8 Easy but Awesome Beginner Tips
32 182 Share TweetWe know trying to get experimental with your film photography is quite a task for beginners. However, that shouldn't stop you from being ever curious! I do know what it's like to experiment with film and photos and get back horrible results. It's not nice, or fun. And it costs you. It costs you film, developing and the effort you put into your photos! Now if you do want some nice results without staying completely on the safe side, these are some super easy tips that always work...with me at least!
Tip #1: Doubling your subject
I'm not really any good at multiple exposures, they are hard to compose and get right! Yet there is a way to guarantee a good result! Choose a subject. Shoot. Don't scroll! Change position or angle. Shoot again. Voila! A very popular way is also mirroring! I haven't tried it too much myself, but if you take a photo then flip the camera upside down and take it again, you get a nice reflection kind of result!
Tip #2: Underground
Go Under the ground! It is way too cool to not do it. Electric lights, Green, blue, yellow tones. A sense of movement and that's it! :)
Tip #3: Hand in the Sky
This is one of my favorite tricks! You hold your hand up against the sun, aiming to cover the sun (or let a few rays of sun flow through your fingers), this way your hand will be dark and you can't really recognize the details when you take your first picture! Don't scroll! Then you take another shot of anything you like after that, flowers, a pattern, a person! Whatever you want! The hand will then get filled in with the shot you take on top and you get a funky looking photo! This, of course, works with things other than a hand as well!
Tip #4: Dreaming Up
Simple, cute, natural. Why not eh? Just angle your camera up to the sky and see what you catch! Trees? Flowers? A bird maybe? I find you can often get a lot out of the atmosphere around you in the sky. One can tell if it's moody or bright! You might have bare trees indicating it's autumn, or full-on flowers for spring! Maybe dark clouds will tower over you or happy white candy floss in the air!
Tip #5: Focus vs. Blurry
Notice the blur in the background?
Now what I love to do is make a nice contrast between focused and non-focused areas in my photos. In some its more clear, in others it isn't. But its basic: choose a subject. Go close up or a few meters distance. But no further than that since you want to be able to show the difference! Then stand your subject still, get ready to shoot, wait for movement in the background...SHOOT! It often works well with underground shots, but go ahead and try out other subjects with this technique! I'm sure they will turn out great!
Tip #6: Mirror or Elevator
This one is a classic. Everyone takes these, and you probably thought of it without this Tipster! First the mirror shot. Mirrors are so great for experimenting, especially when you have more than one! I have never gone for a crazy mirror shot, but it's great when you have multiple mirrors in one shot reflecting different things from each other! Then you can always go behind someone who is looking in a mirror, focus on them in the mirror and get a blur of the back of their body in the front part of the image! And of course simple portraits! Elevator shots work super well with these techniques! I especially love the tones that an elevator usually gives.
Tip #7: Move Closer
Move closer. That's all. No need to say more. Of course not too close. Unless you have a macro lens that is...
Tip #8: Light Painting and Graffiti
I have only done this once, and only one photo. But it did turn out well! All you have to do is, first of all, make sure you're somewhere dark. I used a torch but you are free to use anything that shines a light in some way! Put your camera on Bulb mode (not all cameras have it!) Bulb basically means that as long as your holding down the shutter, the picture is still being taken and light can enter the camera. So hold the shutter down, from a few seconds to minutes! It doesn't matter. Draw or write whatever you like into the air! And that's it! But be more creative than I was! I hope you can make it out! It says "London"!
Lastly... Tip #9
That's right! There is a tip number 9 here, and it happens to be the hardest for me. But I love it. It doesn't sound hard, and maybe it won't be for you! But I treasure my film and don't want to waste any shot! So I plan everything. I never just go for it. It is "Don't think! Just Shoot!" and having fun while doing that!
Good Luck with these tips, I hope they bring you somewhere. Enjoy, and spread some Lomo-Love!
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written by nadinadu on 2011-09-16 #gear #tutorials #sky #tips #mirror #underground #elevator #hand #mx #light-painting #close #tipster #focus #easy #newbie #beginner #top-tipster-techniques
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