What catches :)))

Valuemic · May 5, 2018

your eye when doing photography?

OK! Im just a beginner in all of this.. I do flowers a lot.. I think right now that is what Im best at... BUT I see a LOT of great photos on this forum and they really do inspire me... I Tried to do a photo just out of the blue today to see how it would turn out.. NO comments yet... SO Im guessing its not to great lol..... OR I could do better... STOP is what its called in general..

THIS is what leads me to my question... WHAT catches your eye? HOW did you learn about your framing / camera angle etc.... ??

Thanks! Yes full of questions Im determined to get better

Dont wait, just shoot your camera. In the end you will find some great results!

Jeff15 · May 5, 2018

One tip an old guy told me many years ago.......When walking along with your camera, every now and then look behind you just in case you missed something...

ac12 · May 5, 2018

1 - Study/Research

Go to a museum and look at paintings.
Read a book on composition and STUDY.

2 - Then go out and SHOOT.
3 - Evaluate what you shot
4 - Repeat steps 2 and 3.

Try to concentrate on one subject at a time.
Otherwise you get yourself scattered, and it becomes harder to learn and improve.

Gary A. · May 5, 2018

I look for and attempt to document and capture stories.

snowbear · May 5, 2018

Nature, colors, shapes and oddities - things that look out of place or unusual.

Dave Colangelo · May 5, 2018

Valuemic said:
HOW did you learn about your framing / camera angle etc

In the words of the late great Henri Cartier-Bresson "Your first 10,000 photographs are your worst."

In other words, practice, practice, practice.

I find the best way to learn about framing is to shoot the same again and again. Be it a landscape, a still life, a person etc. Take diligent shot notes, analyze what you get, note what you want to change and go back. Repeat.... This is what all the greats are have said to have done, Ansel Adams went back to the same place time and time again to shoot his legendary landscapes. Many street photographers stick to one city or even one neighborhood in one city. Bill Cunningham shot fashion on the streets of NY for the bulk of his life.

Many great photographers were also devoted to the cause they shot. Ansel Adams was an advocate and early spokesperson for the national parks department and many others have photographed causes close to their hearts. If there is something else you are passionate about you should try and introduce photography to it. Since you are already, presumably knowledgeable on the topic you should have an easy time portraying the message you wish to portray.

Think about a theme. What are you doing with the camera in the first place, are you just taking pictures, if you like flour pictures perhaps take on a project of macro photography of your local fauna. Themes will help you drive your work in a coherent direction and can aid in keeping you "on track" and sometimes even help combat creative blocks.

Shoot film. Perhaps my most useless advice, film helped me become a better photographer, learning how to process and print it at home was invaluable to my skill level.

john.margetts · May 5, 2018

As mentioned above, the two things that will help most are
1) looking at pictures - any pictures. Paintings, drawings, Victorian photographs, photos on this forum, the more pictures you look at, you more you will understand.
2) practise! Then be critical of your results. I don't mean look for what is wrong with them, understand your own work; the good, the bad and the ugly.