Tips On How To Adjust Camera Settings For Action And/Or Moving Shots

August 4, 2016 By John Perez in Performance Automotive Parts, Photography

Introduction

Photography is an art that not so many excel in. While we all love to use the camera, taking clear photos remain almost an exclusive prerogative of professional photographers. Naturally, this will leave us wondering whether we need to enroll for some photography course in order to master these skills. However, all is not lost as there are several simple and easy-to-follow expert tips that will ensure your pictures come out with a touch of a pro. Join me, therefore, as I take you through some of the tips on how to adjust camera settings for action shots and/or moving images.

Adjust Your Shutter

The first tip for action shots is adjusting the shutter and ensuring you use a fast shutter speed. Shutter speed is indeed the most important setting for action shots and these settings should be done even before the event or shooting begins. Note that a shutter speed that is not set to match the pace of the events will likely give blurry images that you will not be able to use or sale for that matter. If you are a professional photographer, well, you know what this implies.

In order to set the speed, start by putting the camera into Shutter Priority mode and then choose shutter speed of 1/500 of a second as this is known to be an excellent point for most actions and sports. In order to be sure you have it right, start by taking a few test shots before the main event commences in order to test your pictures for sharpness. As you shoot your pictures and the event or sport picks up the pace, adjust your shutter speed proportionately.

Open the Aperture

Opening the aperture enables you to reach higher shutter speeds. For cameras with very fast lens, such as the f/2.8 and f/4 lenses as the ones used by pros, you may not need to fully open your aperture and may have to lower it down from the maximum aperture by about a stop.

For cheaper camera lenses with a maximum aperture of f/5.6 or smaller, the lens will have to be opened as wide as possible so maximum light can get in. As a general rule, ensure that you set your lens around the middle of its range as opposed to zooming in on the subject. This will enable you to balance between filling the entire frame and letting enough light in.

Increase the ISO

Generally, the use of a fast shutter speed makes the camera unable to expose a scene properly, even with a fully open aperture. When this happens, the next recourse is to increase the speed of your ISO.

While it is advisable you use the lowest ISO settings that you are able to get away with, you will often meet situations calling for it to be pushed higher than you’d probably like. Even though this will be frustrating, it will surely guarantee clear pictures, even if they are noisy.

Use Burst Mode

Because it may not be easy to keep up with the often swift pace of action and sports, it is always advisable that you set your camera in a continuous shooting mode. This mode is referred to as burst mode. It enables you to take up to 6 shots at a time, thus raising your chances of capturing a good one.

A point to ponder, however, is that if you choose to go with burst mode, you can be sure your memory storage will be filled up faster so always make provision for such capacity. In case you are running out of space, you could use half time or time outs to delete some of the bad shots.

Shoot In JPEG

While it is generally believed that shooting in RAW guarantees better quality picture which makes the editing process easier, it should be noted that shooting in JPEG enables you to capture as many pictures as possible in a time in burst mode. This also makes it possible for more images to be fit onto your memory.

While the image quality will not be anything compared to shooting in RAW, you could compensate for this by going for the killer shots. After all, people would like to associate more with the real substance of the event as opposed to how well it was captured.

Perfect The White Balance

The camera’s white balance is known to help a lot in adjusting to the ambient light, especially when shooting outdoors. However, in case the action sport takes place indoors with artificial lighting, as is the case with many, your camera might be confused to produce shots with multiple shades of green. It is for this reason that your white balance will need to be set to Fluorescent or Tungsten/Incandescent.

Turn the Flash Off

Action events and sports are not easy to get close to, which is why you will require long lenses. Additionally, as you are far from the object, your flash will literally be of no use so instead of letting it run and drain your battery, you could turn it off before you start shooting. However, watch out for those rare moments when the action can come close enough to you and turn on and use the flash.

Tweak Your Focusing

Tweaking your focusing involves setting up your camera to be as responsive and accurate as possible. This begins by switching from multi-point to single-point focusing and then using the focus point at the frame center.

This will mean that when you compose a shot, the camera will focus much on what is at the center of the field of view as opposed to trying to keep the entire picture sharp.

How a Suspension Coilover Works Vs. Lowering Springs

August 1, 2016 By John Perez in Performance Automotive Parts

These days, it is almost a requisite to have coil overs in cars. Coilovers are known for the way they improve the balance of the car and eliminate chances of your vehicle rolling off. They do this by lowering the gravity center of the car. In this article we are reviewing all of the extreme low bc racing coilovers for sale because they are the most affordable on the market and they offer superior value and adjustment over anything else we have seen for sale in north america. Cost can be a downside to coil overs. The following points will tell you everything you need to know about this popular suspension.

