I am by no means a professional photographer. I just love taking pictures. And one time I took 3rd place in a local newspaper photo contest.
I once went to an Ansel Adams show at a local art museum. He was quoted as saying (I can't find the direct quote, but it was something like): The best way to take really good pictures, is to take LOTS of pictures. That way you're more likely to have a few good ones. I have taken this advice to heart as I've endeavored on my photography hobby. I've highlighted some of my own tips for taking great pictures here. Below, I'll show some examples.
1. From Mr. Adams,
take LOTS of pictures (so you're more likely to have a couple good ones). This is even easier in the digital age - you can just delete the ones you don't like.
2. Take the
same picture in different ways: different angles, lights on, lights off, flash on, flash off
3.
Don't be afraid to seem "silly." Some of my best pictures I've taken laying down in the grass, with the camera pointed up at something.
4. Experiment with your
camera's settings. My camera has a settings for landscape, portrait, flower (close up), water, sunset, low lighting, bright lighting, etc. Try the different settings on the same picture to see what looks best.
5. Experiment with
photography software. You can crop, brighten, darken, make black and white, and do lots of other things with digital pictures. Just make sure to save a copy of the original so you can always go back to it.
Below is an example of some pictures I took recently. These are unedited, straight off my camera. You'll see how I took several pictures of the same thing, at different angles, and in different ways. Some are blurry. Some are too dark. Some have too much clutter in the background. Some just look weird. But some are really good. And I will probably edit the good ones to make them even better. And THOSE are the pictures I show off to make people think I'm a good photographer. Most people don't see all the mediocre (or bad) pictures I take.
**I like taking pictures of flowers.**







And another set:





Click
here to see some of my best photos on my photography blog.