11 Essential Concepts That As A Photographer You Must Know (And Master)

In Photographer’s Blog we never tire of insisting on the importance of the concept portrayed, the idea, emotion or message, compared to other more physical and mundane issues such as the performance of the camera or its technical part.

I prefer that you “feel” the photograph before knowing how to take it. In the absence of “emotional content” to convey, the technique doesn’t get you very far. But don’t get me wrong, the technical part is of vital importance, it is the vehicle that will allow you to capture that idea, emotion, feeling or story.

If the story is the soul of your photography, the technique allows you to present it in a beautiful and attractive body.

Is there any technical subject in SLR photography that resists you? Do you get lost among so much terminology and strange vocabulary? Calm down, today I bring you a review of the most important concepts in photographic technique. We have dedicated an article to each of them covering it in depth.

You will see that, as always, in each of these “monographics” we try, from the blog’s editorial team, to maintain a simple and accessible language. My goal is for you to see how simple these concepts are. They really are not complex at all. They give that feeling because of their names, perhaps not very successful, and because of the tradition that has been had until now of presenting them in an academically horrendous way in many schools, books and photography courses. But, depending on how they are told to you, you realize that mastering them is much easier than frying an egg.

I leave you with the themes.

11 essential concepts that as a photographer you must know (and master)

1) How to properly hold a SLR camera: I assumed that everyone knew how to hold a SLR camera, but as soon as we published the article (thanks Iaio) I was pleasantly surprised. Many fans have appreciated it. It seems obvious but it is not. There is a direct, and very strong, relationship between the way you hold your camera and the optical quality of the final photograph.

2) How to set the focus of your photo camera according to the photo you want to take (with inspiring examples): We agree that a poorly focused photograph usually goes straight to the computer trash can. There is nothing worse than returning home, after an intense photographic day, to discover that that great photo on which we harbored great hopes could not have turned out worse, due to how out of focus it has been. Do you want to learn how to get highly sharp and focused photos? Don’t miss the article.

3) Depth of field: I explain in this article, through a very visual graphic, what depth of field consists of and how you can use it as a creative resource in your photographs.

4) Hyperfocal distance: This concept was very resistant to me, as a photographer, at the beginning of my relationship with the camera. It took me a while to master it but because this article did not exist πŸ˜‰ In it we explain in a very simple way, and step by step, how to achieve the hyperfocal distance of your lens.

5) White Adjustment: Article in which we break down the concept of white balance and explain how it affects the composition of colors in our photography. You will see how easy it is.

6)ISO: Surely you already use this setting, even if it is automatically. In this article we explain how to use the ISO correctly and how to get the best out of it depending on the photograph you are going to take.

7) Image stabilizers: In this article I will tell you everything I know about image stabilizers, when to use them, their advantages, and… be careful, their drawbacks too, that some of them have.

8) Measurement and exposure: A very complete detailed guide in which you will learn how to measure and expose your photographs in a “perfect” way. If you are interested in the subject, you can accompany the reading with some examples of measurement modes here too.

9) Bracketing (or bracketing): An interesting technique that will allow you to ALWAYS obtain a perfectly exposed photograph. The secret? Take more than one πŸ˜‰ We tell you all the details and use cases in the article.

10) Histogram: We tell you in great detail what the histogram is, how it is interpreted, what its usefulness is, and how you can apply it in your photography day by day.

10) Shoot in RAW: For this shooting mode or format I bring you not one but four articles. One, two, three, and four. You will discover why since I have known this format I have not returned to shoot in JPG more than in a few exceptions. You can’t find the benefits of shooting RAW in any other format.

I hope you find these 10 concepts useful in your next photography exercise. If you need help with any of them, feel free to leave a comment. Oh, and if I may ask you for a favor, it would make me very happy if you could give this article a recommendation on your favorite social network. Surely it may interest other photography enthusiasts. Thanks.