My buds over at LIFE.com asked me to come up with a list of common mistakes folks make when starting out with a camera in their hands. Okay. No shortage of material here, right? And they came to the right source, ’cause I’ve made every mistake, basic and advanced, that one could possibly think of. Hell, I’ve even invented some mistakes. But they did a nice job, matching historical photos from the voluminous LIFE library with my ramblings. They also edited, well, some of my more irreverent language, which, this being my blog, I include below:-)
Don’t take just one picture, or two….shoot lots….if it was exciting enough to you to put your camera to your eye to shoot a couple of photos, then it should remain exciting enough to shoot 20, or, even, 200. Remember, pixels are free. This isn’t film. You’re not running up a bill anymore at the local CVS.
When photographing a person, relate to that person. Don’t hide behind the camera. Get out from that cubbyhole behind the lens where it’s warm and dark and you feel hidden and get out there in that vulnerable zone in front of the lens, and share and participate in the adventure with them. Let them know they are in good hands, and this is important to you, and because you are going to work really hard to produce a good picture, it will therefore become important to them. Remember, if you’re not confident, and you are visibly uncomfortable, they will be too. And, no, this doesn’t mean I was naked when I shot this.
Remember, the camera is a machine. It does not have feelings, and it didn’t go to art school.
Try not to shoot outdoors in harsh, bright, high noon sun. (At least most of the time.) The sun is a big dog, and you don’t want to fight with the big dog.
Don’t shoot everything from eye level! Get high! Get low! Climb something. Lay down. Get a different perspective.
Carry a camera. As famed photog Jay Maisel says, it’s hard to take pictures without one. (Pictured above is Carl Mydans, my personal hero, and mentor. Carl said, very accurately, “The camera is the greatest force for social change in history.” He was right. Carl was a historian, an orator, a gentleman, a scholar, a teacher, and a photographer. He was a photographer perhaps least of these things, and he was a great photographer. When he put his camera to his eye, the pictures that resulted had the beating heart of decency and sympathy for the human condition.)
Get it right in the camera, don’t say I’ll fix that later. Photoshop is not an emergency room for grievously wounded pictures. Work hard in the field to master the camera, the lens and the techniques of shooting. Unless you like being a mushroom, sitting in your dark basement in front of a glowing screen for hours on end, trying to take the exposure from frame 101, the composition from frame 209, the expression from frame 333, and also eliminate the tree branch growing out of the bride’s elaborate hairdo that she spent a lot of money on. If it looks like a problem, it is. In other words, if you see something in your lcd that is bothersome, it won’t go away, it will just become more bothersome when you look at it on your home computer.
Move yer ass! (Another Jay-ism.) Zoom with your feet! Don’t stand there with all the energy and dynamism of a house plant. Move! The world moves, constantly. You must move with it. Zoom lenses are nice, but they don’t replace your legs.
Don’t forget to zero out your camera every day when you go out with it. Don’t use yesterday’s settings! You know, the ones that you programmed into the camera such as ISO 32,000 ’cause you were shooting in a coal mine. Reprogram the camera to a normal baseline and go from there.
Don’t think all the good pictures in the world live in Bali, or Antarctica. There are good pictures right under your nose. Shoot what and who you love. And shoot that which is easily accessible to you. If you constantly think you have to climb mountains or jump out of airplanes to get good pictures, it will become an impossible chore to pick up your camera.
And a few others….
If you’re unhappy, don’t keep shooting. A bad picture is a bad picture, no matter how many of them you shoot, or if you recompose vertically. Just stop, re-think, and go a different direction.
As my friend and fellow shooter Jim Richardson says, if you want your pictures to be better, stand in front of more interesting stuff.
Use your lens shade. Why is it on your lens, backwards? It’s there for a reason. Use it.
Have fun! This is not brain surgery, an admissions exam, or the stations of the cross.
Oh, and by the way, take the lens cap off:-)
More tk….
;
Thanks Joe.
