A few tips

A few tips to consider.

I'm often asked for ideas to or tips to help people create better images. So here are are few.

Get close.

It's an old Robert Capa quote, "If your pictures aren't good enough, you aren't close enough."

When people show me their images it's generally because they are not happy with the result. The picture does not reflect the way they saw it.

Cameras don't see what we see. Our eyesight is wonderfully complex. Constantly changing focus wherever we look. The camera is an equally astonishing device. These days it holds not only a dazzling array of lenses and mechanics but a computer designed to help or compensate for our failings.

With all of this wizardry the simplest of solutions is generally the best. Particularly when taking portraits.

A simple step is to move in closer. Let the subject matter fill the screen. Don't overthink it. Let your intuition guide you.

Don't take your camera out of the bag until you see the shot.

Too often I see people moving around, camera's raised, swinging round, snapping away. Just take a pause, assess what is in front of you, and pick your target. If everyone is looking left, look right, don't follow the crowd. Look at the light, take our time, enjoy the process. The more you enjoy it the more your subjects will relax recognising your friendliness or passion.

Take time out.

Every so often give yourself permission to step out the door, walk or drive somewhere for an hour or so. In that hour just wonder about with no fixed agenda. Mooch and meander. Keep your mind and your eyes open to possibilities. This improvised ad hoc approach can deliver sometimes, sometimes not. But it always allows you to train your eye. Every so often just stop, allow your senses to rest a little, it's amazing how you start to see things differently.