HOW TO MASTER PHOTOGRAPHY?
Are you an amateur wanting to deep dive into the world of photography, but you don't know where to start? Don’t know which camera to buy? What are basics & fundaments of photography? Follow me!
INTRODUCTION & HISTORY
‘Photography’, or ‘light drawing’, is a combination of your technical knowledge and visual interpretation. It is a combination of visual imagination and design, craft skills, and practical organizing ability. If you are in your early stages, start understanding what photographs are about. Why do you want to take photographs? What roles do photographs play? Is it about expressing information and ideas? And what makes a result good or bad anyway? Developing an ability to take successful pictures and telling stories through them must include some basic technical theory otherwise “drawing what you see” will be impossible.
When you buy a camera, it usually comes with instructions on how to use it. Then you can see different types of "scene" mode settings. These include landscape, portrait, night photography, food, party, pets, babies, and a whole list of other types. There are cameras which recognize faces even before you set special settings for it. After choosing the scene mode, cameras usually show tips on how to take better pictures with them. In this article we will guide you to key concepts in photography for those who wish to study photography on their commencement stage. However, since photography is involved in so many different aspects of our everyday lives (especially in this digital era), the scope of study is extremely diverse.
FILM & DIGITAL CAMERAS
Photographs are usually captured by either of these two:
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Film- using liquid chemicals and darkroom to processes
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Digital- using an electronic sensor saving on data storage and processing, and finally printing-out via a computer.
Even though film photography is an ancient way of shooting, nowadays it has become a trend for new generation capturing “aesthetic” photos and then turning them into digital form.
COMPOSITION
Composition is all about making things in your picture look their best. Using lines, shapes, light and anything else in a right and interesting way, and it is all in your hands. It's like drawing or painting, but you must do it quickly while the subject is there. Nowadays, the trends change rapidly and following strict rules aren't popular anymore because they can make your pictures look boring or similar to others. It's better to experiment and see what looks good to you, to understand your signature style. It is your eye that matters more than the type of camera you use. Style is difficult to define, but recognizable when you see it comes with a lot of practice and experience throughout the years.
COMPONENTS OF PHOTOGRAPHY
LENS
Surprisingly, lenses often receive less attention than camera bodies, but a good lens often helps us get a better image than a good camera and thus deserves at least as much attention. So why are lenses so important? They can help photographers create a sense of scale and depth in a picture, control the angle, or isolate a subject against a background. Lens can also have more of an impact on image quality than anything else, it captures a wide view and a focused subject, then puts that image onto the camera's sensor.
BODY
The camera body is what mechanically ties everything together. How do you know which shutter speed is the best for your shot? With digital cameras, the best way is to experiment and look at the results on your camera's screen.
APERTURE & ISO
To put it in simple words, a camera's aperture setting controls how widely the camera will open that lets light into your camera lens. To find the exact number we see “F” indicator. When photographers talk about "stopping down" or "opening up" their lens, they mean they're making the hole in the lens smaller or larger. This affects how much light enters the camera. "Stopping down" means making the hole smaller by increasing the f-stop number. "Opening up" means making the hole larger by decreasing the f-stop number.
ISO speed is your camera's sensitivity to light. Taking pictures with lower ISO settings is usually better because photos will have less grain. Grain is like additional colors or brightness that aren't in the real picture. On the other hand, if you are taking in a very dark environment, you might need to increase the ISO. In simpler and beginner cameras, ISO 50-400 usually keeps graininess low, while more professional ones might handle ISO 100-3200 without too much graininess.
YOUR FIRST CAMERA
Starting your camera journey with these acknowledgments:
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Determine a budget, amount of money you are willing to pay.
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Determine how much the accessories are going to cost you. Beginner photographers often forget about accessories like a bag, tripod, flash adapter and etc..
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Buy any camera you can afford, even if it’s used it’s gonna work for you!
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WHICH CAMERA SHOULD I BUY?
Sony a5100 kit ($700). Great camera, easy to carry.
If you would like to start experimenting and spend less, or you might want to invest in more serious lenses in the future, Nikon D3100 kit or a Canon T3/1100D is a perfect solution. Cost is $400 new or $300 used.at an amazing price. If you want a multifunctional camera (more expensive) which helps you capture photo and video content, consider Canon T3i/Ti/T5i or a Nikon D5100/D5200/D5300.
If you have an unlimited budget, buy a Nikon D810 ($3,300), a Sigma 24-105 f/4 ($900), a Nikon 70-200 f/2.8 ($2,400).