Lovely post Joe, thank you for reminding everyone that you should be shooting because you love to shoot, if it becomes a chore then perhaps you shouldn’t be shooting 🙂
As always a great blog to take a moment to read.
#2 (Relate to your subject) is a big one for me. I do that… stand behind my camera hiding from the person in front of it, expecting them to be brilliant and charming and look perfect through my lens. But more times than not they are visibly uncomfortable or uneasy because of the aforementioned detachment. I have noticed a significant change in mood when I become more engaged, even if it is as simple as small talk, or commenting on the obvious weird situation we are both in. Walls drop, a smile becomes a bit easier to coax, etc. I need to make a concerted effort to do this more often because it makes a huge difference, that and taking my lens cap off!
Thanks Joe.
This is one I’m going to be sharing with my fellow photography classmates this week. Thanks.
Great post!
Thank you Joe for your always wise and helpful advice
Got a little addendum to #1.
Pixels are free, but the patience of the viewer isn’t. So for the sake of all that is holy, PLEASE EDIT. Vigorously. Stop briefly to note what you do and (even more importantly) don’t like with each frame, and then eradicate all but the photos you are really, really satisfied with.
Your viewers will praise you for the exceptional quality of the handful of images that remains, and hold you in MUCH higher regard than if you’d subjected them to all 250 shots you made on that trip.
Cheers
-step
I love the “Carry a camera” advice, ahah!
Thanks for this post.
Joe, you’ve written a lot of great posts over the past couple of years.
This one may be the best.
Hey Joe!
I really enjoyed this and your workshop yesterday! I had to wake up at 2:45am to get there and loved every minute of it. You opened up a whole new world of possibilities to me, and I can’t wait to go play! Thanks for sharing your knowledge and your passion. You ROCK!
Leslie
Another fabulous post Joe! Thanks for sharing your learning and inspiring us to be at least an average Joe!
I love this post…especially the note that you don’t need Bali or Antartica to shoot interesting pictures. Culture is EVERYWHERE and so is beauty, not just at anywhere we aren’t at. Hehe. Love all the tips. Thank you.
Good stuff to think of Joe, thanks! Especially zeroing out the camera. I always seem to forget something. Usually its the ISO.
Thanks Joe. I should read these rules every day.
Another very inspiring article from you mr. McNally. Thanks for the reminder on why we shoot pictures.
Guess i’ve got to find more interesting stuff to stand in front of..
“There are good pictures right under your nose.” is a good one. Sometimes I get down because I see other photogs shooting in exotic locations. I have to remind myself that Central Wisconsin is exotic to to some people as well.
Yup. I think ya got it. I love the Richardson quote!
good point Stephan…thanks for chipping in…Joe
From an exceptional shooter and blogger such as yourself, K-man, especially with your Jersey style aplomb, high praise indeed…many thanks for reading….Joe
Another excellent article, I really like this one! *Love* that photo of the press photographer captioned “carry a camera” 🙂
Interesting …. except, I shoot film, only film. However, I don’t let that stop me from shooting whatever I need.
All good stuff that we all know but choose to forget/ignore. Thanks for the reminder.
One to pass on…thanks Joe
Your posts are always so very entertaining to read. I enjoyed that this wasn’t one of those “follow the rule of thirds” kind of post, but rather more about feeling what goes into a photo. That’s what I got out of it anyway, thank you!
Well done Joe !! I enjoyed this very much ! All so true ! = )
“Use your lens shade…” This one hits a bit nerve, along with people trying to bounce a flash from the sky.
I think the “carry a camera” is the best advice ever. Even a simple P&S would suffice.
Great article!
thanks for sharing..
Hey Swan! Hope you’re doing great, and thanks for posting.
Thanks Joe…..have a great day
Haha, another great post, Joe !
It is exactly your unique mixture of humor, knowledge, experience and nonsense sometimes, that gives it so much fun to learn from you.
Thank’s a lot!
Great blog post. Thanks for all you do.
i am going to put an additional point.
