Tag Archives: improve photography

Top 20 Photography Websites 2012

Coming from a photography tutorial background myself, it’s no surprise that these websites mainly focus on learning, and reader evolvement. You can learn something new everyday with photography, and just when you think you know it all, something else comes along to challenge your abilities. That’s why I’ve compiled a list of what I believe to be the top 20 photography websites in the world.

I’m a self taught photographer, and when I first started, websites like these really helped me along, so I know what to look for in a great photography website.

The order of these websites have nothing to do with who writes them, or how many people follow them; it’s all about the content they produce.

This is a sequel to last year’s top 20.

Without further ado, here they are…

Top 20

1 - Fstoppers

Number one. This is going to need more justification than any of the others, so here it goes… Fstoppers do things a little bit differently; they base their website on videos. Really high quality videos. You may find this odd for someone such as myself, but even though I’ve written 200 articles for this website, I find it really hard to learn by reading on the internet. I’m a much more visual person, so Fstoppers really suit me well, and I hope you’ll find something good from them too.

This isn’t a traditional tutorial website like many of the others on this list, but I find their content to be just as interesting.

Here’s an excellent example of the type of content that you can expect from Fstoppers: The iPhone Fashion Shoot By Lee Morris.

2 - PopPhoto

If you viewed last year’s Top 20 Photography websites, then you’ll know that PopPhoto came out at number one, but this year, they’ve dropped one place, to number two. It’s just a really good all-round website, full of tutorials, photos, news, and reviews. I’ve found myself lost on their homepage for hours, delving into articles ranging from portrait photography, to the legal aspects of photography.

Here’s some reading to get you started: 12 Things You Didn’t Know Your DSLR Could Do.

3 - Pixiq

You have more than likely heard of Pixiq before, and if you haven’t, then I’m willing to be that you’ve read something by one of their writers, somewhere on the internet. They’ve invested in a team of contributors, many of which could (and do) run websites themselves. Names like Damien Franco, Alex Koloskov, and Haje Jan Kamps all spring to mind.

But enough name dropping, it’s the content that really matters. The first thing you’ll notice is that there’s a lot of posts on the legality of taking photos, and current cases, but this can make for some pretty heavy reading. I like to flick through their homepage scroller and explore the vast array of new content which is posted regularly.

Read this (don’t worry, it’s fairly light): How To Become A Successful Photographer.

4 - Strobist

David Hobby is the man. No question about it, when I want to know something to do with lighting, this is my first (and usually only) stop. Sure, it’s not the most attractive website in the world, and perhaps a little bit hard to work around, but it’s the content that speak for itself. I know that I’m not the only one who would say that his Lighting 101 course has changed the way I use my flash. David is also a fairly active Twitter user too and you can follow him here.

Same as last year, I recommend reading: Lighting 101.

5 - Digital Photography School

Here’s another website that needs no introduction. I know you’ve visited before, because lets face it, you can’t really Google anything to do with photography without ending up here. The site was started by Darren Rowse (a very highly respected blogger and photographer) in 2006, and it’s amassed an incredible 888,000 subscribers since then. It’s not about numbers though, it’s about the content, and DPS has plenty of it. With a huge range of guest writers, over many years, there’s barely anything that’s not been covered here. Be sure to check out their forum too.

Start here: Giving Film a Go.

6 - PictureCorrect

The thing I love about PictureCorrect is their diversity. Just have a look at their homepage, it ranges from cat photography, all the way down to the study of what makes one photographer different to another. I often frequent this website when I’m bored, because there’s always something just a little bit different on there. It’s also an excellent resource for finding reviews for camera gear, and shopping guides. Be sure to check out their photographers network.

This is good: Photographing Smoke.

7 - Fro Knows Photo

Love him or hate him; pick one… That seems to be the general consensus at least. He’s a photographers with a big personality and even bigger hair, from which the name of the site came. Seriously though, he provides some really good content, and if you shoot in RAW (you do, don’t you? You’d better), then you will find his website really useful.