Remember that the camera market is very wide, it depends on your unique requirements, sports, food, portrait or wildlife photography. Keep reading an find the perfect fit for you !
WHICH LENS SHOULD I BUY?
Sony a5100 kit ($700). Great camera, easy to carry.
A great cheap and fun lens option is the 50mm f/1.8, often called the "nifty fifty”.
This lens will allow you to have a great background blur for nice portraits. $100-$200 from Canon, Nikon, and Sony.
Another good option is 70-200mm f/2.8.
If you'd like to upgrade your kit lens, and you have an APS-C camera (and not a full-frame camera), I highly recommend the Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 ($1,000).
CAMERAS FOR DIFFERENT OCCASIONS
PORTRAIT
For portrait photography, there are two areas of consideration: lighting and posing. A successful portrait is created when photographers control the lighting and how they work with the person. Portrait photography is not just about cameras, or lenses; it is about the person we are shooting. The most appealing aspect of portrait photography is its ability to express the inner world of the person by creating an image that is recognizable.
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Canon T3 body ($180) with a Canon 50mm f/1.8 Il Lens.
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A Nikon D610 kit ($1,900), a Tamron 70-200 f/2.8 ($1,500) Lens.
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A Canon 5DS-R ($3,600), a Tamron 24-70 f/2.8 ($1,300) or Canon 70-200 f/2.8
LANDSCAPE
While great landscape photography is also challenging and requires planning, and long hikes, it doesn't require expensive gear. Almost any camera and a kit lens will work fine for most landscapes. Ideal landscape recommendations for different budgets:
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$450: A Nikon D3200 kit
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$1,500: A Nikon D5500 with the Sigma 18-35 f/1.8 lens.
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$4,500: A Canon 5DS-R ($3,500) and a Sigma 24-105 f/4 ($900)
SPORTS
If you challenge yourself with this dynamic, then you will need a camera with a fast autofocus system and high frames-per-second to freeze the second for every picture. For indoor sports, it’s important to get a camera which has a high ISOs with relatively low noise and the fastest lens.
Canon 70D ($1,200) their compact sensors bring you closer to the action. However, they create a lot of noise while using a high ISO, so it’s not the best camera for indoor photography.
Nikon D7100 (S1,200). This camera has more megapixels than the Canon equivalents. Nikon D810 ($3,300). Amazing full-frame image quality and detail perfect for indoor sports. The 5 frames per second is rather slow for sports, but you can increase it to 6 frames per second in 1.2X and 1.5X crop modes, or 7 frames per second.
WEDDING
When you are shooting wedding it’s a bit stressing as their memories from this important day depends on you. Start with a fast normal zoom (such as 24-70mm f/2.8, or your kit lens). As there are different kinds of scenes and moments at a wedding you will need a second lens, such as a 70-200mm f/2.8, for example if you are shooting from far and want to capture the details. Using a lens with a low f/stop number (such as f/2.8) allows you to simple the composition and blur the background so that the groom and bride are more visible.
Canon 5DS-R ($3,600) with Canon 70-200 f/2.8
Nikon D810 ($2,800). This camera has a good dynamic range, which can help with challenging lighting conditions and missed exposures.
References:
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McHugh, S.T., 2018. Understanding photography: master your digital camera and capture that perfect photo. No starch press.
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Bate, D. (2016). Photography: The Key Concepts (2nd ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003103677
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Langford, M. (2000). Basic Photography (7th ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780080494012
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Northrup, T. (2013). Tony Northrup's Photography Buying Guide: How to Choose a Camera, Lens, Tripod, Flash, & More. United States: Mason Press, Incorporated.
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Rand, G., Meyer, T. (2014). The Portrait: Understanding Portrait Photography. United States: Rocky Nook.
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Kelsey, R., 2015. Is landscape photography?. In Is Landscape...? (pp. 71-92). Routledge.
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Lien, S., 2000. The Aesthetics of Sports Photography. Nordicom Review, 23(1-2), pp.215-235
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Davenport, A., 1999. The history of photography: an overview.
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Mann, S. and Picard, R., 1994. Beingundigital’with digital cameras. MIT Media Lab Perceptual, 1(2), p.3.
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Johnson, G., 2011. Digital wedding photography: Capturing beautiful memories. John Wiley & Sons.
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McHugh, S.T., 2018. Understanding photography: master your digital camera and capture that perfect photo. No starch press.
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Sylvan, R., Nikon D610.