“a picture of a beautiful thing, is not a beautiful picture”, it is because the people think that the beautiful pictures are the pictures of beautiful things.
Joe,
I just love your blog. Its very helpful to me. I can’t tell you how happy I am to read your tips and advice. I really like ‘camera is a machine and it didn’t go to art school’ and ‘sun is a big dog.’ Thanks very much from the deep of my heart.
Razib
Okay, maybe I won’t get to Bali or Antarctica, but maybe I can do the almost naked waterpolo players. lol 🙂 Great inspiration, Joe!!
OMGosh! I loved this article. I actually laughed out loud a few times! Love the personality and the humor. Wonderfully written. I will be looking for more fron you.
Thank you…
“Have fun! This is not brain surgery, an admissions exam, or the stations of the cross.”
Sometimes the easiest thing to achieve is the one that gets left out. I hope I always have a smile on my face while the camera is on my eye.
I hope you two are having a great time in the land of the bearded sage and the overflowing mugs of Newcastle.
Wonderful reminders for photogs at every level. I love the shots you paired with your advice! For some reason, the water polo team is my fave.
There are few cases that “zoom with your feet” is workable. If zooming in or out gets the shot moving will destroy the particular perspective of the position you are in.
Move to get the image and framing you want is very different than zoom with your feet.
I agree about almost everything here, but: Pixels are free, but storage isn’t. It takes a h… of a long time to go through the excess RAW file images you shoot and don’t need, and it hogs up all the storage space I’ve got. I would change your advice to “take the pictures you need to take”, as there is a big difference between 20 and 200 when all you’ll ever use is one.
Dammit man, where was the irreverent language?
Wonderful post.
Worth every point. Important lessons.
Great advice for amateurs and pros alike. I don’t know how many times I had the camera on the wrong iso and realized it 100 shots later….or realized that i don’t need to be on the other side of the world to go out and snap some images.
Thanks, Joe.
I liked where you say:
“If you’re unhappy, don’t keep shooting. A bad picture is a bad picture, no matter how many of them you shoot, or if you recompose vertically. Just stop, re-think, and go a different direction.”
In one training I get some years ago, traineer said one thing I liked it a lot:
“A mad person is such that thinks that doing the same wrong thing continuously, the result will be different”. But is something very common in the human being 🙂
Don’t think all the good pictures in the world live in Bali, or Antarctica. There are good pictures right under your nose. Shoot what and who you love. And shoot that which is easily accessible to you. If you constantly think you have to climb mountains or jump out of airplanes to get good pictures, it will become an impossible chore to pick up your camera
Awesome advice Joe!
Great advice, especially the last one – for me. Thanks for bringing that to the forefront.
Great post Joe, thanks very much.
Ah, now I know why my subjects are so uncomfortable. Mental note to self: remember to wear pants for all photo sessions!
Seriously though, good reminders of the things it’s so easy to forget. I definitely do need to work on not looking like a short, overweight humanoid with a camera for a head. Way too easy to hide behind the machine.
Thank you annie and drew,…etal,…so many to make these industry tenets all come true,…and btw, thanks joe,…;-)
Thanksalot.
This was by far the best post ’bout photo this year!
Cheers!
Thanks so much, Joe.
Joe,
Great blog topic and content. This one”s a keeper for me. Valuable advice from a real pro.
Cheers,
My mantra at the moment is ‘get names get names get names…’ I say it every day, 37 times an hour, to try and break my habit of taking a nice photo and walking away…
Love your work by the way!
Thanks Joe, I generally fall for the lens cap one 🙂 Gee it looks dark through the viewfinder!
Darn, I was hoping for your thoughts on Mistakes in Life 🙂 LOL. Great photos Joe.
Great post Joe; loved all of your suggestions! Especially loved yesterday’s settings since have been guilty of that one myself. Thank goodness for a quick look in LCD and realized that I was way off.
Common sense answers to less than obvious questions, nicely put!
