Simple Tips for Great Project Photos

Not everyone has access to expensive cameras or image editing software, this doesn't mean you can't have great project photos.  I've put together a few simple tips on how to improve your photos without having to buy new equiptment or software.

When I first set out to make this step-by-step my intention was to focus on photo editing, but as I was working on it I felt it important to add some tips about taking photos as well.  The photo editing examples I will be showing are using GIMP 2, which is free to download.  There are also free online photo editing programs available to use too such as FotoFlexer or Pixlr.

(By the way if you are wondering who this little character is, his name is Amigurumi Guy and the crochet pattern can be found at Lion Brand Yarns).

Step 1 Rotate

It's no fun looking at a picture sideways, it puts a lot of strain on your neck. Photos can easily be rotated in an image editing program. 

In GIMP

• Click on Image
• Click on Transform
• Select Rotate 90° clockwise or counter-clockwise
• Save

You don't even need an photo editing program to do this. 

• Simply open the image in Windows Photo Viewer (this program comes with Windows and is usually the default image viewer)
• Click on one of the arrows either rotate clockwise or counter clockwise .
• The file saves automatically in this orientation.

Comments

[Nostalgic Guy]

Nice, some good tips especially about brightness/contrast & rotating images.
I hope plenty of people follow them.

[sunshiine]

This is such a clever idea! I always love your Instructables.

[l8nite]

cute idea to use your lil pal. Nicely done "ible", we can only hope people USE it !

[ChrysN]

Thanks! Yes, I hope people will find this helpful.

[Kryptonite]

Incredible Instructable, I'd love to see one on lighting!

[Phil B]

Soft indirect lighting is a good choice for many of the things we want to show in our Instructables. For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, taking photos near a large window with a northern exposure or within the shadow area on the north side of a building works quite well. The one caution is to avoid patches of bright sunlight in the background. Use the southern side of the building or a window with a southern exposure in the Southern Hemisphere. Also, many who photograph products like automobiles or make photos of landscapes love the golden time defined by the first 30 minutes after the sun goes down. Even soft indirect light has some directional qualities. Camera position or a large white reflector nearby can minimize shadows. Indirect light may also be less intense, which means making the camera steady by bracing oneself or by using a tripod, etc. for a sharp picture from a longer exposure. If I try holding the camera in my hand, I take three deep breaths and press the shutter while exhaling. This is a technique used by military snipers to get a steady shot from their rifles.

[ChrysN]

Good advice, I'm sure you can turn these tips into an Instructable. The contest runs until Sept 19 so there is still time.

[Kryptonite]

+1

I need all the lighting tips I can get, I'm a little dim in the photography department!

[Phil B]

I am hardly expert at photography, but, it has been a personal interest for a long time. We had a photography club in high school. In the early days, my attention was on equipment. Later I realized making photos is not about equipment, but about understanding and manipulating light before the shutter is pressed. That means someone who understands light will make good photos with even a poor camera while someone who does not understand light will seldom make a good photo with even the best camera. Ansel Adams was a master at manipulating light in photography, and he is worth studying. Fortunately, modern digital cameras make better results easier. Still, anyone who understands some basics about the way light behaves will make better photographs. Also, soft indirect light is very flattering to most subjects, and you do not need to wait for an overcast day. The shadow side of a building works well for providing soft light. You can also make softer light by bouncing it off of a neutral surface rather than pointing it directly at the subject. At the same time, indirect light usually also means lower contrast so that photos can look flat. And, indirect light for color photos can also mean the color shifts toward the colder blue/gray part of the spectrum.

[laxap]

I'm using Gimp since years, but did not know it can be used to correct the white balance. Thanks!

(And a patch for promoting quality free software.)

[ChrysN]

Cool, thanks for the patch!

[tholopotami]

Nice! Written in a simple and effective manner.

[vishalapr]

Great ible! I like the picture where the little figure is cooking a marshmellow! So cute :)

[ChrysN]

Thanks, I thought it would be a fun picture to include.

[Creativeman]

Well done, ChrysN! It's obvious that you take great care and pride in all you do...thanks for sharing.

[ChrysN]

Thank you!

[isacco]

Congratulations for this useful instructable. I like most of your projects and your pictures are always good.
As pointed out by Phil B, lighting is crucial for this type of photos, which are often taken indoor. The internal flash of compact cameras usually flatten the image or “burn” the close objects . In addition to stabilize the camera, a tripod allows exploiting the softer but lower lighting from windows or lamps. In addition, if you need to monitor consecutive steps the tripod keeps the camera in the same point of view.

For the software. The GIMP is a very good, almost professional, package. I use it but I have to admit that the interface is not user friendly for beginners. Most of the image editing that you suggest can be more easily done by simple image viewers, as IrfanView or FastStone Image Viewer. In particular, FastStone has a very good cropping tool, that works without quality loss. With both programmes lossless image rotation can be applied to the original JPG file. Once you have selected and edited your final images to be published, you may want to resize (or reduce) the resolution to make the images lighter to load in web pages. IrfanView can process multiple images in batch to bring them to the target resolution and automatically save with a new name.

[ChrysN]

Thank you for the advice. I think lighting deserves an instructable of its own. I'll check out the software you mentioned.

[wilgubeast]

New required reading for Instructables authors. Thanks ChrysN!

[rimar2000]

Very good!

In step 3, I think it is easier to increase the gamma factor, it is only one step.

Please see my instructable regarding this.

[jessyratfink]

I love this instructable. Very useful tips for people that think they need a crazy setup to get great photos.

I always tell people that if they have one sunny, uncluttered place in their house and a good point and shoot camera with a macro setting they're good to go. It just takes patience. :)

[mikeasaurus]

Great tips, a must read.
It was said already in your intro but bears repeating "you don't need an expensive camera or editing software", really. But, you do need to take the time to make sure your shots are worthwhile.