The most basic things for new photographers

1. A set of three metering modes

Photography, the simplest understanding is working with light. Most newcomers to the art industry argue that a good camera can produce great photos. However, the magic lies in the light.

Therefore, it is imperative that you understand the metering triad in photography. This is the basic and also the most important in this area.

When taking a photo, the shutter in the camera opens and light is collected into the lens. Camera sensor meets the light, the image will be created. There are three factors that determine how much light enters the lens and what the image will look like:

1. Aperture : This is the aperture of the lens, often referred to as f-stops (e.g. f / 2, f / 5, f / 11, .). The smaller the number, the larger the aperture. The larger the aperture, the more light enters. Aperture also affects the depth of image.
2. Shutter speed (often referred to as speed): Shutter time is open, usually measured in seconds (for example 1 / 200s, 1 / 60s, 5s, .). The slower the shutter speed, the more light is allowed in. Shutter speeds often affect the sensitivity of actions (for example, fast shutter speeds can capture extremely fast actions, slow speeds can cause exposure).
3. ISO : This is a measure of the sensitivity of an image sensor to light, measured in ISO units (e.g. 100 ISO, 400 ISO, 6400 ISO, .). High ISO allows you to take pictures in a dark room or in low light conditions, but in exchange for a lot of noise.

To take a good picture, you must know the combination of the three factors. This is not an easy skill to learn, it takes a lot of shooting to have experience with each type of lighting environment.

2. How to hold the camera

The next thing that a beginner should take note of is how to hold the camera properly. 'Standard' here means holding the camera so as to avoid shaking as much as possible.

When the shutter button is pressed, the shutter opens to the sensor to receive light. Any small move while the shutter is open will produce a blurry photo. Not moving means not shaking the device.

When taking photos in low light, long exposures, or taking photos with telephoto lenses, you should use a tripod.

3. The 3-part rule

Just by looking at the picture, you can know where is the professional photographer, what is the amateur. The difference is in the arrangement of the image. Amateur people often do not have much sense of composition and composition is the soul of a beautiful picture.

Composition is the arrangement of details in an image. If you don't care about the composition and still get great shots, this is a complete coincidence. Understanding the composition of photos will help you take great photos with every object, place, and situation.

Typically, the best image layout is divided into 3 sections vertically and horizontally. All photographers use this technique. The three-part rule is a simple and effective way of dividing the composition, helping beginners to form a habit of dividing the composition in detail before holding the camera up for shooting.

4. Change the shooting angle

Yes, this is something you've heard about being boring - change your perspective when taking photos. However, to do this is certainly not easy. Try changing the following:

1. Change in altitude (e.g. getting closer or further to the ground)
2. Change angle (stand straight or shoot from an angle)
3. Change the distance (stand closer or farther)

Try combining all three methods above. You will be surprised to see how much the picture changes.

5. Post-production is very important

Post-editing with an image is often understood as changing the original image by adjusting colors, lighting or adding filters to the original image. This misunderstanding has caused many photographers to never post-edit photos, because they want to have the most natural picture.

Every camera has post-editing whether you like it or not. The original data of the image is in RAW format, but the image you view on the LCD screen (or on the phone) has been converted to another format.

Not all post production requires Photoshop. Sometimes they are over-modified or intentionally modified for some purpose. Anyway, you should do post-production after taking pictures. Do not underestimate this important skill.

6. Shoot often, shoot everything

Has iron grinding makes perfect. This is definitely the only way you can improve. No matter how many youtube channels you watch, how many photography courses you have, if you don't practice shooting regularly, you won't be able to go very far. Shoot anything, no matter how bright or dark, just take the time, get the camera out to shoot.