So You Want to Learn Photography...

This probably should have been my first post since I will cover photography basics. Nothing too detailed (because books have been written on this), but just enough so that anyone can pick up a camera and get started. What does this have to do with the topic of this blog you may ask? Well, photography has basics that need to be understood, hence why I should have made this my first post. Continue reading this post if you're interested in getting started in marketing photography or just photography in general!

The Camera

Decide your budget and go from there. If you don't have a budget at all, assess what resources you have access to. The minimum for photography is, well, a camera. Do you have a phone? Are you reading this on a phone? Chances are, you already have access to a camera. One of my favorite sayings is "The best camera is the one you have with you." 

If your budget is more free than not, look into DSLRs and the lens options. My first camera was a Nikon D3200 with two kit lenses.

The Settings

Once you have a camera, you may see a bunch of dials or buttons with letters on them. For example: Av, Tv, P, A, and M. Each mode has different uses. 
Av: Aperture priority
     In this mode, you choose the aperture and the camera chooses shutter speed and ISO to exposure your image correctly.
Tv: Shutter Speed priority
     In this mode, you choose the shutter speed and the camera chooses the rest. 
P: Flexible Priority
     In this mode, you can choose what settings (shutter speed, aperture, or ISO) you want static and the camera will decide the rest.
A: Automatic
     The camera chooses the exposure for you.
M: Manual (full control over each setting)
     You have to manually choose each setting. If done wrong, your image may be over or under-exposed.

The Composition

Half of the quality of an image comes from the composition. when looking to compose an image, think about leading lines and your rule of thirds. Leading lines can be used to lead a viewers eyes to a specific location or subject in the image. The rule of thirds describes how subjects should be laid out in an image. A subject can be put on the left or right third, or directly in the middle. This is a generally accepted positioning of subject that is pleasing to the eye.  

The Shoot

That's it! Well, not quite, but it's definitely enough to get you started! I would love to cover so much more, but I could spend YEARS writing a guide to photography (maybe I should?) There are plenty of more detailed guides online or you can leave me a question below that I would be happy to answer. Happy shooting!

How does this relate to marketing? As mentioned above, marketing photographers must have a solid grasp of photography before embarking on a journey of focusing on the marketing side. They have to focus on compositions, lighting, and overall image quality to produce results that can be shared across many media channels. Photographers employ basic techniques and understandings of the things mentioned above!