I’ve taken the big jump into learning/understanding the craft of photography these past 2 years and enjoy working on improving. I’d love to know what you think helps make you a better photographer.
Thanks!
Thanks!
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What Helps You Be A Better Photographer?
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BrianBirch
Active member
I would say studying and learning all you can about light quality and direction. It is easier for me to look at Portrait Lighting masters like Frank Cirriccio or outdoor portrait photographers. Maybe look up subtractive lighting.
Doomrider74
Well-known member
Maljo
Well-known member
Practice, practice, practice. Study photos you admire. Read guide books or websites specific to the kind of photography you want to do.
pwaring
Well-known member
There are lots of little things that I think have combined to help me feel like a better photographer thesedays. I think the biggest one is to keep going through the process of Shoot -> Cull -> Edit. Trying to be critical of the work rather than of myself during the editing process and learning what I like. When it comes to wildlife I'm better at trying to be patient, observing the scene and opportunities and aiming for 1 good photo rather than 100 mediocre photos.
Asiegel - that's a huge question actually.
lots of answers - but sit down and really think about it - and it isn't so easy to pin it down.
practice, gear, editing, patience, learning, observing, inspiration, opportunities, getting on top of technical things etc
But perhaps learning from others (a broad term) is most important for me
lots of answers - but sit down and really think about it - and it isn't so easy to pin it down.
practice, gear, editing, patience, learning, observing, inspiration, opportunities, getting on top of technical things etc
But perhaps learning from others (a broad term) is most important for me
Patience, understanding, love, and luck (“PULL”).
One thing is "know thine own gear." Read the manual and watch some set up videos and practice until you are confident that you know the limits of what you can do with the gear you have and are able to do it easily with the camera to your eye.
Another is to work on creative vision and intention. Not claiming mastery. But if you look at a scene without shooting for a while even without a camera in hand and just imagine how the framed shot on your wall will look from different angles, distances, vantage points, lenses, and settings. Pre-plan the shot. You can still take multiple shots and experiment, but at some point intend the shots that you think will be the keeper.
Another, get really good at post processing. Understand what every setting on your raw converter does and how any plugins or preprocessing programs you use works. Understand the basics of Photoshop, even if you choose not to use it this shot. It's pretty easy to ruin a good capture using sliders we don't understand.
Another is to work on creative vision and intention. Not claiming mastery. But if you look at a scene without shooting for a while even without a camera in hand and just imagine how the framed shot on your wall will look from different angles, distances, vantage points, lenses, and settings. Pre-plan the shot. You can still take multiple shots and experiment, but at some point intend the shots that you think will be the keeper.
Another, get really good at post processing. Understand what every setting on your raw converter does and how any plugins or preprocessing programs you use works. Understand the basics of Photoshop, even if you choose not to use it this shot. It's pretty easy to ruin a good capture using sliders we don't understand.
Doomrider74
Well-known member
IMO "think what it will look like in your wall" is a good suggestion, as is asking yourself "would I hang that on my wall?".
Really appreciate the replies/ input here. I'm pretty much an introvert and don't engage in "group" setting too much, this is my attempt at a "group" interaction to pick on different photographer's brains. 
Looking at other people's photographs that strike me as "good" is a big help. I study them for "what did he/she do to make this photo special?" Sometimes it's mostly a matter of that person having spent a lot of time in the field to get a great photo opportunity. Sometimes it's the specific background, the framing of the subject, the posture or expression of a bird or animal, etc. I also learn from looking at photographs (e.g., on Flickr) that are NOT good, as it shows me how potentially good photos can be undermined when people are not attentive to composition, lighting, etc., not to mention issues related to sharpness and exposure.
I will add that I struggle to break out of the mindset that would dictate that there are very specific "rules" for creating good photos, almost like a checklist. In a number of conversations I have had with fellow photographers about the issue of "rules of composition" there seems to be some agreement that the difference between a ho-hum "good photo" and a great photo is some kind of insight into when and how to "break the rules." That's where creativity and inspiration are important.
