Christmas is coming and with it the feasts, the family, the friends, the lights, the decorations, the gifts, the cold (or not), the joys (and some sadness), the illusions in the eyes of the children, the magical beings... Whether you like them more or less, the truth is that these parties are quite an event. And all the events are synonymous with what interests us the most here: photography . That's why I want to introduce you to these photo props to capture the magic of Christmas.
Because the truth is that there are few times when you have such a number of photogenic subjects at hand: lights (from the tree, on the street, candles, sparklers...), portraits (group, individual, child, pet ...), Christmas props (Christmas trees, Santa Claus hats, reindeer, Three Wise Men, gifts..., yes, also gifts for photographers ? ), documentary photography (preparing lunches and dinners, etc.) and a multitude of photographic techniques to practice such as Bokeh , light painting ...
Almost nothing, right? We are going to see all the accessories that you may need to achieve practically any Christmas image that you can think of.
PHOTOGRAPHIC EQUIPMENT ACCESSORIES
Here are a few accessories that will make it easier for you to achieve wonderful Christmas images. Of course, if you don't have them, nothing happens, let nothing stop you in your photographic passion, most can be replaced with a little imagination ;-).
CAMERA WITH MANUAL CONTROLS
It doesn't matter if you have Evil , Bridge , SLR , or even an advanced compact. The important thing is that you can control the exposure settings; what we know as the exposure triangle (ISO, aperture, shutter speed). By mastering these three settings, you will be able to achieve everything you want in photography. Incredible true? ?
EXTERNAL FLASH WITH ROTATING HEAD
Since we take many photos indoors at these types of parties, it is highly recommended to have an external flash to illuminate your portraits or your Christmas scenes. If you have one with a rotating head , you can bounce the light off a light surface, causing it to act as a diffuser, which will allow you to illuminate your subject avoiding that direct light that lasts so little photogenic that the flashes built into the camera provide. camera.
TRIPOD
Due to the same light conditions that we mentioned in the previous point, a tripod will be very useful when you have little light , since it will allow you to work with lower speeds without shaking or without forcing the ISO too much (which would cause noise in the camera). image from certain levels). But it will not only help you to get sharper images in difficult lighting situations, but it will also allow you to appear (for once) in the family photos :-).
THE BEST GOAL
For indoor scenes and typically at night, we need the brightest lens we can get. For example, remember that an f/1.4 lens is brighter than an f/4, and an f/4 is brighter than an f/5.6. That is, the smaller the diaphragm aperture value, the brighter your lens will be. Also remember that fixed focal lengths are usually brighter than zoom lenses, so here is our ideal selection (although if you don't have it, don't worry, work with what you have)
- 50mm f/1.4: Or the king of lenses as we call it around here. This lens has a medium focal length (it is the closest to human vision) and is very bright, so you can work with it in very low light situations with amazing results. It also allows you to work with incredible blur.
- 50mm f/1.8: The prince of lenses . Very similar to the previous one, although with a point less light. The price is very affordable and the results are equally very good.
- 35mm f/1.4 of/1.8: With the 35mm you have more angle, so you can include more context of the scene in your photography. It is also a good option for photographs of this type.
* Remember to activate the stabilizer of your camera/lens whenever you are not using the tripod, since in that case it is counterproductive.
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