Recently in Self-help Category

I don't know how "secret" are the five tips for better digital photos that Kim Komando wrote about in her column today, but it's always interesting to me to see what others find important when clicking an image. Komando, who hosts a weekly tech-oriented radio call-in show carried by 450 radio stations and writes a nationally syndicated weekly newspaper column on things digital, yellow-lined these morsels of wisdom for budding shutterbugs.

• Step back for portratis--jamming a camera too close to a subject's face can turn a marvelous mien into a mug.
• Frame your shots--pay attention to compositon.
• Get action shots--which is advice easier said that done.
• Avoid using built-in flashes indoors. That may sound counter-intuitive, but the Kimster has a point. Many built-in flashes raise havoc with the colors in a photo.
• Play with shutter speeds and apertures to create photographic effects like showing motion through purposeful blurring.

Probably the biggest "secret" of all noted by Komando in her column is that good photos are less a function of hardware than they are the wetware behind the lens.

By popular demand, the folks that brought you 100 photographic tips in 100 days last year are doing it again this year. Yes, Adorama, which is to photographers what Campmor is to campers, is planning a reprise of the series with all new tips starting next Monday. Next week's lineup includes these offerings.

• "High resolution" compacts, low light don’t mix
• Tell your noisy images to shut up
• Wide aperture salvation
• Buying guide: "Normal" lenses
• Anti-shake, even in broad daylight