Most of the people who want to learn photography don’t know where and how to start. Except for a bit of background knowledge, it isn’t easy to understand all the concepts and terms regarding photography, slowing your learning curve. You will have a solid understanding of the basics of photography through some exploration of tutorials, articles, videos, and hands-on shooting.
Effective ways to learn photography
Nowadays, there are dozens of ways of enhancing your photography skills. None of them is correct or wrong; you just choose the one that suits your learning style and personality. Here we will illustrate the five effective ways to learn photography. Let’s have a look below.
1. Online courses
Online courses are an effective way to learn photography from your own home and at your own pace. Find out the courses that professionals conduct, and in style you can choose. The more you comfort and relate to your instructor, the easier it will be for you to acquire. Some of the courses give money-back guarantees for offering a zero-risk investment. However, you can find the best online photography classes here.
2. University/college degree or photography diploma
Learning photography through a university/college degree or photography diploma is the most effective way over the centuries. Because here, you have the opportunity to learn a wide variety of photographic styles from experienced teachers and industry experts in a structured environment. Additionally, you will also have access to state-of-the-art studios with all the latest cameras, accessories, software, and lighting equipment.
Besides, learning in a school has the benefit of a group learning environment. Here you can enhance network and social skills that you can use in the future.
The drawback is the expense. It can cost 5-10 thousand dollars depending on where you live. And time is another consideration as many of the better photography schools are located in the city or capital area.
3. Assisting – apprenticeship – internship
After graduation from art school, you can start as an honorary intern with a celebrity and fashion photographer. After some days, you can be offered a full-time job if you show your expertise. It may be possible that you will learn more in the first month on the job than in four years at art school.
You might need 15-18 months to teach you tons of lessons regarding how to pose, light, direct, and talk to models. Moreover, it taught you how to work with stylists and makeup artists. These lessons can be a very potent factor to enhance your skill in your career. In some cases, interning with a generous and cooperative person can be more significant than doing a course.
4. Workshops
Workshops are an excellent way to purify and advance your skills. Selecting the style of photography and technique you want to develop, and the photographers you want to learn from is one of the advantages of the workshop.
Several workshops are local and stay a couple of hours. Remains last longer and are arranged in external locations. These are fantastic for travelers who want to shoot on location but cannot travel on their own.
Whatever courses you are going to participate in, read out the full description. Read testimonials and search how much knowledge the trainer has. In addition, know the class size; because larger classes are effective for software workshops like Lightroom and Photoshop. However, smaller groups are much better while it comes to learning the craft of photography.
5. Mentors
A mentor should be anyone who can feel the goals you want to achieve. The mentors can be both friends who can assist you learn some of the camera’s settings and professionals, including 5,10, or 20 years of experience.
Social media circles and friendship is a great place to start finding mentors. Find someone whose working style and personality you admire and respect. Look for ways to add value to the relationship and follow them on social media. Comment on their posts, share their works, retweet their posts, and refer clients to them to get locations that they might be interested in.
Before you ask them to mentor you, provide the relationship time to develop. This will boost the chance that they say yes, as they will have had an opportunity to get to know you. If they can observe you showing initiative and respect their time, a mentor is far more likely to give up expensive time working with you.