I don’t really know where to start, he has such an extensive selection of content, ranging from quick tips, beginner’s advice, and hands on with the new Lytro camera (the one where you can select the focus later), to videos of him chatting with his grandma.

The site is run by Jared Polin, who I met back in March and ending up losing a dance-off to (not even joking). You’ve probably seen his ‘I Shoot RAW’ T-Shirts about before, and although I didn’t really like his old designs, he’s brought out some really cool ones recently. And I know for a fact that he throws from freebies in with the package too. I’m still waiting for the one he said he’d give me though (I’m a medium Jared)…

Click on the ‘Random’ slot machine at the top of the page.

8 - Light Stalking

Light stalking focuses on beautiful photography, so if that’s your thing (and I’m assuming it is), then this is the site for you. I regularly find my newsfeed on Facebook filled with posts like ’50 Beautiful photos of…’ and ’100 photography links…’, so although they focus slightly less on tutorials (there’s still plenty), they still make for a great resource.

As someone who shoots with wide angles a lot, I really enjoyed this: What Photographers Must Know About Using Extreme Wide Angle Lenses.

9 - Improve Photography

Improve Photography is run by Jim Harmer, who seems to never sleep. By that, I mean not only has he built this very successful website in a little over a year, but written ebooks, created courses, tons of content, photos, and other websites too. Oh, and he’s also finishing a law degree. You may well have been linked to Improve Photography before, because something Jim is really good at, is writing content that gets shared relentlessly on the internet. It’s a really great, young website, that has come far in a very short space of time. Watch out for this one.

Here’s what has to be his most popular article: 22 Things You Can Do Today To Change Your Photography Forever.

10 -Cambridge In Colour

Cambridge In Colour have jumped up one place from last year, and for one very simple reason: they’ve redone their website. A simple, yet effective redesign has made it much more welcoming, and easier to browse, and their content has always spoken for itself. I would liken this website to an online textbook, as the resources cover everything you could hope for, and is organized in a way that’s easy to browse. Why’s it not higher on the list? Well, although the content is very good and excels in some areas, I have found it to be lacking in some really important subjects, such as composition.

When it’s good, it’s great: Natural Light In Photography.

11 - PhotoTuts

PhotoTuts is probably one of the biggest websites on this list, because it’s not just a website, it’s an entire network. Content is posted everyday in their photography section, but it seems that they’ve started to take the website in a different direction. They’ve started charging people to view their premium content. I’m not saying that it wouldn’t be worth the money, and I’m certainly not suggesting that the rest of the content is no good, but it’s not really in the same spirit as the rest of the websites on this list. Nevertheless, a great website.

I just found this, and it’s really useful: An Expert Guide to Matting and Framing a Photo.

12 - 500px

If you read last year’s list, then you will probably notice the distinct lack of Flickr on this list, which has been replaced with 500px instead. I don’t really think I need to explain why Flickr isn’t that great anymore, and I’ve found that more serious photographers have made the switch to 500px instead. It’s a really nice website to navigate and photos look great on there, with a simple UI.

But wait, there’s more! There’s a really cool blog on 500px, which focuses on taking photos and good photography. Check it out.

Here’s one I’ve featured on this blog before: Almost (I’ll make ya) Famous.

13 - Chase Jarvis

These next three blogs have been the hardest to put them in order, because where do you place three personal blogs, which easily rival any of the other websites on here? I first came across Chase Jarvis a couple years ago when I saw this video on Workflow, and I’ve been a fan ever since. Not only does his blog cover the same sorts of tutorials, news, and videos that the other websites here do, but it also focuses on a behind the scenes look into the world of a professional photographer.

This video changed the way I manage my photos: Chase Jarvis TECH: Complete Workflow for Photo and Video.