I will add that I struggle to break out of the mindset that would dictate that there are very specific "rules" for creating good photos, almost like a checklist. In a number of conversations I have had with fellow photographers about the issue of "rules of composition" there seems to be some agreement that the difference between a ho-hum "good photo" and a great photo is some kind of insight into when and how to "break the rules." That's where creativity and inspiration are important.
fcotterill
Well-known member
Welcome to BCG. Some wise advice above....
The important step is regularity - how often you pick up the camera - get out and about taking photos. Digital images are basically free (compared to what one used to pay for film that is). I never stop practicing and learning from mistakes. Many years on since starting in ye olde days of slide film, I regularly practise on common birds around where I live as well as my cats.
It pays dividends to learn in depth to use one's gear efficiently, and develop muscle memory (eg for complementary AF settings in the heat of the moment). Modern cameras are complex and it's too easy to fumble multiple settings, even if you shoot as many of us do in full Manual mode.
Some years back, I learnt a great deal signing up for a workshop on landscape photography, particularly on post processing. Technical bools - ebooks by Steve and others - are a huge help. I also read around the arts including the great masters about composition and how to master light, and collect compendia of winning photograph to page through over a glass of wine.... Besides all these... One has to try and be one's own harshest critic of one's images
If wildlife is your genre, knowing your subjects is as important as knowing all about the gear, even though gear-chat dominates forums...natural history is the more intangible subject for this media
The important step is regularity - how often you pick up the camera - get out and about taking photos. Digital images are basically free (compared to what one used to pay for film that is). I never stop practicing and learning from mistakes. Many years on since starting in ye olde days of slide film, I regularly practise on common birds around where I live as well as my cats.
It pays dividends to learn in depth to use one's gear efficiently, and develop muscle memory (eg for complementary AF settings in the heat of the moment). Modern cameras are complex and it's too easy to fumble multiple settings, even if you shoot as many of us do in full Manual mode.
Some years back, I learnt a great deal signing up for a workshop on landscape photography, particularly on post processing. Technical bools - ebooks by Steve and others - are a huge help. I also read around the arts including the great masters about composition and how to master light, and collect compendia of winning photograph to page through over a glass of wine.... Besides all these... One has to try and be one's own harshest critic of one's images
If wildlife is your genre, knowing your subjects is as important as knowing all about the gear, even though gear-chat dominates forums...natural history is the more intangible subject for this media
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DripDryMcFleye
Well-known member
One of the things I have been doing: Try to be way more selective in what I actually shoot in the first place. I take way too many shots knowing that they problematic from the git go with the idea that I MIGHT be able to fix it in post. IMHO Post processing should ideally be a way to make a good shot into something way more impressive. I find myself spending way too much time trying to make "saves".
If I had to pick one thing it would be time in the field out shooting as the single biggest thing to improvement.
NWGuy
Well-known member
IMHO, there are two sides to photography - the technical and the artistic. As a left brainer, I can understand and get the technical side of post-processing and how the camera works. But as for seeing that statue inside a block of marble, not so much. To try to shore up my right side, i.e. to develop "the eye", I find that reviewing books of photographers and trying to see what they see helpful. I also find workshops helpful as when you compare your shot with the guy's who was standing right next to you and see how they differ. What did s/he see or not see that you did or didn't.
You note you are more of an introvert, like I am, so workshops can be intimidating throwing your work up (baring your soul) for all to see and critique, but with a good leader - Steve is great as is Hudson Henry - what you gain is worth the discomfort.
Most important is to enjoy the journey, view every not-so-good photo is a learning tool, and take lots of images. Have fun.
You note you are more of an introvert, like I am, so workshops can be intimidating throwing your work up (baring your soul) for all to see and critique, but with a good leader - Steve is great as is Hudson Henry - what you gain is worth the discomfort.
