A friend has just shown me some 50 to 60 photographs that she took at a girlie night out. I hate to say it, but practically all her fellow revellers look like demons from hell.

It’s the old red eye problem. It’s caused by reflected flash. As most point and shoot cameras will automatically use flash indoors (and even outdoors if the light is poor), it is a very common occurrence.If you want to look good in photos and avoid having the centres of your eyes looking like the mouths of a volcano, don’t look straight at the camera lens when flash is being used.  Preferably look just over the top of the camera. This will make you appear to be looking at the camera without the hell fire effect.Simple little tips like this can make you look so much better in those impromptu photographs. This “snap” was taken with flash although it was daylight outside. The ambient light therefore wasn’t too low - so not a red eye in sight.

Red eye is caused by light from the flash bouncing back off the retina, the light sensitive area at the back of the eye. In poor light, when flash is likely to be used, our pupils are relatively dilated (wide) to allow more light in so that we can see better. When the pupils are dilated the retina is more exposed and it reflects more light.

If the eyes are looking directly at the camera then the light reflected from the retina will hit the lens full on and be recorded by the light sensor in the camera. As the retina is red in colour this makes the pupils appear bright red.These days the photographer can use the red eye reduction feature on the camera, or failing that edit the red eye out by means of digital editing software. However not everyone does this, and it is better to avoid looking directly at the lens, rather than risk appearing in subsequent photos as a half-crazed banshee ! (the dictionary definition is a wailing female spirit of Irish folklore origin).

email bob@lookgoodoncamera.com to find out more about looking good in photos or telephone 07920 130985

Go to Home Page www.lookgoodoncamera.com 

Are you one of those people who frequently appear in photographs with their eyes closed? 

Well even the most photogenic model gets caught out that way occasionally, but there is a reason why it happens more to some people than it does to others. It comes down to blink rate. 

Quite simply the more often you blink; the more likely you are to be caught on camera with your eyes shut. Blinking is something that we all need to do. It’s essential for cleaning and lubricating the outer surface of our eyes. 

A minority of individuals are unlucky enough to have neurological or nervous conditions that cause them to blink more often. However the majority of us can exercise a degree of control over how often we blink. Do you remember trying to stare other kids out when you were a child?

Just as the conscious mind has a degree of control over blinking, so the sub-conscious mind effects blink rate as well. Research has apparently shown that we blink more when we are not concentrating, when we are tired and when we are worried or embarrassed. 

Now I’m not suggesting that you consciously try to stop yourself blinking when you are having your photograph taken. That would be far too uncomfortable and having your photograph taken should never be uncomfortable. 

However if you are comfortable and well rested and you concentrate on providing the camera with interesting images, you will significantly reduce your blink rate and the chance of you being photographed with your eyes closed. That way you are going to look a lot better, no matter who is taking the photograph.

One of the things a photo-shoot will do is get you feeling comfortable in front of the camera and thereby significantly reduce the chance of you being photographed with your eyes shut in the future.

email bob@lookgoodoncamera.com to find out more about looking good in photos or telephone 07920 130985

Go to Home Page www.lookgoodoncamera.com 

Being photogenic and looking good on camera have a lot to do with self-esteem. If you feel positive about yourself then you will present yourself in a positive way with naturally out-going body language and confident posture. As a consequence you will look better in photos taken of you.

Psychiatrists and psychologists have recognised the importance of raising self-esteem in the treatment and prevention of many cases of mental ill-health. As a physician myself, I am surprised that techniques to raise self-esteem are not used more widely to help mentally well people perform better, feel better about themselves, and thereby derive greater pleasure out of life. 

Our Look Good on Camera photo-shoots are designed to enhance self esteem and give you tips on how you can feed your self esteem whenever you have self doubts. Come on, book yourself in and start feeling good, looking good and enjoying life more than you ever thought possible.

email bob@lookgoodoncamera.com to find out more about looking good in photos or telephone 07920 130985