14 - Scott Kelby

Scott Kelby is a name you’re probably very familiar with, maybe because you’ve read one of his 2 books on my Top 20 Photography Books post, or perhaps Scott has taught you Photoshop & Photography at KelbyTraining.com. He is also Editor-in-Chief for Photoshop User magazine and hosts shows at KelbyTV.com. If you’ve not heard of Scott, then that description probably gives you an good indication of what it is he does. Whenever I want to know something about Photoshop, one of Scott’s websites always helps me out.

This is really a pretty big undersell, but we don’t have all day, just be sure to have a browse through his website.

15 - Joe McNally

You might know Joe from his 3 books on my Top 20 Photography Books, or perhaps his place in my Top 20 Most Influential Photographer Bloggers, but it’s more likely that you’ve seen his website before. The one thing that Joe has really helped me the most with is portrait lighting, which is a subject he covers often. Again, no description will do him justice, go and click on the link below.

Don’t like reading from a computer too much? Check out his videos.

16 - DIY Photography

This is a great website to be creative with your photography and impress your friends with the results (while taking all the credit too). The site’s content ranges from cool photography products, to interesting photography ideas, and of course, DIY Photography. By DIY photography, I mean photos that were taken with a low budget gear, which look like they were taken with much more expensive kit. It’s no secret that studio gear is expensive, so it’s great to see a website which is getting similar results, at a much lower cost.

Here’s a great example of what to expect: How To Build A White Background Home Video Studio.

17 - Photography Talk

This is one of the best photography communities on the internet, with over 200,000 fans on Facebook. The tutorials on this website are… alright, but there’s nothing that really stands out too much to me. I think the main selling point of this website is the forum. It’s enormous. I typically don’t like big forums, but this one is actually pretty welcoming, and sometimes you just can’t beat a community of photographers that size. There’s so much knowledge floating around, and people that are happy to help, it’s a great place to go if you’ve got any problems.

Check out the forum.

18 - British Journal of Photography

BJP is THE photography news website on the internet, and with very good reason. Established in 1854, British Journal of Photography is the longest-running photography magazine in not just Britain, but the world. The site is updated daily with news articles, informational resources, community galleries, and forums. This is a proper website, with quality articles; it’s for more serious photographers with a true interest in the industry.

And as a Brit myself, it’s nice to tip my hat to another British website.

Looking for work? Check out the jobs section.

19 - PhotoShelter

You may well be familiar with PhotoShelter if you run your photography website with them, but did you know they have a blog too? Their main site is great for photographers because they provide professional photography templates, as well as client and sales management tools, for a pretty reasonable price. Their blog is a free service though, with a really useful and diverse selection of content. They cover composition, tips on creating your portfolio, advice on the business of photography, search engine optimisation, and much more.

Here’s a good place to start: 10 Secrets to Successful Online Photo Portfolios.

20 - PetaPixel

PetaPixel take the best photography content on the internet, and share it with you on their own website. I’ve even been featured there myself. It’s a really lazy way to keep on top of some of the best photography websites around, and find content that’s a little bit different to the tutorials that you may typically browse. This is the sort of website that I like to click ‘like’ on Facebook, and then browse through their updates in my newsfeed when I’m bored or procrastinating (daily).

Here’s an example of what you can expect: Woman Born Completely Blind Now a Successful Photographer.

Bonus Site

Photo Attorney

This website is like a niche within a niche; it’s photography law, within photography. It’s a really good website to go to if you have any questions about the legality of certain photography situations. It can be a little bit heavy at times, but they do provide some really good content.That’s the complete list! I hope you’ve found a couple of sites that you’ve not heard of before, and if there’s any that you think should be in this list, please leave a comment below.

Enjoy this post and want to see more?

Click Like below, and if you’re feeling extra nice, pin this.

How Learning Composition Will Dramatically Improve Your Photography

This is a post that I’ve had in me for almost the entire life of my website, which is nearing a year now, but I’ve never been able to put it into words before now. I always try to bring you varied content on this website, so I will look at what I haven’t written about in a while, and write about that to make the site more interesting. The problem is though, no matter how much I write about composition, people are just never as interested.

