Discover the secrets of success in Beginner photographer together. Learn why regularity and variety of practice are the keys to professional growth. Get valuable tips on shooting, choosing frames, and working with light. Read how uniqueness and an unconventional approach can make your work stand out from the rest.
The more practice, the better.
No one has ever been harmed by a variety of practices. Try to take pictures as often as possible. Take your camera/smartphone with you wherever you go. At first, you will think that it is impossible to shoot all the time. However, over time, you will start to notice much more that can be photographed. You will automatically see interesting shots. Can you imagine how disappointing it can be if you do not manage to photograph them?
Remember that every decision you make to leave your camera at home is a minus chance to practice.
Take pictures regularly
Consistency is the key to your successful learning of the art of photography. Of course, if you have already learned to shoot professionally, it is unlikely that your skills will be significantly reduced by taking a break from photography.
However, remember that the world does not stand still. And you need to constantly learn new things. And for the most part, how you took or processed photos is no longer relevant. For example, like the once fashionable blur effect, which was admired by both professionals and amateur photographers. Now the emphasis is on naturalness and the absence of excess processing.
If you are just learning to take photos, regularity is perhaps the most important aspect of the learning process. By taking photos regularly, you will achieve the desired results faster.
Online learning
When I realize that I am entering a period of stagnation, I come up with a project. A project of at least 90 days of daily shooting. And it doesn’t matter if it’s raining or stormy, bad mood or lack of time: I go out every day to shoot my project. And in a separate article I will talk about my projects and how they allow me to grow. Use Internet resources to find new lessons and tips. Now you can find a huge number of photography lessons that will help beginner photographers avoid typical mistakes and speed up the learning process.
Of course, when you learn aspects of photography yourself, you delve deeper into the learning process. You make mistakes and learn from them – you are your own teacher and student. But is it really that useful?
I consider it normal and not ashamed to buy a course of a practicing photographer and gain new knowledge. Believe me, these investments pay off. You may even eliminate all the mistakes in more detail and learn the way you like. But it will take you much more time than if you learn from someone.
First, you won’t be repeating what others have already done for you. You’ll simply be using the information.
Secondly, you may not know all the aspects and secrets of certain types of filming, but experienced professionals will tell you about them.
And thirdly, you will save a lot of time.
Take high-quality photos
When photographing someone, imagine what kind of photos you would like to get. Don’t shoot with the mindset of “let it be that way.” Take more shots if necessary. Pay attention to the mood of the model. Do your best to get the perfect shot.
Try to take takes of scenes you like, so you can later choose the best shots. This will save you, for example, from portraits where someone’s eyes are closed. Or someone has started yawning. Everyone wants to look great in the photo.
Morning is useful for a photographer
Sometimes it’s great to get up very early and shoot. Morning is the time of day when a photographer has the opportunity to be alone with his thoughts and shoot a sleeping city, for example. It’s quiet in the morning, there are very few people on the streets, which means that no one will prevent you from realizing what you have long dreamed of.
Don’t be lazy. Go to bed earlier to get a good night’s sleep. Get up at dawn and spend these minutes alone with your camera. Believe me, such early mornings will help you not only set yourself up for a good day, but also inspire you for new shoots.
Don’t be afraid of the unconventional
When taking portraits, don’t be afraid of standards in appearance, emphasize them. Try to find the uniqueness in each person. Don’t take template photos – I’ll even scold such photographers.
And you have to stand out and be remembered. It is unlikely that anyone will want to go back to a photographer who does not make them a unique photo shoot.
A model’s unconventional appearance is a challenge to your talent as a photographer. You should not lose the person’s individuality, but rather emphasize their differences from others.
Select the best
Be firm when it comes to deleting bad photos. Don’t let trash pile up in your apartment? You should do the same with bad photos. Constantly criticize your work. Learn new things. Work on your mistakes.
Remember: a dull photo won’t become more interesting if you make it black and white. But photographers often think that it’s easier to make a bad shot monochrome than to reshoot it several times until you get a good one.
Analyze your work. Nothing promotes professional development like analyzing your own work. When looking at each of your photos, think: what are you happy with? What was a good decision? And what could have been improved or done differently?
Learn to edit photos
Find a shooting style. But before that, you need to learn how to process photos correctly. Of course, the best processing is the one that is not noticeable. We are not talking about art shooting and projects. We are talking about regular shooting.
Don’t forget about the color temperature. It affects the hue of the picture. Blue, purple or green photos are caused by errors in the camera’s automatic color temperature selection.
Keep an eye on this, because otherwise you risk getting a lot of failed photos that will be difficult to fix.
Get inspired by other people’s work
We all need a mentor at the Beginner photographer of our careers. Choose a photographer or even a few whose work you like. Be inspired by their work, but don’t copy it. Copying is a sign of a bad artist.
Although, sometimes… In very rare cases, a novice photographer can be forgiven for this. You can be inspired not only by the works of other photographers.
Observe life around you. Go outside more often. Watch great movies. Read books. Get inspired by the most unusual things.