When uploading my photos using Picasa I started to notice that I am getting a lot of dark photos that require fixing.This was confirmed when I turned on the�Picasa histogram. I had noticed this on my camera histogram but thought it was related to an invalid setting such as ISO, or AV.

A Light Tent is a "translucent fabric attached to a frame that surrounds a subject. Typically used to reduce reflection from highly reflective subjects. The light source is outside the enclosure, but the lens pokes through a hole in the fabric".  They can be very useful for indoor macro photography and you can  either make one or buy one.

While taking pictures of Fruit I decided to start playing with Depth of Field which required playing around with the aperature settings (f-stops) and different lighting.If you want to get really close and have clear photos you should use a tripod or camera support and use the timer feature of your camera.

It is important when taking photographs to understand the basic rules of composition and then decide if you wish to apply them or deliberately ignore them.�The act of composing the image in the viewfinder, is a visual process of organizing the elements and individual details of a scene into a balanced and pleasing arrangement. Because what one person finds pleasing, someone else will not, composition is largely a matter of personal taste.

A group has been setup on www.flickr.com to host the FAO Photo Club photos.  Instructions on how to setup your own account and share photos have been provided.  Access to post photos to the group is restricted to Photo Club staff only, however anyone can view the gallery.