I am so happy to have Miki from Becoming What I Always Was here to share her beginning photography tips with us today. I love Miki’s blog, especially the vase makeover found here. Make sure to check her out and leave some comment love for her on this post!
Hi all, my name is Miki and I have claimed a small piece of the internet with my bog, Becoming What I Always Was. In August I will celebrate 3 years of marriage with my guitar-playing, DIY-ing, golfer husband, Jared. We don’t have any human children, but we do have two bulldogs that keep us pretty busy. My husband and bulldogs are often inspirations for my blog. I tend to write about relationships, marriage, break-downs and all the other ups and downs in my life.
Recently, I picked up photography again. I used to do some photography in high school, but I learned with a film camera. I’m not sure why I chose film over digital, but it was a cool experience to develop the photos myself. Now that I’m over being a hipster, I decided to try my luck in the digital photography world. I thought I would have an advantage learning with film, but for me, the two are almost night and day. I bought my camera and got serious about photography and staring my own little business, Cheezedogs. I mainly focus on Pet Photography it’s a fun niche in the photography world. Along the way I picked up some tips that really helped me.
1. The Camera. No matter where you search there are huge debate on Canon and Nikon cameras. They are the top contenders in the DSLR space. I wasn’t sure which one I wanted, so I did a whole lot of research. Here’s my opinion. Both brands carry fantastic cameras. I ended up looking closely at the features and choosing which ones would benefit me the most. I ended up choosing Nikon for several reasons. I have family that shoots with Nikon, so we could share lenses. Lenses can be extremely expensive so that was a big bonus. I also use the flip out screen with my Nikon all the time and the comparable Canon camera didn’t have that.
2. Read a book! I went to Barnes and Noble and picked up 2 books that I’ve read multiple times. The Beginners Guide to Photography, which helped me get a better understanding of lighting, exposure, aperture and all of those terms that are foreign to non-photographers. I also picked up From Snapshots to Great Shots , which helps you transition from a beginner to a more developed photographer. I’ve read these two books cover to cover multiple times. I think going back, I would buy them on my iPad for convenience of quick reference. I often jump back to these books when I have a question and it would be easier on my iPad then digging them out of my nightstand.
3. Take a Class. I keep a pretty close eye on Groupon and I found a class that was valued at around $200. I ended up only paying $40 for this online photography class. This class was incredibly beneficial, because it gave me assignments. There was 14 hours of lectures, but also tons of assignments, which helped me practice what I was learning. I also was able to see someone else use their camera in the lecture and it helped me understand photography a lot more.
4. Keep your Camera Close!! The best way to learn about photography is to pick up your camera and keep it close! If I put my camera in my studio downstairs, I use it a lot less. If it’s on my nightstand then I think about it all the time and pick it up a lot more. Practice, practice, practice! It’s that simple.
5. Find other Photographers. There is a great value in having friends that share the same hobby. Even if those friends are only internet friends. I have joined a few photography groups on Facebook, along with connecting with photographers on twitter and instagram. The best part about having a community of people who love what you love is that you can ask for advice on locations, backgrounds, photos, lenses and you’ll receive knowledgable feedback.
I hope you enjoyed the post and good luck!
Great tips! I need to keep my camera more available.
These are such great tips! Thank you!
Thanks for the guest post opportunity Debra! 🙂