Article: Take better pictures by thinking like an old-school photographer Make every shot count.

  • Thread starter Thread starter dmb
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I suspect you are preaching to the converted in here and I'm sure we all take bad photos too. That said, when there is no cost to taking the shot, why not? I often bracket aperture on digital for example, I often know the DoF I want but it does no harm to take a stop or two either side.
 
Won't let me read with an ad-blocker. Is there a tl;dr version?
 
Harlequin565 said:
Won't let me read with an ad-blocker. Is there a tl;dr version?
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Bullet points follow after last section of authors intro -

If you want to take great photos, the best thing you can do is go back to basics and learn to see the world as a film photographer. People are now shooting more photos than ever before (1.2 trillion in 2017 alone), but most give little to no thought to each shot. The key to great photos is shooting less and thinking more.

Slow down; Pre-visualize; Look through the viewfinder and pause; Take one photo at a time; Only take a few photos per session; Shoot in manual mode; Turn off your camera’s LCD screen; Do it for love.
 
I read it :)

My thoughts...

Slow down; Pre-visualize; Look through the viewfinder and pause; Take one photo at a time;

Agree with all of that for non-moving subjects :)

Only take a few photos per session;

That's just daft as its so easy to miss the best angle if you don't try to shoot everything and vary what you're doing

Shoot in manual mode;

Pointless, if an auto mode will work use it

Turn off your camera’s LCD screen;

Ignoring one of the greatest features of digital cameras is just crazy; checking means you make your mistakes and correct them there & then, waiting to find out you've screwed up the best light/location etc. ever when you're on your computer back home is simply insane

Do it for love.

Well obviously :)

Dave
 
I think it's good advice for beginners or those wanting to learn. I know a *lot* of beginner photographers who will stand in the same place and take 4 or 5 shots on auto then be unable to choose between them. That sort of thing is really difficult because the shots are all actually the same!

Imagining that you have a roll of 24 or 36 can really help some people. It forces them to ask "do I really want this picture?" or "what is it about this angle that works?" or - as Steve said, and perhaps most importantly "why am I taking this?"

Of course, like most internet articles, it won't help everybody. Daughter's graduation or other family event? F1 car overtaking an opponent on a corner? Finches jumping around on a feeding table? There will be a long list of exceptions - most of them - as Dave alluded to - restricting any sort of planning time.

I don't think film is a good comparison. Film isn't inherently slower if you're using the right equipment. Eye AF, 7FPS, and a 70-200 f2.8 on the EOS-3 isn't exactly "slow" and is probably good enough for all but the most demanding of environments.

If it gets people thinking more about why they are taking the picture though, that can only be a good thing.
 
To misquote a number of people: "the more pictures I take the luckier I get". Taking fewer pictures is not the way to get the shot you really want in most cases for most people.
 
AndrewFlannigan said:
To misquote a number of people: "the more pictures I take the luckier I get". Taking fewer pictures is not the way to get the shot you really want in most cases for most people.
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Good photos are not made by luck.
 
Harlequin565 said:
Imagining that you have a roll of 24 or 36 can really help some people
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Well said, that emphasis is so important, no everything suits everbody.

Harlequin565 said:
"why am I taking this?"
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Absolutely this! And a valid answer to that question is “learning” or “just messin’ “ as much as “I’m getting paid” or “I am creating works of art”
 
Used to go out with a small card in my old D70 - let me have 36 or so shots per card. To spoil myself, I'd take a spare card of the same size. (The small cards were handy [and affordable] for my first 3MP digicompact.)
 
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