Photography Basics - Introduction and Composition

If you are going to step into photography there are a few basic things you need to keep in mind. It is not necessary to purchase a thousand dollar camera with a reflexive lens and telescopic attachments, nor is it advised. Learning and applying basic photography skills is more important than having great equipment. If you learn to create great photos with ordinary equipment then you will be able to make extraordinary photos when your skills have advanced and you finally get great equipment.

There are a few things you want to keep in mind when you are taking pictures. Composition, lighting, exposure, and depth of field are all things you want to pay attention to. Once you start paying attention to these things you will begin to see that taking pictures is more important than just pointing and shooting. Here we will think about composition.

When you are about to take a picture, before you even lift your camera, think of how everything will be arranged on the photo. This arrangement is what makes up the composition. The arrangement of objects in a photo directs the viewer’s eye movement. You might want an object in the foreground to frame the subject such as with a person standing in the middle of a window frame. Maybe you will notice a row of people sorted by height that will cause the viewer to sweep their eyes across the picture. Curves, focus points, and gradation are just a few possible arrangements you can search for or create when taking a photo.

Composition makes the photo more interesting and places objects in an orderly way. If you point and shoot without thinking of how everything will be placed in your shot, you may end up with a photo that is not to your liking. Start taking shapes and placement into account and you will begin to see your photos come to life. As you get better you may even find a style you like that “lacks” composition.