PHOTOGRAPHY TIP (SHOOTING FROM THE HIP)::
Shooting from the hip in photography literally means holding that camera down at waist height to capture a photo. It takes a lot of practice if you hope to yield good results. Its a technique some photojournalists use to get more candid photos or to shoot in situations where you don’t want your subject to know you’re taking a photo. (NOTE: I must emphasize that it is a technique that requires a lot of practice to be able to pull off).
There are a few things to consider when shooting from the hip:
1) Use a wide angle lens: (If you use a zoom or long lens, you are less likely to properly compose your shot. You may think your aiming at something and find that you were several feet off. Keeping a wide angle means you have more room to capture your scene and can always crop later).
2) Use a fast shutter speed and mid-range aperture. You want to keep your aperture about 2 to 3 stops back from wide-open. zoom lenses are sharpest in this range.
3) Pre-Focus your lens if possible. Try and gauge the focal distance between you and your subject by doing a pre-focus before you start shooting.
4) Turn on your high burst function. Take a lot of shots and move your camera slightly each frame. This way you can be sure to get different framings and hopefully at least one will be with proper composition.
5) Don’t look down at your viewfinder (if your camera has one) while your shooting. The entire purpose of shooting from the hip is to be discreet to capture a more candid shot. If you’re looking at the viewfinder, you’re basically shooting in a less than optimal situation for nothing.
