Chapter 6 Assignments
We’ve covered a lot of ground in this chapter, so it’s definitely time to put this knowledge to work in order to get familiar with these new camera settings and techniques.
Experiment with white balance using Live View
Set up your camera, and use the Daylight white balance setting. Then turn on Live View and change the white balance to other settings, previewing each change in the LCD monitor. Pay attention to the colors of your scene, and then pick the white balance that works best for your image.
Level the horizon
Set your camera up on a tripod and do your best to eyeball the horizon and get it level in your scene. Then turn on the electronic level on the LCD monitor and see how close you were to getting your scene level. If you were off, adjust your camera until it’s level horizontally. Don’t forget to preview your composition before you take the shot—just because the camera thinks it looks good doesn’t mean it will turn out that way.
Applying hyperfocal distance to your landscapes
Pick a scene that contains objects that are near the camera as well as something that is clearly defined in the background. Try using a wide to medium-wide focal length (18–25mm). Use a small aperture and focus on the object in the foreground; then recompose and take a shot. Without moving the camera position, use the object in the background as your point of focus and take another shot. Finally, find a point that is one-third of the way into the frame from near to far and use that as the focus point. Compare the images to see which method delivered the greatest range of depth of field.
Placing your horizons
Find a location with a distinct horizon, and using the grid on the LCD monitor, take three shots: one with the horizon in the top third of the frame, one with it in the middle of the frame, and one along the bottom third of the frame. Compare them to see which is most visually striking.
Share your results with the book’s Flickr group!
Join the group here: flickr.com/groups/canon6dfromsnapshotstogreatshots