Canon PowerShot G11 Digital Field Guide
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- Provides no-fail techniques for getting the most out of your Canon PowerShot G11 digital camera
- Walks you through the PowerShot G11's new features and functions, including face recognition software, 5x optical zoom, RAW image format capture, a wider aperture than standard PowerShot models, faster electronics, and remote capture
- Elevates your photography skills to a new level with photography secrets from professional photographer and author Charlotte Lowrie
- Teaches you photography essentials and offers beautiful, full-color examples to inspire you on your next shoot
Move from standard shots to power shots with Canon PowerShot G11 Digital Field Guide.
Top Ten Canon PowerShot G11 Photography Tips
Amazon-exclusive content from author Brian McLernon
1. Keep the camera steady. The small size and light weight of the Canon PowerShot G11 make it the go-to camera of choice for quick snapshots of people, locations and dynamic action. Even with that convenient portability, it is still important to hold or support the camera as steady as possible to produce crisp, sharp images, especially at the longer focal lengths of the zoom range. Use a tripod or self timer to fire the camera at shutter speeds slower than those you can safely handhold, usually @ 1/20 second and longer.
2. Watch the edges of the frame. Before taking the picture, quickly scan the edges of the viewfinder or LCD image to make sure no part of the subject is cut off or goes out of the frame in a distracting way. This applies to hands, arms, legs and feet in people photos, and architectural or natural elements in scenic photos. Linear objects that run out of the picture frame tend to take the eye with them and can diminish the impact of your main subject. Overly bright objects on the edges will cause the same effect. Use background elements to frame and visually contain your subject to help keep the viewers eye within the frame.
3. Use backlighting to make your subject pop. Backlighting a scene, where the sun or the main light source is behind the subject, can really help make it stand out and is a very effective way of separating the subject from the background. Backlighting creates a rim of highlights around the outer edges of the subject and usually requires a stop or two of positive exposure compensation or flash to open up the shadowed side of the subject that’s facing the camera. Backlit photos are most successful when the picture is composed utilizing a darker toned background.
4. Pan the camera with the subject to convey action. Panning the camera to follow a moving subject requires a little practice and the right timing but can yield dramatic images of sports, dynamic action or events and celebrations. Panning allows the subject to occupy virtually the same spot in the frame while the background is rendered as a horizontal or vertical motion blur. Panning along with a moving subject can also tame a busy background and reduce it to pleasing streaks of color. Choose a slightly slower than normal shutter speed of say, 1/30 or 1/20 second and track the subject as it moves across the picture plane. Backgrounds are equally important in panning shots; a monochromatic background won’t produce the contrast or color streaking that makes panned shots look their best.
5. Choose the right aperture. The right aperture or f/stop setting can often make or break a successful photograph. In the caption of every image in the Canon PowerShot G11 Digital Field Guide with the exception of those of the camera and accessories, I list which ISO, shutter speed and aperture combination I used to make each of the resulting shots so readers will be armed with the exact information they need to go out and make a similar image. While aperture does control the intensity of light entering the camera, it also controls the amount of depth-of-field or selective focus that will be present in the final image. Anytime I want to diminish the importance or details of a background, I employ a larger aperture and possibly a longer lens focal length setting. For rich scenic or macro shots where I want as much detail as I can get, I use a smaller aperture. Think of aperture as a tool to make more or less of the elements in the photograph sharper or softer.
6. Fill the frame. The great photographer Robert Capa once famously remarked “If your pictures aren’t strong enough, you’re not close enoughâ€. Trying to create a meaningful photograph of a subject that is too far away, too small, or lost in the chaos of a scene will surely result in unsatisfactory images that neither please the photographer nor create the intended emotional response. You don’t need a lot of competing details in the frame to produce compelling imagery. Keep the composition simple and hone in on the subject by physically moving closer or zooming in to reduce distracting elements from the shot. In many cases, less is more.
7. Shoot horizontals and verticals. Magazine and newspaper photographers often strive to give their editors the most choices in regards to layout options by shooting both horizontal and vertical images of the subjects they are assigned to shoot. Many times in the shooting process, new compositional ideas will present themselves to the keen-eyed photographer who begins taking pictures with a definite shot in their minds eye, but who is sensitive enough to recognize new ones as they appear in the course of the shoot. Having both horizontals and verticals of the same subject affords options and flexibility when creating albums, slideshows or web sites.
8. Reverse-engineer photos you like. Be on the lookout for photos or scenes that you see and really like in newspapers, magazines, movies and television programs and then try to figure out how they were accomplished. Where was the sun or the lighting placed in relation to the subject or scene? What time of day do you think it was? What focal length lens/white balance setting or camera angle was used? Once you have a rough idea of the techniques used, go out and try to recreate a similar set-up and photograph it as best as you can to match the original. Many of my favorite photo ideas came to me in a darkened theatre or auditorium or while flipping through a magazine.
