How you can improve your photography with three simple things:
1) M0ve in on your subject. The first step in previsualization of your image is to decide who or what your subject is. With a kit lens, you can get as close as 23 inches to your subject. This is called FILLING THE FRAME. This method has other benefits as well, because the closer you are to the subject, the blurrier the background will be. If your goal is to have a shallow depth of field this is one way to do it. This works with all subjects; people, bugs, flowers, and the more intimate parts of nature. Pick out your subject first and let the other elements of the image be the supporting case.
2) Do not shoot in auto. Let me repeat: Do not shoot in auto. When you shoot in auto, the camera does all the thinking for you and leaves you without any control. Auto mode chooses the ISO, white balance, aperture, and shutter speed and many of the creative functions are not available in this mode. The pop-up flash will go up automatically if the camera senses the ambient light is not light enough. Many times this can ruin the mood of an image. I teach beginners to shoot in aperture priority or shutter priority first before they tackle advanced features such as manual mode. There are tons of videos on the two modes. Learn them now so you can become a better photographer.
3) Change the camera orientation for the subject. I see new photographers shooting all the time with the camera held horizontally. You should change the camera orientation to vertical for vertical subjects such as people, trees, tall flowers, tall anything. Subjects that are tall should be shot vertical, not horizontal (but not always). The subject will look more natural and you will not need to crop from horizontal to vertical in post-process. Practice holding your camera in the vertical position and find out which way is more comfortable for you; with the shutter button on the top or bottom.
To view my portrait photography site visit Lightscapes Portrait Studio.
If you would like to learn more about DSLR photography visit Studio 2.8
To view my fine art photography site visit Mary Buck Photography.
