With the discovery of Digital Cameras, the best practices of photography changed in a lot better way. Peoples are more interested in taking photographs than ever before.
People are even sharing their experience along with their family and friends by posting them social media like Facebook and Twitter.
But with the increase in interest in photography, quality is not the thing which peoples think of much. It is much easier to blame your camera if your photos are not good and attractive as others.
So today, we are going to discuss the best photography tips for beginners. The lack of sense of taking better photographs for normal peoples is acceptable, but if you are doing it professionally? In such a situation, we have to think about it very seriously.
So, are you looking to become a professional photographer but just starting out? No worry, you have arrived at a better place where you will learn the best principles which are found in any Professional Photographer.
We are going to teach you how you can take amazing photographs with any camera whether it is any DSLR Camera or your iPhone. You will learn the best tactics to take a perfect photograph by learning these 7 simple principles of professional photography. We have added a bonus part which will help you in finding your own way of photography.
Peoples keep on searching here and there for tips to become a better photographer.
Hence keeping these points in mind, we have compiled these dramatic but simplified principles for beginner photographers. These best principles are totally subjective in the list and by no means complicated. Nevertheless, if you nude photography and wondering how to instruct improving your images, this is the best place, to begin with.
So, let’s dive in for tips to be a good photographer:-
#1 Fill the Frame With What You Like
This is the most important rule of photography and the only rule you should never ever break. The subject should be well focused on your camera and not other unnecessary things around it. Got it?
Want to capture the flower in your camera, just focus on flower only and get close to it. Want to capture tree branches, get close to it and pay attention to its branch only.
This way your image will look in a way better than the normal practice of taking the same photographs.
Now we are going to make things simplified for beginner photographers by providing an image to understand things better. Remember, tips on how to take good pictures in lying in this principle only.
See this picture of the flower.
Is it making some difference from other photographs out there already? There is a limitless number of photos already out there and this is an addition to that crowd.
We even can’t see clearly what we are going to take pictures of. Being a beginner photographer, you should always keep this thing in mind to focus the camera on only the targeted subject and no other around.
Now see this photograph which has been taken much closer to the subject.
Did it make any difference? Yes. This image is appealing and much better. What a beautiful photo. So did you get what we wanted to show you?
The best principle of photography is to fill the frame with what you like to capture. You may be thinking to take a snapshot and zoom it later. No! Not only it will kill the quality of your photograph but you will have the worst photo with you.
We are teaching you how to take better photographs and zooming a photograph is not included in photography tips and techniques for beginning photographers, at all.
So, zooming is okay but the best zoom lenses are your legs so get closer to things. Now, this goes with everything you want to shoot for example landscapes, wildlife, peoples, and animals, etc. So, fill the frame with what you like and get rid of everything else!
So, see this photo. Is boring shadow in water not exciting you? No problem.
Get rid of the boring water!
Stuff like tree branches, lunch boxes, random peoples, means whatever thing is distracting your photo, get rid of it quickly. If you cover it perfectly then you have already completed your half path to good photography tips for beginners.
This is your task. Every time you take a picture, figure out what the photo is really about. Fill the frame with those elements and get rid of everything else.
#2 Simplicity & Exaggerate the image
A good image is like a caricature, what does it mean? A good image always simplifies its exaggerates. So, simple rules and tips to become a better photographer, whenever taking a photo, think about how can you exaggerate characteristics of that image.
Use different combinations of contrasting colors and test what color is making your photo to stand out of others. Use surrounding objects to show any targeted subject bigger or small.
For ex., take a photo of a mountain. What are the things around the mountain which make our mind to think of it as a very big thing? Things like trees, stones, large sky, and other things. Got it? So, trying to show any object big or small respective to its surroundings? Use other objects to scale it.
Want to shoot water flowing from a cascade? Use long shutter speed to emphasize the movement of the water. This will put a new life in your image and you will love it.
Try changing your focal length, your perspective, your white balance, and all other suggested things.
When you simplify things, the output is really awesome always. So better put your focus on the simple thing and you will rock photographs.
