How to Take a Great Photograph.

Intro: How to Take a Great Photograph.

In this instructable you will learn how to take great photos!

STEP 1: Hold Still!

The first step is to not have what i like to call "el shaky hand". If you do have it, like me, you need something to rest the camera on, if i don't have a tripod with me i kneel down on one knee and rest my elbow on the other knee. If you need to be higher than that a pole or tree to lean on is good enough.

At Circuit City you can find tripods for about $10-$20.

STEP 2: Angles

If your take an up-close picture of something small try and make it look bigger by trying to "get under the object". Take pictures in the objects level.

STEP 3: To Flash or Not to Flash!

Use the flash only when you absolutely must! (ex. If you are taking a picture of an animal that keeps moving and you have to time to add other lighting.) Using the flash can wash out pictures and add shininess where you might not want it.
To add existing light to a picture open some blinds or turn a lamp or two on.






The picture is another example, my cat was sleeping in a funny position and went to open the blinds but she woke up, so I had to take the picture before she moved, having to use the flash.

STEP 4: The Rule of Thirds.

If you "cut" the picture into a 3x3 grid and use this technique to your advantage you can make great photos! make an imaginary # when taking pictures. This is known as the rule of thirds.

STEP 5: Blurs

If you keep getting blurry pictures you might need to try to hold the camera stiller or use a "Action" setting if you have one on your camera.

On the other hand blurs can have dramatic effects on pictures, so they can be good.

STEP 6: Colors

Different forms of one picture can change a lot, like between Greyscale(black and white) and regular colors.

It sets a mood, greyscale being more serious/sad and bright colors add joy

STEP 7: Landscape

Landscape photos are wonderful! When taking a picture of landscape (ex. of a mountain or waterfall)have something closer in the picture to show Depth.

STEP 8: Get Close!

Close ups make wonderful professional style pictures

STEP 9: End.

Thanks for reading, and remember to vote for me in the Photojojo Contest

Comments

[kvan der kruk1]

Holding still is indeed one of the basics. A tripod could be usefulll but i found them rather clumsy. I only use them on shutterspeeds of a second or more. But there are more ways on how to improve your dslr photographs.


You could look for here for some in depth info. 

http://174.120.247.220/~bertkalm/howtotakeagreatphoto/

Grtz Kevin
aka

Lectrotraxx

[rdvonz]

An imaginary # would make it the rule of fifths. you cut into 3 peices. :P

[J@50n]

 no, that is how  it is supposed to be. 3 rows of 3 :). 

[alvincredible]

i think you should explain the rule of thirds a bit more ahha cause you just have grids there :D oh just kidding it's in the notes on the picture... it's like that artistic thing where subjects in the thirds of the images are naturally pleasing to look at or something... hahha i dont know you could also say to put the horizon when taking landscapes on the thirds lines and to keep them horizontal...oh and keep buildings vertical too... bleh thats it :D

[burzvingion]

If you have a camera with manual or aperture priority modes, using a wide aperture (i.e. a small f-number like f/2.5) for macro (close-up) shots will decrease the field of view, and therefore make the background blurry, which will draw attention to the subject. hyper suggests using a flash for subjects less than 10ft. away, but I prefer using existing lighting except when absolutely necessary. Most camera flashes are too harsh IMHO. Other than that minor nitpick, a very good overview of basic photography techniques.

[hyper]

Thanks for the info, do you mind if i add the bit about existing lighting it to the instructable?

[burzvingion]

That would be fine with me.

[GorillazMiko]

Cool! Is that your dog and iguana? Nice job!

[hyper]

Chameleon* and yes, yes they are :D

[PetervG]

Saying that using flash for close up is a bad idea. It can ruin so many things, the biggest problem is washing out the subject with light.

[CameronSS]

Agreed. Generally, the flash should be avoided whenever possible. It can wash out a subject, it sucks camera batteries dry, it makes awful reflections, and it creates harsh shadows. It is better to get some other light source (cheap halogen work lights work well), or if you must use a flash, use multiple synchronized units or a ring flash (for macros) to eliminate shadows.

Also, some of these photos are bad examples. The image in Step 8 has bad color balance-the image is washed out. The blurry image of the chameleon...find one that's in focus. Very few images should be out of focus, and this isn't one of them.

I'm sorry if I sound snobby or arrogant...This s a decent start. However, some of the examples could be better. Especially the image for Step 7...It's a little small....

[hyper]

It shouldn't always be avoided, sometimes its good for some pictures. for example! the picture in step 8 no color is washed out thats exactly how it looks in real life and the flash makes it shine and kinda makes if fade around the edges, Also i can't really find a non blurry one of the chameleon he died a few months ago and that picture is about 2 years old when i started liking photography. After getting this much feedback about the flash, I'm going to change it.

[CameronSS]

Who said you need a clearer picture of the chameleon? There is more than one photo subject in the world.