One important technique to understand in photography, especially when you’re starting out, is the concept of focus. If you don’t focus properly, you will end up with blurry photos even when all your other camera settings are correct. Focusing can be easy or difficult depending on your subject, like a nonmoving landscape versus a fast-moving bird in flight. This guide covers everything you need to know in order to focus properly and capture sharp images.
The 70-200mm focal length f/2.8 lens has become a staple in the photography world with each camera manufacturer offering their variant on this now classic design. The history of the autofocus-capable 70-200mm f/2.8 lens within the Canon universe stretches all the way back to 1989 with the introduction of the Canon 80-200mm f/2.8 L lens, whose high quality and innovative design went a long way in cementing Canon’s strong market position heading into the 90’s.
As you dive into the art of photography, you quickly hear that you need to find your own “voice.” Your own style. Something that sets you apart from everyone else. That as you continue on your photography journey your voice will start to emerge and develop.
But how do we find our own voice? How do we set ourselves apart from all of the other amazing photographers whose work we love? How to do create work that is true to our personal style instead of just creating what we think other people will like?
There are so many ways to figure out your voice and style with a camera in hand. However, sometimes the best way to find your style is to put the camera down for a bit.
Take time to look inwards at yourself. Step away from photography and find the other activities that feed your soul and your creative side. Spend some time doing the activities that make you feel happy and inspired. Take a break to reconnect with yourself and try and get all of the other ‘voices’ out of your head.
These are my favorite 5 non-photography activities for reconnecting with my voice. Engaging in these activities will fuel your creativity and help you take photographs that are true to you.
My journaling days started in high school. Reflecting on the days activities, my dreams for the future, my goals, my feelings, my thoughts, my emotions. A private place where I could just write. All unedited thoughts without being judged, and all just for my eyes only. I would probably find my old journals a bit cringeworthy to read now, but cringeworthy or not they’ve been my therapy and a creative outlet for me that I wouldn’t change for the world.
If you want to get in touch with your internal world, take a few minutes each day to write. Remember it is just for you, so write whatever you want, however you want. You can write lists, make notes, write full paragraphs, record favorite quotes or song lyrics.
Related: How to keep a photography journal
By writing, you’ll quickly start to clarify your feelings and will get to know yourself better. You’ll soon learn what makes you happy and what doesn’t.
As an added bonus for us creatives, when you write you use your left brain, which is the analytical and rational side of the brain. While your left brain is busy writing, your right brain is free to create and feel.
Research has proven that listening to music makes you happier. It also lowers stress, improves health, helps with learning and memory, makes you work out harder, and improves sleep. With so many benefits to your overall health, there really is no reason to not get listening.
Music is a universal language that can be understood and felt by all. Luckily, there is no shortage of opportunities to connect with it! We hear music everywhere from the car, shops, at the gym, at the doctor’s office, at work, in restaurants, in our homes. We even encounter music while we are stuck waiting on hold with customer service!
Music has the power to influence our mood, behavior, and thoughts. Think about that feeling in the car when your favorite song you haven’t heard in ages comes on. How do you feel at the gym when an upbeat fast tempo song comes on? Do certain songs sparks specific memories? Perhaps they even bring you to shed a few tears. That’s the power of music.
What you choose to listen to is your choice and will likely coincide with your photographic voice. Rap, rock, country or classical…take your pick! Whatever you’re in the mood for, crank up those tunes and have a dance party, do some exercise, or simply lay down and relax. Just get listening!
As photographers, we are artists who have an internal need to create. If we’re not creating with our camera, we likely need another outlet to meet that need.
Painting, drawing, sewing, cooking, gardening, crafting, writing, graphic design, singing, interior design, dancing, playing an instrument…the choice is yours! Choose something you know you already enjoy doing or try something new. Try an activity once and move on or let it become a new hobby.
Accept and appreciate that there are other sources of inspiration in your creative life other than photography. Influences outside of photography may be where you’ll find your inspiration for your style.
Take a trip to a museum or a local art gallery. It doesn’t need to showcase photography! Any artistic medium will do.
All art, including photography, is subjective to the viewer. We all come from different backgrounds full of different experiences and expectations and thus have various opinions on art.
When visiting a museum or a gallery, try to move beyond simple ‘I like it’ or ‘I don’t like it.’ Consider how the art makes you feel. What about it do you like or not like? Why? If the art isn’t relatable to you, why not? What experiences did the artist have that you don’t resonate with?
The idea is to dig deep into your own thoughts and answer the questions honestly for you. Beyond being inspired by the art, answering these questions will help you to ask the same questions of your own work. It is when you do this that your true photographic style emerges.
The list of benefits to being outdoors in nature is long enough to fill this entire article and then some! We all know how good we feel when we step away from technology, get outside in the fresh air, and reconnect with nature.
For me, the beach is my happy place. I can feel it in my body, in my soul. It’s my calming place. The beach brings me healing. The magic of the beach with the sand, water, surf, and sun is where I feel most alive and most at peace.
Related: Love nature? Here are 33 photos that capture Earth
The beach is my place, but for you it may be the mountains, the woods, the desert, or the plains. You need to go wherever makes your heart happy. When your mind is at peace and your heart is happy you’ll be more productive and more creative.
If you’re struggling to find your voice, reconnect and look within yourself. Your style isn’t trying to hide from you, it’s right inside of you!
Do the things that feed your soul. Listen to the things that draw you in. The things that make you most happy. The things that inspire you are often hints in the direction to take your photography.
