by Brad Mauer

Created on: April 16, 2009

The Beginner's Guide to Taking Better Photographs,

When you are ready to take the step forward and improve your photography there are many steps we can take. The first step to improving to study various photographers that you admire there work. Look through there photographs and jot down the things you like about them and why. pay attention to lighting, where is the source of light coming from and how strong of light they are using. Pay attention to composition, what type of photographs are they taking is it nature, architecture, or portrait. This step is to get an idea of your style not to steal someones ideas, just get ideas of what you like and make it your own.

The next step is to get out there and shoot. You need to shoot lots of photographs and do this often, as they say "practice makes perfect." Take what you learned in the previous step into the field and try to make the best photographs possible. Take your photographs and compare them to the ones you admired before. Pay attention to composition and lighting, only put in the photograph what complements it. Fill the frame with the subject keep any boring items that don't belong out of the picture. Try experimenting with filters, there are lots of different types that have different effects on your photography, play with them and get a feel for what they do.

Think of investing in a tripod. Tripods keep the camera steady so you get extra crisp and sharp photographs. Lighting in the outdoors is best at sunrise, sunset, and overcast days give a softening diffused light. If you want to improve your photography don't just go and shoot, check an area out to figure out when it is best to compose your photograph. Keep an eye on weather reports, for sky photography you get more dramatic photographs before and after a storm. When taking photos of the sky meter off of a light area in the sky with out the sun in the picture. Always bracket shots so you know that you got proper exposure. Using camera raw gives you complete creative control over you photo, this means the camera doesn't decide all the settings for you and erase data. If you only implement a few of these into your photography routine you should notice a major improvement in a short matter of time. If you can't do all of these make sure to increase your photographing frequency, the more you shoot the better you will be. Good luck and happy shooting.

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