A few other common mistakes are not using a tripod if you want really sharp shots, I know you are a hand held fan Joe, but this a sure way for ‘most’ people to improve their photography. Secondly, get in closer, many beginners don’t fill the frame.
Steve
What’s a lens cap? lol, Isn’t that what a UV filter is for!
Joe,
Great tips to all photographers amateur or pro to get in the game and don’t compromise! Thanks again for the great posts.
Your best blog to date (because it’s the one I could relate to :-)) Keep them coming (I mean the advice)
Joe,
Loved your gig in Atlanta yesterday. Very informative and entertaining to boot!!
Fantastic advise – I’m loving the new book, your photos are magnificent and your writing voice has been finely tuned!
Thank you so much for this post. It´s great to remember some of those things that you know but don´t always put to practice.
Joe,
I always find inspiration in your posts. They make me smile, which is so helpful in this world we live it. So many of us strive son much to be more than we were yesterday that we miss today and the moment in front of us.
Thanks for being there for us.
you forgot the most important thing. all photos can and are usually photoshopped. you can fix or add anything.
haha – I will try not to fight the big dog…I live in Australia, I just wish my brides would stop dictating midday photo shoots…
I am printing this and putting next to my other scriptures. Thank you.
There I was thinking the lens cap would save me having to buy a UV filter to stop me dipping my 24-70 in my tea (a hot european beverage)….Love the tips Joe, having signed up to kelby training recently I gotta say Joe you are a feckin kick ass light master worthy of all that head swellin praise…..from a FNG in Ireland….
You are such an inspiration Joe ….but I’m sure you’ve heard all of this crap a thousand times.
So.
I LOVE your work and the energetic and entertaining manner in which you present your blogs.
E
Great advice and a nice way of getting it across.
Oh, and by the way, take the lens cap off:-)
ROFL
Yes, been there done that, got the crappy tee shirt.
One of the best blog post reads in recent months. Fab.
Humph.. I agree with everything but “pixels are free – keep shooting, shoot alot”. Practicing – yes. But being just trigger happy – hell no. Person who clicking that shutter like man posessed, just in hope of catching something – irritating and useless. You can not rely on luck. Luck is good, but you have to develop skill instead of “spray and pray” attitude.
I was shooting a big dog just the other day!
…he bit me.
One for the foot-zoom: Put a prime lens on your camera for a week and learn how to frame stuff by moving to the right spot. You’ll learn more than you thought you would.
Great advice and a nice way of getting it across.
Thanks Joe! Great words
I like the “This is not brain surgery” comment
I had brain surgery & I then picked up the camera!!!
Joe,
Though I’m on the other side of the hemisphere (Brazil), you do not know of my existence and I have never seen you personally, you have been my mentor, teacher and inspiration. Again thanks for all the tips!
I’ll be watching you on 03 December at Kelby training live.
Cheers
Spot on Joe. To make a confession or emphasize your words, I did the exact mistake as you put it, while I’m in your seminar. I forgot to zero out my settings, and my pop up was still in commander mode with — register to it. When I got a chance to take a picture with you, the picture look so bad with the flash barely lit the scene. I regret it so bad and thus confess my sin. Like you said, zero out your camera settings. Thanks for sharing with us Joe.
Thanks Joe,
It’s comforting to know that Pros make mistakes too!
Thank you, Joe, for this post!
I am so happy to find this blog. Great post! Looking forward to reading more 🙂
This was so valuable, thankyou for sharing
Joe, you always make me laugh. Love it!
Really great post! My new favorite quote:
“Remember, the camera is a machine. It does not have feelings, and it didn’t go to art school.”
I hope you don’t mind if I quote you…
“Oh, and by the way, take the lens cap off:-)”
My most common mistake hahahaha (really)
Thanks for this post Joe =)
Now this is an eye opener for some of the photog out there including me 🙂
“Remember, the camera is a machine. It does not have feelings, and it didn’t go to art school.”