When you are simply enjoying life the best ideas will occur and you will find you have the best photo opportunities. So find what speaks to you outside of photography and allow them to inspire your pictures. Make those images and then share them, and your voice, with the world!
The post 5 Non-photography activities to help you find your photographic style appeared first on Clickin Moms blog: Helping you take better pictures one day at a time.
Clickin Moms blog: Helping you take better pictures one day at a time
We are excited to offer the biggest promotion we have run to date on Photography Life on Cyber Monday. During the day tomorrow, you can grab ANY of our photography courses at a whopping 50% discount! And if that’s not enough, we are also extending our huge discount on the bundles, so that you can save even more! Please note that this offer is time sensitive and the deal will expire on Tuesday, so we recommend that you act quickly.
Winter’s frigid temperatures, early sunsets, and desolate landscapes. Winter makes me want to hibernate inside, count down the days until spring, and drink my body weight in hot chocolate!!!
However, this time of year actually holds many unique opportunities for photos and making memories. Whether it’s the beautiful bokeh of Christmas lights, a quiet snowfall, or holiday traditions, don’t let your camera collect dust during these colder months. Let these ideas inspire your winter photos.
The end of the year is filled with photo-worthy family traditions! Baking cookies, lighting candles, decorating the Christmas tree, exchanging gifts, or reading by the fireplace are all great opportunities for taking out your camera.
Make a list of some of your family’s favorite winter activities. Create a list of some key moments you want to capture. Add variety to your photos by getting in close for detail shots and then stepping back to capture the whole scene.
It wouldn’t be the holidays without strings of lights. They adorn Christmas trees, rooftops, shopping centers, and parks and lend a special magic to any scene. These lights give the perfect opportunity to create fairy bokeh – blurry, unfocused circles of light.
You create bokeh using a narrow depth of field with a large aperture. Set-up your photo with lights far off in the distance behind your subject or in between the camera and your subject.
Bokeh can also be the subject! Switch the focus on your lens to manual and twist until you get the desired blurry effect.
For additional fun, create bokeh shapes! You can make bokeh hearts, stars, or crosses with your own DIY filters.
All you need is black poster board, scissors, and a craft knife. Trace your lens cap on the black poster board, and cut out the circle. Draw your desired shape in the middle, and use the craft knife to cut it out. Hold your filter up to your lens and watch how the light molds into your shape in your pictures!
Shooting during the magic of golden hour is a revelation for any photographer. With the sun lower in the sky, the light becomes softer, warmer in color, and beautiful from every angle.
The great news about winter is that, depending on where you live, many will experience a longer golden hour because the sun moves through the sky at a more oblique angle. The more northern your location, the longer the sun will hover around the horizon.
Use this opportunity to experiment creating silhouettes against a colorful sunset. Or perhaps you can capture the golden light sparkling on freshly fallen snow. You can even throw some fresh snow up in the air to make your own golden glitter!
For kids, there’s nothing like the excitement of waking up to a blanket of snow on the ground and no school. Capture the first footsteps in the fresh snow, tongues catching snowflakes, snowball fights, the pile of kids at the bottom of the sledding hill, and rosy pink cheeks.
Are the kids too little or the temperatures are too cold to go outside? Bring a few buckets of snow inside and let them build their snowman in the bathtub!
Exposure and white balance can be tricky when shooting with snow. Keep an eye on your camera’s histogram and turn on the highlight alert feature to make sure you aren’t blowing the highlights and losing details in the bright snow.
Snow will reflect colors. Sometimes this is desirable such as the reflection of a warm golden sunset. But in general, aim for white – not yellow or blue – snow. You can set your white balance in camera or adjust it in post processing.
Flowers usually get the spotlight when it comes to macro photography. But don’t have to away your macro lenses in the winter! Frost-covered branches, snowflakes, frozen spider webs, and even frozen soap bubbles can keep you busy all winter. No fancy macro lens required – macro filters and mobile macro lenses offer simple, inexpensive ways to play along.
When shooting outside in cold temperatures or snow, be sure to protect your gear from the elements. Rain covers will help shield your camera against moisture. I’ve even used an umbrella during a snow storm. Before you return to the warmth of inside, put your camera in a large resealable bag. Allow your gear to come to room temperature before taking it out of the bag to keep condensation at bay.
Without spring blossoms, summer greens, or fall foliage, winter landscapes and cityscapes may seem pretty bleak. But I think you should embrace this!
Winter’s harsh landscape is a great opportunity to focus on texture, light, composition, and mood. Look for interesting architectural lines, shapes, and textures in the city. Get up early to capture the foggy sunrise over a frozen pond. Capture the silhouettes of barren trees along a winding road. Use pops of color against the neutral palette of white snow and grey city streets. Or accentuate the textures and lines by experimenting with black and white edits.
The possibilities for winter landscapes are endless. Even better, they will allow you to see the beauty in what can often seem stark and lifeless.
The magic of winter isn’t confined to the outdoors. Once you’ve had your fill of snow and cold, tell the story of getting warm and cozy inside!
The piles of wet snow boots and dripping mittens, steaming cups of hot chocolate, and crackling fireplaces all provide moments to get in close and capture memories.
Don’t let winter give you the blues this year. Stay inspired and get creative with all of the different shooting techniques and unique subjects that the winter months have to offer!
The post 7 Ideas to inspire your winter photographs appeared first on Clickin Moms blog: Helping you take better pictures one day at a time.
Clickin Moms blog: Helping you take better pictures one day at a time
