1. Try something new, get out of your comfort zone. You’ve been photographing nature for years? Try some street photography!

2. Meet other photographers and go on photo walks. It doesn’t have to be a large group. Get together with two or three other people who share the same passion and experiment with different photography genres. Meet regularly and choose a different theme each time: Street photography one week, landscape photography the next! You will learn something new from fellow photographers and getting together will help keep the passion for photography alive.

3. If you own a DSLR, try renting a new lens for a weekend to experiment with something totally different. It can be a fisheye or a macro lens, a special effect lens or a super telephoto. They are big investments and renting for a weekend or a few days is quite affordable and the best way to know if you are ready to make the investment. Try your local camera store or any reputable online rental services such as borrowlenses.com. Check for special deals.

4. Write a list of things you’ve never photographed before and make it a point to learn the techniques to achieve those shots. I’ve been doing this for a while and my list still includes a lot of interesting things to discover such as panoramic photography or time lapse. I recently discovered macro photography and it opened a whole new world of possibilities in my own backyard. I discover something new every time I put the macro lens on my camera! There are many techniques you can learn that don’t require any new equipment and such as light trails, light painting, etc. Just be open to trying new things.

I recently discovered macro photography and it's been so much fun. I can go out in my own backyard for a few minutes and come back with treasures. Shot with the Canon 100mm f/2.8 macro lens (handheld!)

5. Get you hands on a film camera and a roll of film and limit yourself to 36 exposures for a day. You will learn the importance of getting it right in camera. If nothing else, you will realize how incredibly flexible digital really is!

6. Pick a theme and get out on your own. You can pick to only shoot things that are yellow, just feet, people with hats, dogs… The sky is the limit. This exercise will help you see things differently and the results may surprise you.

7. Mentor someone. Give a camera to a child. Take them out to shoot. You may spark a life-long passion and you may learn a thing or two about yourself in the process.

8. Give back to your community, volunteer to photograph a local event for a charity for example.

9. If you can afford it, sign up for a photography workshop in a field you are passionate about or to learn something completely new.

10. Start a project that will force you to shoot more, such as a 365 day project. Share your project through social media or a blog. The more you shoot, the more you are going to want to shoot. Push yourself and set a goal to put all those images in a book when you are done. Pat yourself in the back, it’s a big accomplishment!

11. Look at the work of others. They may be famous or unknown, the goal is not to copy their work but to draw inspiration from it.

This list is non exhaustive, please add some suggestions in the comments. Happy shooting!

Post originally from: Digital Photography Tips.

Check out our more Photography Tips at Photography Tips for Beginners, Portrait Photography Tips and Wedding Photography Tips.

Are You in a Photography Rut? 11 Tips to Get Out of It!

Photographers have different visions. Some of us are more interested in details while others have wide angle vision. I am definitely in the first category. I am much more interested in details, I rarely shoot an entire building but I concentrate on details such as door knobs, peeling paint, textures, etc.

No matter what your style is, when you are out on a photo walk, there will be ‘triggers’ around you that will stir an emotion and prompt you to click the shutter.

The most common ‘trigger’ will be the light falling on an object or a scene. It will catch your eye and you’ll want to capture it with your camera. More often than not the result will be disappointing because your camera will not always be able to render the scene the way your eyes experience it. The moment is often so fleeting that you won’t have time to make the necessary adjustments to get the best picture possible. That’s okay, keep trying. Sometimes the best shot are the so called ‘dumb luck’ shots. Don’t spend too much time fumbling with your gear, just shoot!

Colors are another common trigger. Your eye will be drawn to contrasting colors. A person in a bright outfit, a red door, rust on a surface. Follow your eye, take your time to absorb the scene, move to shoot it from different angles.

Lines and patterns are another obvious draw in photography. I see them all the time. It can be a roadway, railroad tracks, a power line, a set of stairs or a simple railing. Lines and repeating patterns will draw your attention and can make interesting images.

Line and patterns can make interesting images.

People! When I am out in the streets shooting, my favorite subjects are everyday people. Be patient and observe the world around you. There are at least two different approaches to people photography: the candids and the street portraits. Combine both and you tell a story. I used to only shoot from a distance with the telephoto lens and I love those images. Find a great location. A street corner with some interesting backdrop (it can be a colorful wall, an amusing billboard, a spot with some interesting lighting, etc) and just wait for the scene to take place. If you are patient enough you will go home with a treasure!

