how to take photos that don’t suck.

How do you go from photos that look like this to photos that look like this?

I always used to think that the only way to take nice photos was to have a nice camera with expensive lenses. But after

5 years of doing photography, I realized that pretty much all my favorite photos either came from my phone or a Sony camera from 4 years ago. But earlier

this year, I went out with a friend of mine to shoot on her old film camera.

And the whole process quickly reminded me that a good photo has much less to do with the tools you're using and much more to do with what you're looking for in a photo. I know a lot of people who go out of their way to buy a camera

expecting it to magically make their photos better, but that's not really how it works. So, in this video, regardless

it works. So, in this video, regardless of whether you're shooting on a phone or a separate camera, I want to share with you some of what I've learned on how to make photos not suck. Now, I'm not going

to delve into technical things like shutter speed or aperture settings because there are thousands of great YouTube videos and articles already covering that stuff. But also, as I learned from my own experience, you can

know all the technical stuff and still take bad photos. So, I want to share some simple rules that you can follow when it comes to framing, colors, and lighting to make even your most average

photo look good. So, number one, pick your shot. All right. So, before you

your shot. All right. So, before you point your camera at something, just take a quick second to think what you are actually shooting. And what you'll find is that most things will fall into

one of three categories. An item, a person, or scenery. And what's cool is that each category has its own rules that you can play by to get a more aesthetic result. So, let me break it

aesthetic result. So, let me break it down. First up, items. Whether it be a

down. First up, items. Whether it be a watch, a coffee cup, or a car, the point of these photos is that they are all about one subject. Peter McKinnon has some really good examples of this on

Pete's Pirate Life where he never really lets anything else get in the way of the main subject, i.e. the item that you're shooting. So, the rule of thumb is

shooting. So, the rule of thumb is remove distractions and try to keep your frame as clean as possible when you are shooting an item. Next, people here, you

want to focus on framing and lighting.

If you just want to take a photo of a person or a group, don't worry too much about scenery or background details, as a lot of it is probably going to blur out anyway. and make sure to get closer

out anyway. and make sure to get closer than you think. Most bad portraits are taken too far away. Lastly, also make sure to put them in the light. You never

want someone's whole face to be covered in shadows. But if you do want to

in shadows. But if you do want to incorporate someone into a view or next to something else, then try to frame them slightly off to the side. Then

balance them out with the scenery or anything else that might be in frame.

Thirdly, scenery. A lot of the times, good landscape and cityscape photos rely on layers. foreground, middleground,

on layers. foreground, middleground, background. Flat landscapes are boring.

background. Flat landscapes are boring.

Add depth with both things that are nearby and things that are far away to give it a sense of scale. Just explore

with different perspectives until the scenery feels three-dimensional. And

generally speaking, trying to keep the photo horizontal when shooting views. It

just gives the photo a much better sense of scale and allows the scenery to breathe a bit more. And honestly, if you can just identify what kind of photo you're taking and apply some of these basic rules, you should already notice a

significant difference in the overall aesthetic and professionalism of your photos. But now that we've covered a few

photos. But now that we've covered a few rules on framing, let's talk about color. Number two, color equals vibe.

color. Number two, color equals vibe.

Good use of color is one of the best ways to give personality to a photo and just give it a certain look and feel.

But color theory is complex and can get a lot of people down. So when in doubt, I follow a piece of advice I got from my boss a few years ago that has held up pretty well over the years, which is

just keep it simple, stupid. When it

comes to color, try to stick to just two or three main colors. A lot of the most popular color palettes in photography rely on exactly that. It is one of the quickest and most straightforward ways

to make an image feel cohesive and less amateur-ish. You don't need to keep a

amateur-ish. You don't need to keep a constant catalog of complimentary colors or color codes. Wow, that was a bit of a tongue twister, but anyway, you don't

really need to memorize a lot of this stuff. And yeah, basically just keep it

stuff. And yeah, basically just keep it simple. But as you get better at it,

simple. But as you get better at it, you'll start getting more of a feel as to how to introduce more colors back into your photos. But especially early in the learning process, simple really

is best. Another easy trick, and I do

is best. Another easy trick, and I do this quite a lot, is instead of necessarily thinking about certain colors, more so just think, am I going for a warm vibe or more of a cool vibe?

