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Archives for June 2010

Photography 101 – 4 Photo Tips to Know

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Although you can’t learn everything in one post about photography (and nor would I try),  this post is written to give you a taste of four important digital photography tips  that can be helpful in improving almost any picture.

Have Enough Resolution

With most people using digital cameras, often people end up with poor quality pictures when they go to enlarge them.  Often times, the problem is that the image doesn’t have a high enough resolution.

If you’re going to print out your pictures, make sure you use your camera’s highest resolution.  However, if you want more information on resolution, check out our blog post All About Resolution. Just remember, that if you’re shooting with high resolution, you can always resize the picture to a smaller size.

Have the Right Kind of Light

Good lighting is critical if you want great pictures. However, sometimes people think they have to spend a lot of money on lighting equipment in order to get quality light. Although this post is not about the basics of lighting, if you’re on a budget and want great lighting simply go outside.

Natural lighting is best when you choose specific times of the day such as the hour after dawn or the hour before sunset. Both of these times give soft light compared to the harsh shadows and bad bright glare of the sun at high noon. Obviously you want to avoid direct bright light (such as noon time) like the plague as it will wash out your pictures and generally give you bad results.


Composing Your Pictures

With photo composition there is lot to learn but one helpful tip you can start using right away is to “fill the frame.” Filling the frame means that you want to have the subject of your photo be the focus and have it take up the majority of the image. This allows your subject to be the focus and will usually result in a photo with more impact.

Often times, people will include a lot of extraneous “stuff” around the subject that is later cropped out. For example, if you’re taking a picture of Suzy swinging in the yard, you should zoom in on Suzy swinging and ignore all of the other activity in the yard like Grandpa barbequing or the dog playing with his toy. Simply by using this techniques you’ll start to see a noticeable difference in the appeal of your pictures. And once you’ve learned that, you can always learn other composition techniques like the “rule of thirds.”

Keep it Steady

It doesn’t take much movement to create a blurry picture and is a common problem with many pictures. With digital cameras, there is usually a delay from the time you press the shutter release and the time the picture is actually taken. This is called shutter lag and varies with each camera. So, the best trick to avoid blurry pictures is the following:

  • Use a Tripod when using a slow shutter speed to make sure the camera is steady.
  • Get used to the delay with your camera and keep the camera still until the green light on your camera flashes.
  • Steady yourself by keeping your elbows down close to your body and your feet evenly planted on the ground.

Hopefully these tips will help you get improved results with your camera so you’ll have more pictures that you can enjoy displaying on your picture frame wall.

Picture Frame Hardware

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If you’ve ever bought a picture frame for hanging on the wall and didn’t realize it didn’t come with picture frame hardware then here is a basic overview of the most common types of hardware available. There are different types of hanging hardware depending upon the type of frame you want to hang and its weight.

In most cases, wood frames are what we think of when it comes to installing hanging hardware. That’s because metal frames have too hard a surface and therefore, must have hanging hardware already attached to the metal frame.  Here is just one example of a metal frame that has a metal hanging clip that easily comes on and off depending upon what direction you want to hang your frame. So, the next thing you must consider is the weight and size of the frame.

Ready Made Frame Hardware


For most frames that you buy online or in a store, these are called ready made frames and often include hanging hardware already attached to the frame.  Many of these frames have a hoop or triangular piece of hardware riveted on the back of a frame already for hanging.The most common type of ready made hanging hardware is a hoop or ring. With these all you have to do is put a nail in the wall and hang your frame. These are found on small to medium sized frames that aren’t very heavy. However, when the frames get larger in size and heavier, that’s when you generally have to install your own hanging hardware.

Alligator Hooks

This type of picture frame hardware is what is often called an alligator hook. Alligator hooks have a jagged edge and are secured to the frame by small nails. They are super easy to install and come in different sizes depending upon the size and weight of the frame you want to hang.  To install them on the frame, all you have to do is center the hook on the back of the frame and place a nail on each side of the hook. Super simple. Alligator hooks are generally designed for solid wood frames that range in light to medium weight.

