Photo Tip #119: Shooting Graduation Photos

The Ceremony
The graduation ceremony provides a number of excellent photo opportunities. For example, when the students begin to file into the graduation venue, they are generally excited and emotional. Take some candid shots of your graduate as he or she enters the ceremony and heads towards the student section. You'll likely get lots of laughter, waving, high-fiving, funny faces, and other emotions. Then, before the ceremony begins, visualize what will happen, such as where the students walk, where they receive their diplomas, and where they exit the stage. Find the best angle or angles to capture the moment as your graduate approaches the stage, receives his or her diploma, and walks off. There are usually some tremendous emotions to capture as he or she walks off the stage with diploma in hand. Also, there will likely be a graduation photographer shooting the ceremony, so pay attention to what he or she is doing to find the best angles.

After the Ceremony
Once the speeches are over and the diplomas are handed out, it's time to party. But, before the festivities kick into high gear, take some posed shots of your graduate with friends, family, and fellow graduates. Find an iconic image to include in the photos, like a campus building, statue or mascot. This makes the shots even more personal and detailed specifically for the event. Once you get the shots you want with all the right people in them, release your graduate to go celebrate with friends and family. Keep shooting candid shots as the celebrations continue throughout the day.

Camera Adjustments
You might need to make a few camera adjustments to get the best shot. For example, if the students are wearing black caps and gowns, your camera will want to compensate for all the black by popping the flash and turning the black into grey. If you can, reduce the power of your flash so it is not so bright, or turn it off completely and use natural light if you can. A white cap and gown has the opposite effect; increase the level or strength of your flash if you can. When shooting outside, try to keep the sun out of your subjects' faces to avoid squinting. Finally, many campuses are bursting with spring flowers and color this time of year, so integrate those gorgeous colors into your photos if you can.



Don't forget about graduation cards, invitations, or announcements! Congratulate your graduate with a custom photo card or use a custom graduation announcement or invitation to invite people to a celebration! You can also order an enlargement and frame it as a gift to your graduate. Enjoy...this is a huge milestone both for you and for your graduate!

Digi's Site Tip
What is a megapixel and why it is important for digital photography? I get asked this question often. A pixel is essentially a small dot. Millions of these pixels come together to create a digital image on a photo. Along the same lines, a megapixel is basically a way to measure one million pixels. So if you have a 12 megapixel camera, it can take photos with up to 12 million pixels. It is important in digital photography because in theory, the more pixels you have, the more detail you have and the sharper your image appears. Not enough megapixels results in your image looking distorted or grainy. Also, more pixels in your photo allow you to print and enlarge it, as well as crop and zoom in closer and still have a sharp image. However, it is important to note that most cameras out there today have sufficient megapixels to order standard size photos and enlargements.

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