged some fast action to see how it fares.

Click here to read more!

Being Part Of The Action

Taking a good photograph is about so many things, far more than just pointing the camera when you see a scene worth preserving. If you want to get an image that will be looked at and remarked upon by all who look at it, you really have to create an impression of “being there”. This is all the more difficult if you are taking photographs of live action rather than still life.

If you go to a sports match, for example, it is perfectly understandable that you will want to capture some images of it to look at later on and to show to your friends. However, you are competing with a lot of different factors to get a really good picture of the occasion. There is the fact that a moving target is harder to catch, there is the problem of a crowd which is unlikely to be keeping still, and often there is an issue of lighting.

Without a doubt, someone wanting to get good action shots will need the right shutter speed – faster action will require a faster shutter speed in order to avoid becoming too blurred. On the other hand, some blurring can be beneficial in conveying the action that is taking place. How you position the camera, and even how you move it, will play an important part.

Timing is of course the central issue when it comes to capturing action shots. If, for example, you are watching a basketball match, you can get a good feel for motion by taking a photograph of something that cannot happen without motion. Snapping a photo of someone hitting a slam dunk – an image that can only happen while the person is in motion - is one good way of doing this.

Camera Phones – So Much To Answer For?

If you are a social networker, then the chances are that you have seen more bad photographs than you would ever care to remember. People are more prone these days to take a photograph than they used to be, and the reason for this – or at least, the primary reason – is that they can take photographs and see them instantly without having to pay for them.

The invention of the camera phone was a pivotal moment for cell phone companies, who have been able to sell loads of phones on the strength of their multiple usability. It has also resulted in people being willing to take a lot more photographs than they used to be. Time was that you needed a camera, plenty of film and a lot of patience to take photographs.

You see, once you had used a frame of film, you couldn't delete it and you were stuck with it. And when you had used the whole film you needed to carefully remove it from the camera so that it didn't get light on it, and take it to be developed (either at a dedicated outlet or in your own dark room, if you had the facilities). The whole process would cost money.

Now, if the photo you take is bad, you can delete it – but many people don't. A lot of online photo streams now have lots of blurry images of someone's right knee because the photographer was drunk and using a phone to take the pictures. With progress, sometimes, you have to accept the bad with the good.

Canon EOS 5D Mark III is available at DigitalRev finally!

DigitalRev may be the first one having it in stock with both body and lens kit. This camera is not in stock anywhere in AU, US, UK, and CA, probably other countries too.

The camera is a full frame DSLR, which is relatively priced at a higher range, and that means you’ll have a higher commission earning by promoting this camera on your website. The current price is at $3,780 USD, and you can earn even more with the lens kit or buy together deals on our website.

Canon EOS 5D Mark III camera body and lens kits are in stock at DigitalRev! Be the first to Own it today!

Camera Phones – So Much To Answer For?

If you are a social networker, then the chances are that you have seen more bad photographs than you would ever care to remember. People are more prone these days to take a photograph than they used to be, and the reason for this – or at least, the primary reason – is that they can take photographs and see them instantly without having to pay for them.

The invention of the camera phone was a pivotal moment for cell phone companies, who have been able to sell loads of phones on the strength of their multiple usability. It has also resulted in people being willing to take a lot more photographs than they used to be. Time was that you needed a camera, plenty of film and a lot of patience to take photographs.

You see, once you had used a frame of film, you couldn't delete it and you were stuck with it. And when you had used the whole film you needed to carefully remove it from the camera so that it didn't get light on it, and take it to be developed (either at a dedicated outlet or in your own dark room, if you had the facilities). The whole process would cost money.

Now, if the photo you take is bad, you can delete it – but many people don't. A lot of online photo streams now have lots of blurry images of someone's right knee because the photographer was drunk and using a phone to take the pictures. With progress, sometimes, you have to accept the bad with the good.

Picture The Scene

Having a good subject will make any photograph a lot easier to take. There is a good reason why the photographs that people are happy to look at again and again tend to center around a particular place, person or occasion. And while no subject is good enough to make a bad photographer look like a genius, it does give you a handy frame for your image.

Some people can get away with photographing any old thing, because they can bring something new to it – an interesting perspective, a unique touch – that makes it worth looking at. But if you are just starting out, then as interesting as you might find a particular building, it can fall flat for others who are looking at it.

Models are among the most notable subjects for photos. It is often imagined that any pretty girl or handsome man can be a model just by standing there and letting someone take pictures. However, we all know deep down that that is not true. You surely know someone who in motion looks good enough to be a model, but who photographs badly.

The most important thing about a subject is that they, or it, need to be the main thing in focus in the photograph, and seen in their best light. The Grand Canyon can look pretty unimpressive if it is photographed badly, from too close, in the wrong light or any number of other ways to get it wrong. What good photo subjects all have in common is that the right light is easier to find.

Everyone Is A Photographer These Days

Opinions are always going to be divided on the question of whether making something easier makes it better. Once upon a time, a camera was pretty much a luxury item – or at the very least, something that you would need to have a real interest in if you were going to own one. These days, every cell phone sold has a camera incorporated into it, and digital cameras are inexpensive.

Because we are all on the Internet, there has been an explosion of people taking photographs of anything that you can name. With the increasing number of sites that act as a digital photo album, people are looking to document their lives in a way that does for photographs what blogs do for the written word. You don't need to be a professional to have a portfolio these days.