Thanks, Joe. I need no D4.
great post … trully inspiring as well as other Life’s articles on photography
As always, enlightening and with a great touch of humour. Ever thought of doing stand-up for photogs? 🙂
Thanks!
Just coincidently bump into this post, and it really inspire me..
Inspiring advice!!!
Thanx, Joe! Good refresher on many points and good teaching on others. However, one of my favorites shots of my big dog was in the harsh, bright, high noon sun. So glad I took the shots because he unexpectantly died a week later. Sigh …
Thanks Joe,
your sense of humour is at least as good as your photography ! 🙂
I love the advice to “shot lots.” I often find myself in a hurry for no apparent reason. What’s the rush?
A couple of days ago I drove three hours (an hour and a half each way) for a picture. I already knew the composition I wanted from scouting the location, so I shot about 30 frames bracketing exposure, depth of field and orientation. On my way back I realised I still had the camera set to manual focus at the f/11 hyperfocal distance from a pano shoot the night before! Fortunately I was only 15 minutes from the location, and there was still light, so I was able to re-shoot. (The resulting image is “Valley of the shadow of death” on my flickr photostream link above).
Great stuff Joe, thanks!
Excellent information Joe, wasn’t too comfortable with the four men and their soccer balls LOL
You make some very useful points here Joe, thanks for the tips
Amazing what a little kick in the butt can do to make one realize you’re never too old to break bad habits.
thanks for the tips. This is a very uplifting and insightful article.
I agree with much of the advice given, (especially about carrying your camera, great photo opps aren’t planned and if you don’t have your camera…).
However I think advice 1 and advice 7 are contradictions: Sure pixels are free but that usually means shooters are less likely to pick their shots. I would rather take 20 shots that are all good than take 200 and get 1 decent photo.
Thanks for the tips! It was quite inspiring and made me feel good. I am doing (or trying to do) what you had in your article. Don’t get me wrong – I make plenty of mistakes! But, at least I am trying! Thanks! Love reading your stuff!
The camera is a tool for sharing.
The camera is not a tool for seeing.
Lens choice. Lighting. Background. And most important subject help to make the photogragh.
The rest is up to you.
Thanks for the great tips…this really make me thinking of all mistakes I did in my photography
Joe, I took your lighting class in Elmsford and speaking of mistakes, showed up with a Stroboframe, which you quickly disabused me of, one reason being that it made anyone using it look like a total dork, me especially. If I have to shoot a party, what setup would you recommend to get the flash off the camera? Thanks.
Thanks for the tips and inspiration. Sometimes when I feel like I am not going good enough, I’ll remember these out-of-the-box messages.
Great! Keeping these tips in mind definetly helps going out there to take some snaps. Thank you Joe.
I have to agree with Phil. I to would ratehr take 20 shots that are all good than take 200 and get 1 decent photo.
Thanks a lot for the tips. I try to make a conscious effort not to take pictures with annoying items in the back ground. I try to remind myself that when I post them on my gardening blog that they will be available world wide and it needs to be like a piece of art.
Great tips!! 🙂
Great tips and very helpful article. I agree totally about getting it right in the camera. I much prefer to take the shots and see them as I want them on the computer, than have to fiddle around with them to turn them into something else. Apart from that, I don’t have the necessary funds to purchase all the editing programmes that people seem to use to get good pictures. If I see something worthy of a photograph it remains as I see it “au naturel”.. having said that I still have a LOT to learn.
Thanks Joe
Phil wrote, “I would rather take 20 shots that are all good than take 200 and get 1 decent photo.” My response – I would rather take 200 shots with one that makes me or someone happy instead of ZERO.
Pretty useful tips, Thanks Joe
– Goodness gracious. Thank you for all the advices. I do appreciates it. And i agree all the above. It really motivate me to have my camera all times. Thanks once again. Cheers =)
Some great tips and advice! Thanks!
Amazing issues here. I’m very glad to see your post. Thank you so much and I’m having a look ahead to contact you. Will you please drop me a mail?