by Jim Bradley

Created on: May 30, 2008   Last Updated: May 31, 2008

Starting out in photography these days, one should have or purchase a digital camera. It need not be an expensive one, but a digital camera is highly superior to the old film type. Along with your digital camera, you should buy a memory card. These come in various sizes but the bigger the card, the more images you can store on it. Unfortunately, the bigger the card, the bigger the price too, but it is an investment which is well worth the money and will last you for years, if taken care of properly.

With most digital cameras, if not all, you will have a cable included, to allow you to upload your images to a personal computer. This is where digital photography comes into its own, over the film. You should have some good image manipulation software on your computer which allows you to change many aspects of your photographs, once you have uploaded them onto the computer. There are many different types of software for photographers but one I would particularly recommend is called "Magix".

When you take your photographs, it is important to try and make them as good at the beginning as you can. With digital cameras and a memory card, it is less of a problem as you can just upload them all to your computer and then delete the ones you don't like. With film cameras of course, it means wasted film and expense.

Consider the background of your chosen subject first of all, including the position of the sun. There are numerous photos of people posing with a street light 'coming out of their head' or with the persons face thrown into shadow by bad positioning of the sun.

Of course, your photos need not be all about people posing or not. There are photo opportunities with animals, children, scenes, nature, architecture - the list is endless. If you are serious about your hobby too, you will always have your camera with you and have the thought of a photo opportunity at the back of your mind. You never know when or where that exclusive photo opportunity will appear, which could earn you the big bucks.

A tripod can help if you do not have a very steady hand, if you want to take a self-portrait or if you want to be included in the scene or with others in the photo. These need not be expensive either and there are many to choose from which will fit most digital cameras.

Once your creations have all been uploaded, manipulated and you are happy with them, then you should,create folders to keep them in and catalog them all. If you use common headings like Date, Time, Location, Weather, etc., they will even act as a guide to improving your photography skills too.

It is a fascinating hobby and many years of pleasure await you when you take those first few faltering shots. Perhaps you will give David Bailey some competition? Who knows!

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