Pick up these eight photography tips in just two minutes

If you’re new to photography, it’s probably overwhelming and you may not know where to start. In this video, Sawyer Hartman gives you eight great tips that will inspire you, challenge you, and help you improve at photography.

1. Switch your camera profile to B&W – with colors out of the picture, you’ll focus more on composition and lighting, which is what we’re often bad at while we’re new (I know I was). And if you shoot RAW, you can always have those photos in color when you import them in Lightroom, so it’s a win-win situation.
2. Limit yourself to seven photos a day – this way, you’ll make every photo count. You’ll slow down and think it through before you take the shot. If I may also suggest something: shoot film. Nothing trains your patience like shooting film.
3. Cover your viewfinder – I would probably never do this myself, but Sawyer suggests it will make you “the Bob Ross of photography.” In other words, you’ll end up with some “happy accidents” that could turn out great.
4. Get weird with your edits – you don’t necessarily need to go overboard with the editing (in fact, please try not to). Instead, try editing your photos without copying Instagram trends. Instead, process them so that they convey a certain mood.
5. Use interesting props – when you feel creatively stuck, look around you, grab the strangest items you can find, and try to incorporate them into your shots. Sawyer took a great shot with the help of a rake, make sure to check it out in the video. And here are some suggestions from me.
6. Take more self-portraits – I personally love taking self-portraits (not selfies, self-portraits). You can use them to practice photographing and posing people, to explore different styles, lighting, lenses… It’s a great way to express your ideas and feelings, and it can also be a fantastic pass time now that we’re all locked up again.
7. Get inspired and stay inspired – spend some time looking at other people’s art outside of Instagram. It can be photos, but also paintings, movies, and TV series (you’ll find some suggestions for the TV series here).
8. Always have one camera and one lens with you – when I first started photography, I had a point & shoot camera, and it was always in my purse. Nowadays I carry my phone with me at all times, snapping away when I see something cool (a Nikon DSLR doesn’t really fit in a purse). This is not only the was to never miss a shot, but also to always look around you and be aware of your surroundings – and those are handy skills for photographers.

I think these tips are great for beginners. However, even us who are more experienced can pick something up from this and use it as a reminder for those days when we feel stuck or don’t feel like shooting. So, check out Sawyer’s video for more information and for some great examples to inspire you further.

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