Making The Most Of Your Phone Camera

I take, and have always taken all of my blog photos on a DSLR camera. But unlike me, there are many bloggers and even non-bloggers out there who don't have the privilege of owning a camera. Few people will probably agree with me here, but it isn't necessary to have a fancy camera or a DSLR to take good quality photographs. Nowadays the majority of people own some sort of smartphone, and most of them come equipped with a decent built in camera. Some of you may argue that photos taken on a phone aren't exactly high quality, but at second glance you can achieve some cracking images! So with this post I hope to show you how to get best use out of the different functions, to create some incredible photos. 

Tap to focus // This one is possible the best and most useful thing to remember when using your phone's camera. It may seem a bit obvious to most of you, but there are some people that don't even know how to use the basic camera settings - heck some people don't even know how to open the camera app! No matter how still you think you can hold your phone, you are always shakier than you think - otherwise we would all be experts at applying winged liner. Simply tap the screen once and everything will come into focus, or tap and hold on a specific area/subject to bring that into focus. 

HDR // HDR stands for High Dynamic Range. This setting takes three different photos at three different exposures, and then merges them together to create a more vibrant image. It is a function that doesn't necessarily work for closeups and portraits, but is great for things like landscapes. 

Timer // Apple have fairly recently brought in a timer function on the iPhone camera. The timer can be extremely helpful when taking images of yourself, or of a subject that requires less camera shake. It is really simple to use, and you can see in the above picture that the third icon in from the left depicts a little clock - this is how you use the timer function. 

Remote // There are many ways of taking images 'hand free' if you will. With the recent selfie stick craze fizzling out, I thought it a good idea to mention an alternative method using the same principles. If you plug in a pair of earphones into an iPhone (it may work with other phones too but I'm not sure) and then open up the camera app, you can use the volume controls to release the camera shutter. 

Exposure // By tapping the screen on an iPhone, it brings up a yellow box with a little sun at the side. By sliding your finger up and down the screen you can adjust the exposure. By sliding your finger up the photo becomes brighter and in some cases, overexposed. By sliding your finger downwards, it darkens the image and underexposes it. 

Editing // Even if your photo isn't exactly how you want it to look, there are various apps on the app store that will enable you to enhance your images. I prefer to use VSCO, even though the recent update has caused uproar amongst the blogging community, I like it because it has the effects that I like the most. 

Have you got any tips?

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How To Take Good Photos In Bad Lighting

With the days getting shorter and the weather getting more and more gloomy with easy passing day, it is becoming increasingly harder to get some decent looking shots to go alongside your blog posts. Whilst I was at work this week, I was showing students how to use studio equipment to properly light their subjects - and besides wishing I had my own studio, I found myself thinking how I could achieve similar effects with what little natural light I have at home. A couple of months ago, I shared a post telling you all how I take my blog photos, and at the time we had loads of sunlight. But now I feel as though I should update it slightly to fall in line with the current time of year. I do have to be completely honest and say that you shouldn't expect miracles from the advice I have to offer, but I do hope that my tips help you in some small way.

 The Obvious Stuff 

First things first, you will need to make sure your camera is charged. I know this sounds so stupid an obvious, but there are so many occasions over the last couple of weeks where I have thought "omg the lighting is ok, I can actually get some blog photos taken" - only to set everything up to find that my camera battery is flat.  Besides being completely frustrating, it can mean that you miss your opportunity to take some well lit photos!  When your camera is charged up and you finally get to the point of taking your photos - make sure that you find the area with the best source of light, whether it's near a window or outside if needs be (as long as it's not raining or snowing obvs). 

Camera Settings

When your environment is darker, you WILL need to alter your camera settings. As I've said before, one of the main camera settings that will affect how bright your photos are, is ISO. Basically, ISO is how sensitive the camera's sensor is to light. The higher the ISO, the more sensitive the sensor is - making your images brighter (but also grainer at the same time). Generally as a rule, I like to use an ISO of 100 or 200 hundred at a push depending on what I'm shooting. Over the last few weeks I've started using an ISO of 400 as my camera doesn't have a setting for 300 (or I'd use that), and then slightly increasing the aperture accordingly. With a higher ISO, I have also been using a slower shutter speed. As I have previously mentioned, I usually use a shutter speed of 1/125 - but recently I have been going as slow as 1/60. The slower your shutter speed, the more light gets into the shutter - but if you do too slow, your images tend to be blurry if you don't use a tripod. 

Other Techy Stuff

HAHAHA how vague can I be with the term 'techy stuff'?! But like I said in my other post, it is really important to take your files in a RAW+JPEG file format. This may sound majorly technical and professional, but is honestly so easy to do - but I can't explain how as it's different for every camera. But this particular camera setting allows you to essentially 're-take' your photo in Photoshop (and some other editing softwares/programs). You can alter your iso/aperture meaning you can completely change how your image came out! 

