The three essentials

By Adrian Toon, director of a2n.

As with most professions the key to taking good pictures comes down to experience.

With photography, it’s a case of take a picture, review, adjust and take again. With this cyclical, self-critical approach you can fine-tune your skills as a photographer. Whether you use a smartphone or DSLR, to get you started there are three basic skills to master.

A steady hand. Crucial to any photography is to avoid camera shake. This is not an issue of shaking hands, it’s just the ability to hold the camera still and to press the shutter button slowly. Taking pictures this way will ensure the camera does not move when taking the picture, which will mean there is little or no camera movement to blur the image.

Framing. Look at what you are taking in the viewfinder. I know we all do it, but check the edges: do you have the whole of the item being taken in view?Can you get closer or further away to compose the picture better? A little thought here goes a long way.

Lighting. If it’s sunny, try to get the sun behind the camera, not necessarily directly, but well out of shot. Is there enough light for the picture to show the detail you need? Can you add light to your image if taking internally?

Finally, and to repeat: take the picture, review, adjust and take again. Try it, you will improve your skills with every shot you take.