Who says Photography is only for those who own an expensive camera and studios? Why buy expensive gadgets when you can actually build your own stuffs and gears which will still give you the same result? Well, for the professional and skilled photographers, these tools, kits and equipment are really necessary in transacting business particularly in giving an output that suits the requirements and preference of the clients, but for aficionados and aspiring photographers, buying and investing of these things are far enough for them to resort on a more affordable way of doing photography the professional way.
Today, photography is no longer a course or a special education that one must study in order to do it because now, it has turned into a hobby that made visual industry of the country available to all who are interested to enter it. But the problem is; the lack of preparation and proper equipment made it difficult for the starters due to budget constraints and other factors that somehow affect their shots.
But as for me who teaches my students to become resourceful, I strongly discourage aspirants from starting with good stuffs already and just use what you can use to get what you want.
Here are some tips that I’ve learn from my researches and experiences during our Photography class.
1. CAMERA IS JUST A TOOL
You might have a very expensive camera/DSLR, but do you know how to use it? Just like every other tools, it will be useless if you don’t know how to use it. One misconception students think is, an expensive camera and lens will give us a good shot; but the real thing is – it is just a factor but not completely responsible for great shots. Sometimes, what you just need is the light and your camera plus your brain to internalize the concepts and compositions in photography. What will you do to a DSLR if you can’t even play around with the settings and its physical setup?
Remember, you are the key to a good photograph, you camera is the lock. You must entirely know how much knowledge you understand about photography so that you can do what you formulate in your mind.
2. LIGHT IS NOT EVIL
Some says, Lucifer is the Light. In Japan, they call Light (a.k.a. Kira) as Evil but in photography, Light is your best friend. Basically, photography is all about how light when processed inside our cameras to project a 2d representation of the real world but aside from that, using light sources in the right way can really boost up the quality of your images. In fact, even with a compact digital camera or even a camera phone, you can still come up with a great images just by using sufficient and proper light sources.
3. DIGICAMS ARE USEFUL
Though there are a lot of things what you can do with your DSLR, sometimes, simplified gadgets is the answer to your problem. Yes, you might have a DSLR or two but had you ever experienced wishing you should have just brought your digicam instead of your bulky and heavy DSLR? Anoher thing that makes digital cameras special aside from its size is the simplified options that you can do in setting the white balance. All you need to do is press the menu button and select a preset.
4. KEEP YOUR TOOL ENERGIZED
And when I say tool, it is the camera and not any other tool! On thing I learned a lot from my experience is to always have your battery fully charged before going to an event or photoshoot. Or bring at least a spare battery just in case you run out of energy. You don’t want to spoil your photoshoot, do you?
So use your camera wisely. It doesn’t mean that if you have a DSLR, you are already a great photographer. You see, photography requires education and skills, so if you don’t have that, you expensive camera is nothing but a trash. Just remember: use all the resources you have, exploit those things and try to reinvent its purpose for you to come up with the best result. After all, it is not the process you have undergone people will appreciate – it is the output!