Post your Top Three - Most valuble photography lessons

[Letrow]

1. try to look at possible subjects with a fresh eye. I struggle now and then with staying inspired, especially during the winter season. Try a new subject and experiment with PP.
2. know what your camera can do. My Nikon for example has a flexible ISO, so that even on manual settings (exposure and aperture fixed) I have an automatic correction if I want.
3. don't underestimate the amount of PP you can still do on JPGs. In most cases I am fairly happy with the JPGs I get out of camera and with a bit of PP it enables me to get quick and satisfactory results.

[RustBeltRaw]

In no particular order, with a photo to illustrate each lesson...

1. Access and skill are way more important than gear. Basically, if you can get somewhere cool with almost any camera, and you have the eye and skills, you can walk out with cool photos. But if you can't reach photo-rich environments, it doesn't matter if you have a 1DX and Bresson's eyes. Access is the modern corollary to Capa's famous line; "if your photos aren't good enough, you aren't close enough."
   
   
   
2. Off-camera flash opens vast creative options. Yes, it's wicked confusing, expensive, flightly, and unpredictable. Nothing gives you more control over mood, look, and drama, and it opens up vast constellations of low-light environments. Unfortunately for us, awesome things frequently happen in very poorly-lit (or totally unlit) places.
   
   
   
3. Manual settings yield predictable behavior and force you to think about trade-offs. Maybe this is because I learned on a manual camera with a broken meter, but I almost always use manual modes. You have to think about every setting, which is a double-edged sword (you may miss a shot, but the ones you get are in line with your judgement). Once you have your settings locked in, it becomes impossible to blame the camera.
   
   

[Brownbear]

Hi Lex,

I think these are uniquely excellent. Thank you for sharing.

In no particular order, with a photo to illustrate each lesson...

1. Access and skill are way more important than gear. Basically, if you can get somewhere cool with almost any camera, and you have the eye and skills, you can walk out with cool photos. But if you can't reach photo-rich environments, it doesn't matter if you have a 1DX and Bresson's eyes. Access is the modern corollary to Capa's famous line; "if your photos aren't good enough, you aren't close enough."
   
2. Off-camera flash opens vast creative options. Yes, it's wicked confusing, expensive, flightly, and unpredictable. Nothing gives you more control over mood, look, and drama, and it opens up vast constellations of low-light environments. Unfortunately for us, awesome things frequently happen in very poorly-lit (or totally unlit) places.
   
3. Manual settings yield predictable behavior and force you to think about trade-offs. Maybe this is because I learned on a manual camera with a broken meter, but I almost always use manual modes. You have to think about every setting, which is a double-edged sword (you may miss a shot, but the ones you get are in line with your judgement). Once you have your settings locked in, it becomes impossible to blame the camera.

[RustBeltRaw]

Hi Lex,

I think these are uniquely excellent. Thank you for sharing.

Thanks. They're rather broad, but I hope they're useful.

[Brownbear]

Very useful for everyone. And one day I will buy an off camera flash, sounds very useful indeed.

Thanks. They're rather broad, but I hope they're useful.

[Daisy Mae]

1) push the envelope

2) push it further

3) ..and again!


That may sound flippant but without it, no matter how skilled you become, things will be static and the world of photography is a vital force that needs to evolve. otherwise it would be like discovering the moon and saying that the existence of any other planets no longer matters.

[Manfred M]

Very useful for everyone. And one day I will buy an off camera flash, sounds very useful indeed.

Christina - an off camera flash is the same unit that one would use on-camera (not counting the camera's built-in flash here). It's how one uses it, i.e. not sitting mounted to your camera's hot shoe that matters here.

Studio strobes (or lights) are also off-camera, but not something most people will use.

[Brownbear]

Thank you for the clarification. All I have right now is my camera's built in flash but good to know for future.

Christina - an off camera flash is the same unit that one would use on-camera (not counting the camera's built-in flash here). It's how one uses it, i.e. not sitting mounted to your camera's hot shoe that matters here.