If All Else Fails - Photoshop

I know it is technically cheating as you aren't actually taking good photos straight off, but I always end up editing my pictures as they never turn out bright enough for my liking. If you are new to Photoshop or you are just looking for a simpler way to make your photos brighter, I have a really simple way that literally takes me like 30 seconds to edit my photos! It is super easy and (not being biased) I think I've explained it pretty well! 

How are you getting on with your blog photos this season?

Thanks for reading!

Love Charlotte x

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How I Take My Blog Photos

A while ago I shared with you how I edit my blog post photos, and since then I've had a couple of requests to share how I take my photos in the first place! Logically it would have made sense to write them the other way round, but it's good to be different - right? First of all, I use the Nikon D3100 with a standard 18-50mm lens. It's a fairly cheap camera and there are certainly better ones out there (at a much higher cost), but this has served me well and I'm extremely familiar with all the settings and features. I could probably take a photo with my eyes shut! Just so you know, it doesn't really matter which camera body you get as long as you get one with a standard size lens mount so you can get lots of different lenses to build up your camera kit. 

Timing. I tend to take my photos mid-morning or in the afternoon after the midday sun has started to lower in the sky. As I only use natural light for my photos, I've found that these are the best times to get well lit photos with minimal shadows. I never use flash and I urge you never to do so either. It creates glare and can ruin your photos! When taking my photos, I place whatever objects I'm taking in a well lit location onto of a self made backdrop (large sheets of thick paper) to keep my images looking bright and crisp. 

I shoot on manual. I always shoot on manual. I've shot like this for a while, as a professional photographer once advised me to do so and I've never looked back since! Shooting on manual allows you to adjust all of the settings on your camera to suit the lighting conditions at a time! I usually set my ISO to 100 and if the lighting isn't so great I go up to 200 - but never higher than that! If you shoot using high ISOs, you come out with a super grainy photo, so unless you're a concert photographer or are aiming for that effect - stick to a low setting! Shutter speed and aperture are probably the most important settings when it comes to taking any photo. You want to aim to have a shutter speed of around 1/125 to keep your photos completely in focus. This means that the shutter opened and closes pretty quickly, leaving you with lovely crisp images. Adjusting the aperture on your camera, adjusts how sensitive the sensor is to light. A low aperture, lets lots of light into the camera and a high aperture leaves out the light and gives you dark images. It helps to think about it as a 24 hour clock. At 9.00 (e.g low aperture of f/6.3), it is light and bright and at 21:00 (e.g hight aperture of f/22) it is pitch black dark! 

I take my images in a JPEG+Raw file format. Saving a 'Raw' file helps in that if you completely mess up with your camera settings, but have taken a well composed image - you can go into Photoshop (and some other editing programs) and change your camera settings HOW AWESOME IS THAT?! You can essentially go back in time and alter how you shot your photos! MAGIC! 

Manual focus. As well as shooting on a manual setting, it is also important to focus your DSLR manually. Although it takes more time and effort - the results can often be so much better! You can play around with the focus to add depth to your photos, it always looks nice to have some bits out of focus on purpose. 

I hope this post has helped some of you! If there's anything that you feel I haven't covered - please let me know and I'll get back to you or if there's a lot of topics to cover I'll include them in another blog post! Oh and if you have any tips of your own, feel free to share them in the comments to help each other out!

Thanks for reading!

Love Charlotte x

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My Birthday Wish List 2015

In a few weeks (on the 29th June) I will be turning 19, and I thought it would be a nice idea to sneakily write a post about a few of the things I have been eyeing up for a while! My friends say I'm really easy to buy for as they know me so well, but just incase they get stuck - there are a couple of ideas here.

First up is the ZOEVA Rose Gold Brush Set (£56.95). This hit the blogging world a long time ago, and I have been lusting after it for what seems to be forever! The reviews for these brushes are amazing, and as of late I have a slight weakness towards anything rose gold! 

A few times, when I first started my blog - I shot my photos using the Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8 Lens (£136) The lens is INCREDIBLE for portrait and close up shots as it has a shorter focal length. Although the lens seems pricey, it is actually pretty cheap as far as lenses go. Some lenses can cost £1000s! 

When I last went shopping, I took a trip into Harvey Nichols - whilst there I spritzed this, and it smelled amazing! I've never tried anything from Dior before so I was very impressed! The Miss Dior Perfume by Dior (£137 per 100ml) is a very fresh, citrusy floral perfume. With top notes of wild strawberry and mandarin orange it would be the perfect perfume for summer!

At the point of writing this, I have just about run out of my beloved Benefit Porefessional Primer (£24.50). This stuff is perfect as a gift as it is on the high end of the price scale. It is a lightweight tinted balm and gives a flawless satin finish. It also makes your foundation last forever! I don't think I could live without it!

