1. Picture quality and sharpness
The two most common manifestations for ordinary photography enthusiasts are that they care too much about the noise or do not care about the quality of the picture at all. Many friends place great emphasis on theories that high sense is unavailable, or underexposed and unavailable theories, and thus miss a lot of excellent photography themes, while more friends are in starry sky, sunset and many other extreme environments, often just focusing on shooting pictures Enough shocking, and forget the importance of picture quality.
First of all, image quality and sharpness are factors that must be considered. Excellent photographic works, whether it is landscape works or portrait works, should be clear and sharp, and there should be no jitter or inaccurate focus. This is a must for high-quality photographic works. But for the picture quality, the work can accept noise, but the noise should not affect the look and feel of the picture.
There are many aspects to consider in controlling image quality. First of all, in terms of shooting, try to use more reasonable sensitivity and reduce forced high-sensitivity exposure, which is the basis. When shooting scenery, we try to use a tripod and low sensitivity, while shooting portraits with artificial fill light, can minimize the impact of noise.
On the other hand, in the later stage, use RAW files for processing as much as possible, reduce large-scale post-production adjustments, try to avoid using single HDR and greatly brighten the dark parts, which can reduce noise.
Use the HDR function, you need to be very cautious, because HDR often brings about a large decline in picture quality, so it is best to use multiple RAW files for HDR operations. In addition, you should be careful not to overemphasize the details and highlight them during HDR. The picture quality has deteriorated seriously.
Finally, regarding sharpness, although many friends often complain about the quality of the lens, they often ignore the sharpness of the picture. Any jitter or inaccurate focus will often ruin an excellent work. Therefore, maintaining excellent sharpness in all works, whether it is scenery or portrait, is also a necessary skill for the road to photography.
2. Prospects and levels
No matter what kind of photo, the composition is the core consideration that constitutes the photo. Everyone generally considers various composition methods, such as symmetrical composition, diagonal composition, triangular composition, etc., but often ignore the application of the foreground and the level of the photo.
For composition, the foreground is a very important part. The foreground can balance the picture, enhance the depth of the picture, enhance the sense of space, and has an important visual guiding role. However, although we talk about the foreground all the year round, when it comes to the shooting scene, we often forget the foreground completely. For example, when shooting landscapes, we often directly shoot mountains and rivers, and forget the choice of the foreground.
Among the many functions of the foreground, the most important is to enhance the layering of the picture when shooting scenery, which is also an important difference between ordinary photographers and professional photographers.
For professional photographers, many factors are considered in the composition of the picture, and it is also very important to enhance the sense of hierarchy. Us ordinary photography enthusiasts often take pictures “very flat”, that is, all scenery is simply tiled on the screen, which is also the ability we need to improve.
3. Light and contrast
Another point is the contrast between the light and the picture. Light is the core factor of photos. Without light, there would be no photographic works. To improve your shooting skills, you need to learn how to master light and contrast.
For professional photographers, the shooting method will be determined according to the light in the environment, and the appropriate composition will be selected to make the picture more layered or conflicting. But for some photography enthusiasts, especially when traveling outside, sometimes we don’t consider the intensity of the light. For many professional photographers, we will definitely choose the most appropriate time and place. Shoot.
For portrait photography and commercial photography, the use of light is the ability to master the lighting, and for landscape photography, mastering the light means you need to have better patience and stronger willpower. You need to wait patiently in the harshest environment where others can’t reach. This is also a necessary quality for professional landscape photographers. Maybe we, as photographers, cannot be so strict with ourselves, but at least we should learn to shoot at the right time instead of simply visiting here.
In addition, in addition to being good at using light, photographers prefer to create contrast in the picture. Whether it is light contrast, difference contrast, or content contrast, contrast can make photos more impactful. There are two basic tones in the picture, one is harmony, whether it is the scenery or the color tone, it is the simplest. But the more advanced is to create conflict, and the most important representative of conflict is to have contrast.
4. Color and style
Regarding color, many photography enthusiasts have seen a lot of grading strategies, but if you want to go further from a photography enthusiast, then you must have your own color style. Furthermore, if you want to improve your professional level, you must focus on a subject and form a photographic style with distinctive self-characteristics.
The development of color style does not happen overnight. Everyone will experience many detours when learning to color, try many new methods, and try different colors. But when we have taken enough photos and made enough attempts, if we want to further improve the level of photography, we must have our own shooting style, which is very important to have our own color style.
Photography needs to experiment more, try different styles, different subjects, and different forms of expression. But if you want to go further, you need to delve into a certain point that you are good at. Mastering familiar subjects and forming your own style, you will find that the world of photography is much larger than imagined. A small point has rich content, enough to study for a lifetime.
Sum up
The four tips introduced here are four important points that distinguish ordinary photographers from professional photographers.
