I'm really glad
If you google, “how to take better photos” you will get a thousand results immediately. There are plenty of tips, tutorials and videos that will walk you through dozens of techniques. Advice is everywhere. But…that advice doesn’t make a whole lot of sense if you can’t actually put it to practice, does it?
Nope!
I fully believe that the only way to improve on any skill, is to practice it. Not only to practice it, but to make the ability to practice attractive and accessible.
Think with me for a second…where is your nice camera right now? I want you to go get it. It’s okay if you need to hunt around a little bit for it. I’ll wait! There is a good chance your fancy camera is locked away in a drawer or collecting dust on the top shelf of a closet. Maybe you have inherited a collection of lenses that you’re not sure what the heck they all do. Maybe you aren’t sure when it is you have actually charged the battery or even used it.
Bring it all out. Allllll of it. Even the stuff you have no idea what to do with. Dust it off with a microfiber cloth and give the battery a charge over night. Make your gear SHINE again, make it attractive and pretty. You can even order camera cleaning kits from Amazon to carefully clean both your lens and your camera body!
After your gear is clean and your battery charged, I want you to turn it on…and use it. It doesn’t matter what you take a photo of. You don’t have to be in manual mode either (not yet anyway)! I just need you to start. taking. photos. Grab your kid, your dog, your partner, a plant, and start clicking.
Listen, you have that camera in your house for some reason. Maybe it was a gift and you never learned how to use it, or a hand me down from a friend or family member. You didn’t get rid of it for a reason. I’m willing to bet it was because deeeeep down you were interested in learning photography in any kind of capacity. Do yourself a favor and see if you can dig up some of that creative energy again. What about photography is interesting to you? Write it down. Put it on a sticky note along with a few questions this creativity sesh spurred about photography.
After you are done shooting, find a spot in your home that your gear will live. Not just ANY spot, but a spot where you will see it every. single. day. This is your camera’s new special spot where it live happily every after. Put it on a bookshelf next to your favorite paper back. Keep it in your living room near a photo of your kiddos. On your dresser near your jewelry box. I store my main camera body and favorite lens in an Ikea cart in my office where I see it as soon as I walk into my office. You want to make sure that your camera is as accessible as possible. You want to be reminded all the time that you have the ability to practice your skillset. You want to remember that you are interested enough in this hobby to take the time to pursue it. There is no need to keep it locked away in a drawer or a closet!
The next time you want to take a photo of your family or an every day moment, just before you reach into your back pocket, look for your camera. Use THAT to take the photo! You don’t need to have an epic occasion to use it my friend! That is the joy of owning a camera. It is YOURS to use for everyday moments and just for the heck of it, just for fun.
I would LOVE to know where you will store your pretty new to you gear! Tell me all about it in the comments!
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