With the reduction in price of DSLR cameras, may people have DSLR cameras, have the interest in photography but have ideas or “a little knowledge” and as a result photography myths are created.
This blog post discusses 3 of these photography myths.
1) My Camera is the Problem – I need to upgrade
“I would be able to take much better photos if I had a better camera.”
No, it won’t … Better equipment does not produce better photographs by virtue of it being more advanced. Would you tell a chef that the reason his food tastes so good was the quality of his pan? The equipment is simply the medium through which the photographers ideas are conveyed.
It is very true that having more advanced and therefore more expensive equipment will allow you to have more possibilities but only when used skillfully. The mistake many amateurs make is that they upgrade their camera without fully understanding their current camera. You need to understand exposure, aperture settings, shutter speeds, ISO and how to change these on your camera – upgrading from a €500 DSLR to a 5D MK III before knowing the basics is a recipe for disaster. Before upgrading try to get to grips with the equipment you currently own, join a camera club, buddy up with someone who has the same camera and go on photo walks … a photographer is always learning.
For balance, it can be said that there are a few photographers who call themselves professional who own very expensive gear and produce basic results and likewise there are some stunning images which have been taken with iPhones and Smartphones!
iPhone as a Camera : This photo was taken using an iPhone and was converted to gray-scale with an additional vignette added using the native Photoshop app on the iPhone.
2) Photography is easy – just push the button
Oooh – try walking up to a professional and saying this line. Photography is a lot of fun, it is enjoyable, artistic and somewhat technical. It requires a lot of work to produce quality images. For example, a landscape shot might be pre-scouting of the location, checking of tides, weather forecasts, checking access to the location, a 4am start, 30 minutes waiting for the correct light in cold locations, working in a 3 minute window where the subject is 100% as you want it, then the post-production in Photoshop to ensure the photo is exactly the way you want it.
Photography requires some learning, an understanding of light / composition / equipment / lenses, a lot of patience and experimentation and also dedication.
It’s not easy – but good photographers make it look easy !!
3) If the photo does not look right – you can just PhotoShop it
This is another popular myth which is not a good approach. If you can, try and get your shot 90% or even 100% correct in the camera. It is true that if you shoot RAW, Photoshop can assist with a slight under or over exposure without it becoming obvious, however in JPG mode this does not work that well.
I have heard of some people who have blurry shots and use the sharpening tool in Photoshop to try correct this – which is total madness. Also, poorly cloned or retouched photos can look very bad.
When Photoshop is used well it is an excellent tool but it can only make good shots look better and can never recover a poorly taken shot.
Photoshop is not your get out of jail free card!
Conclusion
Photography Myths are out there and there are many more which I may cover in the near future.
There are a few people with cameras who think they are suddenly professional just because they have a “Pro Flickr account” or that they purchased a “Full Frame pro DSLR camera”.
There’s a lot more to photography – some might say photography is a lifestyle choice as you need to dedicate your time to learning, extending your knowledge, pushing your own boundaries and also creating your own style … and this all takes time.
I hope this post was of interest and feel free to make comments