I have noticed over the years that a great many people are sheepish about asking how to do something. I know a lot of photographers who're more than happy to discuss how they go about making their photographs. Photojournalists generally are extremely open and to me, these are the best photographers to ask - they can figure out a way to make pictures no matter what the situation or circumstances.
I happily give advice to photographers because I love photography. I love it so much that I hate seeing it done poorly. I get really excited talking with photographers who are genuinely interested and listen with heart to get an understanding of the whole story and not just pick up a little trick.
Truly great consistent photography comes from doing it a lot and with intentions of getting better and learning to the point it becomes second nature as you are making pictures and telling better stories. I suggest to everyone to make pictures -make lots of them and analyze them each night.
Take them everyday.
if something grabs your interest try to figure out how to make a truly good photograph--not just take a picture of it. Think about the lighting direction, the composition, the foreground and or background, whether it would be better horizontal or vertical(stop calling a horizontal landscape and a vertical portrait), think about when the best moment might be to take the picture, should you wait for a slight turn or something else to happen, do you need to move over, get higher, get lower and really look at everything in the frame.
It is true that great subjects for photographs are all around us, but can we make great photographs of the subjects? I remember years ago watching one of the home run kings at bat and every pitch saw hundreds of flashes going off in the stands hoping that swing would be the historic swing. How good can these pictures really be.
OK its a document of history, but chances are the photograph taken with a cell phone or pocket point and shoot produced a photograph that is less appealing to look at than listening to and imagining being there based on the description of an excited fan.
Making photographs is also more than technical knowledge, though I always tell people they need to know their equipment and its capabilities and its shortcomings. Also having an understanding of how to manipulate your settings manually allows you to get a picture you imagine and not just get what the camera gives you without knowing how or why. In this day and age understanding f-stops and shutter speeds as well as ISO is more difficult than when I started making photographs. It was simpler then because if you wanted to learn to take pictures you had no choice. Photography was pretty much still a manual creature and Auto exposure and program cameras were shoddy at best. Now "a cell phone takes a nice picture."
But to truly understand how to make photographs in different situations and not accept that "they just aren't turning out good," you need to learn the basics (knowing the basics also helps you make better pictures with auto and program cameras.) I encourage photographers to ask other photographers for advice.
You may get turned down, but usually you'll be turned down from someone who is insecure with their own work, afraid you'll take business from them or just a jerk(sometimes all three) and if you think about, its probably not best to get tips from them anyhow.
My first advice to anyone reading this column is this. If you like a photograph you have seen try to figure out why you like--is the color harmonious or contorting so the subject blends or stands out?, is everything in the picture important to the reading of it?, is the light interesting?, the angle interesting?, is the moment great?, does everything work together?
And if there is a picture you kinda like but there is something that you don't like analyze that as well, does anything stand out as a distraction?, and if so is it enough to sorta ruin the picture?, is it a beautiful subject but the setting is not?(nearly every bathroom self ever taken!), is the composition not right?, does it lack emotion or an action?
If you can find out why you like others' pictures then you can begin to understand how your pictures either succeed or don't succeed.
I also recommend really trying to figure why you hate certain photographs, this has been great for me, though less enjoyable looking into an image you just don't like.
If you can begin to figure these things out then you'll be more conscious of these things the next time you go out and make pictures. And when you see something that can make a great picture - take a few moments to do it, even if its taking a picture through the suds of your beer glass of a photograph you like hanging on your wall--you never know!
Be curious and ask questions--even if its in a google search.
I happily give advice to photographers because I love photography. I love it so much that I hate seeing it done poorly. I get really excited talking with photographers who are genuinely interested and listen with heart to get an understanding of the whole story and not just pick up a little trick.
Truly great consistent photography comes from doing it a lot and with intentions of getting better and learning to the point it becomes second nature as you are making pictures and telling better stories. I suggest to everyone to make pictures -make lots of them and analyze them each night.
Take them everyday.
if something grabs your interest try to figure out how to make a truly good photograph--not just take a picture of it. Think about the lighting direction, the composition, the foreground and or background, whether it would be better horizontal or vertical(stop calling a horizontal landscape and a vertical portrait), think about when the best moment might be to take the picture, should you wait for a slight turn or something else to happen, do you need to move over, get higher, get lower and really look at everything in the frame.
It is true that great subjects for photographs are all around us, but can we make great photographs of the subjects? I remember years ago watching one of the home run kings at bat and every pitch saw hundreds of flashes going off in the stands hoping that swing would be the historic swing. How good can these pictures really be.
OK its a document of history, but chances are the photograph taken with a cell phone or pocket point and shoot produced a photograph that is less appealing to look at than listening to and imagining being there based on the description of an excited fan.
Making photographs is also more than technical knowledge, though I always tell people they need to know their equipment and its capabilities and its shortcomings. Also having an understanding of how to manipulate your settings manually allows you to get a picture you imagine and not just get what the camera gives you without knowing how or why. In this day and age understanding f-stops and shutter speeds as well as ISO is more difficult than when I started making photographs. It was simpler then because if you wanted to learn to take pictures you had no choice. Photography was pretty much still a manual creature and Auto exposure and program cameras were shoddy at best. Now "a cell phone takes a nice picture."
But to truly understand how to make photographs in different situations and not accept that "they just aren't turning out good," you need to learn the basics (knowing the basics also helps you make better pictures with auto and program cameras.) I encourage photographers to ask other photographers for advice.
You may get turned down, but usually you'll be turned down from someone who is insecure with their own work, afraid you'll take business from them or just a jerk(sometimes all three) and if you think about, its probably not best to get tips from them anyhow.
My first advice to anyone reading this column is this. If you like a photograph you have seen try to figure out why you like--is the color harmonious or contorting so the subject blends or stands out?, is everything in the picture important to the reading of it?, is the light interesting?, the angle interesting?, is the moment great?, does everything work together?
And if there is a picture you kinda like but there is something that you don't like analyze that as well, does anything stand out as a distraction?, and if so is it enough to sorta ruin the picture?, is it a beautiful subject but the setting is not?(nearly every bathroom self ever taken!), is the composition not right?, does it lack emotion or an action?
If you can find out why you like others' pictures then you can begin to understand how your pictures either succeed or don't succeed.
I also recommend really trying to figure why you hate certain photographs, this has been great for me, though less enjoyable looking into an image you just don't like.
If you can begin to figure these things out then you'll be more conscious of these things the next time you go out and make pictures. And when you see something that can make a great picture - take a few moments to do it, even if its taking a picture through the suds of your beer glass of a photograph you like hanging on your wall--you never know!
Be curious and ask questions--even if its in a google search.