Meaning

A coil over is nothing but a coil spring which is installed around and over the shock. It is this one collective unit which is called a coil over. Since racing cars require a lot of balance and shock resistance, that is where coil overs were first introduced. However, they soon became very popular because of their advantage to any driven vehicle.
Types of Coilovers – There are mainly two types of coil overs

True or Threaded Coilovers – The body of these coil overs is threaded. You need to decompress the spring if you want to adjust the tightness and height of the coil over. This adjustment would raise or reduce the height.

Sleeve Coilovers – The true coil overs are much more sophisticated than sleeve coil overs. The only difference is that instead of using a threaded structure, this coil overuses a sleeve on which the spring rests. Usually, a simple screw is used to hold the sleeve in place. Locking plates can also be used to stop the sleeve from moving. However, sleeve coil overs also tend to be noisier which is why they are not preferred that much.

Whether to Get a Coilover – Whether your car needs a coil over or not depends on a lot of your usage. It is a must for cars that are used for racing or spend a lot of time on the track. This is because the coil over would improve performance drastically and make it a much smoother ride. If you don’t drive your car that aggressively, then you might not need a coil over. However, adding one would give you a lower suspension and would improve your car handling.

How Adjustable Suspension Works

It is made of a combination of two suspension components. One is a suspension spring, and the other is a hydraulic shock absorber. The name color is short for coil over strut. The coil refers to the spring, and the strut relates to the shock absorber.

The combination of two technologies that preceded the coil over that is the suspension spring and the hydraulic shock absorber, make coil overs more technologically advanced and capable. Though it may seem that the engine would involve some of the most sophisticated engineering in an automobile the fact is that the car’s suspension requires some of the most advanced installations.

Though individually a shock absorber and a suspension spring are pretty simple to set up, since a coil over is a combination of the two, the set-up becomes more involved. This complexity is beneficial, though since now the suspension can be customized to suit different load and driving conditions. Not all coil overs make the ride more comfortable; some may, in fact, make it harder, but this will be to make the suspension more robust so that it can take heavier loads.
Coilovers involve complicated engineering, and their installation involves complex considerations as well. However, not all persons dealing in and installing coil overs are sufficiently knowledgeable about them. As a consequence, there is a lot of misinformation and myths about coil overs.

If you are technically inclined, you should try to read about coil overs in some depth. If you are not technically inclined, or you do not have the time for it you can look for a professional who has quality knowledge about coil overs.

Quality car aftermarket product vendors, who sell products such as custom body kits are also likely to be selling coil overs. A quality vendor will also give you honest advice about coil overs and their suitability for your vehicle.
You may require a custom suspension to make your ride more comfortable, or you may need it for high-performance driving. If you are going to customize the suspension of your car, you should consider coilovers.

Tips On Taking The Best Car Photography

July 23, 2016 By John Perez in Photography Tags: Best Car

The production of automobiles demands a certain amount of creativity and imagination, and some models of cars are truly works of art. Entire teams of designers and professionals are dedicated to making cars as attractive as possible, or as beautiful as possible, and the results are often spectacular.

Even though power and driving capabilities are more important when it comes to driving experience, the aesthetic appeal of a vehicle is not something that can be taken for granted.

Millions of people are in love with certain models, but it is often the case that the most beautiful cars are the most expensive ones, which makes them out of reach for the majority of people on Earth. However, a good car photography can be a helpful substitute, and that is why people who take photos of cars should take great care when they are trying to capture the essence and the true nature of a vehicle.

Of course, people are taking photos of cars for various reasons, and the motivation behind any photography can be different. For example, a frequent reason for taking pictures of cars is the sale, and people who want to sell their four-wheeled friends take pictures of the cars and post them online. This type of marketing is pretty efficient and straightforward, and it enables buyers to inspect the features and characteristics of the vehicle without taking the trip to see the car in person. Also, publications and magazines that specialize in automobiles are filled with astonishing pictures of numerous cars, and professionals who take these pictures have established a set of guidelines that need to be followed if you want to have the best car photography.

One of the most important elements of any photography is the location, and when it comes to car photography – the background is a crucial component of the picture.

The background should fit in with the atmosphere of the photo, and the features of the car should dominate the surroundings, not be suffocated by too many distractions and unnecessary details.

Also, cars can sometimes interact with nature, such as the case with photos are taken in the sand or the snow, and all of these elements can accentuate the real character of the machine and the power that is hidden underneath the hood.

The right time of day is often quoted as being an important element, and a lot of professional photographers will agree that the time immediately after sunset or before sunrise is the best time of day that you can have for taking beautiful photos. Natural lighting is usually the best option, but artificial light can be of great help in some cases if used properly. Reflections can spoil the shot, so photographers need to be careful about this aspect as well. Different colors also act differently, which is another element that needs to be taken into consideration when you are planning to take that perfect shot. Driving shots are very attractive, and they offer the chance to capture the speed and the movement, but they require a higher level of care and security, so photographers need to take precautions when taking these pictures.