I'm horrible at taking pictures! Besides taking Photo classes, how can I take awesome pictures?

Question

allow me to rephrase:

I want to take better pictures.
mine are never any good.
perhaps i'm without help.
but can anyone tell me how
i might take better pictures.

*(i don't know, maybe i'm just not photogenic!)*

thanks very much!

Answer 1

Get close enough for some details.
When you set up for your picture, make sure it looks like the subject you want. No extras... or edit them out later on the computer.

I found Basic Design 1 and Basic Design 2 to be more helpful with my photography than the actualy photography class I took years later.

Take pictures of what YOU like.
Make sure there's not lines or poles, etc. going into your subject. Take your time when setting up for your pictures.

Good luck!

Answer 2

There are a few common mistakes that novice photographers make which can easily be remedied. I'll assume that you're using a point and shoot camera which doesn't have any exposure controls.

First consider your subject's background. Try to keep the sun behind you and keep the background clean. This keeps your focus from being overshadowed by the light. Plus without trees and signposts growing out of the subject's heads, it keeps the viewer's eye where you want it.

Change your viewpoint: Often the difference between a good picture and a great picture is only 3-5 feet. If you're shooting kids or pets, get down at their level instead of shooting from a standing position. If you watch professional photographers in the field you'll notice that they very seldom stand in one spot for very long, and you'll see them crouching, standing on chairs, even lying right on the ground to change their perspective.

Composition is simply explained by one rule: Don't put anything dead center in the frame. The "Rule of Thirds", taught to every photographer dictates that your subject should be one third of the way from the left or right side of the frame and/or one third of the way from the top or bottom of the frame. This give a dynamic feel to the photos and causes the eye to move across the scene rather than just settling on the middle. There are always exceptions to every rule however...knowing when to break the rules comes with experience.

Get close! A great photographer who mentored me once said that when you think you're close enough take two giant steps closer. Remember that when you're looking thru the lens in a point and shoot camera everything is going to look a little farther away because of how wide the view of the lens is. Taking a step or two closer to the subject makes it that much bigger in the frame.

With some practice I think you'll find that these tips really improve your photography and hopefully you'll start exploring photography further.

Answer 3

The camera doesn't matter as much as some people might care to believe. See Ken Rockwell's page on why it is not the camera (link below).

Buy or borrow a couple of primers and look at the issues of composition. These can be applied irrespective of the type of camera you have.

When you do take photos, work out want you don't like, and work out how to stop getting that effect. Good professional photographers get that way by taking lots of photos and reflecting on the good and bad, and working out how to keep getting the good while getting rid of the bad.

Digital allows even everyday amateurs to do the same without breaking the bank.

Answer 4

Taking photo classes alone will not improve your photography which is why in many photo schools you are required to take classes outside your major within the field of art. This means taking classes in design theory(color theory, 2d, and 3d concepts), illustration, art/photo history, drawing etc. The concepts of art-making that you get from these classes easily translates over to photography.
However I am confused by your use of the word photogenic. Do you imply that as the subject of photos you never look any good? Photogenic refers to looking good in photographs. For example portraits of Ansel Adams were never photogenic, but when the camera was in his hands his images were stunning.

Answer 5

Practice, practice, practice....

The only way to take better pictures is to take a lot of bad ones first and then determine what makes them bad, then fix your mistakes in the next ones.

If you don't have one already, I'd suggest that you buy an inexpensive digital camera because then you can take all the pictures you want for free (until you get ones that are good enough to print out.)

One way that I've found to practice taking better pictures is to participate in a weekly amateur photo-contest (with a different theme every week), I typically shoot 20-30 pictures so that I can pick the 2 or 3 best ones for the contest. If you're interested in participating just visit us here: http://farktography.net

Answer 6

Get a picture of a bird or any other critter sitting on a tree branch. Call it "The Branch Manager." or: A leaf setting alone from others, call it: "Leave me alone." or, A Dog sitting by a tree. "The Bark is worse than the bite." Go outside the envelope with stupid things you might say on an everyday basis. Use the ball idea above in Terisus idea, but caption it with "There's an Oddball in every bunch." or, "Don't Egg me on." Once you start, you will be flooded with ideas. Good luck, I know you'll do good. A picture of the back end of a Hearse with the caption "The End".

Answer 7

*Practice makes perfect.... Go to the library, you know the place with all the books and check out some photography magazines and try to "copy" what they are doing... Set your subjects, try different angles.. Look for interesting vantage points.. Just keep doing it, and eventually you will find that the photo's speak to you and you will see the world differently through the eyes of a camera lens.....

Answer 8

mayb try using a better camera and just practice