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NEW WAYS TO USE YOUR DIGITAL CAMERA FOR FUN AND PROFIT
by Valerie Goettsch
If you're only using your digital camera for vacation and family photos,
you've just scratched the surface of your camera's uses. Digital photography has
opened a new world of possibilities. Here are some fun, practical, and maybe
even profitable, ways to use your digital camera.
Enhance your photo before uploading to an online dating service As online dating
services become more and more popular, you may be considering this option to
meet Mr. or Ms. Right. You'll want to look your best to capture the attention of
your potential mate, so how about brighter eyes and whiter teeth? It's pretty
easy to enhance your digital photo using inexpensive photo editing software such
as Foto Finish or Jasc Paint Shop Pro. You can adjust the overall brightness and
contrast to generally brighten the image. Zoom in on your eyes and using the
software's polygon or magic wand tool, select just the whites of your eyes. Then
use the 'adjust color' or 'adjust exposure' tool to make your eyes brighter and
less red. Similarly, you can zoom in and select your teeth, then adjust the
color and exposure. And voila! A fresher, more alert and attractive-looking you.
Selling goods on eBay Research shows that merchandise with attractive photos
sell at better prices. People are naturally drawn to appealing images. To show
your items at best advantage, you can rig an inexpensive tabletop "studio" using
a sheet of non-glare white plastic and a PVC pipe for support. The important
points to remember are having a uniform background behind and below the object
and even lighting, either with shop lights or natural sunlight (through a
window--it's best to shoot indoors). You may need to adjust the white balance on
your digital camera, which is easy to do on most new cameras. Then you can watch
the auction bids rise on that antique clock you're trying to sell.
Archive photos of your personal possessions in case of fire or theft Using your
digital camera, you can quickly and easily take photos of your personal
possessions such as TVs, DVD players, stereo equipment, furniture, computers and
other expensive items so you have a record of them for insurance purposes. Be
sure to log serial numbers and keep a record of purchase prices too. For
safekeeping, transfer the images to a CD and keep it in a safe deposit box, or
upload the images to an online photo storage service that offers unlimited
storage, such as Pixagogo.
Digital Scrapbook Digital scrap booking, or computer scrap booking, is the
newest way to preserve your family memories. Using inexpensive, easy-to-use
scrapbook software, you can create entire scrapbook layouts and add fun fonts
and graphics to take your scrapbook project to a new creative level. Computer
scrap booking has really taken off in the last year because people are finding
it is less expensive, fast and takes up less space (no more taking over the
family dining table) to make a computer generated scrapbook versus traditional
scrap booking techniques. Most people already have a computer and digital
camera, and once you have a scrap booking graphics software package and perhaps
invested in a scanner for older photos, you're ready to go. You can easily color
correct images, lighten dark photos, crop out old boyfriends, and even erase
scratches from old photos. Most software programs come with special effects so
you can enhance your photos and pages with antique sepia tones, torn or burnt
edges, crinkles, soften or fade the edges, add digital picture frames, and much
more.
Have fun with your camera and let your imagination explore the boundaries.
About the Author
Valerie Goettsch publishes the digital photography website
http://www.digitalphotos101.com
featuring reviews of photo editing and album software and digital photo printing
services.
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