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Tripod in Use at the Golden GateJust Getting Started?

Are you new to photography? If so, welcome, White Belt! Let’s dive right in and jump start your photography. Here are the initial steps for your journey:

  • First, do you have a camera? You cannot be a photographer without one. Step 1 is to get a camera. If you don’t have one yet, check out my Gear Page to help you pick one. Remember, you don’t need the latest and the greatest camera and lens available to take great pictures. Technique matters much, much more.  But you do need one.
  • Step 3, if you haven’t done it already, is to subscribe so you can get the 3 free guides (The Photographer’s Resource Guide, The Mirrorless Camera Guide (2016 edition), and the Photographer’s Guide to Creating an Online Portfolio). You can do so at the bottom of any page. Subscribing will also get you a discount code you’ll want for the next step.
  • Finally, Step 4 is to read my beginners guide to photography, called Getting Started in Photography (PDF and Kindle versions available). Lest that appear overly self-serving, I give you a discount code when you subscribe that gets you the PDF version of the book for half price ($5.00, and if you didn’t get the code or you lost it, just email me). I wrote that book for beginning photographers, with an eye toward getting you up to speed so you will have a good foundation and understand everything here. It is a quick read too.

Upon completion of these 4 steps, you are officially a Yellow Belt. Congratulations! You are now on your way toward becoming a great photographer. You are also well poised to take advantage of all the content here.

Camera exposure diagram with sensor shutter & apertureExposure

If you master 3 controls on your camera, you master exposure. It is important, so I have several articles on how it works and how you can master it. In addition, I now have enough articles on this topic that it warrants a separate Exposure Page with everything on this topic in one place. Check it out here.

Here are the core articles of the Exposure series, covering what you need to know about Shutter Speed, Aperture, and ISO :

 

StPaulView-RuleOfThirdsComposition

Composition is the most important part of photography, but it is often the most overlooked. Further, what resources there are on composition tend to start with particular devices like shape and line, rather than an overall process and understanding of composition. These articles will get you started with the basics of composing your photographs:

 

Dynamic Range thumbnailDynamic Range

Outdoor photographers are always dealing with problems related to the limited dynamic range of cameras. A bright sky and a dark foreground present a constant challenge. You will face it in nearly every picture. There are several ways to overcome it though. Here are the articles that will equip you for dealing with dynamic range problems:

Camera Mode DialCamera Modes

One of the first things you should understand on your camera is the “mode dial.” This is where you decide how much of the exposure will be controlled by the camera and how much will be controlled by you.

There are two types of modes on the dial: the icon modes, which are generally automatic modes, where the camera does a lot of the work for you, and the creative modes, which put you more in control. Here are articles explaining each:

RGB colorsColor

Color can be confusing. Most digital color is created using a combination of Red, Green, and Blue, which is called the RGB colorspace. But there are a few different RGB colorspaces, and which one should you use? And what happens if you venture outside the RGB colorspace? Here are some articles to show you.

 

Black and White Photography

 

 

Camera Metering ModesMetering

The good news is that your camera has an internal light meter that works well and is all you will ever need. The bad news (or more good news, depending on how you look at it) is that you have to understand and control how the camera is metering light in order to get a proper exposure. These articles will show you how.

 

CameraSharpness and Noise

 

Flash

Flash Photography

 

Photoshop boxPost-Processing

Post-processing, applied with skill, will do more to enhance your photos than any camera or lens upgrade. These articles will get you started with post processing, using the centerpieces of photo editing software: Adobe’s Lightroom, Photoshop, and Photoshop Elements.

LR-logoLightroom

 

 

PSE-logoPhotoshop Elements

In addition, I have a full video course on editing your pictures using Photoshop Elements. If you are just getting started with Photoshop, this will be close enough to get you started with that program as well:

PS-logoPhotoshop

 

 

Printing