10 Things a New Photographer Needs to Know

 

What You Need to Know!!

We’re going to make this easy. If you’re new to photography, or if you just got a new dslr or mirrorless camera, then here are some things to know. First and foremost - keep your training simple and learn one thing at time. Start with the basic settings, get comfortable with them, and then move to the next level. 

 

Start Simple, Start Outdoors, Start on Bright Days

Modern cameras are super sophisticated and they are configured to be used right out of the box. The fully automatic mode will get the shot if the light is good. So,   start shooting outdoors on bright days and you will put yourself in an environment for success. 

Start with Automatic Shooting Mode 

In this mode, the camera will evaluate the light and configure all the settings for you. There's not a better place to begin and you can start shooting right away.  More importantly, if you practice enough, then you will gain confidence in the camera to take good shots. 

To start shooting:

• Photograph outdoors on a bright sunny day.
• Shoot away from the sun - with the sun to your back or to a side.
• Pick a subject and frame it in the view finder.
• Push the release down half way and hold - the camera will autofocus.
• Once focused, push the release button down the rest of the way to take the shot.
• Play back the image so you can see it on the back screen.
• Repeat, repeat, repeat.

Take your time, be patient with yourself, and know that you’re going to fumble around a bit. Also, use the camera manuals - they are getting really good.

Learn How to Set Your Camera Back to Original/Factory Settings 

You can reset all of the camera settings back to when you first pulled the camera out of the box. Use this if you get lost in the settings, or if an odd setting is accidentally made that messes things up. This is a your goto anchor point!! If settings go weird or confusing, then do a factory reset, and boom, the camera is reset like it was in the beginning and ready to go again. 

Note - This works really well when your photography friends set your camera to what they think they know and it ends up confusing you. Factory reset - boom - back to what you know.

Learn the Scene Selection Modes

Once you're comfortable with Automatic Mode, then learn the Scene Selection Modes. You tell the camera whether you want a portrait, landscape, or sports shot and the camera will configure the settings for you. These are easy to learn, easy to  apply, and they are extraordinarily powerful. And again, if they can't get the shot, then there's just not enough light. I know the Canon and Nikon manuals cover the scene selections really well. 

If you’re getting underexposed or poor shots…it’s not you!!! 

This is extremely important. It's our tendency to blame ourselves if we're not getting good shots - especially in the beginning when we're unsure of things. The reality is...if your camera can't get the shot in auto mode, then there simply is not enough light. You just need to understand the light is beyond the physics of the camera rather than trying to find settings for an impossible situation. And again, you'll learn how to compensate for dim light, but that is later down the road. 

 

Get comfortable shooting in good light. 

Equipment and camera settings are only 10% of a good image. The other 90% is all you and learning how to compose great shots. The more confidence we have in our camera, then more time we’re spending on looking, seeing and composing rather than fumbling and fiddling with settings. 

Give yourself time. 

All of this takes time, but you will get to point where things start make sense, you gain confidence, and learning curve accelerates. There’s a lot to learn in the beginning, but it gets easier and the world will open up to you. Practice, practice and more practice. 

 

Learn the difference between beginning and advanced photography. 

We all want those fantastic images, but some environments such as shooting the stars, sports, and even some sunsets are advanced photography due to the light. The concern is the new photographer trying to capture advanced subjects, and then getting frustrated if they don’t get the shot. If you come across an advanced shot that you want, then try a shot at it. If you get it, then great. If not, then just realize it’s advanced and it’s a skill set that needs developing. A short list of subjects and their difficulty levels might look like this:

• General Outdoor/Vacation Shots - Beginner
• Landscapes - Outdoor Daylight - Beginner
• Landscapes - Long Exposures - Silky Smooth Skies or Waterfalls - Advanced 
• Sunsets - Beginner to Advanced. If auto doesn’t get it, then it’s advanced.
• Candids (daylight) - Beginner to Intermediate
• Candids (indoor) - Intermediate to Advanced.
• Portraits (Professionally lit) - Advance
• Portraits (Professional Location) - Advanced.
• General Outdoor Portraits - Beginner to Intermediate
• Wildlife with slow moving animals - Beginner to Intermediate
• Wildlife with fast moving/flying - Advanced
• Astro Photography - Advanced 
• Sports - Outside - Bright Light - Intermediate.
• Sports - Outside - Cloudy Day - Intermediate to Advanced.
• Nightscapes - Intermediate to Advance
• Studio/product - Advanced
• Macro Photography - Still subjects - Intermediate to Advanced

And again, if you come across a tough shot - try to take it and see what happens. Use the scene selections as they can really help. The trick is to know when you're shooting outside your skill level so you don't get frustrated. You will learn it in time. 

Chasing better camera gear is a trap!!

Getting better gear and high-end tech is fun - we all love it. However, people are making high-end images with introductory cameras and kit lenses. 90% of a good image is what you know and how you compose, and the other 10% is the gear. So...gear can help us out, but only if we know how to use it. My advice is this - If you can clearly articulate how to make new tech improve your photographs, then you're ready for it. If you can't, then you won't be able to maximize the more specialized cameras and lenses. My second piece of advice is....there are a lot of companies renting out camera gear. Try renting a new camera or lens for a few days and see what happens before paying several hundred or several thousand dollars for something that may or may not work the way you want it to.  

 

 

Share images with your friends - get them out there!!! 

We’re not professionals when we start, but our photographs are our expressions of living life and sharing experiences. Whether it’s hanging out with friends, photographing the kids, shooting an event, or learning the craft for fine art. The importance of photographs lie not within the material aspects, but how they connect us with family and friends and to what’s really important. Your images are your visual voice, and anything you do out of sheer joy is completely authentic and the beginnings of personal style and expression.

Have fun with it!! 

There’s a lot of learning in the beginning, but it gets easier over time. We first learn the fundamentals and then build our skills depending on the directions we want to go. The stronger you learn the fundamentals, the faster you will learn. 

I'm Here!!!

Whether we've met or not, please consider me a resource and feel free to contact me with questions...Especially if you're getting frustrated. I know the journey and the joy that's ahead of you, but I also know too many people have quit over big frustrations for minor adjustments. We may or may not do business together in the future, but I absolutely want you pointed in the right direction.

Mike Busby

Busbywc@gmail.com

Put: "Photo Question" in the Subject Line