Candid street photography often means finding the stage and waiting for the action to take place.

I recently started interacting with people in the streets and asking them if I could take their picture, it’s very intimidating but also addicting. Yes, you will get some rejections but a smile can go a long way. Be honest, people like a compliment and most don’t mind having their picture taken. Be friendly and respectful: “Cool outfit, I love it!  Would you mind if I took your picture?” Show them the resulting image on the back of your camera, offer a business card, they may want a copy later. I know I would! Street performers are also great subjects to photograph and they usually love the attention, don’t be shy!

Street portraits. Starting a conversation with strangers and asking if you can make a portrait can be intimidating but also very rewarding. This gentleman was enjoying a 'warm' February day. He had a stack of bibles next to him which caught my attention. We talked for 15 minutes (I mostly listened) and it made his day!

Reflections are another one of my favorite things to look for when out on a photo walk in an urban environment. I love shooting contrasting architectures or elements such as an old buildings or trees reflecting in a modern glass structure.

Reflections are everywhere around you when you walk in a city.

Collections of things are great to look for and photograph. They are really easy to find at markets. Items that are stacked, fruits and vegetable displayed in neat rows can make great subject!

Market days offer many opportunities. I particularly enjoy photographing collections of things.

The list could go on and on and I would love to hear about the things you look for when out on a city photo walk. One thing to remember: Just get out and shoot! One camera, one lens and HAVE FUN!

Post originally from: Digital Photography Tips.

Check out our more Photography Tips at Photography Tips for Beginners, Portrait Photography Tips and Wedding Photography Tips.

What do I look for on a Photo Walk? Part 1 – City Walk

No matter what your artistic interests, whether photography, drawing, painting, sculpture, etc., the underlying force behind your work is creativity. It’s much easier to talk about technical aspects of photography as it’s a tangible skill, unlike the more mysterious intangible skill of creative thought.  While every art form is unique unto its own, harnessing one’s creativity is a universal skill.

There are some that might say you either have it or you don’t in relation to creativity, but the truth is we’re all creative. Every child makes believe at some point and lets their imagination run wild, and if I’m correct you were once a child. Creativity is a thought process and one that can be strengthened with practice and exercise. Below are 6 ways I like to get my creative mind working. If you have techniques that work for you be sure to add them in the comments.

1. Never Stop Thinking About Photos
Whether your camera is in hand or not conduct mental exercises to find subjects, mentally frame images and think through how you would capture the subject. Keeping photography constantly in mind is important in training yourself to think creatively. If your mind is primed for creative thought, creativity will have an easier time striking you.

2. Embrace Your Mistakes & Chance
It’s OK for chance or mistakes to bring something new to your attention. Always take a second look at your mistakes and see if it presents something new to the scene that perhaps you hadn’t thought to try. Not every mistake is a creative epiphany, but you’ll never have one if you never look.

3. Find inspiration
Whether viewing artwork at museums, in photo books or immersing yourself in nature, embrace the work of others including Mother Nature to help you see or think in new ways. When our minds are introduced to new techniques or ways of seeing our mindseye begins to expand its view fostering creative thought.

4. Break the Rules
Rules are great as they provide a roadmap of how things can be done or explain why we find something visually appealing. Once you know or have mastered the rules its time to break them. Creativity knows no bounds.  A great creative exercise is to intentionally break a rule to see how you can find a new way of viewing something in a manner that is otherwise “taboo”.

5. Have No Fear
Free yourself from the fear of what others might say if critical of your creative experiments. People by nature almost always have adverse reactions to new things particularly when they’re entrenched in thinking a more common practice is the “right way” or “norm”.  Creativity is the antithesis of a “norm”. Creativity brings a new way to present and see things. Never let norms and the attachment others have to them sway you from your creative exploration of the world before you with your camera.

6. Extract Yourself
Remove yourself from familiar routine and locations. Taking time to be away from the things that normally fill your day is a great way to obtain freedom for your mind to wander. Distraction free time allows for new thoughts and ideas to surface and most importantly it allows you to shape them into actionable projects.

Post originally from: Digital Photography Tips.

