Photography stuff.

There have been a lot of discussions in the SC Forums lately about photography, from cameras to photography books to Photoshop and PSE. It's a given that photography and scrapbooking go hand-in-hand. And many of us grew in our photography in order to improve our scrapbooking. At least that's how it was for me.

In my own little world, there are no secrets about taking great pictures. Anyone with any kind of camera can take great pictures. Do you need an expensive, complicated, trendy camera to take a great photo? No! But here are some things that might help:

The Rule of Thirds. This rule applies to most visual media, not just photography. But the gist of it is that you want the subject of your photo (or your subject's eyes) to be along one of the grid lines or at an intersection of two lines. I agree with what is stated on the linked page. That this rule can be broken with excellent results. But this basic rule is a good one.

Read your manual. That's the manual that came with your camera. READ IT, front to back, and carry it with you. Whether you have a point-and-shoot or a DSLR camera (DSLR - digital single lens reflex), there are important things for you know about your camera. There are probably things your camera can do that you weren't even aware of. So break it open and read it.

As a companion to your manual, check out the Magic Lantern guides to see if there is one for your camera. I have one for my 5D and I am always referring to it.

Practice. If you've read any of my forum or blog posts, one of the best ways to get better at photography is to practice your brains out. Seriously. Take what you learn from reading your manual, a Magic Lantern guide, photographer's websites, etc. and apply it through practice. Not one photographer I know got better at photography without practice.

Take a class. Whether it's an online workshop (like one of Maggie's) or a class at your local community college, it'll be well worth the investment. From photography and camera basics to work flow and Photoshop tips, you'll learn stuff. And that's always good.

Ask questions. There are no secrets to taking good photos. (Did I say that already?) If you have a favorite photographer or three, ask them questions. Most are nice enough to answer questions or at least direct you to where your answer can be found. And if you never ASK, you'll never GET. (Heard that somewhere recently and it stuck.)

Study other photographers' work. Those favorite photographers? Study their work. What is it about their photos that draws you in? Color? Composition? Lighting? Clarity? Effects? Location? Angle? Study their work and try to apply some of those things to your own photography.

Here are some links to some of my favorite photographer's websites:

Tara Whitney

Jessica Claire

The Blog is Found (Nate and Jaclyn Kaiser)

Ashley McNamara

Carrie Sandoval

Deb Schwedhelm

And here are a few of my own favorite photos:

And if you have any questions about photography, cameras or Photoshop this week, leave your questions in the comments section of this post, and I'll have an answer for you on Friday.

Ciao for now!