We’ve all been there – we have the perfect picture in mind and we hold up our camera to snap the shot. Then, someone comes from behind you and asks if you want to be in the picture? Sure, you think, and hand the camera over. You stand where you want the picture to be taken, they take the shot and hand back the camera and to your horror, they have taken a truly terrible picture! Yes, you are in the shot, but the beautiful thing that you wanted to be captured with has been cropped out, is blurry or is not even visible… Example A in the picture above.  I stood in line to have my picture taken at Delicate Arch in Arches National Park, Utah and someone offered to take my picture and when they handed the camera back, the top third of the arch is gone!  Examples of other badly cropped pictures follow:

Now I know that not everyone has an “eye for photography”, but I implore you, if you are going to ask someone to hand over their camera, at least take a look at what they want to take a picture of and try not to cut it out – they can always do some strategic cropping later (if necessary), but if you cut off the top of the Eiffel Tower or the top dome of the Taj Mahal, there is nothing that they can do after the fact to make the picture whole again.

So next time you offer to take a picture for someone, ask them what they want in the picture, or – just take a deep breath, take a steady picture that doesn’t cut off any building tops or subjects of interest, take the picture you think they wanted and then ask them if you got the right shot.

Want to take some great pictures?  Here are some tips:

1. Do not zoom in on someone else’s camera!  No matter how much you like to zoom in on your own pictures, take in the full image and allow the camera owner to do their own zooming.

2. Take a second and allow anyone crossing in front of you to get out of the frame.  Or take one step to the left or right to get a clearer shot without anyone in the way.

3. Hold the camera at least at eye height, if not higher.  Higher camera angles are universally more flattering, so do not hold the camera at your chest and aim up.  The person who is trusting you to take their picture will like the picture so much more if the camera is aiming down a bit – believe me!

Now get out there – take pictures of your friends with their cameras, but do it the right way so they love the memory you have captured!