#3 Don’t Center Your Subject
Days of ugly photography are over as we are discussing now one of the best photography tips for beginners. Moreover, why shouldn’t we follow the same rules which existed 10-20 years back from now? Life is all about change so photography is. Don’t center your subject in the frame whenever taking photos. It does not sound cool.
Instead of taking photographs traditional way. Divide your photo frame in an imaginary tic tac toe board or 9 sections. See the image below and understand better.
Now place the most important elements of the scene on those vertical and horizontal lines and boxes. This helps us to define our relationship with our subject. It emphasizes what you think is the most important and creates a visual gateway through the photo.
Let’s take an example here to understand in a better way what we are talking about.
See this photo with the traditional way of photography.
Now try this trick in the photo.
So are these photos looking sexy now? Yeah, you have broken the traditional way of photography and found your own.
The major exception to this rule is anytime you want two parts of your photo to have the same visual weight. Reflections, juxtaposition, abstracts, and counterpoint are all great ways to take photographs that have the same visual weight.
You are on the right way to becoming a great photographer if you are following these simple tips to become a better photographer. Believe me, these rules are so simple but are always over-looked but proves to be a game-changer.
Well, let’s move on to learn some more best photography tips for beginners.
#4 Create Depth In Images
Professional photographers like to create a near-far composition to create depth and pull people into your image. By having a foreground subject close to your camera and a background subject far away from your camera, you create a story and context for your image. You create a 3-dimensional sense of depth and perspective.
If you ever trying to take a super close and bottom to depth photo, you can use this tactic to create an effect by going the way wide and getting super close to your foreground subject. This will put a new life into your photography.
This near far technique of photography is really awesome and helps to attract people’s attention towards your photo and making them feel like they are standing in that photo.
Does the above image make some appeal to you? Yeah, it does. The person looking at this image will feel like he is standing on the railway track himself. This is a great way to make people feel a part of the photo.
#5 Connect The DOTS
Suppose you have multiple subjects in your photo. Subjects may be any including cracks in the ice, lines in the piece of sandstone, trees, or peoples. Maybe the photo is of the group of birds flying the near sky. Or assume any other better scene we can’t think of.
So, if you are having such a photo of multiple subjects, the task of a great photographer in this is to connect all subjects to each other. You can also use some kind of line to visually connect all those subjects in your photo so that the viewer person can understand the photo much better then he could be.
It is the responsibility of the photographer to establish a connection between all those subjects. Leading lines are a great way to give your viewer a visual journey throughout your photo. He will himself enjoy the beauty of that photo. These leading lines help to connect a subject to each other.
Let’s have some examples now to understand things better. See the photos below.
Keeping in mind the right perspective, you can any object to be a good leading or connecting line for any particular image. For ex., we can use a river to connect a foreground scene to the background scene.
There are thousands of ideas hitting right now into my mind like sand dune’s ridge, a crack in the ice or the lines in a piece of sandstone, a desert scene, etc.
No matter how you use those dots to connect the various subjects to each other and create a visual journey for your viewers, leading lines are a great way of connecting them.
#6 Perspective Is Everything
What is the best way to make somebody say, “Hey!!! That’s an interesting photo!” Got it! Try to make something in your photo that they have never seen before. We spend our whole life looking at the world from eye-level. Is it making any difference? When you take a picture from eye level, it’s the all same boring perspective of taking photographs.
Like I said photography is all about exploring your own way. See the photo below which is taken using the traditional way of taking photographs from eye-level. Did you see any exciting thing in this photo? In fact, this image is quite boring. We can’t even get what we were about to.
Now from down from the ground takes a whole new life. So get your camera up and capture the photograph from the ground level. Show the world your perspective. See the new way of this photo.
Did the image make any appeal to you? Yeah. It did. You have just taken a photo from the ground-level perspective. Discover a whole new face of photography.
#7 LIGHTING IS EVERYTHING
Unfortunately, the common time of doing kinds of stuff in the middle of the day. But for photographers, it is one the worst time of the day. Because at this time, the harsh quality of the light and shadow destroys the image. What you can do in this situation? Stay home forever? No. We are photographers. At least, we can’t stay at home.