Most important is to enjoy the journey, view every not-so-good photo is a learning tool, and take lots of images. Have fun.
I think I fall into the Grinch category of introvert….”all the noise, noise noise”
, which is why I lean to wildlife and landscape photography. But your point is well taken!
Great insights, exploring and thinking about composition (s) outside of the box, but still achieving a quality image. It feels more like Art when Im working on that mindset.
Much good advice above, which I won’t repeat. I’d also suggest doing a photo workshop or two led by a pro whose work you admire. There are a number of excellent options. I’ve learned a lot on such trips about wildlife photography and landscape photography— and not always what I expected to learn. The best ones are in interesting places at good times for good subjects. Some are close by; others are in exotic locations. I also have found them fun and have enjoyed meeting other people who enjoy photography.
ricardo00
Well-known member
I would second this but look for small group tours where the person leading the tour is more interested in helping people learn to improve their pics then getting pics themselves. A good leader will look at your photos, know how to use the equipment you have, etc. Try to talk to the tour leader before signing up, it may help you decide whether the tour is appropriate for you.
We all learn differently. I've got one of those annoying personalities that can't just learn how to do things. I have to know why it's done a certain way. So reading/watching typical "how to" material doesn't do much for me. For example the common rules of composition, rule of thirds, leading lines, eye drawn to brightness/color, etc, are the "how". The "why" is explained by Gestalt principles of visual perception. As others have mentioned above there is no substitute for practice and studying images, your own and others. When an image appeals to me I ask myself why. In the field when looking at a scene that I feel compelled to capture I find it useful to ask myself the same question. What is it about the scene that captures my attention. When I don't do that I often find myself staring at the image in LR wondering why I clicked the shutter. What was I thinking? :(
ASiegel,
My following comments are under the assumption you already know your gear, how to properly expose an image, various focus, metering, and stabilization modes, etc. In your post you mentioned you have taken a big jump the past 2 years which is tremendous news. Therefore, I'm assuming the basics are already well understood.
Past the basics, there is more nuance and subtly to hitting the next plateau. I think most of us have been there or are currently walking right alongside of you as we go through our own journey.
As others have said is study images you like and try to understand what it is about them you like, is it the subject, the colors, the lack of colors, the placement of the subject (composition), all of the above, something entirely different. Did the image make you feel a certain way? Did you feel empathy, compassion, love, anger, discomfort / uneasiness, joy, happiness (they are different by the way), contentment, something else? What about the image made you feel that way? Try to isolate what elements of the image elicited that emotion in you. Regardless of the feeling, identify the elements that created that feeling and then decide how, when, or if, you could use those elements in a photograph. Personally, I spent enough of my life in a super stressful job and many times I was paid to be confrontational. I don't enjoy images that bring me back to those dark places in my mind. I like images that make me smile, feel happy or joyful. Images that elicit a feeling of hope and better days ahead are the ones that attract me and what I try to broadcast with my photography. I've seen enough bad (evil) I want to see more joyful and good. Some will think I'm naive and suffering from wishful thinking. I'm far from naive (in fact, I can be quite cynical and have seen a lot and heard just about every type of lie that can be told). Wishful thinking? Maybe, I want to see the world be a better place than it is today. I want my photography to tell a story about nature that will give people a reason to desire to get closer to the natural world and, hopefully, take steps to help preserve and protect. These are the emotions I want my photography to elicit.
A good image should stir some emotion otherwise it is probably just a well exposed, in focus snapshot. Nothing wrong with snapshots, I have hundreds of them in my library, but those are not the images that people will remember long after seeing them. The photographs that make us feel something are the ones we remember.
Not that you want to copy someone else's style or image but with a good understanding of what you find pleasing then you are better prepared to go out and capture images that please you.
Another thing, very few of us here are making a living at nature photography. A few are but most of us would be hungry photographers if we tried to make a living at it. That''s cool, fact is, it gives us freedom to capture images that please us and make us happy without having to worry if someone else will enjoy it enough to give me money for it.
