Gone are the days of blurry, indistinguishable photos taken with that wind-on thing you bought at a souvenir shop for five quid: the future is digital! At this point, I’m actually sure that many camera enthusiasts might disagree with me, but for we amateurs, a digital camera can hardly be surpassed. The rise of the digital camera has made it ever more difficult to find an excuse for taking bad pictures. However, if you’re still struggling to explain why your wife’s eyes constantly come out looking like the Devil’s own in each picture you take, or why your photos always seem to look like they were touched by the halo of a mischievous angel, here are ten simple tips to improve your photography without giving you a headache in the process:
1) Read the manual!
This really should go without saying. Even quite experienced users can always benefit from reading the user manual, as tempting as it is to skip it and get straight to the action. However, if the idea of wading into that quicksand of technical terms and dry, joyless language gives you the chills, at least there the basics – how to turn the flash on and off and onto auto, how to zoom in and out, how to use the shutter button and how to view your pictures. If you’re feeling braver at a later date, you can always go back and learn the technicalities.
2) Set your resolution
While not immediately obvious, it’s important to set your resolution as high as you can afford it. If this involves buying a larger memory card, then do so. The lower your resolution is, the ‘fuzzier’ and worse quality your photos will be when you come to print them out. A low resolution also makes it more difficult to crop photos and digitally alter, which limits your options drastically.
2) Make your camera your new best friend
By which I mean, start taking it everywhere with you. One of my best friend’s boyfriends has made it his resolution to take a least one picture every day. He carries his camera around with his everywhere he goes and as a result has come across some stunning shots and improved his technique immensely. There really is truth to the saying ‘practice makes perfect’. Additionally, you will get to know how your camera reacts in different types of light – artificial, natural, cloudy, dusk and so on. Besides, most of us can identify with that incredible frustration of coming across the perfect shot and not having our camera around to take it. I mean, imagine missing this fantastic holiday moment!
4) Think outside the box
Start thinking like a photographer. If you see something you want to photograph, don’t just click away like some shutter-happy tourist: think! From which angle would your subject look best? Would different lighting convey a different mood? Should you shoot from close up or further away? While there are certain ‘rules’ that can help you at the beginning to get the feeling for what a ‘good’ photograph should look like, you should also feel free to experiment. Even if everything goes horribly wrong, you can still learn from your mistakes.
If, however, you’re just starting out, it can helpful to keep the following points in mind:
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Apply the ‘Two Thirds’ rule, by positions your points of interest along the third lines of the photograph. Try not to let the horizon or other lines cut your photo in half.
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Avoid distractions: it may be amusing to realise your photo looks like your mum has a tree growing out of her head, but if you’re aiming for decent photos, try to look at the ‘big picture’ as it were and alter your position to remove distractions.
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Mix things up: take photographs from interesting angles, as demonstrated by this photo, taken from a hotel window . While this can go horribly wrong, often it can result in beautiful, unique photographs without a lot of hard work.
5) Keep still and focus
Pay attention to what you’re doing while taking photographs. If you are prone to taking blurry or shaky pictures, either you haven’t got the hang of focusing, or you may be moving too much while attempting to snap your subject. In any case, learn how to use the auto focus and don’t play with manual focusing unless your auto focus run into trouble. One top tip to steady your shot is to use one hand underneath the lens to steady it (keep your fingers out of the shot though!) and use your other hand to focus and take the picture. If you still have trouble, try experimenting with a tripod, although this will limit your movement. For an example of how blurriness can ruin a shot, look at this holiday snap. Imagine how much prettier it would be if only it were clearer!
6) Don’t get flash happy
Use your flash sparingly. While it can be a god-send in certain circumstances, if you give into temptation too often your only reward will be washed-out subject or strange reflections. Your flash is best limited to the following situations:
Where possible, avoid flash by introducing as much light as possible to the area, for example opening curtains, turning on lights and so on. If you have no choice but to use your flash at nighttime, go ahead, but do be prepared for a rather washed-out or flattened photograph.
7) Go for a crop
Try installing photo-editing software and learn how to use the basics of it. One of the best is Photoshop, but it’s quite expensive. A better option is perhaps to start with Paint.NET, which is free to download online (it’s only Windows-compatible though). Even if you are the most computer-phobic person in the world, you should be able to master some simple skills, which can do the world for your photographs. Probably the most important things to learn are:
If you’re more ambitious, there is almost no limit to what you can do.
Stick to automatic
Most cameras have a automatic mode – some have several different automatic modes. Stick to these until you get your bearings, since due to advances in technology, there isn’t a pressing reason to switch to manual. If you appear to be experiencing problems in your automatic mode, such as consistently taking blurry photos, you might want to start experimenting manually, but otherwise don’t mess around with it too much.
9) Gather critics
Invite your pals around to view your pictures and to tell you which they like best and why. They’ll be able to point out to you both positive and negative aspects that you may have missed. One may point out that they love the composition of a certain photo that you had overlooked. Another might comment on your use of lighting or how you might improve your framing. Don’t underestimate the use of looking through other people’s eyes, as it were, to gain new insight. And don’t be put off if everybody doesn’t immediately rave about your newfound artistic talent!
10) Have fun!
And that’s a command! Don’t worry if you first few, or even first few hundred photos come out looking a bit pants – that doesn’t matter. What matters is that you enjoy the process of learning and don’t get put off too easily by mistakes at the beginning. With a bit of practice, photography can be a very fulfilling and creative hobby, so keep at it!
I hope you enjoyed the article and can take something from it. Comments and suggestions for further articles are always welcome. Happy snapping!
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Kathryn Castle is an online marketing analyst for HolidayCheck. She is a keen writer with a particular interest in travel, literature, photography, food and drink. www.holidaycheck.co.uk
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