Photography is a favorite pastime and hobby for millions of people, as is evident by the hundreds of millions of people that regularly use Instagram. While everyone with a camera or cell phone can take pictures, it takes more skill and finesse to be a photographer.
With that in mind, this article will take a closer look at 10 tips to help you be the best photographer possible, and take your photos to the next level.
1 Practice, Practice, Practice
No one is going to be able to pick up a camera and be a master photographer in a few minutes. Instead, you need to spend weeks (or even months) to get comfortable enough to be a confident photographer. Take photos in different settings, at different times and in different styles. The more you practice and hone your craft, the better you will be.
2 Understand Lighting
Lighting is one of the most important parts of capturing great photos. The lighting depends on the type of photo you want to get, but generally, the first few hours after sunrise will provide the best lighting. Of course, external light sources (both interior and exterior) can also be used to get the desired amount and type of lighting.
3 Do Some Exploration
The world has so much to offer, and every city or town you go to will have some amazing locations just begging to be captured by your camera. So instead of just taking photos at the popular places in your city, go off the beaten path and find somewhere unique. Finding fresh places to shoot will help your work stick out compared to others.
4 Use the Advanced Software at Your Disposal
Innovation is moving faster than ever in technology, and that goes for photography as well. There is a variety of different advanced and innovative software out there, including drone mapping software. This type of software can extract 3D measurements from photographs taken with a regular camera, with the bonus of being cost-effective.
5 Learn How to Edit
So while there are advanced types of software out there to help you capture new and unique photos, some simple editing can also go a long way. Learning Photoshop and/or other editing software can help you take your good photos and turn them great. Some of these programs can have a bit of a learning curve, but once you get proficient, you will be able to create some beautiful content.
6 Get the Right Camera For You
Not every camera is created equally. There are many different kinds of cameras out there, each with their own specialty and uses. In addition to their different uses, cameras come in a variety of different sizes and prices. As a result, you need to do some research and see what camera best fits your need, as well as your price range.
7 Focus On Your Direction as a Photographer
What is your goal with photography? By having a goal, you can create a path or steps to reach that goal. If you want to take up photography as a hobby, that is totally fine, but if you want to make a career out if it, you will likely have to put more time and money into it, as well as a lot of research and potentially even some photography courses.
8 Get a Good Camera Bag and Strap
When you are a professional photographer, you carry around more than just your camera. You will have things like different lenses, external flashes, memory cards and more. Save yourself some hardships and difficulty, and purchase a good camera bag. Also, to make sure you don’t drop your expensive camera, a solid camera strap is a must-have as well.
9 Learn About Lenses
In addition to there being a lot of different types of cameras, there are also many different kinds of lenses to choose from. Each different lense can tell a different story and will give photos and videos a different type of feel. You should be sure to research and experiment with a wide range of lenses and see which look good to you.
10 The Tripod is Your Friend
Any sort of studio or long exposure photography will benefit greatly from a tripod. These are extremely affordable and can take your photo shoots to the next level. As steady as your hands are, there are going to be sometimes when you will be glad you have a tripod in your camera bag.