Taking photos outdoors is a great way to utilise natural light and inject some energy into your pictures, but what is the best light for pictures?

As the British summer is now underway people will be heading outside with their camera and snapping away, hoping to get those perfect summer moments captured on film. Unfortunately the summer, and the strong sunlight that it brings, isn’t always the best light in which to take photos.

In fact, strong sunlight is one of the worst natural light scenarios in which to take pictures as it can wash out the colour from pictures and interfere with the lens on your camera.

Using the shade or an overcast day makes for much better pictures. If you live in the UK that’s great news then! With the softer light that an overcast day brings you’ll get far better colour and skin tones on your subjects.

You can even use a flash to highlight parts of your subject’s skin. Using the flash on a low setting outdoors is a trick of the professionals and adds great depth and character to photographs, creating ‘catch lights’ in eyes and adding life to the pictures.

If you are using the sun for your light source, try not pose your subject with the sun directly behind them, or in front of them. Having the sun as backlight with create too much light for the background and cause your subject to be too dark. By the same notion, having the light directly in your subject’s face will cause them to squint, which in turn creates wrinkles in the face.

Instead pose your subjects so that the sun is to the side of them, lighting them subtly.

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Because of his work with Band Aid and the Make Poverty History campaign, U2’s front man Bono is recognised the world over, more so than the average rock star. He’s chatted with US Presidents, taken tea at 10 Downing Street and met the Pope. It’s a wonder when the singer actually gets time to sing.

Now Bono has been immortalised on canvas in a Pop Art painting in the style of the great Pop Art master himself, Andy Warhol. Warhol was famous for creating works of art of some of the greatest icons of the twentieth century, such as Marilyn Monroe and Wayne Gretzky; Bono, with his global fame, certainly fits into that category.

The painter responsible for painting Bono on canvas is Steve Kaufman, one of Andy Warhol’s prodigies. The painting itself a 2-panel work that was painting in Kaufman’s California studio. As with all great paintings it’s been given a very literal title, ‘Bono 2 panel painting’. The painting shows two images of Bono, one in portrait and the other in profile; naturally sporting his trademark sunglasses.

Kaufman met Bono when he came to Dublin recently for an exhibition entitled ‘Pop Art Ireland’.

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Photos of children look great printed on canvas; they’re the ideal subject matter. Babies especially make for great subjects with canvas prints, but it’s not always easy taking great photos of babies. Whenever you try to take photos of children they’re always willing to pose, as after all kids love having their picture taken.

Babies on the other hand have a very short attention span. Getting a baby to pose is very difficult and can be an exercise in frustration. All too often you’ll have the perfect pose from them when you don’t have your camera, one which they refuse to repeat when you’re ready.

Getting really good pictures of your baby can be difficult. The best option is to try keep it very light and to avoid trying to force a pose. If you can catch your baby when they’re unawares you’ll get a much better photograph. Try keeping your camera with you all of the time and catch your baby when they’re engrossed in normal, everyday activities; such as playing, feeding or being changed. This will allow you to capture the nature of your baby, rather than a forced pose.

You can then grab the attention of your baby by waving something colourful at them, such as a teddy bear. When a baby is naturally curious they make the most endearing expressions.

One thing you should is take numerous pictures at once, preferably with a digital camera. The worst thing is thinking you’ve got the right pose and composition only to find the baby blinked in the best photo.

If you keep the whole process as much fun as possible, you’ll be sure to take a great photo of your baby which will look great a canvas print.

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It may seem an obvious question, but do you actually consider whether you’re taking a photo in landscape or portrait? Landscape means to have the photo horizontal, so it’s wider than it is tall, whereas portrait means to hold the camera vertically, to have the photograph taller than it is wide.

Choosing either landscape or portrait for your photographs shouldn’t be some arbitrary decision, it should be something you decide on very carefully, as something so simple can make a huge difference in the outcome of your pictures.

Choosing which ratio to take your photographs in also helps you decide the distance between yourself, the camera and your subject.

When lining up your subject for a photo, see if you can frame your subject in portrait (vertical). If you are able to compose the photo in this way and manage to frame your subjects, you should take the photo in this way. It’s always best to compose photographs of people in portrait if it’s at all possible.

Generally, if you have just one person, or a couple, in your photograph you should be aiming to take your pictures in portrait. If however you have more people, such as a group shot, then a landscape framing would be preferable.

Sometimes of course you’ll want to deviate from the norm, for example if you’re taking a photo of a single person with an expansive backdrop. In this instance you may want to compose the photo in landscape to make the best use of the background.

Finally you should always consider moving yourself and your camera closer to your subject before moving your subject. The closer you can get the better your photos will be, because after all it’s the detail of the subject that makes for a great photo.

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One of the most important aspects of taking photographs is the composition. What appears within the frame, and how it dominates the frame can turn an ordinary photo into a brilliant one.

Taking photos is an art form, and it can take years to master, if at all; but by following a few simple rules of composition you can begin taking better photographs. By improving your photography in this way you’ll be sure to take photos you’d be happy to print on canvas and hang on your wall for everyone to see.

Firstly, when you’re composing a photograph make sure that the background isn’t cluttered. If you have an overly busy background your subject can get lost, and when your subject is the point of the photo, having a cluttered background can ruin the picture altogether. If your subject is important enough for the photo, make sure they are given importance within the frame.

You can compose your background by changing the angle that you’re taking the photo from. Try taking the picture from above or below in order to minimise the distraction from any busy background.

Another important tip is to make sure that your subject doesn’t have anything unfortunate ‘growing’ out of them. This can happen if they stood by a tree or lamppost, and may not always be obvious when you are composing the picture. When it is printed out however, having something that appears attached to your subject becomes very apparent indeed.