Being so tall, I always have a problem when it comes to wearing high heels. The problem being that it makes me well over 6ft tall! But recently, I have been loving wearing sandals with a slight block heel. Although they give a little height, they wouldn't make me look like a giant - plus they'd be extra comfy on a night out! I have been eyeing up these Red Ankle Strap Block Heel Sandals from New Look (£17.99) for quite a while. I don't own many (if any) coloured shoes, I usually tend to opt for black or white so I would love to add these to my collection! PS - I'm a size 8 for those wondering ;)

I am a bit of a handbag horder. I Like to have a bag to match every outfit for every occasion. Up until recently my bag collection was mainly made up of tan coloured satchel styled across body bags and black tote bags - but I have been slowly expanding my collection! I am absolutely in love with this Powder Pink Handbag from H&M (£29.99) - it is such a gorgeous shade for the the summer and it will add a nice pop of colour to a monochrome outfit!

Finally, I have saved the best till last! I recently redecorated my bedroom and all that seems to be missing is a few accessories. My walls are completely bare and I've been meaning to buy a few prints and a mirror for a while. I have been wanting to buy this Motivational Print (£8.31 - £16.94) from Etsy so I can prop it up on my dresser next to my Muji Makeup Storage Drawers. I read somewhere, that a room does not feel cosy without pieces of art on the walls - so I am determined to find a few key pieces to finish off my room! 

What would be your ideal gift from someone be?

Thanks for reading!

Love Charlotte x

Blogging Equipment & Photography Tips and Tricks

I frequently get sent lots of emails, tweets and comments from you all telling me how much you like my style of photography, asking what camera I use and how I learnt to use it. Well, I have finally got round to writing this post especially for you guys! I don’t often dish out advice on the subject of blogging mainly because I don’t consider myself an all-knowing oracle on the subject. It’s a world that’s constantly changing, there’s no right or wrong way of doing things and I’m still learning something new everyday myself. But when it comes to photography, I like to think I know a thing or two.

In sixth form/college, I decided to take A-Level photography as one of my four subjects. I had always had an interest in photography, visiting art galleries as a kid and just taking random photos on disposable cameras. When I started my course, I didn't own a camera. I saw that as a bit of a drawback considering I needed good grades to get into university. So I saved up, and a few months into my course I almost had enough money to buy a DSLR. My mum kindly put the rest together for me as a christmas present and I went with her to pick out a camera! I chose the Nikon D3100 as until I had my own, I used to loan out the ones belonging to my college, and this (amongst a couple others) is one of the ones I liked to loan out. My 'photography' teachers were actually art teachers and one of them didn't even know how to open the cupboards to get the cameras out, so from the start I knew the course was going to be very self led. I followed tutorials online, looked through the Instagrams of photographers and just tried to replicate their styles. Over time, I developed my own 'style' and I loved the bold, crisp, colourful images that I try and incorporate into my blog posts. 

To start blogging, I’d say you need minimal equipment: a camera and an internet connection. You don’t need to splash out on fancy gadgets at all. Many of the well known bloggers started out with little point of shoot cameras. No matter what you have, whether it's your phone or a £7000 camera, as long as you know how to use it properly you are in business! My camera cost no more than £350 from Argos (I can't seem to find it to tell you the exact cost) and it is just as good as more expensive ones I have tried.

In April, I bought myself the little Sony A5000 for more on the go blogging and tutorial style posts where I need to see myself (it has a flip screen unlike my DSLR). I'm still playing around with it and getting to know how to use it properly, but I used it for the photo of my DSLR in this post and it seems to do a good enough job! It retails at £251, which is a lot cheaper than the DSLR and it does pretty much the same stuff for a fraction of the post. It is cheap because they have since brought out the A6000 (?) which is the newer model and therefore there will be less demand for it. So if you are in need of a new camera for blogging, why not check out something like this rather than a DSLR?

For lighting, I use natural lighting - which is starting to make more of appearance here in the UK! I have used artificial lighting whilst doing my photography course and I know how amazing it is, but you can achieve similar results when natural lighting is used. Especially considering how expensive lighting it! The best tip with lighting that I've ever received is to NEVER… I repeat NEVER… use your cameras built in flash! If your photos turn out a little darker than you want them, you can always retouch them. There are many free photo retouching websites and programs out there. You don't need Photoshop at all! I am fortunate enough to have it (by the way, as students you can get it for just over £100 rather than £800+) but before I bought it I managed just fine!

If you have any other questions that I haven't covered in my post, feel free to leave a comment or drop me an email (charlottesophiaroberts@gmail.com) and I will reply as soon as possible!

Thanks for reading!

Love Charlotte x
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