10 Tips to Make Your Photos Look Professional

#Tip_Z1 : 𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐋𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠

Lighting is the #1 fastest way to make a photo look more professional.

Lighting is number one on this list for a reason. It's easily the most overlooked aspect of photography for beginning photographers, but professional photographers obsess about it. Lighting is the most important thing to making a photo look professional.

Now what makes lighting look interesting? 

First of all, it's different from what we normally see. 

Second, it highlights the subject and presents it in a good way.

#Tip_Z2 : 𝐍𝐨 𝐀𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬

An aberration in photography is something that is left in the picture that doesn't belong in the picture.  It makes the photo feel cluttered with distractions that keep the viewer from enjoying the subject.

#Tip_Z3 : 𝐃𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐒𝐭𝐲𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠

Digital styling is applied in Photoshop and Lightroom and allows the photographer to creatively change the colors, contrast, exposure and more.

If you feel like you're ready to learn this part of photography, I highly recommend getting Lightroom & Photoshop and taking my Z100+ Mastery Secrets course to help you get started with the software.

#Tip_Z4 : 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐒𝐮𝐛𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭

Capturing an interesting subject is usually the simplest part of photography.  Even non-photographers know that some things are more interesting in a photo than others.

#Tip_Z5 : 𝐂𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐩 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐩𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬

There are so many factors that impact the sharpness of a photo that it can be difficult to know what is causing a reduction in sharpness in your photos. But I have found after coaching thousands and thousands of photographers that the problem is usually that the photographer did not get the focus quite right.

When taking a picture of a person, it's essential to put the focus point exactly on the eye of the person you are photographing.

#Tip_Z6 : 𝐔𝐧𝐢𝐪𝐮𝐞 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞

Sometimes I find an interesting subject, but just not an interesting place to photograph it from.  If you look at professional photos, they are very often taken from non-obvious spots.  For example, a photo of a CEO will be photographed from down low, looking up at the person to make him or her look more powerful.  Or, in the case of photographing a city, we often want to get to a very high perspective to shoot down and see the whole city.

#Tip_Z7 : 𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧

Composition is probably the most difficult thing on this list to teach in a short amount of time, but it makes a tremendous difference.

If you have an important upcoming shoot, I highly recommend that you start learning composition by at least learning the rule of thirds.  The rule of thirds is the most basic rule of composition that basically tells the photographer to imagine a tic-tac-toe board on the frame of the picture, and to put the most interesting part of the photo on the intersection of those lines.

#Tip_Z8 : 𝐌𝐨𝐨𝐝

Mood is an oft-overlooked aspect of photography, but I find that it's an excellent way to learn to make a photo more impactful.  As you take pictures, ask yourself “What mood will this photo convey?”

#Tip_Z9 : 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐃𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐡-𝐨𝐟-𝐅𝐢𝐞𝐥𝐝

Depth-of-field is a hallmark of professional photography–especially professional pictures of people.  Shallow depth-of-field means that the subject of the photo is sharp, and the background is blurry.  Learning this technique can instantly transform your photography to something much more professional looking.

To take a picture with shallow depth of field, follow ALL of the steps in this recipe:

1. Put on your longest lens

2. Set the camera to aperture priority

3. Set the aperture as low as it will go

4. Step as close to the subject as you can while still allowing the lens to focus

5. Place the subject far away from anything in the background.

6. Put the focus point on the subject

7. Take the picture

#Tip_Z10 : 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞

Exposure means the brightness or darkness of a photo.  It's probably the thing that beginning photographers put the most work into learning. There are three ways to control the exposure of a photo: aperture, ISO, and shutter speed.

#Conclusion

If you can only do a few of these things in your photo, make it these: capture interesting lighting, use a creative composition, and remember to digitally style the photo afterward.

#TRAINwithKEDAZ

𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐏𝐡𝐨𝐭𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐡𝐲 𝐏𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐟𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐨 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐊𝐄𝐃𝐀.𝐙 𝐋𝐑 & 𝐏𝐒 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭-𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠!

If you're ready fall into photography and learn to master it, I highly recommend you attend my free TRAIN with KEDA.Z .

I would like to hand you the very same formula that I use to Photography Mastery...+ Photoshop Actions + Exclusive & Expensive Master's RAW" to digitally style the photo to extraordinary (LR & PS post-processing)  I'm sure you'll love it:

https://learning.kedaz.com/train-with-kedaz

Sign up for Z100+ Mastery Secrets :
==> https://www.kedazglobal.com/Z100class

See you soon!

Your #1 Photography Buddy,
KEDA.Z