10 things I learned about photography

Submitted by Michael on Mon, 2008-10-20 19:48

It’s time to think for a moment and reflect the things I figured out. Writing them down helps me get sharp on them. Let’s abuse my blog to do so. Perhaps I can energize you on your journey of improving your photography? Here’s my 10 cents:

  1. I should plan for every shooting in advance. I need to have an idea about <em>what</em> I am going to do already before I leave from home for the shooting. At the set I will be the director. It’s no democracy. I have to rule the shooting. 

     

  2. When leaving for a shooting I go through a checklist. Is my photo bag complete? Batteries charged? Let’s take even more batteries! And another two extra! Here is my checklist for the complete photobag.

     

  3. If possible I arrive at the set half an hour earlier. And it’s nearly always possible. Especially since models are always half an hour late ;-)

     

  4. During the shooting the histogram is my best friend. Especially when shooting outdoor. It’s clear, accurate and reliable. Who ever invented the histogram view deserves an award for it!
     
  5. Get it right in camera- not in photoshop. At first it seems to be more work to physically move the old sofa out of the frame instead of cloning it out in photoshop. But actually, it is not more work. And it is worth it.

     

  6. I’ll get dirty. But snapping a great photo is well worth ruining an old pair of jeans. And after all, if my hobby would be tinkering with my car it would be much worse for my clothes.

     

  7. I keep telling myself: "Be bold, be very, very bold. This will be visible in my photos." I hope it works.

     

  8. The golden ratio today is exactly as important as it has been 2000 years ago. Chances are it will still be important for quite a while...

     

  9. Posing a beautiful model like an s-curve leads to stunning photos. That is a rule. But then again, breaking this rule is what adds magic to a photo. I better try both!

     

  10. When composing the photo I imagine how it will look like printed out large. After all, I love to print my photos large - especially the ones with "magic".

How about you share your lessons learned with me over here? Please comment!