7 Tips to Improve Your Photography as a Beginner

There are many simple and effective techniques that you can utilize to improve your photography when you're just starting out. Check out these seven simple tips to help you improve your photography as a beginner.

If you're just starting your photography journey and looking for some tips to get you started, Johnny V Imagery and I put together seven tips to help you hone your skills as a beginner photographer.

Take a peek at the tips below, and use them as a guide to help you focus on important fundamentals. They are all relatively easy to implement and will help to guide you as you learn the basics of photography as a beginner.

1. Practice, Practice, and More Practice

It goes without saying that the more you practice your photography techniques, the better you will become at taking photos. Try to make it a point to practice as often as you can, so you can get a feel for what works, what doesn't, and what your personal stylistic preferences are. 

2. Create Compelling Compositions

Crafting a compelling composition is an essential element of beautiful images. Be sure to slow down and put some thoughtful consideration into the composition of your shots. Pay attention to the placement of your subject, the elements in your scene, and the overall balance and harmony between them. Try to use some of the fundamental compositional techniques to guide your practice, including the rule of thirds, golden ratio, and leading lines. 

3. Chase Good Light

Good light can make or break an image. There are some classic times during the day that produce the best colors and exposures for your photos. Try to practice shooting at sunrise, golden hour, sunset, and blue hour, paying attention to how the changes in light and exposure affect your final image.

4. Get Close to Your Subjects

Getting close to your subject helps to capture more details and to immerse the viewer further into the image. Experiment with macro lenses, and try to reveal the interesting details that would have otherwise missed if your subject was farther away. 

5. Experiment With Different Settings on Your Camera

Practice using the various modes on your camera so you can become proficient with knowing the best settings to use for any given shooting scenario. Try using aperture priority, shutter priority, and manual mode, and analyze how each setting benefits your images.

6. Edit Your Photos

It has been said that "you don't take a photo, you make it," meaning that even professionals take images that need some editing. Your images won't look their best straight out of the camera, so take a little time to enhance them with your own stylistic edits. Editing your photos will maximize their potential and help you to find your unique style.

7. Learn and Be Inspired by Others

Draw inspiration and learn from the work of your favorite photographers. Study their images, and see what you like and don't like. Analyze the elements of their images that are appealing to you, and try to draw inspiration from those elements in your own work. 

Starting your journey as a beginner photographer is full of excitement. You can grow, learn, and improve your photography by following these seven simple tips. There's no rule book, other than the one you write for yourself. Get out there, start taking photos, and continue to level up your skills with other great tips and tutorials here on Fstoppers. 

Feel free to share your useful tips in the comments below!