Warm photos feel cozy, nostalgic, and vibrant. Cool photos feel clean, modern,

vibrant. Cool photos feel clean, modern, or even moody. And if you can't control the colors while you're shooting, you can always try to manage them a bit more afterwards when you're going through the editing process. Now, specifically when

editing process. Now, specifically when it comes to color grading or essentially color editing, I try to stay away from either extreme. The one extreme is doing

either extreme. The one extreme is doing these super heavy edits where you are essentially trying to change every single color in a photo. And then the other side of the spectrum is when you are just putting on a random color

preset and just moving on with your day.

In both cases, it's very easy to sort of mess it up and end up with a worse photo than when you started. But nowadays,

most photo editing apps will let you individually pick out certain colors and either increase or decrease their saturation, which is typically what I do a lot, and I even just do it on my phone

on Lightroom. So, for example, if you

on Lightroom. So, for example, if you want a warm, earthy look, slightly pull down the blues and the purples. If you

want a clean, minimal look, only saturate one or two colors and let contrast do the rest of the work. The

goal isn't usually to make every single color pop. The goal is just to make them

color pop. The goal is just to make them agree with each other. As long as the colors get along with each other, you'll end up with a pretty decent photo. Which

now brings me to the final point. Number

three, find good lighting. One of the biggest mistakes most people make is ignoring light. If framing is a

ignoring light. If framing is a structure of a photo and colors the vibe, then lighting is the thing that makes or breaks everything else. Great

lighting can save even the most mundane photos. But bad light can ruin even the

photos. But bad light can ruin even the most impressive photos. So, if you're not used to playing around with light, here's a very simple rule you can follow. Soft light good, harsh light

follow. Soft light good, harsh light bad. Midday sun is generally your enemy.

bad. Midday sun is generally your enemy.

It creates harsh shadows, squinting eyes, and blown out highlights and weird contrast. If you take nothing else from

contrast. If you take nothing else from this video, remember this. If the sun is directly overhead, your photos will probably suck. Instead, look for early

probably suck. Instead, look for early morning or late afternoon light for more dynamic or sunny shots. Cloudy days or even just great curtains over a window.

also secretly incredible for photography. The clouds act like a giant

photography. The clouds act like a giant softbox, smoothing out shadows and making colors look richer. Light is also an important factor for giving something depth. Sign light creates shadows that

depth. Sign light creates shadows that reveal texture. Backlight can create

reveal texture. Backlight can create silhouettes and mood. Flat light well flattens. There's a mindset shift that

flattens. There's a mindset shift that helped me a lot, which is that when you go out to take photos, don't necessarily look for the subject. Instead, look for good lighting and then see what you can

shoot. And this guided me quite a lot

shoot. And this guided me quite a lot when I tried shooting film for the first time because I really wasn't sure how the colors were going to turn out or even if my framing was all that good, but I just sort of let the light guide

me. And I'd like to think the photos

me. And I'd like to think the photos actually turned out pretty good for a first attempt. And once you start

first attempt. And once you start noticing how light falls on buildings, people, and streets, you'll start seeing photos everywhere. Let natural light hit

photos everywhere. Let natural light hit your subject from one side and in general move around the light. Side

lighting gives texture. Back lighting

creates mood. And even a 10 degree shift can completely transform your photo. So

just to bring it all together, the next time you reach for your phone camera app or an actual camera, just remember these following three ideas. Pick your shot,

limit your colors, and prioritize light.

With all that being said, good luck with your photos out there, and I'll see you in the next one.