I have always wanted to get into photography, but have never been able to take the time to take any classes. I know I have a good eye for natural art and I'm sure I would be great at capturing it, but as far as the technical stuff goes, I am clueless!
What are some of the important things to know?
ALSO, what basic equipment should I have (I don't have thousands of dollars to start so I need something fairly priced, but that will produce quality.)
I think I am most interested right now in doing black and white photos, but that can easily change..
Advice? Well, I am assuming you already have some sort of camera. It doesnt have to be a high end SLR, film or digital, to be able to learn, have fun with, and work on the artistic side of phtoography. For me, the fun was going thru the camera, and seeing what did what. School courses, easily found at local jr colleges would help, but you can learn and have fun even if you dont have resources or time to do so.
First is getting to know your camera, and all of its functions. Digital works best for this my opinion, because you can get almost immediate feedback and exif data to record your camera settings for comparison. Set up your camera, change settings, find what each setting does to change the photo.
When you get some idea as to what does what, set your camera up for specific shots, and see if you get what you expect. Keep trying til you get what you expect form your camera. When you do get what is expected, critique your photo, and see if there is something you cando better.
Second is lighting. Whether or not you have point and shoot, or SLR, you need enough light for whatever camera you have, to get it to produce what you want. I would start off using natural sunlight. You can use objects to reflect light, or diffuse light, to change the amount of light and the effects of the light. You dont need store bought items, and can usually use something that can be found around the house, or otherwise purchased easily. Lighting systems specifically for photography do work well, but you pay well for them.
For indoor lighting, you can use lots of different inexpensive lighting to practice with. The $6 round aluminum worklights from Homedepot or Lowes, with good natural light bulbs. You can use light coming in thru a window. You can get various strobes and flashes to work with your camera. Some operate directly connected to your camera, and others can fire using Infra-red, or radio communication with your camera. Use your imagination, and see what different lights will do to your photos. You will want to learn about white balance, when using different light sources.
E-mail me if you want to know more details about DIY lighting.
You can build your "equipment bag" a little at a time. A good tripod will help you a lot. If your planning on doing a lot of hiking, or photography while on the move, a monopod will come in handy to help keep your camera steady. Its basically a pole, adjustable in height, that you can mount your camera to. With a monopod, you dont have to worry about tripod legs getting in teh way when moving a lot. With a sturdy enough tripod, you can wrap the legs together, to form a quick monopod, if you want. A good off camera flash will be good to practice with, and offer choices in your photography.
When it comes to your actual photos, try a lot of different things.
Zoom in tight on a feature of your subject, for a lot of detail. Like just the face of a person, or just a single branch of the tree. Also get a wide shot, of the person, and include a secondary subject, in the fore-or background. Dont always shoot while standing, or with the camera paralel to the horizon. When you find a subject to shoot, think to yourself, what will give me the best shot. Change angles, your position around the subject, your height level in comparison to the subject. Dont always center your subject, place them at the side of your frame, and include fore- and background.
http://strobist.blogspot.com/
and
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/
http://photo.net
http://www.photocritiq.com/
And lots of other places on the web can help learn different aspects of photography. a college course perhaps at evening classes will teach you the "technicals"
a simple camera/lens combination will be enough to get you thru this basic course. you should then be in a position after the course to decide what further equipment you need Start of with a good allrounder... see link below and a tripod, once you master the technical stuff through a class or good reading (been to the library lately?) then in a year or two when you've seen your results and had a chance to save some $$$ you might consider advancing to a DSLR. If you take the time to take a class at your community college, you will save years of frustration and wasted time making mistakes.
Find a good used 35mm SLR (Nikon or Canon) and start there.
By the time you have finished two semesters of photography, you will have most of the skills necessary to really enjoy photography, but best, you will have experienced the magic of the darkroom.
By the time you are ready to buy a digital camera, the technology will have advanced enough that you will be able to get a Nikon or Canon DSLR that will use the lenses you have accumulated during you classes that will have more features at a lower cost than DSLR's available today. |