I can track how many people have been on my website, and where they’ve come from, where in the world they live, how long they stay on the site, how many pages they visit, and which are the most popular pages (this sounds a little creepy, but I can’t tell who you are, and this is common practice through Google software). Time after time, I’ve found that my articles on composition have been the least popular content, even though I regard it as some of the most important content to learn.

I’d like to change how you view composition.

It sort of feels like you’re in school when you’re learning about composition, because there’s a lot to learn, and a lot of theory to go with it. Along with this theory, you need a fair about of practice to start seeing results too.

People seem to be afraid of hard work, and to be honest, I’m not surprised. It’s just the world we live in these days. If we want something, then we will Google it, and find out the answer in a matter of moments. We’re so used to having this wealth of knowledge on demand that sitting down and studying something seems like so much more of a chore. Even when there is so much to be gained from studying something, it just doesn’t seem worth the effort. For most at least.

But what if you were different? What if you went the extra mile?

There’s a video that I would like to quote; it’s the last lecture of Randy Pausch. I hope you’ve seen it before, because it really opened my eyes (which is rare), but if not, then here is the video.

The quote I would like to reference, or at least paraphrase is:

“The brick walls aren’t there to stop you, they’re there to stop the people that don’t want it bad enough.”

Now I’m not here to get all deep and meaningful on you, but I would like to pose a question to you: What if you went the extra mile and put in the work and practice that other people seem to think is so hard (it’s not)? If they got stopped by the brick walls (studying composition), but you powered through, then what does that leave you? Well, it leaves you with a less crowded market of better photographers, which you can be a part of.

Studying composition is not hard, but it does take extra effort that most people don’t seem to be willing to put in, so you’re already at an advantage if you do decide to pursue it.

Portfolio Export Print 471 How Learning Composition Will Dramatically Improve Your Photography

“There are no rules to composition”

Technically, no, you’re right, there are no rules to composition. There are no rules to any artform, but there are guides, and we call these guides, rules, just to make things easier for us. So when I say that you should follow the rules of composition, what I really mean is that you should study the rules so that you have them in your knowledge and use them to your advantage.

Mixed Messages

If you’ve just bought your camera, then it’s pretty standard practice (at least I hope it is) for people to start learning about exposure when they buy their first camera, and them move onto slightly more complicated aspects of their camera, such as metering modes and white balance. This is good and it’s all in my beginner’s guide to photography. If you want to make the most out of your camera, you need to do this. This is what I teach with my beginner’s guide to photography, and I would suggest you look at it if you haven’t already.

Now that’s out of the way, lets have a look at what people seem to be doing next…

Well, mostly, it would seem that the answer is not a lot. I’m usually pretty happy if people make it this far, because learning from the internet is hard enough as it is, and if I can get my reach to go just that far, then it’s happy days around here. I want to reach further though, because the content is here, and that’s why I do it, so that people will learn. If you take on the full package, and start learning composition, then you’ll really start to see the big changes.

Here it goes…

The Rules of Composition

In my tutorial archive, you will see plenty of tutorials on composition, which I’ve written over the past year. I count around 20 different articles to get you started with the basics, moving onto more complicated aspects. If you’re just getting started, then I would suggest looking at my beginner’s guide to composition.

You will cover the basics such as the rule of thirds, and visual weight, and move onto dynamic tension and juxtaposition. You will start to understand more than just how to take a photo, but how to think about your photos, and what to do before you take them. This will change where you stand, how you crop, how to balance the photo, and how you view the scene, and so on.

How will it change my photography?

