Emegency!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[neo_lam]

Yesterday i found out a tips in Hong Kong forum and they said if we want to take people photo,we should use f2.8 or smaller number. But they also said that if we use this number to take photo the photo will become blur.And they said using the f5.6 o higher will get more sharpen photo. Why should we use the f2.8 but not f5.6 to take people photo?? I use a Sony W1 and i use the Program AE mode. I decrease the contrast and increase the sharpness.......are there any diferrence with the Auto mode??


P.S.how to use a best setting in taking indoor people picture and outdoor picture........i really confused and dont know what to do???Thanks

[LadyhawkVA]

If you haven't done so already, you may want to post this question in the Post Your Photos>People section. There are some very good portrait photographers over there. I've done very little portrait work, so I'll just give you a little information to get started (you really want to check with the experts for more details).

One reason for using f/2.8 or so for portraits is to help make people stand out more from the background. The wide open aperture will allow you to focus on the people and have a blurred background - especially if the background is quite far away from the people. This is usually a nice effect. At f/5.6 more of the background will be in focus. This is not bad, it's just something to be aware of when you set up and take the photo.

In most cases, you will want people photos to be a little less sharp (softer) than normal. You don't want them blurry, but you don't want every wrinkle or skin blemish to stand out either. So, you may want to slightly increase the softness setting - or slightly decrease sharpness - on your camera if possible. If you have a portrait mode, this should automatically be done for you. Decreasing the contrast a little is also a good idea for people photos as it cuts down on shadows, especially for outdoor photos. Again, your portrait mode (if you have one) should do this for you.

The last thing I'll mention is to be really careful about your lighting. Avoid strong direct lighting on people's faces whenever possible. For outdoor shots this can often be done by moving people into a slightly shaded area. Don't have them looking into the sun as this will usually make them squint! For indoor shots you may want to try posing people near a window to use as much natural lighting as possible. A secondary light (it may be just a carefully placed lamp) can help get rid of shadows on the people's faces and on the background.

As I mentioned before, if you haven't visited the people photos section yet, you should go there. Those people will be able to give you lots of help.

[neo_lam]

thanks a lot!!1