Check out our more Photography Tips at Photography Tips for Beginners, Portrait Photography Tips and Wedding Photography Tips.

6 Ways to Enhance Your Creativity

Photo by Auto matt

My first love in photography when I first got my trusty old Minolta SLR as a teenager was landscape photography. There’s something about getting out in nature with the challenge of capturing some of the amazing beauty that you see. Perhaps it fits with my personality type – but I loved the quietness and stillness of waiting for the perfect moment for the shot, scoping out an area for the best vantage point and then seeing the way that the light changed a scene over a few hours.

While I don’t get as much time as I’d like for Landscape Photography these days – I thought I’d jot down a few of the lessons that I learned in my early years of doing it. I’d love to hear your own Landscape Photography tips in comments below.

Landscape Photography Tips

1. Maximize your Depth of Field

While there may be times that you want to get a little more creative and experiment with narrow depth of fields in your Landscape Photography – the normal approach is to ensure that as much of your scene is in focus as possible. The simplest way to do this is to choose a small Aperture setting (a large number) as the smaller your aperture the greater the depth of field in your shots.

Do keep in mind that smaller apertures mean less light is hitting your image sensor at any point in time so they will mean you need to compensate either by increasing your ISO or lengthening your shutter speed (or both).

PS: of course there are times when you can get some great results with a very shallow DOF in a landscape setting (see the picture of the double yellow line below).

Photo by hkvam

2. Use a Tripod

As a result of the longer shutter speed that you may need to select to compensate for a small aperture you will need to find a way of ensuring your camera is completely still during the exposure. In fact even if you’re able to shoot at a fast shutter speed the practice of using a tripod can be beneficial to you. Also consider a cable or wireless shutter release mechanism for extra camera stillness.

Related Reading – Introduction to Tripods

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3. Look for a Focal Point

All shots need some sort of focal point to them and landscapes are no different – in fact landscape photographs without them end up looking rather empty and will leave your viewers eye wondering through the image with nowhere to rest (and they’ll generally move on quickly).

Focal points can take many forms in landscapes and could range from a building or structure, a striking tree, a boulder or rock formation, a silhouette etc.

Think not only about what the focal point is but where you place it. The rule of thirds might be useful here.

Related Reading – Focal Points in Photography

Photo by OneEighteen

4. Think Foregrounds

One element that can set apart your landscape shots is to think carefully about the foreground of your shots and by placing points of interest in them. When you do this you give those viewing the shot a way into the image as well as creating a sense of depth in your shot.

Related Reading: Getting Foregrounds right in photography

5. Consider the Sky

Another element to consider is the sky in your landscape.

Most landscapes will either have a dominant foreground or sky – unless you have one or the other your shot can end up being fairly boring.

If you have a bland, boring sky – don’t let it dominate your shot and place the horizon in the upper third of your shot (however you’ll want to make sure your foreground is interesting). However if the sky is filled with drama and interesting cloud formations and colors – let it shine by placing the horizon lower.

Consider enhancing skies either in post production or with the use of filters (for example a polarizing filter can add color and contrast).

Photo by hkvam

6. Lines

One of the questions to ask yourself as you take Landscape shots is ‘how am I leading the eye of those viewing this shot’? There are a number of ways of doing this (foregrounds is one) but one of the best ways into a shot is to provide viewers with lines that lead them into an image.

Lines give an image depth, scale and can be a point of interest in and of themselves by creating patterns in your shot.

Related Reading: Using lines in photography (mini-series)

7. Capture Movement

When most people think about landscapes they think of calm, serene and passive environments – however landscapes are rarely completely still and to convey this movement in an image will add drama, mood and create a point of interest.

Examples – wind in trees, waves on a beach, water flowing over a waterfall, birds flying over head, moving clouds.

Capturing this movement generally means you need to look at a longer shutter speed (sometimes quite a few seconds). Of course this means more light hitting your sensor which will mean you need to either go for a small Aperture, use some sort of a filter or even shoot at the start or end of the day when there is less light.

Photo by 3amfromkyoto

8. Work with the Weather

A scene can change dramatically depending upon the weather at any given moment. As a result, choosing the right time to shoot is of real importance.

