I
TECHNOLOGY
BigShots
Newphotographic equipment, and a few
easy techniques, aremakingprofessional-
quality photographs attainable even for
an amateur.
BYMARKHENRICKS
TOP:
©PBNJPRODUCTIONS/GETTY IMAGES
SummEr 2010
celebratedliving.com
84
Ithappens toeveryamateurphotographer:You
clickandshoot tocapturewhatappears tobe
theperfect shot, butwhenyou review theprints
ordownloadyourdigital images, something is
seriouslyamiss.Was it thecamera?Theexpo-
sure?Focus?Sunspots?ElNiño?
According toprofessional photographers,
theanswercouldbe“yes”onall counts—
except, possibly, the last two—with theadded
proviso that itdoesn’thave tobe thatway.With
amodestamountof information, abudget that
willfitmany (ifnotall)bankaccounts, plusa
little luck, amateurphotographerscan take
pictures that rival thoseshotby thepros.
Goodphotographystartswithagoodcam-
era, andbetterphotographyoften
requiresabettercamera than the
inexpensivepoint-and-shootdigital
manyofusalreadyhave.mirjam
Evers, aNewYorkCityphotographer
whoseworkhasappeared inmajor
magazines—she isalsoaco-founder
ofPhotoQuestAdventures,whichof-
fersdigital-photographyworkshops in
exotic locationsaround theglobe—
recommends thenext stepup, toadigi-
tal single-lens reflex, orDSLr,model.
unlikeapoint-and-shoot, aDSLrhasno
delaybetween the timeyoupress thebutton
andwhen thecamera takes thepicture. “Any-
onewhohasevermissed theirchildsmilingbe-
cause thecameradidn’t take thepicturewhen
theypressed theshutter releaseknowshow this
lackof controlmakesadifference,”Eversnotes.
Anotherplus:Youcanchange lensesonaDSLr.
DSLrscome in full-frameandsmaller-
formatvarieties.Full-framecamerashaveasen-
sor thesamesizeasa frameof 35mmfilm.A full
frame letsyoushoot in lower light, amongother
benefits.One trade-off: cost. Everssaysyoucan
expect topayabout $3,400 fora full-frame
NikonD700DSLr, includinga24-120mm lens.
NIKOND700DSLR
