Photography

hmm I was looking at cameras but mom doesn't want to get anything big yet

I'll keep that in my tho

A few years ago I bought a small digital camera from Radio Shack for about $300. It had thousands of more pixels (resolution) than a $1,000 camera I bought several years earlier! I'm quite happy with it, even though the colors aren't as vivid (since the lens is lower quality). As one salesperson told me, a camera lens is like a photograph needle: that's the part of the equipment most responsible for the quality of the result.

I once showed many of my photos to guys at work, and one knew a lot about photography and suggested I read photography books on composition. How right he was. One book in particular (I forgot the name) was great, and told how every good photograph was organized and made interesting by only one of several fundamental themes: color, texture, alignment, or a few others. Each person tends to naturally gravitate to a certain theme, and learning those themes will not only reveal something about yourself, but will help you see other good shots you wouldn't have noticed before.

Also, to say you're interested in photography is awfully general. *Why* are you interested, and what subjects do *you* want to photograph? Are you more interested in the artistic aspects of photography, or the subject matter? Glamour shots are different than Ansel Adams landscape shots, for example. If you're in it for money, you might be photographing commercial products or an extremely wide range of stock photos to sell online. Also, sadly, in both painting and photography, the public buys more for the subject matter than for artistic content. That means pets and swimsuit photos will sell better than landscapes and documentaries of starving peasants. Those three questions will help to narrow your options down considerably.

thanks Sqod I did fail to mention that I wanted to do photography as a hobby for now. I don't particularly know what theme I would do.... probably as a starter I'll use anything around the house. I don't want to sound stupid but is 300 dollars necessary for a camera? like they have less expensive ones online or would these just not work very well?

 I think my most recent camera was actually between $200-300, and that was a few years ago, so there are quite inexpensive decent cameras nowadays, probably less expensive.

P.S.--Here's a tip of mine: People like photos to which they can relate the most, which automatically creates a kind hierarchy of interesting subject matter, with people pictures as #1, animal pictures as #2, and plants and landscapes around #3. There exist other competing subjects (like cars for guys), but the main point is that people are #1. Whether it's the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue, Anne Geddes babies-in-flowerpots, or celebrities, people pictures are going to be popular, so if I were you I would start steering in that direction. Just be careful of laws and social issues regarding taking, posting, and making money off of people photos. To get a good idea of what kind of pictures people want to see, look at picture calendars (book stores at the end of the year tend to have an unusually large selection of calendars for sale). You'll notice right away many of the themes we already mentioned: landscapes/beaches, swimsuits/lingerie, cars/trains, animals, food, artworks, celebrities, romance, sports, etc.

P.P.S.--Food will be slightly difficult to photograph well because of lighting problems indoors and the need for close-ups.

ok so I don't really need to get an expensive one

I also like food so that'll probably be one of my main topics

Yes, there are cheaper ones.

I have a Canon ELPH 100HS that I got brand new 4 ro 5 years ago for around $100, and it's a fairly competent model. It's limited, of course, but really good for the price. Used and refurbished cameras are a really good value, but make sure they are refurbished by the company that made them or by a company that is officially licensed by the manufacturer.

Go to uni

Ok great thanks for you're help! I've heard that people say that cameras nowadays on the phone are pretty good. Would you still recommend getting a camera? 

KEEK

The image quality in modern smart phones is really good. The limit tends to be versatility. Point-and-shoot cameras tend to have more features and a greater optical zoom for you to play with--which is nice when you're learning and experimenting--and they also tend to handle motion and low light better. The battery tends to last longer per charge, too. I also just like the aesthetics of having a dedicated camera better.

It also depends on what kind of phone you have already. If you have a high end phone, it might be worth it to experiment with it at first. Otherwise, I'd go for a point-and-shoot camera.

ok great! thanks a lot! my phone takes decent photos but the quality is still iffy and my mom's camera is really old so I'll look into what you said

No problem. Old camera's aren't necessarily something bad; if she'll let you, you might want to experiment with hers, too. Also, there are a lot of sites with camera reviews (CNET, DPReview, Amazon) and ones with information about the basics of photography (This is a good one, with links to ev.en more: https://lifehacker.com/5815742/basics-of-photography-the-complete-guide ). It can be a lot to absorb, so don't try to cram it all in at once. Just take it a piece at a time and play around with each one. And have fun!

wow thanks a lot! I'll definitely take a look