Finally try to utilise natural light and shadows. Full on flat light may be good for sunbathing, but it’s not the best for photography. If you can catch the light at the right time you can real depth to your photos, which can make all the difference in turning a good photo into a great one.

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One of the most challenging aspects of photography is to take a great portrait photo of someone, a photo that captures the essence and warmth of the actual person. Taking portrait photos is an art, and one that can be very rewarding and produce excellent results if done correctly.

Portrait photos also look fantastic when blown up and printed on canvas.

The trick to taking a great portrait photo is to not force the issue. If you want to capture the true image of the subject it’s no good trying to pose them in a style that doesn’t suit them, something that many amateur or even professional photographers do. Try to capture your subject when they are relaxed, make them forget the camera is there and even snap them when they are unaware.

There’s nothing worse in a portrait photo than a subject that is obviously forcing a smile towards the camera.

One way to avoid this to try to catch your subject off guard with their facial expressions. Tell them you’re about to take the photo and then, when they’re getting ready to smile take the photo then. You can also take further shots just after they have smiled, when they’re relaxing. This will make for a much more natural photo, and thus a better portrait shot.

Another thing you could do is to genuinely make your subject laugh to produce a real smile. This you could by telling a joke, clowning around, or in the case of small children you could utilise props such as puppets and soft toys.

Remember that the more natural the photo, the more relaxed your subject, the better the eventual outcome will be.

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One of the most common problems with taking photos is avoiding red eye. The glare from your flash rebounds on the pupils of the people in your photos, ruining the look. Unless you’re a dab hand at PhotoShop or have a red eye correcting facility on your camera, there’s nothing you can do to get rid of it. Such a shame when you think you’ve just taken a really great photo that would look amazing as a canvas print.

However there are a few things you could do avoid red eye in the first place. It’s not that difficult to make sure you never get it.

Light from your flash reflects on your subject’s eye and gets rebounded into the lens of your camera, causing the awful red blur in their eyes. The problem is caused because the light gets reflected in a straight line, therefore simply breaking the straight line will be enough to avoid red eye. You could ensure that your subject’s eye level is different to your own by photographing them from above or below. This will avoid red eye as the light won’t bounce back into the lens.

Alternatively your subject can look slightly off from the camera rather than staring directly into the lens, the light again will not bounce back, causing the red eye.

If you have an external flash on your camera avoiding it is even easier still. You can move your flash so that it is to the side of the camera, meaning there is not straight line between the flash and camera, and the subject.

All of these suggestions will help you to avoid red eye in your photographs, meaning you’ll take better pictures that would be great framed, enlarged or even as canvas prints.

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Andy Warhol’s portrait of the former communist leader, Mao Zedong, is set to become the artist’s most expensive ever work. Auctioneers Christies are hoping to net $120 million for the giant 14-foot tall painting.

Rather than being part of an auction, Christies are selling the painting in Hong Kong, in a private sale. Christies are hoping that Olympic Games in Beijing will prove a suitable draw to enable them to sell a painting such as this for a new record amount.

Asia has recently emerged as an improving market for the American pop art icon.

As we approach a new season of art auctions in New York, Christies are hoping that the profile of this painting, and its subsequent sale, will improve interest in the art world amidst recent price drops in the market. The New York art shows will be featuring some interesting work, which includes a mix of impressionist, modern and contemporary art.

There is a lot riding on the sale of Andy Warhol’s painting at the moment. Especially as many art experts are pessimistic about the upcoming New York art shows. They believe that the slow down in the market will result in much of the art remaining unsold.

Prices have recently dropped by 7.5% in Q1 2008, which was surprising, as the art world had benefited from consistent rises over the last few years.

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You no longer need to keep your best photos hidden away in photo albums, only seeing the light of day when family members come round to visit. Another option of course is to have some of your better photos displayed in frames, either on the wall or on the sideboard. This too doesn’t really make your best photos stand out as much as they should and doesn’t display your pictures in their best possible light.

An alternative to the photo album and the framed image is to have your photos printed on canvas. This make your photographs look more than just photos, instead they become works of art that you can share with your family and friends.

Canvas prints can last a lifetime and look like real works of art that adorn your wall and dominate the room.

If you’re interested in art and would love to own your original piece, rather than spends the thousands you would expect to pay in an art gallery, you could use one of your own photographs instead and create your own art.

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The Grand Palais in Paris had recently been promoting an art exhibition where they were hoping to display a painting by the famed Haitian painter; Herve Telemaque. His 1964 painting ‘Escale’ was used to promote the exhibition on the gallery’s posters that were displayed prominently around Paris. However, attendees at the art gallery were shocked to find that the painting was in fact nowhere to be seen.

What was the reason for this? The owner of the painting had promised the work to the Grand Palais for their exhibition, however the painting is currently residing within the vaults at Christies Auction House. The reason being that the buyer, despite purchasing the painting in December 2007, has yet to pay for the work.

As a result, Christies have refused to let the painting out of their possession.

The painting sold for 180,250 Euros at auction in December, and until the debt with the auction house is settled, the owner of the painting cannot claim his work, nor can he ‘loan’ the painting to the Grand Palais, even though they merely want to exhibit the painting for the art lovers of Paris.

A spokesman for the Grand Palais said:

There was a setback with the art collector and we only found out about it a week before the opening.

We spent a lot of money to advertise this exhibition with the promotion centred on Telemaque’s painting.

The exhibition is scheduled to run until July 13th, even if the debacle over the Telemaque painting isn’t resolved.

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