There are many common photography mistakes made every day. This is a simplified lesson where I will discuss one or two mistakes per post.
What’s wrong with this photo?
Red eye. This happens with people and animals. Red eye is caused by a flash reflecting off the back of the eye. This can be fixed by not using a flash, having the subject look just to the left or right of the flash, or moving your subject to a location with natural light.
The best fix is natural light. In this case a large window with natural diffused light pouring in. Notice that the subject looks better as well. If you have no choice but to use flash make sure you have your subject focus their eyes to the left or right of the flash to reduce the chance of red-eye.
What’s wrong with this photo?
It’s too dark or underexposed. The fix.
The fix is natural light. While most modern cameras will automatically flash in dark situations it still can happen on occasion. I work with my auto flash disabled simply because I have never met a camera that had a suitable flash. I’ve worked as a portrait photographer and done weddings for friends I always have them pose outside in natural light. Everyone looks better in natural light.
Till next time you can try recreating these mistakes and their fixes.