Equipment, Creativity, & A Great Eye!

During the last 15 wonderful years of photography, I have gotten the chance to work with some utterly FANTASTIC Photographers, and learn from all of them. And throughout those years, I have seen some of the different equipment that those photographers have used, and still use to this day. Some of the biggest misconceptions is that the equipment makes a picture look great, but I can assure you, there is so much more to it then that. So here are some of the things I have learned throughout the years, that have worked for me.......

First things first, the equipment. You can take the a picture, the same way, with 5 different cameras, and capture the same image. Yes, some equipment can do better things, but if you have a great eye for photography, you will get some great pictures. Several years ago, I lived in Fresno California, and went to the Fresno County Fair. During that Fair, like all Fairs, they have an art area, where local photographers get to showoff their work, and along with showing the work they have to offer, is they showcase what camera was used. When I looked in the case, one of the pictures caught my eye, and the camera that was used that won a Blue ribbon was a disposable point and shoot camera. Also think about this, Ansel Adams, one of the best, if not the best landscape photographers. He would hike up to remote locations in Yosemite, Ca. in the earliest parts of the morning, and wait, at times, all day to take a perfect picture. And what did he use????? He used a Kodak No. 1 Box Brownie. Which if you don't know what that it is, to describe it, would be a wooden box with a piece of class on one end, and a curtain on the end to poke your head in, and look through the glass.

Another thing that people seem to think makes a great picture is mega pixels. Mega pixels help with showing great detail, and when enlarging pictures, the more mega pixels you have, the better resolution you'll have. but Mega pixels don't mean your going to take a great picture. With Technology the way it is, it grows so so much, and so fast, that its hard to keep up, and with the prices each camera body costs, we cant go and buy everything new that comes out. So you may ask, what equipment can help make a picture good? Well, different camera bodies have different features, and each of those features do different things. So it really depends on what you are wanting to photograph. If your doing sports, your going to want a fast shutter speed, at least 10 mega Pixels, and different lenses with different measurements for distances. Along with that, a good external flash with zoom capability to compensate for the distance or make sure the flash has enough power. Vs. if your photographing a wedding, you should have some of the same equipment, shorter lenses, a fast flash with a backup power pack to refresh your power faster, a sense of order and organization, and a creative eye to capture romance in the air.

Now that we know that you can get great pictures with all different kinds of equipment, how does Creativity and a Great Eye Come into play???? These two things go hand and hand in creating a great picture. You need to be able to see the Beauty in everything around you, and then..... Be able to do something different with it. Try to photograph a single object, but find 5 ways to photograph it. Yes, How? easy, photograph it from different angels, maybe shine some different lights on it. So say your photographing a square candle. Well we know a candle has 6 sides, so you can photograph it at least 6 different ways to start. Then, you can photograph it with two different sides showing, with the candle lit, not lit, etc. A great way to do this, is think outside the box, try different things, and if you like it, great, if no, try other things. Check out these ways I have photograph candles. Let me know what you think, give me your opinion and try some stuff out for yourself......... Hope to hear from you soon!!!!!