Introduction to photography, how to choose accessories to improve your skills?

After learning photography for a while, I can't satisfy the overhead flash. If you want to use flash to create photos with different styles and tones, you must use flash. Generally, off-board flashers will use wireless flashers, ranging from 10 to 20 meters away. A set of flasher has a transmitter and a receiver, and the transmitter is placed on the hot shoe of the camera; The receiver is placed on the metal foot of the flash. After the connection, every time the shutter is pressed, the wireless function will trigger the flash, which can shoot different styles of light and shadow effects. In fact, there are many manufacturers who make flashers, and the receiving efficiency of the original factory will be better than that of the deputy factory; Moreover, some flashers support multi-lamp setting and control at the same time, but the price will be higher. At present, most flashing lights use infrared rays to transmit signals, and some people use flying lights. However, the flying lights need to be controlled manually, and the range of activities is limited, so most photographers use infrared flying lights.

3. Cable release device

For landscape shooting, especially when long exposure is needed, especially when B shutter is used, it is very important to shoot car tracks, star tracks and night scenes, and release cables. Cable release can be shot without touching the camera, reducing the vibration caused by touching the camera. Traditional wired distribution needs to plug the interface into the camera and then shoot with a handheld controller; Later, an infrared shutter device was developed, which uses infrared transmission technology to shoot by pressing a button like a remote controller. Some advanced wired releases can be used as timers and countdown selfies. Pay attention to different cable release interfaces when purchasing, and support different camera brands and models.

4. Reflector

When taking portraits, it is often necessary to fill the light with a flash, but sometimes the flash will make the light stiff, making the model look unnatural and even dead. I believe no one wants this effect! The reflector can disperse the light, and at the same time make the main details vivid and look more natural. In another case, the face or dark part will be underexposed when backlighting, and the flash or sunlight can be reflected by the reflector, so that the subject will not have turbid sunlight. There are various colors of reflectors on the market, but the color depends on the weather and light. Generally, I would recommend you to buy round and multi-in-one color reflectors, which can be painted in different colors according to different light. Generally white is used as soft light; Gold is mainly used in dark places, using gold as warm light, etc. Each color is different, depending on the actual situation.

5. Soft light mask

The use of soft masks is similar to the use of reflectors. If it is not suitable to use reflector refraction light source in photography, a smaller soft mask will be more suitable. The original version of the softening mask is like a rectangular box, which is installed in front of the external flash to make the light softer and spread throughout the photo, so that the subject will not be overexposed and his face will not be too white. In addition to the general soft mask, the camera shop will also have large soft masks and soft boxes, which can radiate light in all directions to make the whole photo look more uniform. There are many designs of soft light masks in the workshop, the appearance is very interesting, and some people will DIY soft light masks. Finally, they all want to fill the light and shoot soft light and natural light. Remember that the scope of use of the soft light mask is limited, and avoid being too far away from the main body when shooting, otherwise the effect of soft light will naturally be difficult to see under the condition of insufficient light source.

Step 6 deal with

Many photographers need to take vertical photos, such as long portraits, sports photography and so on. Because the lens is heavy, the battery will be exhausted quickly after long-term shooting, so adding a flat handle can improve the battery life. In addition, when taking photos with the handle, it can enhance the hand feel, be more stable, and the photos will not be unbalanced. Moreover, there is a special function. Some cameras will enhance their performance when equipped with handles. For example, the continuous shooting speed of Nikon D8 10 will be increased from 5fps to 7fps. If the subject needs to take pictures vertically for a long time, installing the handle can reduce the fatigue of hands and eyes, and it is not necessary to control the camera with a stiff posture. However, it will make the camera heavier, and whether it is really comfortable is a matter of opinion.

7. Extended range mirror

Photographers who want to buy a super telephoto but have a limited budget can consider installing a rangefinder between the camera and the lens to increase the focal length of the lens. Pay attention to the magnification of the rangefinder. 1.4X means increasing the focal length by 1.4 times. 2X means to increase the focal length by 2 times. For example, a 300mm lens with a 2x rangefinder can get the same viewing angle as a 600mm lens. However, the range extender also has disadvantages. First of all, pay attention to whether the range extender is suitable for you before buying. Sometimes the focal length is too long, which is not necessarily a good thing. Moreover, not all lenses support the extended range function, especially the relatively primary or APS-C lenses, so it is necessary to know the specifications of the extended range lens before purchasing. Secondly, after installation, the focusing speed and imaging will decrease due to more lens reflections; The aperture will also be reduced several times. 1.4x is the first aperture reduction, and 2x is the second aperture reduction. When the maximum aperture value is lower than f/5.6, manual focusing is required.

9. Black card

If you want to calculate the cheapest photographic accessories, black cards should be among the best. The principle is that the light difference in the photo is too big. For example, when shooting at dusk or sunrise, the sky and the ground exposure value are different. In order to avoid losing dark details or overexposure of bright parts, using black cards can reduce the difference between bright and dark parts. When exposed for a long time, first measure the light, and then block the light level with a black card, and you can get the photos with correct exposure. There are many black cards for sale, and DIY also has them. The most important thing is to practice with black cards.

10. Filter

Different filters should be used in different occasions to get the ideal effect. For example, when we shoot normally, we will install a UV filter while protecting the lens; C-PL polarizer is needed to shoot the sky or water. ND decompressor is needed to shoot silk flowing water effect with slow shutter in sunny environment. In order to avoid overexposure or darkening of a certain part of a photo, a GND gradient gray filter can be used. Before buying, you should clearly understand the characteristics of each filter, so that you can take more professional photos more conveniently.