• Get closer. When you look through your viewfinder it is natural for you to focus all of your attention on the subject. However, your camera isn’t doing the same. Standing too far away can lead to your subject getting lost in the landscape or background. Move closer so you can see more detail. Or if your camera has a zoom lens, let the lens do the work. Next time you take a picture of your best friend, let her face fill the viewfinder and you’ll get some amazing results.
  
  
• Keep steady. Nothing blurs a great photo faster than unsteady hands. Hold the camera with both hands and gently push the shutter button down. Taking a normal breath and holding it while you shoot a photograph can also help. You might also consider using a tripod.
  
  
• Vertical vertigo. Most photos are taken with a horizontal frame. It’s natural, and done without thinking. But why not shoot a photo vertically every now and then? Next time you get ready to shoot a photo take a few extra seconds and turn your camera sideways. You might get a better shot. Many people or objects look better, like full-body shots or tall buildings, when you take a vertical picture. This also helps when you lay out your photos to create a scrapbook page—vertical photos add variety by giving you different lines, shapes, forms, and perspective.
  
  
• Background matters. Keep your backgrounds free from clutter. A plain background brings focus to the subject you are photographing. When you look through the camera viewfinder, learn to pay attention to the area surrounding your subject. Make sure no trees grow from the head of your grandson and that no wires seem to stretch from Uncle Bill’s shoulders.
  
  
• Better off-center. It can become a habit to always put your subject in the center of your viewfinder and click, but centering is not always the best placement. Take time to play with shifting your subject to the left or right of center. Keeping the subject a bit off center adds to the variety of line, shape, form, balance, and harmony of your photograph, which in turn will lead to more exciting photos for your scrapbook pages.
  
  
• Dramatic black and white. Since black-and-white photos are known to have a longer life than most color photographs and also produce a more dramatic effect, it’s a good idea to include them in picturing taking. With standard cameras, this means purchasing black-and-white film. Some digital cameras have a grayscale mode that digitally reproduces the photos as black and white. Photo-editing software also has a grayscale feature that allows you to change a scanned color photo to black and white for printing.

Maria Nerius is a Professional Crafter, Author, and Contributing Writer and Columnist to industry trade journal, Craftrends.