Tid-Bits
This post is going to be about some tidbits that I want to share with people who aren't that experienced with photography. This year is really only my 3rd year doing photography. I got my first camera in 2014, and it's the one I still use today. Although I definitely don't know everything about photography, I'm going to share some things I do know.
One thing that people should know who want to get into photography is how to shoot in manual mode. If you claim to be a photographer and shoot in automatic then it doesn't count. Three important components of manual mode is ISO, aperture, and shutter speed. (Specifically in that order, too.) I'm pretty sure there are videos online teaching that.
Once you've mastered manual mode is when it really starts to get fun. However, the lenses that your camera came with (also known as kit lenses) need to go. Say bye to them forever and never look back. A go-to lens for beginners would be the 50mm 1.8. (Oh, BTW I'm Team Canon.) The 50mm is relatively cheap in the photography world and is pretty useful. Below is a picture shot with a 50mm.
If you're just starting off, I know it can be hard to come up with creative ideas and locations for your shoots. For me specifically, I like to focus on portrait work. This past year I struggled with being more creative and getting out of the box with the shoots that I did. Shoot after shoot it would just be a different person, but the same place and the same poses. I called it "photographer's block." It was like I couldn't come up with any creative thing on my own and before you know it I was looking at other photos on Pinterest and Instagram and basically doing the exact same thing, and barely changing anything about the photo to make it my own.
However, I soon realized that one of my pet peeves is copy cats. They say copying is the best form of flattery but it actually sucks. A friend of mine in photography came up with this cool idea and had someone else did the exact same shoot with someone else and I realized how upset my friend was when someone copied her work. It kind of pulled me out of a bubble like, wow I really need to start doing my own stuff.
For example, it's fine if you admire someone's work and aspire to be like them. It's even fine if you look at someones photo and use them for inspiration. However, asking them things like, "What camera do you use?", "Where was this photo taken?", "What lens was this?" are all pretty annoying questions. In these three years I've learned that for the most part you have to find out what your style is on your own. Sure, Pinterest and Instagram have tons of inspiration but what are you going to do to set you apart? Technically, you could have the exact same gear and equipment as someone and your photos can still be worse than theirs. Gear helps with photos, but let's be honest: we all know that one person who has professional gear and still takes out of focus photos. That's the negative nelly coming out of me, but it's just the truth. Photography is a craft and it's a skill that must be worked on constantly for improvement.
And anyways, I've come to realize recently that planning out your shoots to be unique are more fun anyways. Finding your location, making the model wear specific clothes, have a specific makeup, etc is fun! Mix it up a bit and change around your locations. Shoot somewhere that you never would have shot before because changing it up every now and then can be beneficial and very rewarding.
Just to give you some hope if you feel discouraged here are some shots I took in 2014, and I thought I was the bomb.com.
One thing that people should know who want to get into photography is how to shoot in manual mode. If you claim to be a photographer and shoot in automatic then it doesn't count. Three important components of manual mode is ISO, aperture, and shutter speed. (Specifically in that order, too.) I'm pretty sure there are videos online teaching that.
Once you've mastered manual mode is when it really starts to get fun. However, the lenses that your camera came with (also known as kit lenses) need to go. Say bye to them forever and never look back. A go-to lens for beginners would be the 50mm 1.8. (Oh, BTW I'm Team Canon.) The 50mm is relatively cheap in the photography world and is pretty useful. Below is a picture shot with a 50mm.
ISO: 100
Aperture: 2
Shutter: 1/1000
However, I soon realized that one of my pet peeves is copy cats. They say copying is the best form of flattery but it actually sucks. A friend of mine in photography came up with this cool idea and had someone else did the exact same shoot with someone else and I realized how upset my friend was when someone copied her work. It kind of pulled me out of a bubble like, wow I really need to start doing my own stuff.
For example, it's fine if you admire someone's work and aspire to be like them. It's even fine if you look at someones photo and use them for inspiration. However, asking them things like, "What camera do you use?", "Where was this photo taken?", "What lens was this?" are all pretty annoying questions. In these three years I've learned that for the most part you have to find out what your style is on your own. Sure, Pinterest and Instagram have tons of inspiration but what are you going to do to set you apart? Technically, you could have the exact same gear and equipment as someone and your photos can still be worse than theirs. Gear helps with photos, but let's be honest: we all know that one person who has professional gear and still takes out of focus photos. That's the negative nelly coming out of me, but it's just the truth. Photography is a craft and it's a skill that must be worked on constantly for improvement.
And anyways, I've come to realize recently that planning out your shoots to be unique are more fun anyways. Finding your location, making the model wear specific clothes, have a specific makeup, etc is fun! Mix it up a bit and change around your locations. Shoot somewhere that you never would have shot before because changing it up every now and then can be beneficial and very rewarding.
Just to give you some hope if you feel discouraged here are some shots I took in 2014, and I thought I was the bomb.com.
(Srry for some reason I can't find the metadata)
I used to think these pictures were sooooooooo good. I shot them with kit lenses and I had only had my camera for about two months when these were taken.
Now, if you go to my instagram @kayleighsclicks you can see how much I've improved.
Anyways, this is super long and I've been rambling but if it helps one person then I'll be fine lol.