Now, what has been the single tool that helped me to reach the next plateau once I became reasonably proficient with the technical aspects of the process? Don't laugh, the DELETE key. Become hyper critical of your images. I'm not talking photos of the family, friends, vacation memories, special moments. I'm talking about your everyday photos. Look at them with a critical eye. Think if you saw someone else post that same image would you say "wow" or would you ask "why did the bother posting that one?" If / when one (ok dozens) of my photos fall in the latter category, I delete them. I no longer want to look at them, they are doing nothing to help me improve or to stir some emotion in the viewer. They do not tell a story (or a compelling story) and they will not be effective in helping me to build interest in the beauty of everyday nature that surrounds us. Images that fail to do these things get sent to the recycle bin. I am heartless in my use of the delete key. Unless the photo is of something really rare, a very unusual behavior, a subject that I just so beautiful that I must do whatever I can to salvage the image, I do little to no post processing before I hit the delete key. I don't want to waste my time salvaging an image that I will not use anyway.
Be your own worst critic. Don't be artificially hard on yourself, but also do not delude yourself into believing every image is a masterpiece and someday will be published placing you among History's greatest photographers. Maybe you will be and I sincerely hope you are. Nothing would be cooler than to see someone on this forum get that kind of recognition. Even so, I would assume even those masters delete more than they keep.
So, that's my long winded extra lengthy babbled on too long answer.
Hope it helps and that you and all here have a wonderful day.
Jeff
My following comments are under the assumption you already know your gear, how to properly expose an image, various focus, metering, and stabilization modes, etc. In your post you mentioned you have taken a big jump the past 2 years which is tremendous news. Therefore, I'm assuming the basics are already well understood.
Past the basics, there is more nuance and subtly to hitting the next plateau. I think most of us have been there or are currently walking right alongside of you as we go through our own journey.
As others have said is study images you like and try to understand what it is about them you like, is it the subject, the colors, the lack of colors, the placement of the subject (composition), all of the above, something entirely different. Did the image make you feel a certain way? Did you feel empathy, compassion, love, anger, discomfort / uneasiness, joy, happiness (they are different by the way), contentment, something else? What about the image made you feel that way? Try to isolate what elements of the image elicited that emotion in you. Regardless of the feeling, identify the elements that created that feeling and then decide how, when, or if, you could use those elements in a photograph. Personally, I spent enough of my life in a super stressful job and many times I was paid to be confrontational. I don't enjoy images that bring me back to those dark places in my mind. I like images that make me smile, feel happy or joyful. Images that elicit a feeling of hope and better days ahead are the ones that attract me and what I try to broadcast with my photography. I've seen enough bad (evil) I want to see more joyful and good. Some will think I'm naive and suffering from wishful thinking. I'm far from naive (in fact, I can be quite cynical and have seen a lot and heard just about every type of lie that can be told). Wishful thinking? Maybe, I want to see the world be a better place than it is today. I want my photography to tell a story about nature that will give people a reason to desire to get closer to the natural world and, hopefully, take steps to help preserve and protect. These are the emotions I want my photography to elicit.
A good image should stir some emotion otherwise it is probably just a well exposed, in focus snapshot. Nothing wrong with snapshots, I have hundreds of them in my library, but those are not the images that people will remember long after seeing them. The photographs that make us feel something are the ones we remember.
Not that you want to copy someone else's style or image but with a good understanding of what you find pleasing then you are better prepared to go out and capture images that please you.
Another thing, very few of us here are making a living at nature photography. A few are but most of us would be hungry photographers if we tried to make a living at it. That''s cool, fact is, it gives us freedom to capture images that please us and make us happy without having to worry if someone else will enjoy it enough to give me money for it.
