101 Photography Tips

[AVALANCHE]

Although I am new (6 months in) here is my two cents:

Extra) Don't feel disheartened if you are on a budget when buying a first camera. The type of the camera you use has little to do with actual photography itself. Understanding the principles of design (line, shape, tone, texture, colour) and seeing light, as well as understanding composition to create a compelling image are far more important than worrying about whether or not you have the latest and most expensive camera. The only people that recommend these expensive cameras to beginners (ie - 5D mk3/D800 etc) are salespeople or those that have been sucked in by those same salespeople. More resolution/pixels doesn't equal sharper images, holding your camera still does.

Extra) Pay attention to the background of your images.

Extra) Carry one to three lenses with you when you go out. Preferrably one and that being a fixed lens. This will strengthen your composition qualities as you will be forced to move forward or back to compose your subject in the frame, therefore developing a feel for photos without even having to look through the viewfinder as you can eventually visualise in your mind how the photo will look!

[Kym]

Consolidated list...

1. Take photos early morning or night as there as less hard shadows
2. Always make sure your battery is recharged (or you have spare batteries) so your camera doesn't suddenly die on you at the worst possible moment
3. Get closer - if you can't get closer zoom in further, if you can't zoom in get closer
4. Learn to use the histogram to adjust settings and get a good exposure.
5. Take the lens cap off doofus!
6. Check that your camera is not set to auto ISO,(unless you definitely want it to be) learned this the hard way.... as have many others, I expect.
7. Starting guide for obtaining a proper exposure of a full moon is to the aperture at f/11 and shutter speed at one over the ISO setting (eg. 1/125 for ISO 100). For pictures of a half moon, use the same shutter speed at f/8. For a quarter moon, f/5.6.
8. Lenses and cameras never used to have anti-shake systems built into them. As shutter speeds got slower, camera shake was likely to blur your image, and you had to know what you could safely get away with! As a rule-of-thumb, the slowest shutter speed at which you could safely handhold a camera was usually considered to be one over the focal length of the lens. So, if you're using a 50mm lens, you could generally shoot at 1/60 sec or faster. A 100mm lens needed at least 1/125 sec; 1/300 for 300mm and so forth. Not enough light to do that? Then you had to use flash, a tripod, or brace your camera (and yourself) against a solid object.
9. The classic advice is, "Expose for the highlights and let the shadows take care of themselves." This works with slide film and digital. But with negative film, especially colour negative film, you're actually better off overexposing by one stop.
10. To stop action moving across the frame that's perpendicular to the lens axis, you need shutter speeds two stops faster than action moving toward or away from you. For action moving at a 45-degree angle to the lens axis, you can use a shutter speed one stop slower. For example: If a person running toward you at moderate speed can be stopped at 1/125 sec, you'll need a shutter speed of 1/500 sec to stop the subject moving across the frame, and a shutter speed of 1/250 sec to stop him if moving obliquely with respect to the camera.
11. Before you ask the question - READ THE MANUAL!!
12. Learn and understand "depth of field"
13. When taking your camera out for the first time since a previous shoot verify all your settings are what you want for this new shoot so you don't use the previous shoot settings which may be wildly inappropriate.
14. Don't be afraid of a little fill flash to expose shadowed areas.
15. Learn and understand the interrelationship between shutter speed, aperture and ISO.
16. Make sure the camera is on when you go to take a shot
17. When at a famous landmark, look for the angle you've never seen in another photo before
18. Get down to children's height to take photo
19. Know your equipment - to the point where it becomes second nature. The less you have to muck around in menus and think about settings, the more time you can spend on the much more important aspects of timing, lighting and composition. You will always be wanting a new lens, a new body etc. - working with what you have will force you to be more creative.
20. Start shooting raw and learn about white balance
21. Learn to use exposure compensation (+/-Ev) and handle the highlights better
22. Keep it simple, in photography less equals more.
23. Always put your camera on full auto when storing it, travelling etc. You never know when a great shot might present itself, and in Auto you can grab the camera and get the shot off. That elusive shot of a Yeti, will be just a blur if you still had it set to 10 second shutter speed from the night landscapes from yesterday.
24. For portraits of children always spot focus right between the eyes
25. always have your camera and tripod by your side as you never know when the opportunity moment will arise to get THE shot
26. When doing portrait shots of man's best friend (the dog) always focus on the eyes... a focused nose and blurry eyes just look silly.
27. Look at the image in the viewfinder - not through the lens.
28. DOF - Small number-small DOF. Large number-big DOF.
29. Never pack your camera gear away in a wet or damp condition.
30. Always double check your bag zippers/fasteners are closed before picking it up.
31. Always turn off camera before changing lenses.
32. Try to avoid changing lenses in wet or dusty conditions.
33. Never hard scrub the glass on your lenses to clean, especially true for the sensor.
34. Be Quiet. Some of the best shots happen when the subject doesn't know you're there (kids, animals, etc).
35. Always look back before you leave.
36. For long exposure remember to use a tripod, a remote also helps to stop from camera shake when pressing the shutter button.
37. When doing Pano's use a tripod and turn IS/VR/SR/OS OFF, IS can sometimes go crazy and cause a soft blurry image.
38. Don't be shy to experiment, take lots of photos of the same thing with different angles and camera settings.
39. Some images may look crappy in the playback mode on your camera, but might look good on the computer at home. So don't choose the keepers until you view them on the computer.
40. Never point or look through your lens directly at the sun.
41. Always try and have your horizons straight in your photos, or straighten them in the editing process.
42. Never use cheap filters in front of expensive glass.
43. When shooting night photography, generally use the lowest ISO to avoid/reduce digital noise
44. Learn the Sunny 16 rule - it helps understanding exposure
45. THINK! before you shoot. I.e. exposure, DoF, ISO, camera settings, composure etc.
46. When shooting portraits, be aware of poles/plants/projections growing from the head of your subject.