Well, I made a pretty bold claim with the title of this post, saying that it will dramatically improve the quality of your photos, and I stand by that. I can’t say exactly what it will do to your photography, but here’s what it’s done for mine, and if this isn’t enough to convince you, then I dont know what is:

I think MUCH more about a photo before I take it.
I think MUCH faster about the potential photo.
I see with the eyes of a photographer, rather than those of a bystander.
I look for depth in a photo.
I see dynamic tension with ease, where as the viewer just feel it, which is exactly how it should be.
I frame my photos so that they stay interesting, and so that they’re 3D, rather than 2D.
I’ve stopped trying to make a boring scene interesting, and easily see potential in scenes that I would have missed before.
My progression from a bad photo to a good photo is a lot faster.
I’ve learned how to focus the attention of the viewer to where I want them to look.
I’ve started to fix my mistakes while I’m taking the photos, instead of getting back to the computer and seeing what I should have done.
I know how to balance a photo to evoke a certain feeling.
I can make much more from a single point.
I can create invisible lines with eye-lines.
I can use a variety of lines to change how the viewer sees and feels about a photo.
The list goes on and on… I could be here for hours.

I really hope that this has helped to convince you to focus your learning onto the right aspects of photography.

Separate yourself from the competition by learning composition today.

Master Photography with These 10 Exhaustive Steps

Mastering photography is simple and hard at the same time. It’s simple because it mostly comes down to practice, hard work, and a thirst for knowledge, but it’s hard because not everyone has what it takes. I would liken it to any other art form, whether you use a paintbrush, or a musical instrument; it takes a lot of talent to become good. This is the sort of talent that you either have, or don’t have, because much like you can’t train a terrible voice to sing, you can’t train a poor eye to see. And that’s what photography is really, it’s seeing something that others miss, and capturing it in a photo.

Read Your Camera’s Manual

Day 1: Read your camera manual. I know it sounds a lame, but this is really important if you want to progress fast with your photography. If you’re using an old film camera, they’re really easy to learn, but if you’re using a shiny new DSLR, then there will be features in there that you’ll never understand until you’ve picket up your camera’s manual. When I got my first DSLR, that’s the first thing I did, in fact, I carried it around with me when ever I used to go out on photowalks, because I found that learning something once wasn’t enough for me, I had to constantly check up on it.

I’m a kinesthetic learner so reading from a book wasn’t the best way for me to learn, but so long as I had my camera with me to use at the same time, I could learn much more easily. If you don’t follow this step first, then the rest of the process is going to be an uphill struggle.

Learn Exposure

Exposure is key to learning photography, because every photo is an exposure. Learning how exposure works will help you to take control of your camera, and take better photos. As you start to learn what shutter speed, aperture and ISO does, you’ll learn about the other affects that each have on your photos, which can produce creative results.

The more you know about how exposure works, the easier it will be for you to take great photos, as you’ll have a better understanding of the consequences to the changes you make to your camera. Poor exposure is one of the most popular contributors to bad photography, so by simply learning what it takes to correctly capture a photo, you’re well on the way to taking better photos.

Learn The Rest

Once you’ve got exposure out of the way, you’ll be in a much better frame of mind to start learning what the rest of your camera can do, and seeing as you’ve read your camera’s manual, you’ll find it easy to do on your camera. This can range from basic camera settings like metering modes, white balance, and exposure compensation, to depth of field, focal length and the crop factor. The more you understand, the more knowledge you will have at your disposal when it comes to taking photos.

The first thing you should look into is shooting modes, because the sooner you understand what the different mode dials do, the sooner you’ll be able to get away from shooting on full-auto or program, and start shooting in manual or a priority mode, which will always produce better photos if done properly.

Learn Composition

Learning composition has undoubtably made a huge difference to the way in which I take photos, because I now start to see things that I used to miss, and adjust my framing to include them. This can be anything from using the rule of thirds and vertical lines, to the golden section and eye-lines. It can be very complicated on first glance, but the more you read up about composition techniques, the more you’ll start to see it when you look through your viewfinder, and taking good photos will become much easier.

The difference between my photography before and after I studied composition is quite astounding, because I know better than to take a photo without thinking about how it can be improved fist, and the more you practice, the faster that decision making will become.

