Photography is something which seems easy, until you try it yourself and realise that a lot of work and skill goes into creating those amazing shots. There are a few things you can do if you’re aiming to improve your photography for that special occasion or holiday, and here are a few top tips:
Slow Down
Often we can get snap happy, taking as many photos as we can and figuring that we’re sure to have at least a few which are good. The key to good photography is to first take in the scene, and ask yourself how you can take a unique photo. Look at different angles, and limit the amount of photos you take, taking time to set them up, pick the best light, and capture the best possible moment.
Educate yourself
If you’re serious about becoming improving your photography, it’s important to educate yourself as much as possible. There are numerous photography courses and classes available so you can learn basic skills or improve on your foundation with an experienced photographer. There are also numerous resources online such as the Digital Photography School which have plenty of blog posts and articles, and YouTube can teach you many different skills as well.
Buy a decent camera
If you’re going to make photography a serious hobby or consider going professional, you’re eventually going to need to invest in better equipment. Choose a DSLR with multiple lenses so you can experiment and practice with different techniques. There are some excellent camera websites which sell all of the best cameras and lenses, so spend some time reading reviews and considering which equipment is best for you.
Practice as much as you can
As the old saying goes “you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink”. You may take numerous courses and classes, get advice from different sources, and have the best equipment possible, but unless you’re practicing every chance you get, your skills just aren’t going improve. The more you practice and get used to your camera, the better you’ll get, and the better your instincts will be when you come across difficult lighting situations.
Shoot at the best time
Good photographers know to shoot at the best time of the day. This is never the middle of the day, so aim to get out for dawn or dusk when the light will be soft and flattering, and you won’t have any nasty glare. Simply by choosing when to bring out your camera and aiming to get to key places in the morning or late afternoon will greatly improve the standard of your photos.
Learn to Process
Learning how to shoot is only the first step when it comes to improving your photography. If you’re shooting in RAW (and you should), you’ll need to learn how to do post-shooting processing. Invest in a program like photoshop and then jump online for some excellent tutorials which will soon have you doing basic fixes to your photos to improve them.
