DISCOVER UNUSED CAMERA FEATURES DELVE INTO YOUR CAMERA MENU AND BROADEN YOUR IMAGE PORTFOLIO BY PUTTING UNDER-UTILISED FUNCTIONS TO WORK
ALTHOUGH WE MAY think we know our cameras inside and out, there are likely to be many features and functions that we simply do not use in everyday photography work. Cameras have an abundance of features we wrongly assume will not be useful for our photographic interests but which, with a little experimentation, can reveal new ways to create distinctive images and refresh our portfolio. These range from internal hardware and software tools, to effect filters and exposure modes. While the term in-camera ‘special effects’ may not seem appealing for serious assignments, on reflection many of us strive to create similar looks at the processing stage, in Photoshop. On today’s DSLRs, there are multiple options for using built-in effect tools to shoot niche images. There are several ways these ‘new’ features can improve a photographer’s work. The most evident of these is the new styles that can be added to our repertoire, as we are encouraged to try new genres or work with new subject matter. Beyond this however, it is possible to find new ways to develop our usual work, often using a function to ease our workload or capture a style in fewer shooting steps. Exploring our camera menus can reveal tools to help us cross genres, such as merging use of HD video with timelapse photography — two related, but perhaps as yet unexplored, areas.
A further advantage to using our camera specification to the full is that it provides the opportunity to put underused items in our kit bag back to work, as we seek new types of images. It is also worth considering less-conspicuous devices, such as advanced in-camera image preferences. If you plan to perform post-processing in a particular editing suite, try presetting a more appropriate colour space in-camera — ProPhoto RGB for Lightroom or sRGB for online display, for example — to cut down on editing time. Time saving is a great area to concentrate on, as there are often a huge number of ways cameras can be used to speed up shooting and sorting images. If you own a high-spec DSLR, why not use the built-in microphone to automatically add audio notes to an image?