Forget Composition

I know, I know, I just told you to learn composition, but as with everything, it’s never that simple. If I just said that you had to learn composition, you’d think that the struggle was over and your photos would turn out great, which isn’t the case. You need to learn composition so that you can start to see how you might improve a photo, but forget all of the ‘rules’, because in reality they’re not rules at all, they’re guides.

These guides will help to guide your eyes into taking great photos, but should never be followed just for the sake of it. There are no rules to taking great photos, because all art if subjective, and one man’s junk can be another man’s treasure. So long as you’ve installed the knowledge of composition in your mind, then you’ll be able to see what you can do to take better photos.

Take your Camera Everywhere

This will make a huge difference to your photography because if you’ve always got your camera on you, you’ll start to develop the eyes and mind of a photographer. Instead of just looking for photos when you’re taking your camera on a walk, you’ll start to see these potential photos everywhere, as you’ll always have your camera on you. Not only will it help to train your mind, but you’ll actually start taking better photos, because you’ll be taking more of them.You can’t take a photo if you don’t have a camera on you.

Buy a good camera strap, like a Sun Sniper, and start to organise your photography workflow better, then this will all start to happen very easily.

Buy a New Lens

Be careful about this one because buying a new lens can spawn somewhat of a habit, which gets expensive. When you start to see what a new lens can do for your photography, and your understanding, you’ll want to buy a lot more. I learned a lot about photography by buying a 50mm f/1.8, because as I said before, I’m a kinesthetic learner, and it’s easier for me to see how changing something on my camera, will change my photos. You’ll start to learn more about aperture, depth of field, sharpness, focal length, perspective, and lighting, to name just a few. There really is only so much that you can do by reading, and it gets to a point where you do just have to pick up a camera and start taking photos.

Start a Photo Project

I recently wrote about photo projects and what they can do for your photography in this post, and I’m a big fan of them because they can focus your learning into a certain area, as well as encourage regular photography. It can get a little bit tedious, but if you can stick with it, it will force you to take better photos. They make for excellent new years resolutions, because for at least a few months, you will have a focus on something that you want to do. More than anything, a project, such as a 365 will track your progress as a photographer, and encourage you to take more photos, which will invariably see you improve.

Join a Photography Community

Communities are a great way to start interacting with people who are interested in similar aspects of photography as you, whether it’s a certain style of photography, or help with photography in general. I used to use Flickr, but I generally prefer smaller communities. Sites like Flickr and 500px are a great way to find people who are into the same sorts of photography as you, as well as being reliable backups. I personally no longer use either, but that’s largely down to the amount of time I have available (running websites, a Facebook fan page, and a Twitter account can take a lot of time).

I like to use smaller photography forums, such as the Expert Photography Forum, which allows me to help other people with their photography, as well as find answers for myself – I would encourage you to check it out.

Write a Photography Blog

This one may surprise you as an option for improving your photography, and I’ll be honest, it surprises me too. When I started this website, I never knew the effect that it would have over my time, and my photography, and I certainly welcome the way it has changed both. It has encouraged me to do more photography for the fun of it, as well as experiment with different styles and techniques, which has ultimately improved my photography.

You don’t have to wait years to start one, and you don’t even have to write, or teach anything, it can just be a collection of your photography if you like, such as a Tumblr page. No one needs to read it if you don’t want, it can just be for you, like a personal photography diary. When you start to sit down and study your photography (I do encourage writing about it), then it will start to become clear where you’re going wrong, and what you can do to improve.

Instagram, Hipstamatic and Other Reasons Photography Is Starting To Suck

Introduction

It’s not all bad, and there’s no reason to think that good photography can’t be done on an iPhone, it’s purely the effects that these apps are having on the mind of a potential photographer. People start to think that because it looks quirky and old looking, that it’s good photography, which is holding back potential greatness from photographers.

