Photography Tricks to Take Better Photos
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Gear Focus
Aug 19, 2021
Wondering how to take better pictures? Here are our 5 most important and easy photography tricks if you want to go from an amateur photographer to a professional quickly!
Trick #1 - Shoot in Manual
First thing, get out of auto modes. These can be useful for the beginners but at the end of the day you do not want your camera making your creative decisions for you. So in order to get the most out of your camera you really need to be in manual settings. If you aren't familiar with these settings, we have a video to get you up to speed! You can find that video here.
Once you're in your manual mode, you can then map your custom keys in your camera to change your three main settings. For instance on the R5 I have the front wheel do shutter speed, back wheel do apeture and the rear scroll wheel is my ISO. The more you do this, the faster you'll pick it up and be able to go with it!
Trick #2 - Low Aperture Isn't Always Best
Listen, we get it. Shallow depth of field or bokeh is an attractive look. It's one of the quickest ways to take your photography from an amateur level to looking a little more like you know what you're doing. But that doesn't mean you have to shoot your lens wide open, or at the widest aperture to get these results.
We recommend stopping down your lens 1 or 2 stops in order to get the sharpest results. This means if you are using a 50mm f1.8, try shooting at f2.0 or f4.
Another one of our photography tricks to get shallow depth of field even when stopping down your lens; shoot a bit closer to your subject for more bokeh!
Trick #3 - Composition
There are many different styles when it comes to composition, and each one offers a unique feeling and mood to your photos. Whether you lean towards the classic rule of thirds framing or extreme center framing, having everything in frame symmetrical, there are tools in your camera to help you get it right! At Gear Focus we almost always use grid lines when shooting both photo and video.
Trick #4 - Print Your Photos
Printing your photos might seem like an outdated thing to do in a digital age. But we think that it is one of the most underrated photography tricks these days! Nothing compares seeing every little detail blown up on a sheet of semi-gloss photo paper from a professional printing shop. Way better than your iPhone screen! Selling your prints is always an extremely valid way to make some extra income from work that you have already shot. Who doesn't want artwork from their favorite photographer on their wall? [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=erAw-TzKyW4[/embed]Trick #5 - Invest in Glass
"Date the camera, marry the glass." Remember this saying the next time you're thinking about trading in your 2 year old camera body for the shiny new model just announced. It can be easy to fall into the trap of spending all of your budget on the camera and forgetting about your lens choice. But this is something you definitely want to avoid!
It's just a fact that while the sensor and technology in your body can quickly become outdated, the optical quality and glass in your lens does not. A nice lens can last you anywhere from 10 to who knows, maybe even 20 years. Especially if you're a fan of manual focus lenses.
These are all things that you can start doing today to help improve your photos. Remember to keep practicing! The more you shoot, the more you'll learn.
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