Well… Well… Well… I’m back with another post that’s different from what I usually do. Expect more posts like that. I realize now that’s like asking you to expect the unexpected, but do that, just trust me on it. I’ve been thinking about what to write here because I cannot think of many fashion related posts at the moment. And it’s not because I’m uninspired. Trust me, I have plenty of inspiration, and I even shared it with you a few days ago. It’s just that I don’t really know what to do with that fashion inspiration because I have to get back in the swing of things, and it’s taking awhile. But one of the things I mentioned becoming more interested in at the end of my inspiration post was photography. Partly because I wanted to take up the art of iPhoneography for what’s (as of right now) going to bethe best vacation ever seconds, partly because I’m taking a photography course next year, partly because I’m working on my Instagram theme, partly because I have a DSLR and don’t use it enough, and partly because I actually really like it. I mean I despise taking blog pictures because it’s awkward with an adult doing it, difficult with a tripod, and because the results are unpredictable with my younger sisters. But I like photography when I’m behind the camera and know exactly what I want. So lo and behold, my photography post.
Disclaimer: I am in know way claiming that I am a skilled photographer, that I know everything there is to know in photography, or that I am an expert whose advice you should follow at all costs. I just did a bunch of reading, like photography, and wanted to do a post on it.
Top Tips
I did a lot of reading about the art of iPhoneography because that’s the camera I have with me most often, but most of these tips aren’t technical, so they apply to any camera. Truthfully, I’m more interested in hearing about composing a good shot and seeing examples than I am hearing about ISO and white balance. Anybody with me? But if I learned anything while reading about photography, it was these three things. I definitely remember them, they’re easy to implement, and make a photo look 100x better.
-
Have a focal point. Most of the time this makes your pictures infinitely more interesting, so I recommend it about 90% of the time but not always. I especially recommend for landscape shots and things of that nature, but abstract shots and architectural shots don’t need this as much. Focal points also make the picture more personal. There’s thousands of shots of a beach or a mountain, but without a focal point, you likely won’t really look at them twice, because your eyes aren’t drawn anywhere. But adding a focal point can oftentimes make people look at your photo longer. However, that’s not always the case. For example, I took this picture from the bottom of a tree looking upwards. I suppose the tree could be considered a focal point, but since it’s the only thing in the picture maybe not. Even without a clear focal point I think it’s still really interesting.
I don’t have a real focal point here, and focused more on symmetry since that tends to look better with square shots. Even though I broke the “rules” I still think this is a pretty interesting and cool shot.
-
Use the rule of thirds. Did you know that when you look at a picture, if it’s a rectangle, your eyes aren’t naturally drawn to the center of the picture? I didn’t know it at first, so don’t feel too bad😉.
I’m not sure why this is true, but trust me, it is. Your eyes are actually drawn to the “thirds” in a picture. Let me explain. Imagine a grid drawn across the photo below. Imagine 3 horizontal lines intersecting three vertical lines to form 9 squares. Where those lines are and where they meet are where your eyes are drawn, so I recommend placing your focal point along those lines and intersections. I also recommend lining up any horizons or things of that sort with the horizontal lines to ensure a photo is straight. This rule works a lot of the time, but not all of the time, such as with square photos. You can turn the grid on your phone for iPhones in the camera settings, which is what I have.
I used the tree as my focal point, and implanted the rule of thirds.
-
Use leading lines. Leading lines are most commonly a pair of parallel lines that start at the bottom middle or corner of a picture, and continue all the way to the top of a picture, if that makes sense. They are usually vertical, and oftentimes you can’t see the endpoint, which keeps you wondering. They’re supposed to draw your eyes to a focal point, so I recommend putting your subject at the end of your leading lines. I haven’t yet had the chance to use this in a photo that I’m proud enough to share, but I’m always on the lookout for these lines now.
Courtesy of iPhone Photography School Click on image to be directed to the original source
Follow me on VSCO for more iPhoneography
After the Shot
Once you’ve taken pictures it’s time to start the fun. Well, taking pictures is fun too, but now there’s even more. First, I begin by editing my pictures in VSCO on my phone, and sometimes, with pictures I especially love, I upload them to my VSCO gallery. Something else I’m thinking of doing is getting my photos printed as prints by Artifact Uprising, or turning them into a photo book.
Summer Photography Bucket List
I saw something similar to this somewhere online, I don’t quite remember but I thought it was quite interesting. It’s basically a list of picture styles and poses that I want to take over the summer. Some seem a bit staged, and others seem more natural. I’ll try to document the pictures I do from my bucket list on Instagram and sometimes VSCO^ so be sure to follow me there. Although my Instagram is quite lovely, I do desaturate my pictures quite a bit on there, so if you’re looking for more colorful, bright summer shots I would try either my Tumblr or VSCO profile. I’ll either upload the photos one by one, or as a journal/set. And suns out, buns out…
Follow me on Tumblr for more Summer Photography
All summer bucket list images are courtesy of Tumblr and can be found on mine as well
- Take a picture in the sand.
- Take a picture of a palm tree.
- Take a picture of ice cream.
- Take an ocean photo, with your hands in the shape of a heart as the frame.
- Take a picture of a watermelon slice at the beach.
- Take a picture through sunglasses lenses.
- Take a picture of taking a picture with sunglasses.
- Take a picture of a summer drawing in the sand.
- Take a picture of a tropical flower.
- Take a picture of a pineapple.
- Take a picture of the inside of a coconut.
- Take a picture of flash tattoos I get.
- Take a picture of seashells I collect.
- Take a picture underwater, or have a picture taken of me underwater.
- Take a silhouette in the summer sunset.
- Take a picture while riding a bike.
Bonus* Take a picture through a porthole.
Bonus* Take a picture out the window of a plane. Not sure if I’m going to get a chance to do these^, but we’ll see.
OK, so maybe these pictures are a bit cliche, but that’s kind of the point. It’ll be fun to have a bunch of really pretty looking summer 2016 pictures so that I can print them out and take a picture of all my pictures, similar to one in my last post.
What did you think of this photography post? Do you want more like it? Do you have a summer photography bucket list? Let me know what you think in the comments.