Now, what has been the single tool that helped me to reach the next plateau once I became reasonably proficient with the technical aspects of the process? Don't laugh, the DELETE key. Become hyper critical of your images. I'm not talking photos of the family, friends, vacation memories, special moments. I'm talking about your everyday photos. Look at them with a critical eye. Think if you saw someone else post that same image would you say "wow" or would you ask "why did the bother posting that one?" If / when one (ok dozens) of my photos fall in the latter category, I delete them. I no longer want to look at them, they are doing nothing to help me improve or to stir some emotion in the viewer. They do not tell a story (or a compelling story) and they will not be effective in helping me to build interest in the beauty of everyday nature that surrounds us. Images that fail to do these things get sent to the recycle bin. I am heartless in my use of the delete key. Unless the photo is of something really rare, a very unusual behavior, a subject that I just so beautiful that I must do whatever I can to salvage the image, I do little to no post processing before I hit the delete key. I don't want to waste my time salvaging an image that I will not use anyway.
Be your own worst critic. Don't be artificially hard on yourself, but also do not delude yourself into believing every image is a masterpiece and someday will be published placing you among History's greatest photographers. Maybe you will be and I sincerely hope you are. Nothing would be cooler than to see someone on this forum get that kind of recognition. Even so, I would assume even those masters delete more than they keep.
So, that's my long winded extra lengthy babbled on too long answer.
Hope it helps and that you and all here have a wonderful day.
Jeff
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Great answers above IMO.
By far, No 1. for me, is practice. No matter how much I learn in books, there is a big leap from theory to practice. Both in shooting and post process.
Woody Meristem
Well-known member
That's what I've always done, look at other folks' photos that I like and try to figure out how they made it. Some people prefer images of wildlife or plants that include a lot of habitat, others prefer portraits. I tend to take portraits of mammals, birds, insects and plants -- it's just my style, it's not right for everyone. I'm now in the midst of a photo-a-day-for-a-year project; it's well worth giving something like that a try as it forces you to spend time looking into the natural world.
fcotterill
Well-known member
Earlier discussion here
bcgforums.com
Just remembered these threads on Composition, and the posts therein cite some useful books on the subject, and links
bcgforums.com
bcgforums.com
And role / importance of technology versus artistic and other skills
bcgforums.com
bcgforums.com
How to step up to the next level ? How did you do it ?
I've had a love affair with cameras and photography for about ten years I've had next to zero training. Every thing I know has come from books, Internet and magazines. As my equipment has improved so has my photography, I am currently reading steve perry's ebooks, I find them extremely useful...
bcgforums.com
Just remembered these threads on Composition, and the posts therein cite some useful books on the subject, and links
Anyone Want to Talk About Composition?
I recently reread Richard Garvey-Williams excellent book, Mastering Composition. Do you have other composition resources, websites, videos, that you recommend? Do you have a mental composition checklist as you are shooting, assuming there is time to think?
bcgforums.com
Discussion of composition in general
Spencer Cox at Photography Life has been updating their series of articles on composition. Seems like a good chance to see what you all think is important. Do you follow 'rules' if so what are the rules. Do you go for 'principles of design' if so what principles are most important to you? Are...
bcgforums.com
And role / importance of technology versus artistic and other skills
Cameras: How much Technology needed for Amazing Photographs
I am beginner to the art of wildlife photography and appreciate and impressed with photogaphers who have mastered the technique, the creativity and skill and which is involved for capturing amazing photos. I was going through a collection of old, 1960's, National Geographic Magazines with...
bcgforums.com
Soulless Photography
I want to propose a matter that I’m sure will have some discussion. I am not against the advancement of technology in any of its manifestations, but I believe that photography has ceased to be a creative art to become only the capture of something that is simply there, in front of the camera...
bcgforums.com
Some excellent points already given above. One other thing that I will add is joining a photography club and/or art league and entering your images in judged competitions can be very helpful. Getting and providing constructive criticism on photographs is a excellent way to improve your own photography.