With today’s advanced cell phone camera technology, anyone can take amazing photos, whether it be of nature or other subjects that interest you. How do you start you ask? Here are some basic tricks that will help you:
- Look for something that catches your attention – it could be birds at a feeder, water flowing over rocks in a stream, a bee on a flower, or coloured fall leaves on a patch of grass.
- Consider the rule of thirds. It is a rule to guide where to place your subject in your viewfinder or frame/screen. This means dividing /visualizing your view in three rows horizontally and three columns vertically. Where the rows and columns intersect are the suggested points for placing your subject – off to the left or right sides, or higher or lower, instead of always in the middle.
- Look for other things of interest around your subject that can be part of the picture naturally (without disturbing anything). For example, rocks, tree branches, tall vegetation, even clouds that can frame your subject at the edges of your photo to give it more depth or to show your subject’s environment more fully.
- Avoid shadows by positioning yourself so that the sun isn’t causing your shadow to appear on your subject.
- Try different angles and take lots of photos. Take photos from either side of your subject, or from above or below. Don’t be afraid to get on your knees or lay on the ground to get a different view of your subject. You never know which version will strike you most and you can always delete the ones that didn’t quite turn out like you hoped.
Most importantly of all, take your time and have fun. You’ll be amazed at what you’ll find!
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FR