47. Enjoy what you do.
48. As much as the rule of thirds is important and one should keep that in mind when composing, remember that rules are meant to be broken.
49. Have a simple clear subject for your image
50. Using the natural surroundings to frame your composure can add more meaning and focus to your main subject. We can use almost anything as a frame, eg. tree branches, bushes, archways, tall buildings and doorways. Keep the focus on the main subject, and use a high f/stop when you need more depth of field.
51. The ‘keep it simple silly’ rule is just what it says. You should keep your composition relatively simple. If you have zoomed in close to your main subject, use appropriate Depth of Field to make the background out of focus, or make sure that nothing in the background interferes with the main subject, thus removing any distractions. This stops unwanted elements pulling the viewers eye away from the main subject.
52. Use leading lines to draw the viewer's eye through the photograph. This is an especially powerful technique to draw the viewer's attention to one or more intended subjects or a single focal point. Please be careful when using leading lines, make sure the lines don’t distract the viewer or lead them away from the main subject. The use of roads, water courses, fences, walls etc. can be useful as leading lines.
53. A different angle or perspective can often add impact to a photograph. Think lines, angles and height. Try crouching down, kneeling , climbing up higher, moving to the left or right. Better still, try to take a photo from a different angle, through a window, doorway, or an archway. Experiment with lenses. You could even invest in a fish-eye lens, which will give you a whole new perspective on everything.
54. Patience. It's better to consider a composition thoroughly (and technical aspects ) and take a single set of good images rather than take a scatter gun approach and shoot anything and everything in the area.
55. Bring an extra memory card
56. Never stand in the one spot and compose by zooming in and out. Learn what different focal lengths look like, pre-visualise the shot, set you focal length on your lens (or change to a different prime lens if required), then compose your shot by moving closer or further away from your subject.
57. If you are using a light meter built into your camera (reflective light meter), learn how it is calibrated and why there is a need to adjust for subjects with different reflectance/luminance.
58. Study different subject's luminance.
59. If you have a camera with a mirror, and the situation permits, always lock it up to reduce vibration. This should result in sharper images.
60. Learn when to use hyper-focal focusing or infinity focusing if shooting landscapes. The two techniques will produce different results, and different scenes may suit one technique more than the other.
61. Keep your lens hood on all the time, and use your lens cap whenever not shooting. These two things will offer the best protection for your lens. The lens hood can also help with flare and veiling flare, and can also provide more contrast to your images. Shooting with your lens cap attached will make your lens almost flare proof, although underexposure is a common side effect
62. For success with candid photos learn to shoot from the hip and see with your hands, visualising the frame lines.
63. Zone focus your camera using a small aperture and the depth of field scale on your lens (if it has one) if you are in a situation where preparation time for a photo is limited
64. Sharpness ... learn to breath correctly and hold camera steady for hand held shots and use a shutter cable and tripod for everything else
65. For portraiture - With people -If it bends bend it….
66. Learn to use a real light meter and don't rely too heavily on the camera's light metering.
67. You can preview white balance settings in live view mode (or at least you can with my Nikon), i.e. without taking a shot and just scrolling through them
68. keep both eyes open ..you never know what you are missing just over there
69. when photographing a sunset, always look behind you
70. never leave home without a camera
71. the best camera is the ones that's with you. (thanks Chase)
72. Keep your camera & lenses clean & dry.
73. make sure all your batteries are always full charged(including spares)
74. When taking pix of strangers where you will have their face in the pic always be friendly & ask permission.
75. Always put your lenses back into their bag/case when you take them off the camera.
76. Learn the zone system and the spot metering.
77. Use zip-lock bags when changing temperature/humidity conditions (like leaving hotel room in hot weather outside or coming back from shooting in winter).
78. If you have an old camera, do not throw it away, convert it to infra-red and try new way of taking pictures.
79. Do not make photos just to please others, please yourself first.
80. Whatever you do, there will be as many critics as supporters, so follow rule 79
81. When shooting stills use life-view for critical macro focusing (at maximum magnification, usually 10x).
82. If you do digital photography (or scan slides), spend time learning Photoshop, this is your darkroom.
83. Don't compose too tightly, it's easy to crop a little to get the composition right in Post Processing but impossible to put back what isn't there.
84. Check you have ALL your gear before heading out the door.
85. Don't think your lens will fit in your trouser/jeans pocket. It may but you will bend over, crouch, lean and it will fall out!
86. When you go out to shoot have in mind what you want to come back with and you'd be surprised how often you do.
87. When doing portraits NEVER ask your subject to smile. They either smile naturally or not at all.
88. When shooting sport get the face in the shot. If it's a ball sport get the ball in the shot.
89. Keep your shutter speed at 1/100s + 1/focal length for sharp shots. It's easier to fix noise caused by a higher ISO than to fix motion blur caused by a too low a shutter speed
90. If you have a fast lens, e.g. f/2.8, don;t always shoot at 2.8. Shoot for the background separation you need. Most lenses are not at their peak wide open.
91. Use condoms to cover your speed-lights in the wet
92. Before cleaning your lens with a micro-fibre cloth ensure that there is no grit on the lens or on the cloth
93. Use TTl-BL always if you use Nikon CLS.
94. Do not delete images off your CF card until you have two other copies stored
95. When taking landscapes be cognisant of the foreground the middle-ground and the background
96. Always use flash off camera and bounce the light if you can
97. When swapping lenses make sure you don't allow dust to get in. Is it windy? Drizzling? Seek protection from adverse conditions before you begin swapping.
98. If you can't afford to replace your gear make sure you insure it as an extra on your house insurance! It may be cheaper than you think and worth the peace of mind!
99. Memory cards:
    
