When it comes to learning the ins and outs of taking better pictures, few things are as helpful as simple, straightforward advice. Read these tips to get started, apply them, and practice.
To improve the quality of your picture, decrease the distance between your camera and your subject. Getting up close allows you to put a frame around your subject while avoiding any disruptive backgrounds. It also allows you to focus on facial expressions, which can be important elements to any portrait photographer. Smaller details are usually overlooked when the picture is taken from far away.
While days that are filled with sunshine may be beautiful to behold, they are not so wonderful when it comes to taking photos. It causes awkward shadows, uneven highlights, and may cause your subject to squint when they face your camera. If it is possible, shoot outdoors only in late evening light or the very early morning.
When you are on a trip, snap photos of insignificant things. Although they may not seem to matter much at the time, they can help you vividly remember your journey when you think back about it. Take a picture of the bus you took or the hotel lobby. Take pictures of the outside of a theater or your goofy doorman.
When shooting a picture, judge the surroundings and choose the right aperture, shutter speed and ISO. That combination will decide your picture’s exposure. You do not want to wind up with underexposed or overexposed photos unless you are aiming for that. Try experimenting with these features, and see how they interact together and what combinations you like.
Take the time to make anyone who models for you comfortable, and this is especially true if they are not familiar with you. Someone taking pictures can easily appear to pose a potential threat. It’s important to be friendly, talk to them lightheartedly, and always ask for their permission before you snap away. Make sure that they see that you’re practicing art, not invading their privacy.
Indoor florescent lighting scenes will require white balance adjustments. Fluorescent lights emit blue- or green-tinged light, leaving your subjects looking too cool. The appropriate setting will compensate for the red tones that your lighting environment lacks.
Usually the subject will be looking directly at the camera. Have your subject express a variety of emotions to capture a unique photograph. Another thing you can do is have the subject look at something in the frame, rather than at the camera itself.
When you are to shoot photos of couples, families or groups, think of suggesting to them in advance about what to wear. Matched colors aren’t mandatory, but clothing colors in the same family or in complimentary tones will greatly enhance your resulting photos. Suggesting warm colors or neutral shades will almost always work and will be especially effective with a natural background. If the subjects will be wearing bright colors, offsetting them with black clothing pieces helps avoid a group of clashing colors in the picture.
Don’t dawdle when taking your shot. You can never tell how fast that fleeting moment will flee, so always be ready for it. Some special moments are only available to photograph for a few seconds and then they are lost forever. While camera settings are important, you should never lose a shot trying to get a camera set just so.
These tips will have hopefully given you a starting point and an idea of what you should expect. These tips were put together to help you be a better photographer and take some wonderful pictures.
