We all post and share photos. Whether it’s to social media like Facebook or Flickr or whether you just send pictures to your friends and family by email, you’re still going through the same basic process. So today …
I’m going to give you 3 Easy Peezy secrets on How to post Great Pictures.
If you look around on the Net, you’ll see step by step tutorials everywhere. I thought I’d be different, unconventional, a rebel and instead of a conventional step by step lesson, I thought I’d do it backwards.
Let’s go backwards step by step.
Before I post a picture I almost always edit it to some degree. Sometimes a little, sometimes a lot depending on what “look” I’m going for. Sometimes it’s filters and vignetting or maybe convert to black and white and sometimes it’s just a simple crop. Experiment. Find what editing works for different situations. A landscape, a kids birthday party, a closeup of an animal, a backyard flower … whatever. They shouldn’t all be edited in the exact same way.
TIP and take-away: LEARN how to use your editing tools. Get familiar with them. Experiment using different techniques on the same photo that you have chosen to edit. Vary your editing depending on the image and mood you want to convey.
Let’s take another step backwards: Before I edit a photo. I need to select which one to edit.
As quickly as you can, go through all the candidates and be brutal to discard the “less than stellar”. Your gut is often right, if something about an image doesn’t grab you on the first glance, chances are it probably doesn’t have “IT”. Keep looking for IT, for those images that catch your attention. Maybe it’s an expression or groovy composition or striking lighting. Whatever it is, set those aside, mark them as candidates. This phase should be pretty FAST. Like: “No, no, no, no, yes, no, no, no, no, no, yes”. From all of these I’ll strive to drill down to ONE to edit. Remember, it’s not just speed though, it’s also being able to spot those elements of an image that make it stand out.
TIP and take-away: Hone your ability to select intentionally and choose quickly.
Let’s take yet another step backwards: Before I can select the photo, I’ll need to take some good, shall we say “candidates”. This can come from a LOT of trials. Although, I’m more intentional when I’m working on an assignment, I still take a lot. Some photos “spray and pray” which means they’ll have more work to do once back at the computer. Some photographer simply have to shoot a lot of frames in burst mode (sports, etc.)to get their shots. I try to avoid it or use the slower continuous shooting on my camera when I can. On the other hand, I’d hate to miss a keeper shot (i.e. at a wedding or event) because I was trying to be too conservative. It really is a balance and depends on the situation. If I’m shooting products in a controlled environment, I can keep the numbers down. Besides keeping your numbers down, you really should learn how to compose well “in camera”. Lots of tips out there on how to do so (rule of thirds, etc.) Pay attention and practice a few of these composition guidelines. Be intentional, not just random or lucky.
The TIP and take-away from here: Pro photographers tend to take more photos than the average point and shooter in order to get the keeper shots. Shoot more than you might usually shoot, but be purposeful, intentional and goal driven to a vision. Get to KNOW your camera well enough to be able to capture the images you envision.
So there you are: the 3 “secrets” to getting awesome results and how to post that one great picture.
Before you post that great picture, learn how to the edit images well
Before you edit the image, learn how to select well.
Before you select the image learn your equipment and composition to capture well.
I’m going to give you one bonus tip to help you get better at ALL THREE of the secrets that I just mentioned:
Practice. Practice with purpose and repeat. Again and again. Practice often. Practice daily. Don’t reserve your practice for the actual events. Musician and athletes practice a lot if they want to excel. Imagine a musician only applying themselves on the day of the concert or an athlete on the day of the game.
Capture, select, edit, post and practice. I told you, Easy Peezy!
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