Capital Photography Center Blog

August 7, 2017

Drawing The Viewer In - Characteristics of Great Photos

Marie Joabar

When you look at a really good photograph, whether it's a nice portrait shot or a beautiful landscape, something inside you gets excited and you almost intuitively know it's great. But have you ever wondered how we know? Why do we like some photos and are unimpressed by others?

When it comes to great photographs, there are a few things in common whether you consciously realize it or not. So what are the common threads between these photos? And how can you incorporate these ideas into your own work? Here is a short list of what elevates a photograph from being just ‘okay’ to something that inspires and moves your viewer.

July 5, 2017

Summer Camera Care

Marie Joabar

It’s summertime and we all want to photograph our family playtime, our vacations and our gatherings with friends.

Here are a few tips to keep your camera working well capturing all the fun throughout the season.

June 15, 2017

An 8 Step Photo Workflow

Marie Joabar and Christina Ascani

In terms of photography, a workflow is a way of working which encompasses setting up your camera, taking photos, downloading and saving them in a safe place, editing and exporting them for their final use. The idea behind a workflow is creating a simple and standardized way to work to minimize mistakes and utilize your time better.

This 8 step workflow list can help you create or improve your own workflow.

May 25, 2017

Seeing in Black and White

Greg Holden

With digital cameras everywhere today, it is easy to capture vivid color images, yet black and white images are stil relevant in our color world. When you remove color from an image, the viewer is forced to focus on the shapes, lines and lighting in the image.

When I am out photographing, I like to look for interesting shadows, textures and patterns that would make great B&W photos. When you start to train your eyes to look past the color of things and instead focus on their shape, you’ll be on your way to “seeing in B&W.” You will discover that subjects that you would normally pass over due to their unpleasing or distracting colors can make an effective B&W image.

May 3, 2017

Swipes, Swirls and Zooms For Creative Captures

Marie Joabar

I don’t remember exactly who I learned the technique of swipes and zooms from but I’ll never forget how much fun it was when I first tried it! To this day I still look for ways to use this technique to mix things up and to exercise the creative side of my brain.

In a nutshell, you use a long exposure and move your camera or lens while exposing for a very creative and abstract looking image. Read on for all the details.

April 12, 2017

Instructor’s Favorites For Spring Shooting

Marie Joabar

Whether it’s people, wildlife, flowers, landscapes or cityscapes, nothing beats photographing on a beautiful spring day! Read what our instructors like most about spring shooting then dust off your camera and get shooting!

March 23, 2017

Tips For Shooting Sports

Marie Joabar

Capturing the fast action of sports is fun and exciting. With the spring season here we’ll find soccer, lacrosse, field hockey and other sports on the field so it’s the perfect time to grab your camera and head to a nearby practice or game.

For the most compelling sports images we need to control the brightness with our exposure settings, control the sharpness with our focusing settings and frame the action with exciting compositions.

Here are a few tips that we hope will help.

March 1, 2017

Better Photographs Are Made By YOU

Tim Cooper

If you’ve ever been shooting in the field with a good instructor, you’ve probably heard them ask “why are you making this photograph”. This question begs an answer more substantial than a simple description of what’s in front of your camera.  Answering is a good way to get you thinking more about the intention of the image rather than just the subject matter. Capturing your intention is the key to making better photographs.

February 8, 2017

Waterfowl In Winter

Emily Carter Mitchell

The tundra swans on the Chesapeake Bay are one of those winter marvels that fascinate me. In fact, wintertime is my favorite time for birding and bird photography. The birds are plentiful and are larger than the tiny warblers that migrate through in spring time.

While I await for the bird migration season to begin and in particular, the thousands of Snow geese that arrive at Middle Creek, Pennsylvania, I decided to see what I could find closer to home.

January 19, 2017

Photo Challenges for 2017

Christina Ascani

One of the best ways to get you excited about photographing again or get your creative juices flowing is by participating in a photo challenge. A photo challenge is a thought out list of assignments for you to photograph that can either last a week, a month or even the entire year! We’ve rounded up a few of our favorite websites dedicated to challenges along with some simple and fun photo projects that will inspire and excite you.

December 15, 2016

Fun with Holiday Lights

Marie Joabar

At no other time of the year do we have so many opportunities to capture Holiday scenes with colorful twinkling lights and holiday bling.

A few helpful tips to help add some sparkle to your Holiday captures.

December 14, 2016

Where The Stores Are - Shopping Locally For Your Shutterbug

Marie Joabar

It's prime holiday shopping season and whether you’re buying a gift for a loved one or for yourself, visiting your local camera store can be a big help. Get advice from those in the know and be assured they’ll support you long after the sale.

October 12, 2016

Color Settings For Fall Captures

Marie Joabar

We'll soon find ourselves surrounded by fall's beautiful colors and warm tones and it’s always a joy to photograph. Whether you’ll be taking a stroll around the Tidal Basin or enjoying an afternoon hike on the trails, grab your camera and bring the autumn display back home with you.

Using two of our camera’s color settings we can emphasize the autumn shades even further for an image with more pop.

September 22, 2016

5 Tips For Night Photography

Marie Joabar

It's exciting to photograph at night. Whether capturing expansive cityscapes or downtown Main street, colorful festival lights or neon carnival rides, seek out a strong subject decorated with lights… or choose just the lights themselves as the subject.

August 31, 2016

Labor Day Doings

Marie Joabar

With the Labor Day weekend upon us I thought it would be fun to share some of our instructor's favorite things about the holiday and what we all will be doing with the long weekend.