A very important thing to learn when taking photographs is to be economical with your films, and especially is this so when on the trail, for your supply is then necessarily limited. Merely for the sake of using the new toy, many amateurs will photograph subjects that are not of the slightest interest to any one, and very often, when a scene or object does present itself that is well worth while, all the films will have been wasted and no picture can be taken.
Plan Your Pictures to Illustrate Your Trip
The white birch-tree makes a fine background for the beaver.
It is a good idea to plan your pictures so that they will illustrate your trip from beginning to end. A snap-shot of your party starting on the trail, another of the country through which you pass, with, perhaps, one or two figures in it, and the remainder of the films used on objects of interest found on the way. If you can secure pictures of any wild animals you may see, they will make the series doubly interesting and valuable. When you go into camp a view of the camp should be included. When the pictures are printed write on the back of each what it represents, where taken, and the date; they will then be valuable data as well as trustworthy reminders.
Backgrounds
Look for the best view of a subject before using your camera; there is always a choice. One side may be much more pleasing or more characteristic than the other, or may show interesting details more plainly. If you have studied drawing you will be able also to find the view which makes the best composition. The background, too, must be considered, and the position of the sun. The simpler the background the better. Near-by foliage is not good for figures; it is too confused and the figures will mingle with it. Sometimes the adjustable portrait-lens, which can be slipped over the other, will obviate that trouble by blurring everything not in exact focus, and this lens will allow you to stand nearer the object and so make it larger on the film. It is not intended for distant views and the camera should not be more than six feet from the subject when it is used.
Quiet water makes an excellent background, also distant foliage and hills, flat fields and meadows. These may be obtained for figures, but often the very things you want to photograph most are in the woods with foliage close to and all around them; then you must simply do the best you can under the circumstances.
Color Values in Photographs