..... To be continued shortly ......
Tip of the day
TIP OF THE DAY (1) Your camera is programmed to see the overall tone of an image to be mid grey. Try this exercise: Take a picture (in jpeg) of a white piece of paper - no other colours so make sure the frame is filled with the white and not some of the table it is placed on. Then take a picture of a black piece of paper or card again making sure it is only black filling the frame. Put them on your pc - you will see that they both have 18% grey and not the true black or white that you have taken. To over-ride this control the camera yourself, Aperture; Shutter speed and ISO all allow you to control how much the camera sees. Using Auto or P mode is allowing the camera to decide.

Thanks to Jann for sourcing these tips.
Photography tip 5: Rule of thirds/Fibonacci spiral (golden rule) When it comes to compositional rules, it is very much a battle between golden ratio vs rule of thirds. Both are very handy when trying to guide how the viewer’s eyes go around an image. The golden ratio is a compositional tool, also known as the Fibonacci spiral. It is what you get when you do some complex maths on a rectangle: a/b = (a+b)/a = 1.61803398875. In a short form ratio, it is 1:1.618. The golden ratio is part of every natural object (ora and fauna). It comes across as being a very magical number. This is a balanced composition for those who view your images. We prefer images that are somehow harmonized, and the golden ratio is one way to balance your image. It keeps your viewer’s travelling around your image evenly. The great thing about the golden ratio is that you can use it in 8 different ways. Four with a portrait orientation and four with a landscape orientation. The rule of thirds is another compositional rule. The great thing about this is that our cameras and, more often than not, image editing software, can help us out. If you place two imaginary horizontal lines along your scene, one at 1/3 and the second at 2/3, you’re halfway. Next, place two lines vertically, again at 1/3 and 2/3. Deciding which composition is better is difficult. When we enter the world of photography, we all have the rule of thirds rammed down our throats. It is by far the most talked about and common compositional rule, but also the most hated. We need images more pleasing when focal points sit on these intersections. But it really depends on the scene. If we have a scenario where nothing much isn’t happening, we would use the rule of thirds. It helps make it into something better. This is something we can do as we photograph. Our cameras show us this grid in both the viewfinder and live view via the LCD screen. The rule of thirds doesn’t take up too much mental activity to follow. The golden ratio is more complex. I can guarantee, no photographer is sitting there, camera to the face, looking for the golden ratio. It would take too long, especially if you are capturing street, portrait or sport photography. The golden ratio is a great tool to crop images. It serves as a great tool when editing your images. The rule of thirds is also great for this. Most of us use it without thinking. See attached photos which make it clearer. (Text & images taken from Google)