<sup>Oh, hi!

First of all, this thing is NOT PROFESSIONAL. So please don't judge me by that. I just want to share with you some of my... knowledges.

And after you learn all the basics, you can experiment. Experimenting is fun.

Please try to get over my bad English... ^^</sup>


FRIENDLY PHOTOGRAPHY GUIDE
^{For the n00bs... or not so n00bs}


GETTING STARTED

So, you have a camera, you have will, you love photography and you're addicted to deviantART. Perfect.

Hey, don't feel discouraged if you have a small camera. Really, it's not about that. You have to know how to use your camera, even if it's a cheap, small one.

I started with a small cam too. And there was times when people asked me "wow, that's great photography, what camera do you use?" Cool, huh!


CAMERA SETTINGS

Take your camera's user manual and read it all. You have to KNOW your tool in order to use it, isn't it? Learn all the functions, all the buttons.

In short, avoid using the auto mode. Until you learn more about your cam, set it to P mode, which is almost fully automatic but it allows you to control some of your camera's functions, such as the flash... which, by the way, should be always turned OFF (at least until you learn more stuff and be more experienced).

The best and most perfect time to take photos is during daylight. DAYLIGHT! Remember that. Set your camera's ISO to 100 if you have perfect natural light. The higher the ISO, the higher the noise on your photos. So, keep it low. ISO 400 is good for indoor photography, but the quality won't be the same, the photo will be "noisy".


THE MACRO MODE

The macro mode allows you to take closeup photos (flowers, a kitty head, a spoon etc). Some cameras have an additional Super Macro Mode, which allows you to get even more closer, like in the photo above.
But nothing compares to the professional cameras (dslr cameras that is), on which you can attach different macro objectives... But hey hey hey, we are not dealing with the professionals here!

So, when shooting in macro mode, the most important thing is to STAY STILL. Don't move your camera, even a bit! Blurry macros are ugly. So practice. And stay still, dammit!


PRACTICING

Practice, practice, practice! Go out, have fun. Play. Take 30 shots of the same tree, or flower. Try different perspectives, different composition.


EDITING YOUR PHOTOS

Let's say you took about 20 photographs of the same landscape. Choose ONE, or TWO (not 10), to edit and upload on deviantART. It's quality that matters most, not quantity.
Choose only the best ones! Seriously, if there isn't anything worthy, it's better not to upload, or upload into Scraps.


TOOLS FOR EDITING PHOTOS

<sup>Photoshop is the best, of course. But do not despair. There's a free alternative, very cool and very similar to Photoshop, called GIMP.

Another nice freeware program is Photofiltre. I highly recommend it.

For resizing photos use Easy Thumbnails. It's very cool, it's very easy and it integrates into Windows, so when you right click on an image, you'll get the option "create thumbnail". If using it, always set the quality to 100, and if necessary, set sharpness to +1.</sup>

CROPPING

Cropping is really necessary if you want to get rid of the unwanted parts. It can be easily done in almost any editing software. Try different croppings, and avoid centering the subject. To learn more about this, read this useful guide about the Rule of Thirds: [link]


ENCHANCING YOUR PHOTOS

Some people say that a true photograph don't need to be edited in any way. Personally I do not agree. I thing editing is absolutely necessary, at least basic editings/adjustments.

Adjusting lighting, levels and colors it's really easy using Photoshop, Gimp or any other editing software.


USING FILTERS AND ACTIONS

If you have Photoshop, you can download and install various filters and actions. Just type "photoshop filters/actions" in the deviantART's search bar and you will be amazed. Installing and using is really easy, follow the guidelines in the Read Me files and you're all set. If there's no Read Me file, here's a helping link: [link]

Remember to give credit to the creator of the filter/action used in your Artist's Comments when uploading on dA.


RESIZING YOUR PHOTOS

This is absolutely necessary. Be smart. A very large file will be hard to see in full view (not everyone has a super duper large screen). On the other hand, a very small file it's annoying, you can't see any details on it.

I recommend you to resize your photos to be at least 450/500 pixels on the smallest side.

If you don't want to resize them yourself, you can do it on the uploading page. Upload your large file, then just under your uploaded photo, there's an option, on how big or small you want it to appear. Feel free to choose between 600 or 800 pixels wide.


THINGS TO AVOID

- excessive editing. Keep it natural, original. Meaning, if it's red, don't turn it into fire. Make it pleasant and relaxing for the eyes.

- file too large or too small

- editing a blurry, unartistical photo. Never ever try to cover photo minuses with a filter or an action... Edit only your best photos for best results.

- uploading ten photos of the same subject, even if they're different edited

- naming your photos with numbers, like: 1, 2, 3, ..., 253 (except for those people who make special accounts only for their pet photos, or travelling photos). Be creative. Title is important.

- uploading too much, too often. Even if dA allows it. You will despair your watchers. Remember: quality prevails quantity.

- not writing anything in the artist's comments. Write something about the photo, about the way and circumstances you took the shot. Most people like to read the artist's comments.


ABOUT WATERMARKING

If they're good, people will steal your works even if they are all watermarked. But I think it's necessary, I recommend you to write your deviantART address or your name on them. Just keep it artsy. Choose a nice font. Something simple, neat.

If the font is still not readable (perhaps the photo has many colours), follow this steps: type your text, then right click the text layer, and go to Blending Options > Outer Glow and play with the settings until you are satisfied with the result. Simple as that.

If you are lazy, you can use deviantART's watermarking option, always on the uploading page. It looks quite stylish, altough it covers the whole image.


--

<sup>That was it. If I forgot something, I am sorry, I will try to edit this text afterwards.

I really hope this thing will be useful to people.
Glomps for all!</sup>