Studio strobes (or lights) are also off-camera, but not something most people will use.

[Dave Humphries]

Great thread Christina,

I certainly support many of the ideas suggested above (and, no doubt, below this post)

OK let's see if I can come up with some different/expanded ones, perhaps not what I'd consider the most important for a beginner (they're already well covered above), but those necessary for the 'ultimate success':

1) Research your subject - learn how it behaves, this can be applied to more than just animals (and I include humans here) or other moving objects, think how light reflects and/or refracts from the surface of your subject - and background! This knowledge, when applied to moving things, will give you a better chance of predicting what's about to happen, so you can get the shot.

2) Timing/positioning can be important - This is really all about 'the light', but I'll give two examples;

a) when you arrive at a new location, by all means take a shot, but also think about whether, an hour or more later, the sun may be in a better position to illuminate the subject* (typically a building, sculpture, landscape, etc.), if you've already missed the best time of day, return earlier next time.
* the sun moves 15 degrees per hour, so 2 hours = 30 degrees, 3 = 45, etc.
b) if photographing a staged event, say; a bird of prey, or aircraft, flight display, get there early enough to position yourself so that you are not shooting into the sunlight (or at least, as little as possible) - unless that's what you want!

3) Don't get overwhelmed (perhaps this one is more for beginners, but also when moving outside your 'comfort zone') - there's a lot to learn (and you should learn it), but you can't expect to learn it all at once, in fact the plain truth is; you'll never know it all, you'll always be learning better ways to do things. So tackle one bit at a time, get that gripped and move on to the next topic.
If books/reading doesn't suit you, try something else; video tutorials or face-to-face at a camera club, in a classroom, or even with personal tuition.
Above all; practice and experiment (a lot).

Cheers (and have fun all),

[flashback]

1. Shoot for yourself. In the end you are the final judge of whether what you've captured is what you wanted. Sometimes what I first see (and first visualized) ends up not being the image I capture but rather one slightly, or even vastly, different. [The Daisy Mae Dictum - 1) push the envelope 2) push it further 3) ..and again!]

2. Enjoy.. Unless it's paying the mortgage, it should be enjoyable. And for me shooting is only part of it, PP plays a big part and is enjoyable in its own right. PP has allowed me to create an image far better than what the camera took (closer to what I visualize, sometimes beyond and better than what I visualized.)

3. Learn, understand and practice with your camera. A lot of times I'll just take random shots, nothing of any import, but as a means to explore my camera and my abilities. (And occasionally I'll find a nugget in the cow pasture.)

[Ady]

Largely just repeats of themes already touched on but here are my 3:

1. Try to understand how your equipment works and what all the controls do to the point where you don't need to think about the hardware in your hands.

2a. If producing images for yourself by all means learn technique and principles from others but take your own photos and work out for yourself what you do and don't like.

2b. If you plan on producing images for commercial clients you need to practice trying to pin down what the client wants (even when they aren't sure), regardless of how you might approach the subject from a personal aesthetic. And get rule no.1 sorted, clients are rarely inspired by fumbling fingers and re-shoots.

3. Always make a rule of being wary of anyone who quotes rules and makes definitive statements.

Cheers,
A

[Ady]

2. Enjoy.. Unless it's paying the mortgage, it should be enjoyable.

I would suggest that if it's paying the mortgage it's even more important that it's enjoyable, because if it's not there are many far easier ways of making a living.

Cheers,
A

[Brownbear]

I'll add a few things that I've learned.

1. Always be aware of your background as an unattractive background can kill a beautiful photo... ie; change position, angles or get low down or real close and open up your aperture to try and eliminate or blur away the background.

2. Look for nice light and don't try to shoot in impossible lighting conditions (unless you have flash as suggested earlier)... I've wasted many a day trying to photograph in impossible lighting conditions only to learn that it truly was impossible.

