Although I didn’t go to school much, I deeply appreciate the traditional values ??of ancient literati’s “Qin, chess, calligraphy and painting”. In the past, I often copied calligraphy or ink landscape painting, but after self-study for a period of time, I became discouraged and wanted to learn on my own. Good calligraphy and painting are so difficult! Later, I discovered that "photography", an emerging art form, is very close to calligraphy and painting. You don't have to work so hard, you can just shoot it! And there is also a good feeling about oneself as a high-ranking "cultural person". But after I entered the door of "photography", I realized that there is no shortcut in the world! Photography is not as simple as imagined. There are more than a dozen branches of photography in the larger category of photography. Each branch can be further subdivided. It may be difficult to learn them all in a lifetime.
To get back to the subject, do I have any experience to share with some newbies who have just started? The answer is yes, I won’t tell most people, haha, just kidding. Let me share my views on the issues that everyone is often concerned about:
1. How can newbies get started quickly?
After many people bought a camera and learned some photography theory, they are often confused in the vast sea of ??photos. They have no sense of what they are taking, and they don’t know how to start. Let me enlighten you. , please don’t make fun of me.
1. First of all, learn the basic functions of the camera carefully.
There is really no shortcut to this. If you really don’t want to learn, then it’s best to set the SLR camera to P (programmed automatic shooting mode) or A (aperture priority mode) or S (speed priority mode), and use the SLR as a point-and-shoot machine.
2. Learn the basic skills of holding a camera well.
Some people may ask, do I still need to learn this? Then I can only hey, if you want to avoid taking blurry photos, you must start with basic skills (of course, set the speed above 250, the camera does not shake, generally it is not a big problem), now in the digital camera settings, there are generally two modes , one is handheld, and the other is a tripod. Just set it to handheld. How to hold it? There are many positions on the Internet. You can find the one that suits you, but the premise is that you have only one goal. You must have "iron hand" ability. Try to do it as much as possible. The camera has the ability to remain motionless until the moment the shutter is pressed! Of course, SLR digital cameras also have anti-shake function settings, which must be turned on (as the level improves, in some cases this function is not needed, it depends on the situation).
3. Composition problem.
If you have a painting foundation, you will definitely get started quickly. It doesn’t matter if you don’t have a foundation. First, simply learn the basic composition methods on the Internet: golden section, diagonal composition, etc. The main thing is to make yourself comfortable with it. One person. The subject of the photo is usually placed two-thirds of the way. You can learn the white space method of Chinese painting. When you first start learning to take pictures, you must make the picture simple and clean. Each film has only one subject and one protagonist.
4. Shooting angle problem.
This is a very cool question. Masters are now struggling to find a special angle every day.
Generally, there are several shooting angles: overlooking angle, looking up, flat angle, and close-up angle; each angle has its own characteristics, among which the overlooking angle is also called "God's perspective". You know, the sense of seeing from above, looking down at all living things; the upward angle is just the opposite, reflecting the tallness and power of people or things; the horizontal angle is the perspective mode of all living beings, the same angle as the human eye; close-ups are generally used to highlight expressions Describe the expressions of characters and amplify the impact of the image of things. Each has its own merits, use them as needed when shooting.
5. Setting issues of sensitivity ISO and white balance WB
Generally during the day, the sensitivity for outdoor use on sunny days is ISO100 (or 200), tree shade, wall shade, and indoor shade. Use ISO400 during the day. Under light conditions, you generally need a sensitivity of 1600 or above at night. The white balance (color temperature) should be changed to sunlight, cloudy, fluorescent, cold light, flash and other modes at any time according to different environments. If you really don’t want to adjust it, then Fully automatic A mode (but in general, the pictures taken automatically have a lot of noise).
6. Image size and image quality (QUAL image base) size adjustment.
This is generally set to the standard JPEG fine format according to needs. Important pictures that require post-color grading use RAW format. There are generally three types of image sizes, with "L", "M" and "S" representing large, medium and small formats respectively.
7. Exposure problem.
There is no doubt that the main problem that all photographers face, whether they are professional photographers or amateurs, is how to expose correctly. If the exposure is wrong, everything else is just a joke. You may have the latest and most expensive equipment, go to the most fascinating places, be in the right place at the right time and in the right light, and your photography skills are superb... but the wrong exposure can make even one picture unnatural. I can't even choose a photo that's passable.
What is "correct exposure"? "Correct exposure" means that the exposure process is carried out with the exposure result you want. If you want to shoot a light blue sky, but you get a dark blue sky, or a whitish blue sky, it means you set a wrong exposure value, and you must learn to capture it before pressing the shutter. Make sure the image is what you imagined.
8. Basic qualities of a photographer
As a photographer, you must have two qualities at the same time; first, you must be a poet and artist, use your imagination to face For the intuitive and mysterious world; first, you must be a technician and deal with shutter speed, aperture value and focal length rationally. Imagination without technology and technology without imagination are both unsuccessful.
9. Photography "Control" Theory
I believe that the process of learning to shoot with a SLR camera is a process of learning to control shooting, from the initial fully automatic shooting to the highest level. Fully manual shooting is a process of continuous improvement. The advantages of fully automatic shooting are quick response, high adjustment efficiency, and the ability to capture fleeting scenes in time. However, many of the photos taken are not the effect you want to take; manual shooting When shooting, you can continuously adjust the camera parameters in the same environment to see the effect of the film, find out the effect you want most, and remember these parameter settings for future use. In this way, through continuous attempts, each Shooting in various environments, you will be able to shoot the effects you want as you wish.
10. Light metering.
Cameras are generally set up with three metering modes: 1) spot metering, which measures the metering of the point you most want to shoot. It is my favorite metering method; 2) center metering. Focused metering focuses on metering the central part of the viewfinder. 3) Matrix evaluation metering subdivides the viewfinder into many small partitions, and calculates the metering results through software.
The last thing I want to say is that what others say will never be as true and reliable as your own practice. There is no shortcut on the road to progress, and a thousand words cannot withstand your own trial.