Evening star., 1950-07-09
Camera Angles
Little Mistakes Ruin Good Pictures
By Alexander J. Wedderburn
cvraier Of Photography
The Smithsonian Institution

lures than the big ones. Most
amateur photographers are pretty
well grounded in basic photog-
raphy these days but, like the pro-
fessionals (who also make mis-
takes), are apt to take their knowl-
edge for granted at times and
slip up on some minor point and
the result is something less than
a good picture.
Actually there is a long road to
travel between the time you get
an idea for a picture and the time
you are set to admire the finished
print. It goes back even further
than the moment when you snap
the picture.
You might get off to a good start
by figuring the exposure correctly
and posing the subject gracefully
in a well-balanced lighting. But
after the shutter clicks, you may
not have anything on the film at
all or, upon developing, you may
discover edge fog all along the
roll. This can happen if you for
get one of the little but important
things and handle your roll of film
carelessly as you load the camera.
Fog From Careless Handling.
We sometimes are apt to take
daylight loading film rolls too
much for granted. Don't forget
that though this film is safe for
daylight loading, it is only so il
you use reasonable care during
the loading operation. If you are
careless and allow the roll to
loosen on the spool, edge fog will
surely occur and there will be a
strong LIKELIHOOD that at least
several entire frames will be
logged.
Remember that daylight loading
does not mean loading in intense
sunlight. You should always load
your camera in the shade or away |
from the direct rays of the sun.
If no shade is available, make
some by turning your back to the
sun and loading the camera in the
shadow cast by your body.
Still another point along the
same lines-dont advance the
MIN In your camera to the first
frame until you are positive that
the back is securely locked. The
slightest opening resulting from
an improperly locked camera will
rum every shot on the roll. And
be sure that the film spools are
properly seated and ready to re-
lease and take up film before you
lock the camera. Should trouble
develop inside the camera you will
either have to sacrifice the film
that is in it or wait until you can
get to a darkroom to unload and
correct the trouble.
Forgotten Pointers.
Another thing-are you getting
the most out of your camera that
1t will deliver? A lot of fans are
tlckled to death if, after loading
up and shooting roll of film,
they wind up with some usable
negatives. But there is often more
to it than that. 1t may be that
your camera is fully capable of
performing featS of photography
that you are unaware of or have
overlooked or forgotten.
AS a matter of fact when was
1t that you last looked at the book
OF instructions that came with
your camera? Chances are that
you have forgotten a good many
OF the pointers that the manu-
facturer included for your infor-
nation and guidance. If the in
struction sheet or booklet is still
around. read it over thoroughly
again and you will very likely
benefit in more than one way. If
you spent a lot of money for a
camera well equipped with
gadgets, you might just as well |
enjoy the use of all of them. Use
your booklet from the manufac-
turer as a refresher occasionally
and you will probably find your
work improving.
A neat and orderly approach to
your work in the darkroom will
also make it less possible for YOU
to make minor errors that are
apt to spoil your best efforts with
the camera. Above all, keep your
darkroom clean. Dust that is
tracked in on your shoes or chem
ical dust can botch up an entire
lot of negatives in no time.
Keep Darkroom Clean.
The best way to rid yourself of
these enemies of the photographer
is to give your darkroom a once
over with a vacuum cleaner every
week and follow this with a
thorough washup with hot water
once a month. Keep all bottles
tightly stoppered. This will pre-
vent contents from spilling in case
of an accidental knock and will
also keep the chemicals from de-