3. If just starting out photographing action shots, ie; sports, Birds in flight... try sports mode (note the shutter speed and apertures and iso's that worked) then try shutter and aperture priority and see what settings work out, or not and then try manual adjusting the settings based on your experience. I've learned a lot this way.

[drjuice]

My top three (credits to the other folks who improved my picture-taking skills and whose first names are listed on the appropriate line below):

1. RTFM as soon as you buy the camera. (John E.) (And, get a .pdf of the manual from the manufacturer's online resources.)

2. Mount your camera on a tripod for EVERY picture. (Bob G.)

3. Pay attention to color fidelity, regardless of the subject and the equipment. (Bob B.)

Great idea, Christine S. Thank you.

virginia

[AB26]

Hi Christina,

You really made me think, with this question. A very important question for all of us can learn lots from the answers received.

Having had lots of time to think about the question I have sifted trough all that I have learned in the last year, right here at CiC. Thinking about all the comments and critique I have seen and all the different suggestions from all different members, what is most important to me is as follows:
1.) Never be shy to learn from others: Reminding myself there is neither a right nor a wrong opinion only personal opinions that have to be tested (challenged). Reading as many comments and critique as I possibly can and experimenting with different suggestions I have really gathered some very valuable information.
2.) Be more critical of your own work and ability, as a photographer, than you are of the work and ability of others: Looking at the work or others and analyzing how they could possibly have done it I have learned to be very critical of my own work and accept all critique as a challenge to improve my own technique.
3.) Know the equipment you use: Learn how to use all the equipment available to you and learn all about the features available in the equipment you use, camera, flash, tripod, lenses and I have to add (to the joy of others) PP software, etc. Realize the limitations and learn what the equipment can offer you. Read the instruction booklet of every piece of equipment and understand how to use features to optimize the use of it.

I shot this while thinking about your question in an attempt to determine what the most important lessons are that I have learned:



Thank you for posting this question.

[Brownbear]

Thank you for sharing. Very helpful, beautiful stated, and oh my that flower shot is exquisite!

Hi Christina,

You really made me think, with this question. A very important question for all of us can learn lots from the answers received.

Having had lots of time to think about the question I have sifted trough all that I have learned in the last year, right here at CiC. Thinking about all the comments and critique I have seen and all the different suggestions from all different members, what is most important to me is as follows:
1.) Never be shy to learn from others: Reminding myself there is neither a right nor a wrong opinion only personal opinions that have to be tested (challenged). Reading as many comments and critique as I possibly can and experimenting with different suggestions I have really gathered some very valuable information.
2.) Be more critical of your own work and ability, as a photographer, than you are of the work and ability of others: Looking at the work or others and analyzing how they could possibly have done it I have learned to be very critical of my own work and accept all critique as a challenge to improve my own technique.
3.) Know the equipment you use: Learn how to use all the equipment available to you and learn all about the features available in the equipment you use, camera, flash, tripod, lenses and I have to add (to the joy of others) PP software, etc. Realize the limitations and learn what the equipment can offer you. Read the instruction booklet of every piece of equipment and understand how to use features to optimize the use of it.

I shot this while thinking about your question in an attempt to determine what the most important lessons are that I have learned:



Thank you for posting this question.

[Venser]

2. Mount your camera on a tripod for EVERY picture. (Bob G.)

You clearly don't shoot street.

Mainly a street photographer over here. My top three would be:
1 - Shoot first, think later.
2 - No chimping. You're probably missing out on a better image than the one you just captured.
3 - Don't be afraid of letting your camera choose settings for you. Just make sure you understand how to use exposure compensation and what that will do in the various shooting modes. Understanding how your camera meters goes a long way here.

[AB26]

and oh my that flower shot is exquisite!

Sjoe! Thank You!

[Brownbear]

Hi Andre,

My pleasure, to view... It's gorgeous...

What does Sjoe mean?

Sjoe! Thank You!

[AB26]

What does Sjoe mean?

It is like a call of "surprise". In a different sense it can also mean "hurt".