9. Backgrounds, backgrounds, backgrounds. In my photo classes and workshops, I always stress the importance the background plays in successful photos. The background is the palate upon which your subject rests and should relate to the subject or enhance its importance or can simply be a wash of out of focus color elements. Similarly, a background that provides dramatic contrast to the subject, for example a full body image of a sequined ballerina in an old abandoned factory will set up a dynamic tension in the viewer’s eye that makes for a memorable photo.
10. Point of view. The background can be further controlled by where the camera is placed. The G11’s small size makes it ideal to be placed in unusual locations where a larger camera wouldn’t fit and moving the camera around will yield a wide array of interestingly different interpretations of the same subject. Considering this, I often get down on my knees or lay on the ground when photographing children to mimic their world-view, or shoot from a lower camera angle when photographing CEO’s or sports stars to exaggerate their stature and magnify their importance. Many interesting images can be accomplished by simply moving the camera around to different points of view.
Photos from Author Brian McLernon (Click to enlarge)
Cedar Breaks National Monument, Utah
As we walked up to the scenic lookout, the grand vista of Cedar Breaks National Monument opened up before us. I was immediately struck by the contrast of the orange canyons and my friends blue shirt and knew if I could the two together it would make a good photo opportunity. Having a body in the picture give the image scale and warm and cool tones in a photograph can often create an interesting visual tension between the contrasting colors and make the shot more appealing. As we finished snapping our photos and the conversation ebbed, the mystery of the desert scene before us put us in a contemplative mood. I quietly adjusted my G11’s lens as far wide as it would go and took a few steps back to compose my frame. I quickly noticed a strong visual line of my friends head merging with the slope of the canyon sand on the lower left, so I placed her head in the upper right and lined up a strong diagonal. I also noticed my composed image was following the Rule-Of-Thirds, in that my foreground subject occupies the right third of the frame, while the horizon/sky occupies the top third of the frame.
Specs: ISO 400, f/8, 1/500 second with a 6.1mm lens setting.
River Rocks, McKenzie River, Oregon
The McKenzie River runs right past one of my favorite camping spots in all of Oregon. The channel runs fast and clear in this section and is popular among white-water rafting and kayaking enthusiasts for its technical and challenging runs. At normal flows, these large rocks are exposed and offer a nicely detailed foreground element to juxtapose the rushing water. While I have photographed many of the boats and kayaks that have drifted by, I never really did a nature study of this small rapid. On the last camping trip of the summer with my new Canon PowerShot G11 along, I thought it would make a prime candidate for a time exposure. I climbed down some slippery rocks about five feet to the river’s edge and set up my Bogen/Manfrotto tripod, and with the quick-release plate, securely attached my G11 to it. Since there is really no “decisive moment†to a shot like this, I could have used the self-timer feature, but I had the Remote Switch RS60-E3 in my bag so I used it instead. To retain the maximum detail in the shot, I set the aperture to f/8 in Manual mode and used manual focus to focus on the exposed rocks. Checking the LCD, this aperture setting indicated a shutter speed of 2 seconds which I knew would provide enough time to render the water in a nice linear blur. After making a few exposures, I decided to add 1/2 stop exposure compensation to bring up the value of the entire scene and render the water truly white.
Specs: ISO 100, f/8, 2 seconds with a 7.6mm lens setting.
Seagull, Astoria, Oregon
Having lunch one weekend afternoon at an outdoor café in Astoria, Oregon after attending the annual crafts fair, I noticed a large collection of seabirds being fed by some tourists along a cement barrier wall separating the Columbia River from the rest of the town. As I watched the scene unfold, my eye was drawn to one particular seagull that appeared to be disinterested in the free food and was walking back and forth on top of the wall, possibly in an attempt to dislodge the debris wrapped around its left ankle. I knew if I could get close enough to allow the maximum zoom setting of the G11’s lens to fill the frame with the bird, it might make an interesting shot. I finished up lunch, paid the bill and slowly walked over to the wall while checking the G11’s LCD to see my composition come together. It was a fairly overcast day so I was slightly limited in the settings I could choose to get a sharp photo of the quickly moving seagull. I adjusted my shooting position to a spot where I would have an unobstructed background, free of buoys and boats, and waited for my little friend to make his way back to me. I set the camera to continuous shooting mode because I wanted to shoot as many photos as I could while the gull was in position, and this mode allows a higher number of “keepers†for fast moving subjects. After shooting several frames while panning as the gull walked back and forth, I reviewed my shots on the LCD and decided this one was my favorite. I like the fact that the eyes and beak are sharp but the feet are slightly blurry, indication the lateral movement.
Specs: ISO 100, f/8, 1/250 second with a 29.4mm lens setting
