You can always get to know light better. Whether it’s moving from studio to natural light, from day shooting to night shooting or from flash to continuous light – stay a constant observer of this most important part of photography. Learning more, seeing more, trying more.

Audiences love detail and light provides it. The more light, the more detail. But don’t forget to keep a steady hand, too. This is the physical skill of taking photos – keeping the camera level and still.

No need to make life hard for yourself for no reason. If you’re simply out trying to capture a moment, try it on auto for a bit – your camera may surprise you.

n the other hand, there’s an incredible amount of inspiring photographers out there doing awesome work – why not just taste a bit of someone else’s style and see if it sparks something new in you?

Just a quick reminder here to give yourself every bit of flexibility and detail available in your great camera by keeping it on RAW mode. RAW images allow more forgiving post work with more data and detail to make your image exactly the way you want. You can even compensate for a bad exposure or bring up some shadows.

Remember, this photography thing is not easy. If it were, every shot would look amazing and, well, you’ve seen Instagram, right? Zzzzz. The best shots are nearly always difficult to achieve.

When it comes to people, remember that the best way to connect your viewer to your subject is through their eyes. Eyes not only tell us the big emotions: sadness, anger, joy – they tell us the complexities of life. A smile with sad eyes is an entirely different emotion that a smile with bright open eyes. Give direction and be a studier of painting a portrait with a look. This will do more for your image than any settings or light setup you can learn.

A good rule of thumb on what to buy for yourself is to let it be dictated by what you’re shooting. For example, you don’t need a graduated neutral density filter until what time you’ve decided to shoot landscapes in situations that could use one.

When you get the image into the computer and are ready to start applying some changes to it, remember that people connect with what is real.

Sometimes you may decide to switch it up and be something different online. Go for it. Reinvention is part of the process – you can try on as many hats as you like!