Are you fascinated by different genres of photography, such as landscapes, portraits, street, or scenery photography? If you are, but you are not very confident in your skills, we are here for you. Becoming good at taking photos may not happen overnight. However, it is something that anyone with passion and good camera equipment can do.
Things that don’t feel or look natural, such as good composition, will become more natural as you get more experience. You will start to notice elements that you didn’t before. Be sure to check out the Photography Masterclass website, as it features a full guide on how to get started. Also, we have prepared a few basic tips to help you enjoy photography even more. Let’s take a look.
Invest in the Proper Gear
This is the No. 1 tip on almost any photography-related website. If you shoot with an 8MP camera, it will be hard to get a good photo, no matter how experienced you are. On the other hand, while quality gear is going to help you, you shouldn’t buy the most expensive equipment as a beginner.
Starting out, your high-quality smartphone cameras will work just fine. You can experiment by taking many photos of different genres until you know what you want to focus on. This will help determine what kind of professional camera you should invest in.
While you don’t need to spend thousands of dollars on equipment, you should certainly get a good tripod. Not only will it allow for better stability, but you will also be able to shoot from different angles without getting into weird positions. A good tripod with a timer smartphone function can have a huge effect on the final result.
Always Have a Camera with You
As a beginner, you ought to be moving a lot in search of vivid scenes. You should also be looking for people that might like to be subjects of your portraits. Thus, it is essential to always have your smartphone with you at the very least. Shoot a certain scene with your smartphone at the moment you see it. That way, you will remember to come back later and take an even better photo once you get professional gear.
Another reason why you should have a camera on you is for street photography. As one of the most popular genres, it doesn’t involve a lot of planning or composition because frames are captured as things happen. Of course, there are times when you can’t carry a camera or a smartphone on you.
However, you can at least write a note about a scene you may come across and the effects that you noticed. When you come back, you can replicate the lighting effects using a natural source, such as the sun or a reflector.
Don’t Be Afraid to Experiment
As the Photography Masterclass website suggests, the key to becoming a good photographer is to experiment and make mistakes. The more photos you take, the more you will be able to learn what good composition is. You will also learn more about how to arrange elements according to your main idea. This means that you should also take photos of subjects that would usually look ugly or boring.
This could be things such as random objects in your living room or a collection of plastic bottles. By trying out all the different settings that your camera or smartphone allows you will become more experienced. You will learn what to activate depending on the scenery and genre of the photo.
Remember that, before you try out a new technique, you should look up what professionals have said about it. This way, you are still trying out something new but without making basic mistakes and wasting your time.
Enjoy Finding Good Composition
If you don’t know what composition is in photography, we suggest you take a look at some of our other articles. How can you know that it is good? Once the objects and elements are arranged in the way that you would like them to be, it is called good composition. This doesn’t necessarily have to be attractive to the viewer, as certain photos should cause a disturbing effect (war, etc.).
As we mentioned above, the more photos you take and edit, the more natural the composing process will be. Try not to remove parts of the point of interest, and try to have as few distractions as possible. Elements, such as lines, texture, symmetry, and patterns, are something you should try to make a part of your frame (depending on the genre).
Be Best Friends with Light
No, we are not explicitly talking about being there at the golden hour to capture the outstanding scenery of a sunset. Light, per se, is crucial to any good photo. There are a couple of different types, including flat, side, board, as well as backlight. These vary depending on where the shadow falls.
If you are using a natural light source, you can adjust your position or the position of your subject. If you have an artificial light source, such as a reflector, place it at a right angle to achieve the desired effect. This will also avoid haziness or harshness.
Take Your Time
Last but not least on our list of photography tips for beginners is that you shouldn’t rush the process. No one became a professional after just a couple of sessions, and neither will you. This is why you should enjoy the learning process and make sure that you soak up as much knowledge as you can.
Conclusion
A great thing about photography is that it allows you to always be on your feet and in search of beautiful scenery. It also allows you to express yourself through a single frame. We did our best to provide a couple of valuable tips for beginners. Now, it is your turn to go out, apply these in your photo session, and have a lot of fun in the process.