Some of the best parts of traveling are the memories you make along the way, and pictures are a great way capture those wonderful moments.
Here are some tips to ensure your photos are as beautiful as your destinations.
Too much sun in a photo can create strange shadows—especially on people’s faces. Look at your camera before you snap the picture, evaluate how it looks, and move around if you need to!
When using your phone, you can adjust the brightness before you take the picture by tapping on the subject on your screen and dragging your finger either left and right or up and down, depending on the model of your phone.
We know you’ll be exploring at all hours of the day, but early morning and later afternoon are the best times for natural lighting. If you’re taking photos around midday, which is when the sun is at its highest and brightest, see if you can find some shade.
When you’re setting up your picture, place your subject in the center of the frame. Or you can get more creative and move them to the left or right side of the frame. This would be a great way to highlight both a person and an object in view behind them, such as a cathedral, a mountain, or the ocean.
Before you take a picture, tap the screen of your phone to make sure the camera is focused on the subject.
Take multiple photos—some from the same angle and even some from different angles. If you’re taking the picture horizontally, take a vertical one too! You never know which one will look the best.
When taking photos from a distance, it’s always better to move closer than to zoom in. Zooming in can make your picture appear grainy, blurry, or pixelated.
If you’re the person in the photo, take a deep breath so your shoulders relax! A great idea is to laugh before the picture is taken. It might feel fake, but it will bring out a beautiful smile!
Whether it’s a solo or group shot, a simple 3–2–1 will make sure that eyes are on the camera. But blinks happen, so always take at least a couple of photos.
Patsy earned a bachelor’s degree in food and nutrition in business from Purdue in 1969, in addition to an MBA in food marketing from Michigan State University in 1970. She retired from Kraft Foods in 2006 after 36 years in corporate food marketing and marketing communications management.
A community volunteer, Patsy serves on the Women’s Fund of Central Indiana Advisory Board and the Purdue College of Health and Human Sciences Dean’s Leadership Council, in addition to the President’s Council Advisory Board. She is a former member of the Health and Human Sciences Alumni Board. Patsy held several offices from 2006 through 2013, including president and treasurer. She serves her community’s Discover Indianapolis Club in Fishers, holding several leadership roles for over 10 years.
Patsy has received several honors, including the Purdue University Nutrition Science Department Hall of Fame recipient in 2009 and the Purdue University College of Health and Human Sciences Distinguished Alumni Award in 2016. She also received the college’s Gold and Black Award in 2016, an honor reserved for donors who have moved the college forward by committing exceptional financial resources.
In addition to endowing two scholarships, the Patsy J. Mellott Scholarship and Patsy J. Mellott HHS Scholarship, she established the Patsy J. Mellott Teaching Innovation Award in the College of Health and Human Sciences in 2013. In 2015, she endowed the Patsy J. Mellott Women’s Tennis Coach Performance Award. She is a lead donor in the Christine M. Ladisch Faculty Leadership Award and the Purdue Women’s Network Virginia C. Meredith Scholarship for the College of Health and Human Sciences.