Many beginner photographers see a sunny day and think that it’s the best time to go out with their camera – however an overcast day that is threatening to rain might present you with a much better opportunity to create an image with real mood and ominous overtones. Look for storms, wind, mist, dramatic clouds, sun shining through dark skies, rainbows, sunsets and sunrises etc and work with these variations in the weather rather than just waiting for the next sunny blue sky day.

9. Work the Golden Hours

I chatted with one photographer recently who told me that he never shoots during the day – his only shooting times are around dawn and dusk – because that’s when the light is best and he find that landscapes come alive.

These ‘golden’ hours are great for landscapes for a number of reasons – none the least of which is the ‘golden’ light that it often presents us with. The other reason that I love these times is the angle of the light and how it can impact a scene – creating interesting patterns, dimensions and textures.

10. Think about Horizons

It’s an old tip but a good one – before you take a landscape shot always consider the horizon on two fronts.

• Is it straight? – while you can always straighten images later in post production it’s easier if you get it right in camera.
• Where is it compositionally? - a compositionally natural spot for a horizon is on one of the thirds lines in an image (either the top third or the bottom one) rather than completely in the middle. Of course rules are meant to be broken – but I find that unless it’s a very striking image that the rule of thirds usually works here.

Related Reading: Getting Horizons Horizontal

Photo by curious_spider

11. Change your Point of View

You drive up to the scenic lookout, get out of the car, grab your camera, turn it on, walk up to the barrier, raise the camera to your eye, rotate left and right a little, zoom a little and take your shot before getting back in the car to go to the next scenic lookout.

We’ve all done it – however this process doesn’t generally lead to the ‘wow’ shot that many of us are looking for.

Take a little more time with your shots – particularly in finding a more interesting point of view to shoot from. This might start with finding a different spot to shoot from than the scenic look out (wander down paths, look for new angles etc), could mean getting down onto the ground to shot from down low or finding a higher up vantage point to shoot from.

Explore the environment and experiment with different view points and you could find something truly unique.

updated: this post was updated in Nov 2010.

Post originally from: Digital Photography Tips.

Check out our more Photography Tips at Photography Tips for Beginners, Portrait Photography Tips and Wedding Photography Tips.

11 Surefire Landscape Photography Tips

The catch was that they had to do it in 140 characters or less (the limit that Twitter allows per message). Here’s a collection of 20 of their photography tips:

1. “I would recommend any serious photographer a Tripod. It’s indispensable for any photography & most if your hands won’t stay still” – maniar
2. “don’t spend your time looking at the lcd screen…you end up missing fantastic moments. The pictures will still be there later!” – burks
3. “Shoot in RAW mode if your camera has it. Offers so many more opportunities for editing than shooting in JPEG” – PattyHankins
4. “don’t just stand there. Instead of moving the camera, move yourself…” – XmasB
5. “Always remove the lens cover.” – fireeducator
6. “Get closer to the object.” – Celebtur
7. “Expensive equipment don’t make great photos. Great photographers do.” – quicklunarcop
8. “Fill the Frame” – ebradlee10
9. “shoot the magic hours(!!); remember the exposure triangle; look for a new/unique angle on your subject. ” – laepelba
10. “Keep taking photos, look at your photos, then take more photos. Learn from your mistakes and don’t be afraid to experiment.” – NeilCreek
11. “You can’t take a photo without a camera so always carry one – even if you don’t get a great shot you had a chance at getting it.” – HelenBradley
12. “Learn to expose and light correctly the first time using JPEG – at the highest quality, saves time and work later. no RAW needed” – woodmike
13. “For portraits: fill the frame with your subject!” – onedadslife
14. “Relax, take your time and get the shot you want.” – mvern78
15. “just get out there & shoot…learn your camera =)” – docm2b
16. “it’s the archer, not the arrow.” – Supermassive
17. “keep your batteries charged because you never know when you might want to use the camera to get that special shot” – StuartL
18. “assuming digital, you can never take enough shots” – d0rk4l
19. “Shoot, shoot, shoot. (wish I followed this more often)” – Kellygrape
20. “Understand the basic rules of composition, get a feel for them, apply them regularly – and break them occasionally!” – John1954Moi

What would you add? Leave your 140 character photography tip below.

Post originally from: Digital Photography Tips.

Check out our more Photography Tips at Photography Tips for Beginners, Portrait Photography Tips and Wedding Photography Tips.

20 Photography Tips from Our Twitter Followers