But, here's the problem. You pull out your
trusted fully-automatic camera in an attempt to capture part of that evening atmosphere,
the flash pops out, and ZAP, you got a shot with everything in a radius of 5-10 feet
fully lit, while the background (with all its lights) disappears in a faint haze. So
what can you do? Help is near if you have three things:- A flash-off switch on your camera.
- A self-timer on your camera (gives you 2-10 seconds delay between pressing the shutter release button and the picture being taken).
- A tripod or some other form of stable rest for your camera.
The rest is probably now obvious. First, you switch off the flash. This forces the camera to use the available light to create the picture. This may mean the lens stays open for several seconds, too long foy you to hold steady manually. Alas, you have the camera mounted on a tripod, or rested on anything stable, maybe a backpack, mailbox, garbage can, or whatever is available.
Why the self-timer? Well, when you "press the button", you will invariably shake the camera. That's not a good time to take the picture. Better let it rest again, and have it take the picture then (i.e., a few seconds later). Of course, you can also use the delay to get yourself into the picture.
The result? Cool shots!