Would you like to learn how to take good pictures with nearly any digital camera? First, you need to learn some elementary techniques that professional photographers use every day. Before I give you those tips, I'll share a secret with you: the photographer taking the picture has more impact on the quality of the picture than the megapixel rating of the camera does.
One of the first things you should learn about how to take good pictures is to properly center or off-set the subject on your photo. Many amateur photographers, when taking pictures of an individual person, tend to center the subject in the middle of the picture. However, by simply shifting them to one side of the picture or the other, the picture instantly looks more natural.
The one exception to the off-centering strategy is group photos, such as extended family shots, or class reunions. In those types of photos, the background and surroundings are not nearly as important as the people. Just remember, if the people are most important, center them on the photo. But if the scenery adds just as much character to the photo, do not center the subject.
Especially when taking shots of people in scenery, be careful to avoid including distractions in the picture. For example, a car driving in the background could detract from a picture of a person in front of a gorgeous sunset.
The next strategy you need to work on in order to take better pictures is to pay attention to lighting. When outside, take note of the angle of the sun. Try your best to have the sun shining in front of you, so that the subject is lit up. If the subject has to squint to look into the sun, try a slightly different angle, but still try to have the sun behind you.
When indoors, it can be challenging at times to control lighting. Especially if you're just trying to capture the moment, you do not have the liberty of rearranging lights or moving the subject to a different location. But what you do have control over is your position. Move around the room to get an angle that makes best use of available lighting. Again, try to have the light source behind you so that the subject is illuminated.
There are so many more strategies you can implement to improve the quality and impact of your photos. I've covered just a few in this article. Hopefully by now you realize how much of an impact you, as the photographer, have on the final quality of the image. Since you know how to take good pictures with nearly any digital camera now, get out there and put this knowledge to work.
