Six photographic techniques to explore the ancient city

Explore the six photographic techniques of the ancient city

Ancient city, a desirable place, where you can feel the accumulation of history, taste the culture of ancient rhyme and record the happiness of travel. Speaking of the difference between Pingyao and other ancient cities, it may be that he gained a more unpretentious feeling and recorded the simplicity in his eyes. Here are some tips to share with you.

First, it is light and simple, and the equipment is convenient.

Generally speaking, due to the particularity of shooting methods, we can't carry a lot of photographic equipment like professional photographers during the trip. So the choice of equipment is very important. If driving is ok, if you are like the author, it is better to choose lightweight equipment. Just like this time, I brought the zoom lens of EOS 760D, 18- 135 and a small tripod. For the choice of equipment, it is mainly light and easy to use, and the lens of 18- 135 is enough to meet the usual shooting needs.

Second, find the contrast and capture the interest.

If we catch up with the tourist season, the ancient city will be overcrowded. If you want to leave a wonderful place, you might as well broaden your horizons and find some contrasting content. Time is usually short, so we can't take documentary photography seriously, bit by bit, as we do in the city where we live. At this time, it is very important to observe some interesting moments. Once you see a beautiful or interesting moment, you must not let it go.

Third, shooting at night, using RAW skillfully

I usually take photos in JPG format when shooting during the day, but I suggest that you set the storage format to RAW format when shooting at night. Although it takes up a lot of storage space and post-processing is relatively troublesome, RAW format shooting will have enough data and information for us to do post-processing. On the contrary, pictures in JPG format are greatly compressed in terms of color and clarity, and the quality is unfavorable. As for the parameters, the author reduced 1/3 files on the basis of camera metering. Because there is an old saying that it is better to owe than to expose. Because the underexposed part is easy to brighten, the overexposed part is difficult to darken.

When I took the above photo, I chose to take it at night. First of all, the light source is dim at night. For the main body like the ancient city wall, too bright light will reveal the details too clearly and lose its charm. You can choose a lower shooting position, and the lower shooting point can make the lines of the building converge upwards, which can show the characteristics of the tall building and increase the sense of stability of the building. It should be noted that if we use a small tripod, don't stand too high. Because long exposure requires stability, and because the tripod is light and easy to carry, its stability can be imagined, so try to lower the center of gravity and keep it stable.

Fourth, unique perspective, looking for reflection.

In the same environment, if you want to take photos of your own style, you need to think more, such as new composition or unique perspective. In fact, many small details in life are very interesting. Walking in a completely unfamiliar environment, we should always pay attention to the people and things around us and find interesting places around us. For example, look up at the birds in the sky and look down at the puddles after the rain. Every detail has its unique beauty.

In the above picture, the author did not shoot from the front of the building. Instead, I observed the puddles on the ground and just mapped the buildings into them. Through such careful thinking, the photos add a lot of interest. Use your camera properly when shooting. When taking this low-altitude photo, the rotating screen of 760D played a powerful role. When we are looking for a special angle, we can easily flip the screen to complete the framing, which is very practical.

Five, people-oriented, accurate exposure

The greatest charm of photography lies in its uncertainty. For a photographer who is shooting in the street, people and things around him are moving in unpredictable tracks, never knowing the content and form, and time and space will be perfectly combined at a certain moment. And we can only keep predicting, judging and capturing to freeze a moment and make the picture look as harmonious as possible. When shooting people, you need to pay attention to setting the exposure parameters of the camera with people as points.

Some people may ask, different scenes have different metering methods. Taking the above picture as an example, the author used evaluation photometry when shooting the above picture. Evaluation photometry refers to the average calculation of the photometry value of the whole scenic spot, which not only keeps the dark part but also takes into account the bright part, and should be the most commonly used photometry method at present. There are also some measurements, such as center average measurement, which means 1%-5% and 10%-30% within the framing range. However, the usage rate of these two metering methods is low, which is suitable for use when the exposure difference between the subject and the surrounding environment is large.

From the picture, the direct sunlight comes down, and the projection of the eaves just divides the picture into light and dark sides. The position of the old man in the painting is just at the junction of light and shade, so the author uses diagonal composition to highlight the main body, making the picture look harmonious and impressive.

Sixth, control the depth of field and grasp the details.

Whenever we go to a strange city, we must pay attention to the local customs. As the saying goes, people's living habits are very different in different environments. Shooting local customs is a reflection of humanistic photography. The author found that local people living in ancient towns like to sit at the door with big bowls. This is a very interesting phenomenon, which is worth recording.

When shooting people, we can choose different scenes according to different shooting themes. All the characters I shoot use f5.6 (floating aperture), which is to open the aperture as much as possible, face the person's face, blur the background and highlight the subject. If you want to take a clear full picture, you should use a large depth of field, and the aperture can be adjusted to f 1 1 to try.

In addition, when taking this kind of cultural photo, don't stand far away, just take a photo with telephoto and leave. It is difficult to capture the perfect details, manners and movements of the characters. Observe more, gradually approach them in the state of walking, and press the shutter when both sides are natural. Don't use too big a camera, remove the battery box and the huge telephoto lens, and don't give the photographer a sense of oppression.

Of course, it is more important to think before shooting. Think more about shooting your own style, so as to avoid the similarity of travel photos.

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