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Microsoft Picture It! Companion Guide
Chapter 2: Making the Most of Your Camera
16
No Flash
Contrary to what you might think, you may be better off without your flash in
many situations. If you think the scene is too dark to take without a flash, try
increasing the ambient light by turning on lamps and opening the drapes. On
most digital cameras, you can increase the ISO equivalent setting, in effect
making the image sensor more sensitive to the available light, which allows
you to shoot in low light without a flash.
Many newer cameras offer low-light shooting modes and night-flash settings
that improve the quality of low-light photos. If your camera offers these options,
use them. Otherwise, always stay within the recommended range of the flash.
Red-Eye Reduction Flash
One of the most common problems with flash photos of people and pets is red
eye. This problem is caused by a flash located very close to the camera lens.
The light from the flash reflects off the blood vessels in the subject’s retina,
causing the pupils to look red. This problem occurs frequently in low-light
situations, when pupils are likely to be dilated. There are several things you can
do to help avoid red eyes in your photos:
■
Increase the ambient light in the room. Turning on lights and opening up
the drapes reduces the size of your subjects’ pupils.
■
Use your camera’s red-eye reduction setting. This feature fires preflash
bursts that help reduce the dilation of the pupils before the exposure.
■
If you have an off-camera flash, move it away from the camera lens.
Then, even if your subjects’ pupils are dilated, the light comes from a
different angle, and reduces or eliminates the red-eye effect.
Fixing red eye with
Picture It!
If you end up with red
eyes in your photos,
Picture It! makes it
very easy to remedy
this problem. For more
information, see the
section on removing
red eye in Chapter 5,
“Basic Touchup.”