All effective photographs have several things in common, whether they’re captured indoors or outside. In the eye-opening tutorial below you learn what one accomplished pro says are the essential “building blocks” to consider.
Instructor Peter Forsgard is an accomplished professional photographer based in Helsinki, Finland whose popular YouTube channel is devoted to helping amateurs refine their skills. The tips he provides in today’s comprehensive episode cover everything from technical matters, perspective control, and post-processing methods to storytelling and conveying emotion in your photographs.
Forsgard begins this lesson by providing his take on topics with which you may be familiar, and then moves on to concepts that are less well understood. He jumps right in with a discussion of composition, which he calls one of the most important aspects of all types of photography. Simply put, this involves “placing the subject in a specific place within the frame that can significantly boost the impact of an image.” He recommends several methods, conventional and otherwise, for doing just that.
Next on his list is understanding how to use whatever light you confront—a technique he considers of upmost importance, regardless of your style of photography or the location where you shoot. By taking his advice you’ll learn how to increase texture for added sharpness, modify the mood, and manipulate the interplay between bright areas and shadows.
Another way to boost the impact of an image is to pay close attention to how the background of a scene interacts with other elements within the frame. One of his several suggestions for minimizing background distractions is to position a subject is brighter light than what exists further back in the scene.
Perspective is another of Forsgard’s key components, and he urges you to avoid the common trap of always shooting from eye level. This one is simply a matter of altering your vantage point by shooting from above or at ground level depending upon the subject at hand. Doing this will add interest to your photos and make them stand out from the rest.
The foregoing is just a taste of what Forsgard has to offer, and you’ll probably want to jot down a few notes as the video progresses. You’ll learn his approach to framing and cropping, how color and contrast impact your results, and a few technical skills that tie everything together.
He also discusses the importance of timing and post processing, and methods you can use to elevate your visual storytelling skills. You can find more great advice by paying a visit to Forsgard’s instructional YouTube channel, so be sure to take a look.
We also recommend watching the tutorial we posted from another accomplished pro, explaining how to use your camera’s ISO settings to shoot better photographs in different conditions and situations.
