Beginners guide to photography

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You might be new to photography, or perhaps you’ve just hit a creative ‘slump’. Or, maybe, you just want to step back and revisit the basics of photography. Wherever you are, here are 12 tips that might help you:

• There’s a lot to learn, especially with some modern cameras, so, give yourself time and just take things one at a time. I always recommend a structured course if you’re just starting, the reason being that if you miss a basic step, you can be in for a very frustrating time.
• Learn to use the camera in fully manual mode (i.e. focus, shutter speed, ISO and aperture). Also, learn how your camera's metering works. It might feel irrelevant given the amount of automation available, but it will serve you well.
• Experiment with higher ISO’s. It’s better to have a grainy image that’s sharp than a smooth image that’s blurry. And it can give your photos a certain look that you might find attractive.
• While the latest gear always looks great, you probably don’t need it.
• Learn to look at how different photographers use light. This is fundamental to photography and the better you understand the use of light, the better your results will be.
• Practice getting everything right in the viewfinder (or screen) before you press the shutter button. Post-processing is helpful, but don’t rely on it.
• Always shoot in RAW.
• Learn about your preferred post-processing package by making adjustments manually. Don’t rely on presets as they will limit your results.
• Learn the rules so that when you break them, you know which ones you’ve broken. Consistency is the sign of a good photographer.
• If you do hit a slump, where you feel your photographs are getting worse, don’t worry. It happens to most of us. Just step back and return to basics. What isn’t working? What can you do to change it?
• Keep having fun recording the day-to-day. Creating great ‘art’ is rewarding, but you have a day-to-day life too.
• Photography is a continuous learning experience, so enjoy the journey!

I hope you find this useful.

Graham

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