Ken writes,
"What program or programs are recommended for captioning digital photos? I want to be able to choose the location of the caption, the font, and the colour of the text."
Most photo editing packages allow you to add text to your images. I seldom add captions to photos (and SmugMug automatically watermarks my uploaded images for me there), but when I do I usually just add a text layer in Adobe Photoshop. I just checked Photoshop Elements 6, and it supports text layers as well. Just click on the "T" in the toolbar, click on the image,and it will create the layer for you.
Many companies have downloadable trial versions online. For example, you can download Adobe Photoshop Elements 6 here and see if it meets your needs.
For a good depth of field example, check out this image on Dooce's blog. Note that the battery on top of the nose is in sharp focus, the one at the back of the head isn't, and the wall is pleasantly blurred.
In photography, depth of field (DOF) refers to the range of distances from the camera that appear to be in focus. A lens can only focus at one distance. However, the sharpness as one moves closer or farther away from that distance diminishes gradually and within a certain range nobody notices it.
Perhaps you want to take a photo of a friend standing in front of another object. If you have a narrow (or short) DOF, your friend may be in focus while the foreground and background appear out of focus. At the other extreme, a wide (or long) DOF could result in the entire image appearing to be in focus.
There's a good example of effective DOF control here.
Jim wrote to ask,
"Eric you spoke of small cheap flashes a while ago would you have a model number I could search for. I am looking for something to light behind my subject triggered by an optical trigger."
While the best solution to light a background is a pair of strobes, you can often get away with a basic flash and trigger to light a small area. Just about any flash will do, although you'll need to play with the output level and/or distance to the background to get what you need. If you're close to the background a diffuser might come in handy -- you can buy one or make one out of translucent fabric or plastic.
If you're looking for something cheap I'd try your local photo store and see what they have laying around. You can also talk to anyone who has upgraded to a digital SLR and bought a new flash. If you have to order off the net, check this out.
And, as always, leave me a comment and let me know how it goes!
"For a complete amateur like myself, who just really really really likes to take a lot of photos...which lens? Nikkor 55-200 VR or the Nikkor 70-300 VR ED. I currently have the 18-70 which came with my D80. My husband bought me the 55-200 but now he wants to change it to the 70-300 and I am not so sure.”My first question would be “What are you going to use it for?” Neither are wide enough to be your “main” lens. If you’re buying a lens specifically for nature, the zoo, etc., the 70-300 is the better choice of those two.
"I'm looking for a good point and shoot camera. What do you think of the new Canon G9?"
Before we begin, it’s important to understand that almost everything about photography involves compromise, and nowhere is that more evident than when choosing a digital camera. Like any other tool, different cameras are best for different people and different kinds of photography. The goal of this article is to help you choose the best camera for you.
Fay writes,
"Please advise best sequence for working with a digital image, download from camers and proceeding to -- 1. Change PPI 2. Crop 3. Resize 4. Sharpen, Contrast, etc."
Also, apologies to Trevor who wrote with a similar question while I was redesigning the site,
"What is your typical work flow with regards to editing photos?"
These are great questions because, depending on what software you use, performing these steps in the wrong order can make your life more difficult and cost you a lot of time. To begin, let's divide our post-processing into three stages that I'll call acquisition, editing, and output.
