Taking great photos is a skill that anyone can learn. The first step to improving your photography skills is understanding what makes a good photo and how to achieve it. This will help you take better pictures and get more out of your equipment—you don’t have to buy expensive equipment to take beautiful photos!
Invest in a tripod.
Whether you’re shooting at night or in windy conditions, a tripod will help
keep your camera stable. If you’re using a DSLR, it’s especially important to
have a tripod since DSLR cameras are heavier than point-and-shoot models.
If you’re just starting out and don’t want to spend lots of money on a
tripod yet, consider buying an aluminum tripod instead of carbon fiber. Carbon
fiber tripods tend to be more expensive, but they also last longer than
aluminum ones since they don’t rust or scratch as easily.
Another useful tool for all photographers is an LCD loupe magnifier for
checking focus and details without using your nose as a magnifying glass!
Get more lenses.
When you start out, you’re probably getting your camera kit with a few lenses included. But many other options can work better for different types of photography, such as portraits or landscapes.
Plus, if you’re just starting out and don’t know exactly what kind of photos you want to take yet, then having different types of lenses will allow you to experiment with different setups while still being able to shoot in any situation without having to worry about limitations.
Choose your camera settings carefully.
In addition, you’ll want to consider all of the camera settings that affect
your frame. These includes ISO (the sensitivity of your camera’s sensor),
shutter speed (how long it takes for light to hit the sensor), aperture (this
controls how much light is let in), white balance (which makes sure colors are
accurate) and focus.
Focus is especially important because if it’s not just right, even a great
picture can look out of focus. And if it doesn’t have enough lighting or is
unbalanced in other ways, then your image becomes flat and unattractive—or
worse!
Use the correct exposure to capture a good photo.
Exposure is the amount of light that gets through your camera’s lens to reach your sensor. A correctly exposed photo has good lighting and color, so it’s easy to see what you want in focus.
Setting exposure depends on whether you are using a digital or film camera. For digital cameras, there is an “autoexposure” setting that will set the right amount of light for most situations. However, if there isn’t enough light, the picture might be too dark; if there’s too much light (or flash), it might be overexposed and washed out or grainy looking.
You can also choose a manual mode. In manual mode, you select how much light gets into the camera by adjusting different settings; such as shutter speed (how long does it take for all those photons from your scene to pass through) and aperture size (how large is each opening letting those photons in?).
Let in more light.
Light is one of the most important elements of photography, which you can’t
control. Still, you can use it to your advantage. Letting in more light will
allow you to capture brighter, clearer, and more colourful images. If there’s
too much light coming into the room where you’re taking photos, be sure that
you aren’t pointing your camera directly at windows or other sources of strong
light; this will create glare on your subject’s face and make them look washed
out.
Natural lighting is often considered best for portraits because it gives off
a warm glow which complements skin tones nicely (and saves money on makeup). However, natural light may not always be available when needed, so using artificial lights instead is fine too! Candles create an intimate atmosphere if
used correctly and provide soft illumination. This works well for close-up
portraits like headshots or full body shots with very little background detail
visible around the subject being photographed (think landscapes).
Pay attention to the background.
The background of a photo can make or break it. Backgrounds can be distracting, boring, busy and too dark or too light. To make sure your background doesn’t distract from your subject matter, find a way to work around it or remove it entirely. You can also consider moving your subject closer to the foreground or further away from the background if necessary.
Learn how to pose your subject(s).
When photographing people and wanting to get the most flattering shot, it’s
important to know how to pose your models. The most common body type is an
apple shape; their hips are wider than their shoulders. These people will look
more slender if you photograph them from below or above—but remember that this can make them self-conscious about their proportions. People with a pear shape have wider hips and narrower shoulders; they’ll look slimmer if you photograph them at eye level with their chest out.
As you gain experience with posing, you’ll learn how to pose subjects of
different body types so that each looks best in front of the camera.
Taking better photos doesn’t have to be complicated if you start with these photography basics.
- Don’t get too hung up on the equipment and tools you’re using; don’t worry about getting every detail perfect from the start. Practice taking pictures of things that interest you until you feel your technique is solid enough. Then, move on to shooting more challenging subjects like people or landscapes.
- Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Many photographers are happy to share their expertise and tips with aspiring photographers who want to learn more about their craft. Especially when those aspiring photographers are respectful of the time commitment involved in learning photography techniques. You can find local groups on social media if there aren’t many photographers around where you live; just search “photography group” plus your city name! You can also check out sites like Flickr if they have forums dedicated specifically toward beginners.
- Experiment! Try something new every day until something clicks—and when it does, stick with it until it stops working again! This might sound like silly advice, but it really works: we’ve all had moments where we tried something new only because someone else told us what was popular then, only later realizing how much better things would’ve been if we hadn’t listened at all.
Conclusion
And there you have it! With these tips, you can easily start photography and create beautiful images. Remember that the most important thing is to have fun, experiment and find your own style. Don’t be afraid to experiment with your camera settings. Explore different angles and perspectives, and don’t forget about editing! Even if you don’t know how to use photo-editing programs yet, you can still make your pictures look better by adjusting their contrast or brightness levels so that they appear more vibrant on your screen (or when printed).
If you’d like one of your photographs professionally reviewed, book a Critiq request with Richard Payne. He will review your photograph and will provide personalized feedback on your image to help you perfect your technique!
Featured Expert
Richard Payne
Content Creator | Photographer | Videographer
