Using a few simple camera tricks, you can take professional quality photos.
A great photograph should resemble a work of art. Many professional photographers have taken advanced classes on photography techniques and invested in expensive cameras and equipment. However, many techniques are simple enough for the amateur photographer to easily master and replicate. Camera tricks can be accomplished using a traditional film or digital camera.
In focus
Using this trick, you can make the clear subject stand out against a blurry background. You capture the subject while they are moving, but they will remain frozen and in focus. Put your subject in the center of the background and physically move the camera while continuing to aim and focus on the subject. Another way to do this is to ride in a moving car and take a picture of someone running on the sidewalk. If you focus on the runner, while you're physically moving, the rest of the background will blur and the runner will be clear and in focus.
Streaming light
This is an effect professionals often use when taking a photo of a busy street or highway during the night. Pick a scene to photograph that has bright lights such as a roller coaster. Set your camera on a tripod. Turn the flash off. Put the camera on "shutter" or "TV" mode. If you set it to shutter mode, make sure it's a long shutter setting. Snap the photo. The motion should turn into streams of bright light while the rest of the background stays clear and focused.
Swirl
This is another trick that is best used at night while the subject is illuminated with light. An example would be a child on a busy sidewalk under a streetlight. Put the camera in "shutter" or "TV" mode and keep the flash off. Focus on the subject by pressing the shutter button halfway. As you press the button to take the photo, quickly jerk the camera clockwise and then counter clockwise. This will create a circular motion blur around the subject.