Well, the best solution to take photographs comes back another time mostly during sunrise and sunset. This period usually offers the most interesting skies and the most flattering light on your photo. Hence, allowing you to take photos using your best skills.
Alternatively, you can move into the shade. Shady conditions or cloudy conditions cause nice offer even lines on the photo. Such a condition is best for portraits or flower photography.
But sometimes, coming back or moving to another spot is not possible. Sun is at its place but not you. The direction of the shadow will destroy your image. So, what can you do?
Simple, use directional lines to your advantage. Instead of shooting towards the sun which usually makes your subject go completely black. So, shoot along with the sun. Shoot away from the sun and your experience will be even across the scene. You can put the sun at an angle and can capture the photos of good exposure.
The technique here is to expose for the bright part of the scene. Let all this drop into shadow. Digital Cameras have almost no capability to retain detain on the highlight, but they have the insane capability of retaining details in the shadow. So if you expose for the brightest part of the scene, you will be amazed when you will recover post-processing whether you are shooting with a DSLR or an iPhone.
#8 BREAK THE RULES
Finally, break all the rules except the rule no. 1. Photography is not about following rules. It all about having fun and showing people the way you see the world. So don’t be afraid of experiment or moving out of the box. That’s the photography is all about!
If you are an open-minded person then all the above-described rules including Filling Frame With Image Only, Simplifying & Exaggerating, Not having the image in the center, etc. very strictly can make your even worse photographer than you are now. The rule of the game is to keep all these photography tips in mind and follow these tips smoothly.
Rules are discovered by someone who didn’t follow them before him. What does it mean? They are made to make your path as a beginning photographer simple by skipping complicated steps.
You don’t need to reinvent the wheel. You know what I mean. Just follow them and discover your rules along the way. Photography is all about experimenting. Good luck with your career as a professional photographer.
Night Photography Tips For Beginner Photographers:-
Night photography is actually operating in poor lighting conditions. It could be during or after sunset at night. Night photography involves work with longer exposure periods and tends to be very interesting. Surely it calls for a higher level of expertise in photography.
Equipment-wise we require for night photography a camera capable of supplying us with longer exposure periods as well as changes in the ISO level. It is better if the camera is manually operated with an external flash and a handy tripod.
Let us proceed to a number of terms and definitions we have to consider when filming at night.
Stability of camera – Long exposure require the camera to be stable at all times. Using a tripod is advisable and in its absence, lay the camera on a stable surface.
Shutter – The shutter determines the exposure period, affects the colors and field depth of the picture. With an open shutter, we may notice the effects of spreading lights. Bright lights also result in spreading. The shutter speed is the length of time the camera’s sensor is exposed to the light. It is somewhat more complicated in professional cameras where the shutter is always open unless otherwise defined. It is advised to take a few shots with different exposures and then select the best.
External Flash – External flash will result in better performance than a built-in one. We can operate the flash at wish. In a smoky place, for instance, we shall refrain from using a flash as the smoke will return the light to the lens resulting in a blurred picture.
Focus – Cameras generally use focus according to contrast. In poor lighting conditions, it is difficult for the camera to determine the distance from the object and find contrast in the picture. In these conditions, we will prefer manual focus or fix it at an infinity status when we take landscape pictures. A hyperfocal space is a distance between the closest point we have with a focus to the farthest one.
White balance – We can understand colors as from their sources of light which is measured in Kelvin units. It is not advisable to depend on the automatic status of the camera and it is better to use the RAW status of the camera.
Composition – The creative element is very important, locating the frame and angle and perspective. Changes can be made later in the darkroom or in Photoshop.
In Conclusion To Best Beginner Photography Tips
Well, with the discovery of Digital Cameras, Photography is touching new heights. The good news about competition in any field particularly in photography is that the public starts to get better products and results than ever before. We have to give something better in order to compete with competitors and this leads to better results and discoveries in photography.
I hope you enjoyed the article and finally learned some photography tips today. These 7 principles are compiled from different sources and experiences of years in photography. Thanks for reading the whole article and spending your valuable time with us. If you enjoyed the article about Best Photography Tips For Beginners, then please share this article with your friends. If you still have any doubts, then feel free to comment below. We will be happy to help you. Thanks bye.