    1. Don't touch the exposed gold contacts on the card
    2. Don't fill the card to full capacity, it may cause errors
    3. Keep spare cards in their protective cases, not loose in pockets etc
    4. Save images to computer and backup as soon as possible (and create a backup DVD copy for those really important images)
    5. NEVER EVER remove the card from a camera before turning off the camera! This is a great way to not only lose your images but to literally destroy the card
    6. If you do get an error and/or lose images, STOP! do absolutely nothing before taking the card to a camera store (or use special recovery software yourself). Image recovery software can recover files, even after formatting has taken place. DO NOT TAKE MORE IMAGES!
    7. Use a card reader to down load your photos to the computer, don't down load straight from your camera.
       (This one is debatable, but do ensure the battery on your camera is charged if you direct connect)
100. Lighting is critical when taking photographs. Always think about the amount of light on and around the subject.
101. Harsh Sunlight can throw heavy shadows, taking away colour and detail. Cloud cover can help with more even light for your photos.
102. Camera Shake: The slightest movement while taking a picture can lead to camera shake. Find out more about what causes this problem, and how to avoid it.
103. Landscape: Get Down: Avoid head-height perspective that we are all use by default. Get low to the ground can radically improve perspective and make the image zing.
104. Landscape: Tilt Forward: Improve the impact of your immediate location by tilting your camera forward and focusing on what's immediately in front of you; keeping the rest of the scene in frame
105. Landscape: Contrast: Look for a good dynamic range (lots of contrast) and maybe consider HDR processing to keep details (without overcooking it)

[Lianne]

Great list Kym, thanks for compiling it. I need to work on 13 and 23 - discipline. 65 and 91 - good tips. 58 and 82 are on the to do list.

One question though. I am not sure what you meant by

27. Look at the image in the viewfinder - not through the lens.

[Kym]

Great list Kym, thanks for compiling it. I need to work on 13 and 23 - discipline. 65 and 91 - good tips. 58 and 82 are on the to do list.
One question though. I am not sure what you meant by

For landscapes and similar fixed set-ups use live view rather than the optical viewfinder.

[honeyfly]

Excellent tips, thanks for sharing, I may have to print them off too!

[Bear Dale]

Thanks!