Getting the Most Out of Your Photographs

With almost everyone using their camera phones these days, those who desire to use digital cameras often feel a bit lost on how to use the camera to get the best pictures. If you are looking to expand your photography skills, keep reading! We are going to explore a few things you should know to help you get the most out of your camera and produce some amazing shots.

Know Your Camera

Some people go out and buy a camera based on recommendations, reviews, or because they simply found something that sparked their interest. Then they take the camera out of the box and find themselves asking “What’s an F-stop?” Uh-oh!

To really get the most out of your machine, you have to learn about all of the settings so that you can figure out how to make them work for you. You can take a free course on EDX, watch tutorials about your camera on YouTube, take a class at your local community college, or simply ask a photographer friend if they can help you.

Practice Often

To get to know your camera and which subjects you are drawn to the most, practice every day. Practice candid shots at a party or in the park (ask for permission first!). Practice a setting or a combination of settings on the camera. Hike up into the woods and play with different aspects of natural lighting. Practice on your pets, your family, your friends, and your home. Practice can help you figure out what you may be doing “wrong” but you can also have some fantastic moments by stumbling onto a technique that you adore. Practice won’t make you perfect but it will improve your skills!

Pose Your Friends

All amateurs end up photographing their friends and family. You are going to want to explore beyond the candid photo and move into some serious poses. Models know how to pose for a camera to offer their best looks. Your non-model best friend won’t. Since models don’t often work with amateurs, you are going to need to hone your skills at posing people. Follow their physical shape and learn how to accentuate, minimize lines, use lighting to highlight certain assets, posture, how to incorporate their hair, what they are wearing, and (obviously) their personality is a lot to remember. However, if you practice enough, you’ll find the right aspect that works and photography will become like second-nature to you.

Play With Perspective

Another fantastic piece of advice we can give you is to take a shot in multiple perspectives. We tend to start out with straight-on shots. They can be good shots but if that is the only angle you choose, the pictures become boring and predictable. Don’t be afraid to change things up! Get up high and look down on the subject. Lay down and look up at it. Shoot from behind or from the side. One subject in multiple perspectives will teach you more about great photographs than you could ever hope to learn in a classroom.

Don’t be afraid to try things out, practice often, and be playful. It’s not so much about getting better than other people, it’s about finding that inner artist and releasing it to the world.