Why It Sucks

If you’ve followed my blog for a while, you’ll know by now that I’m not really a big fan of photoshop; that much is clear from just looking at my photos. That’s not to say that I don’t do anything to them, because I do adjust exposure, contrast, black point, and clean up skin quite regularly, but I never use it as a tool to make a boring photo interesting. A good photo will stand up on it’s own without the need for photoshopping, but it can be used to make small adjustments to make it better. You can adjust a bad photo until the cows come home, but it’s still going to be a bad photo.

If you’ve ever tried to take a photo everyday, similar to a 365 project, you’ll understand that it’s a pretty hard thing to keep up and it starts to loom over you everyday. I attempted one with my digital SLR, and it was even harder because it meant either going out everyday and taking photos, or having lots of photos of my dog. If you take it seriously, and have the time to complete them, you will find that your photography improves, but for the majority of people, it’s too much like hard work. The good thing about the project was that it encouraged me to carry my camera with me everywhere which meant that I was taking more photos which turned out good, but I ultimately didn’t have time to use it everyday and ended up producing a lot of rubbish too.

Apps such as Instagram take the idea of a daily photo blog and turn it into an iOS app for your iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad and throw in a bunch of filters in there for good measure. You can get some good results from your iPhone, but as I said before, photoshopping for photoshopping’s sake is not a good thing. Currently, Instagram have 150 million photos uploaded, that’s 15 going up every second, with a staggering 80% of using filters (and a bunch more in the other 20% have had filters applied in other apps, such as Hipstamatic). The pressure of trying to get a good photo by the end of the day invariably leads to poor content and composition of everyday life, enhanced by obvious digital filters. This is doing photography no good whatsoever.

These photos are then shared through Facebook and other means where the photographer receives praise for their work. Now, I have no problem with this as it is, but what’s not good is when people start to see this as photography, as they’ll never learn how to really improve on the artform, which they may have otherwise been interested in. To help you understand what I’m getting at, I’m going to show you a couple photos that I took, both of which I like, but I consider one to be much better than the other.

Here’s a photo of my friend who’s a model. Now, there’s no mistaking that she’s very attractive and there’s no denying that the lack of clothes make the photo much more interesting. There are some good techniques used in this photo, such as fill flash and shooting into the sun, but the main reason to be attracted to this photo is the beautiful model.

Compare the photo above with the photo below and you’ll see a stark difference – I could speak for ages about why this photo is good, listing elements such as triangles, colour, grain, contrast, form, lighting, visual weight, eye lines, rule of thirds, etc. I’ve learnt how to take photos like this from studying composition and technique, practicing on film and understanding my camera. I consider this to be a far better photo.

If I were to only ever take photos of half naked girls in fields, I’m sure that I would gain a lot of recognition, but my photography wouldn’t improve a whole lot. When you take time to study photography, you’ll find that you start to take it all in without even realising it. The photo above was taken in the mens room of a local pub (but don’t worry, it’s a friend of mine), and as I walked in, I saw the shot in the mirror and lifted up my camera, at the same time he looked up and I captured the shot. When you know your way around even the most basic of composition, it really does become that easy with a bit of practice.

That’s the thing about iPhone apps that appear to do all the work for you, they make you think that what you’ve created is something special, when in reality, it’s just an excuse to rearrange a bottle of gin, a porcelain model of a dog, tilt the camera and apply some dodgy filters to make it look 50 years older than it actually is. I encourage anyone who’s trying to take photography seriously to start learning composition and put down their phones.

On top of that, if you do want to try to improve your photography, start a 365 project where you have to take a photo everyday. It’s tough and you may find you’re producing a lot of bad shots, but that’s what these projects do; they force rubbish and inspire greatness – just don’t share these bad shots. The most important thing to do with your photography though, is to go into it, looking to only please yourself. If you spend you’re whole time trying to impress others, or compare your work to other people’s, you’ll never be happy with your own results.

I’ve had this little rant inside of me for a while now and I’m glad I finally managed to get it out. I would encourage everyone who’s managed to get this far into the article to click on the links throughout the page and start learning more about photography. As always, I encourage you to come and join my Facebook page where I have more discussions and photos which don’t make it onto here.