People are always going to be skeptical with regard to whether this is a positive development. The argument that many people bring is that everyone considers themselves a photographer just because they took a black and white photograph of a park bench which was partially in shadow. And while some people's online portfolios tend towards the pretentious, this is a fairly cynical argument.

Photographs are important to people because they capture a moment in time. On social occasions and holidays, someone will always have a camera, because they want a graphical depiction of a memory. And while it may get annoying to see people posting photographs of their whole life, you can always just not look.

Canon EOS 5D Mark III Review By Joe Pollicino

Suffice it to say, March 2012 is a notable month for Canon. Not only does it mark the 25th anniversary of the first EOS SLR, but it's also ushering in Canon's latest addition to its full-frame DSLR lineup. That gorgeous beast your eyes are feasting upon is the company's new EOS 5D Mark III. That's right folks, this isn't a replacement for the Mark II, but rather an updated variant meant to sit between the workhorse of four years and the company's soon to arrive EOS-1D X. At a glance, the shooter is nearly indistinguishable from its older sibling, although a closer inspection reveals a new name badge, improved weather- and dust-resistance and some slight tweaks to its top-mounted info display and buttons on the back.

Don't be fooled, however, as there are obviously major changes here worthy of the new moniker. Key specs include a larger 1,040,000-dot 3.2-inch rear LCD, Digic 5+ processor, 22.3-megapixel CMOS sensor, 61-Point High Density Reticular autofocus with 41 cross-types (all of which are borrowed from the 1D X), dual memory card slots (SD and CompactFlash) an extended ISO range of 50 to 102,400 (100 to 25,600, natively), OVF with 100 percent coverage (versus 98 previously), and a maximum 6 FPS burst speed. Naturally, the 5D Mark III is no slouch in the video department: it can capture h.264 footage at HD resolutions up to 1080 at 24/25/30p or 720 at 50/60p, with an effective ISO range of 100-128,000 -- and of course there's a stereo mic input for the microphone of your choice. Better yet, not only does it allow for real-time control of your audio levels during filming, but also monitoring, being the first EOS-series DSLR to come equipped with a headphone jack (!) -- something that's been sorely missing in the world of ILC cameras. We've only skimmed the surface, however, so join us past the break for further details and a quick video overview.



Although we didn't get to use the pre-production 5D Mark III seen here, Canon filled us in on many of intricacies, so we'll have to take its word on the matter for now. In terms of processing speed, the Digic 5+ is rated 30 percent faster than the 5 and a healthy 17 times quicker compared to the 4 found in the Mark II. Paired with its CMOS sensor, we're told that JPEG shots are roughly two stops cleaner than that of the Mark II and that video will also be noticeably smoother with less artifacting and moiré. For example (with photos), the amount of noise you'd see at 6,400 with the II only creeps up to the III at 25,600. Conversely, Canon cites the 1D X as being one stop cleaner than the Mark III, ensuring its reign as the top dog in the lineup. Of course, RAW images won't benefit from the in-camera noise reduction, but we're told that they should still be quite pleasing given the new internals.

When you're done shooting, you'll be able to use the camera's "comparative playback function" -- a quick button press allows you to view two photos (and their metadata) side by side on the LCD for on-the-fly checks of how your shots are shaping up. The Mark III also is also capable of shooting HDR images, with your choice of up to seven exposures (up to three stops over and under) to work with. Other features new to this puppy are "in-camera RAW processing, Scene Intelligent Auto mode, two forms of movie compression (ALL-I and IPB), and support for high-speed UDMA 7 Compact Flash memory cards." By the way, you'll still be restricted to 29 minutes and 59 seconds of shooting time (Canon's way of avoiding those European HD camcorder taxes as it has on many of its DSLRs).



Remember the updated button placements on back that we mentioned? Along the left side of the screen you'll notice a rate button (for starring photos quickly during a shooter and a creative photo button, while on the right there's now a dedicated Live view toggle, along with a multi-function button near the shutter button (we're told these placements could change once the final version is set in stone). You'll also find that the power switch has made its way over to top left, positioned directly behind the now pro bono locking mode dial on the top left. Notably, the inner portion of the circular control-wheel is actually touch sensitive -- since you'll be able to make adjustments to parameters such as exposure and audio levels while recording, it'll spare your tracks of any annoying clicks that could result otherwise.



Alright, we get it; all of this info is dandy, but now you want to know about availability, accessories and pricing. The EOS 5D Mark III is slated to hit shelves by the end of March, priced at $3,500 for the body-only and $4,300 as kit with an EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM zoom lens. Also available at launch, will be Canon's new $630 Speedlite 600EX-RT and its $470 Speedlite Transmitter ST-E3-RT (essentially all the tech of the former, minus the flash itself). Once April rolls around, you'll also be able to get your mitts on the $390 GP-E2 GPS receiver, $850 WFT-E7A Wireless Transmitter, and of course, the $490 BG-E11 Battery Grip (weather-resistant, with room for two batteries). On a related note, Canon also informed that Mark II will soon be get's its price reduced, but there's no word on an exact number just yet. We'll be sure to get some shooting time in with the Mark III as soon as we can, but in the meantime, check out the galleries and press release below for more of the nitty-gritty.

Click here to pre-order Canon EOS 5D Mark III now!

Canon EOS 5D Mark III

Click here to pre-order from Amazon.com!