Screw Eyes

This type of picture frame hardware is a little harder to install but is designed for larger and heavier frames. Screw eyes are screws with a circle like end that is designed to hold a wire. To install them you put a screw eye on each end of the frame and then connect the two screws eyes with picture frame wire. Here is an example of how the screw eyes are used. As you can see when you string the wire between both screw eyes, you want to securely wrap the end of the wire around each end to make sure the wire won’t slip off.

Just remember that anytime you install frame hardware yourself, remember to size the hardware to the frame you’re hanging. So, if you’re hanging a small frame, then you can use smaller hardware and smaller nails or screws.  Whereas, for large heavy frames you want to use frame hardware that’s designed for the extra weight. Also make sure that the length of the screw or nail is appropriate to the thickness of the frame as using too long of a nail or screw can badly damage or even ruin your frame.

Preservation Tips Part 5: Tips #9-10

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Here are the last three tips in our series on Preservation Tips.

Tip #8: Access and Preservation Go Together

When it comes to protecting your special items, you have to remember that as important as they are to preserve, you also must also be able to enjoy and admire your collections. So, here are several more tips you can use to protect them and ensure that others can enjoy them for years to come.

Make sure to document information about your photos or documents. Although some people write very carefully on the back of photographs, you can also create a digital reproduction of the image and have the information included there or keep a record book describing the items together in a special place. It’s important that you keep your collections organized and properly label things so others will understand their importance and details. It also helps to store them in properly labeled enclosures so it will minimize the items being damaged because someone was rummaging around in a box.

Another thing to consider, is that if you’re displaying an item, consider giving it “a rest.” Have it out and then put it away for a while and let something else go in its place. You should also consider making an inventory and detailed list of all your special items in case of a disaster. This will be important if it’s necessary to make an insurance claim.

Tip #9: Be Informed

Like anything, it’s easy to get bad advice when it comes to protecting your valuables. Here are just a few excellent online resources that offer solid advice:

Library of Congress Preservation Directorate

National Archives and Records Administration

American Institute of Conservation

Tip #10:  Have Professionals Do Repairs

When something you treasure gets damaged, ask yourself how important it is to you. If it’s something with a lot of value either sentimentally or monetarily, have it professionally repaired. Unfortunately, most people try repairing their important item or keepsake and end up damaging it even more. Here’s a link on how to find a good conservator.

A special thanks to the Preservation Underground for this wonderful information!

Preservation Tips Part 4 – Tips #7

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Another day of preservation tips to help you keep your special items protected.

Tip #7: Preserving Non-Paper Collections

There are many different types of items that may need protecting, but this post is all about non paper collections.

Photographs and Home Movies:

Pictures and film are very sensitive to the environment so you need to minimize the dust, light pollutants and handling that can damage them. Like we’ve discussed before, try to protect them in pH neutral enclosures (pH 7.0) or archival products.

When it comes to protecting home movies, always have a duplicate made and keep the original in a safe place. And, for your old movies, it’s always best to get them digitized. If you don’t have your special movies, made it the latest digital medium, you run the risk of having trouble watching them because of the technology changes.For example if you have VHS video tapes or something older, make sure to transfer them to DVD or MPEG format.

Textiles:

Many people have special textiles they keep, like family wedding dresses, baby clothes, christening gowns or other items that have special meaning.

Like photos, textiles are also very sensitive to environmental factors. You have to watch out for high humidity, exposure to light, insects, pollutants like dust or cooking vapors and alkaline environments.  For those that may not know what alkaline is- is a pH above 7.0 also called basic (the opposite of acidic).  All of these factors can degrade the material and decrease the longevity of your special item. A good way to protect your textiles is to store them in pH neutral enclosures. For cleaning e a special piece of textile, always consult a professional.

Digital Items:

With so much information stored digitally, it is critical that you protect your important digital documents.  Unfortunately, digital items are vulnerable to format and hardware obsolescence, chemical instability and unpredictable failure. The best thing you can do is create multiple copies and send them to different family members for storing.  Or, for some items, print them out and store them in a safe place.

Another important thing you should do is perform regular back ups of your electronic media. When backing up your digital information, consider keeping a physical backup in a safe place or doing a remote backup using a service. Just remember that if you need to access your remote backup, you’ll need an internet connection to access the information.

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