You'd probably hate the area where my coffee is then.... Decaf is "banned" in our house.... But there's plenty of coffee beans here. Well, so some say, hubby and I kind of look at it and go "hmmm, we've got at most a month's supply, give or take"
I thought the whole point with drinking coffee (except it taste good) is to have the caffein boost. :-) Yes, and I admit, I take far too few photos but I´m working on it.
One thing I learned about taking as many photos as possible. Only you know what trash is on your memory card. The outside world sees the good stuff. If the memory card is filled with 99% trash, so what! That 1% may be masterpieces.
*American hears "That coffee's knocked me for six"* *Checks Urban Dictionary* *Reads the phrase derives from a cricket score when the ball exits the circle without leaving the ground* *Becomes even more confused*
Omg the top about likes is SO TRUE! I'm in a local photography group that love taking nature shots, macro butterflies, trees, leaves, etc... I find it so bloody boring to take photos of but feel I kind of "have" to because that's what everyone else does. The other day I was in London and had a great view of the shard, got some really lush shots of the Shard and the skyline (27th floor of Guy's hospital, great place for taking photos!) Then got lots of great shots underneath the shard. Swapped them all over to black and white, LOVE them! Black and white photos with really crisp lines and reflections, just love it. Gritty architecture shots are so much more my thing than endless photos of leaves for me!! 😁
Years back I used to take lots of shots of the same subject, just altering something to get a slightly better shot. Ultimately I often chose the first shot as best. Sometimes you should know when to stop and move on to another subject. Also, post processing is important for many, especially pros, however, for some it is the challenge to get the picture right in the camera that is key and post processing is a pain. I don't feel either approach is good or bad, they are just different ways we may wish to photograph. My two pence worth 😁
To speak on the post production point, I try to edit my photos as little as possible. Like maybe tweak the color a bit or crop it differently but that's it. I like the idea of a photo being as real as possible. It just seems like the point of photography for me. To share something as it was, not what it could have been. Not that there is anything wrong with editing. There is an art to a well edited photo, but I personally prefer the realness aspect of a photo over the art factor, if that makes any sense. I preferred all your before edited photos over the afters that you showed. Even though they were all artistically better after editing. Just my 2 cents.
I can't stress how important it is to just take pictures that make you happy. Quite honestly, some of my favorite photos have involved me just shooting around my house in monochrome, and in low light. However, my family is unimpressed by them. But, when I take pictures of people, they tend to like them more (despite the fact that street photography usually involves a lot of anxiety for me ... and thus, less joy).
Interesting. There could be many reasons, and we all like different things, but perhaps there are some issues with the family self image? Women especially. Almost as if some fantasy image, ideal, is upheld and now this black and white, straight-on picture is there to challenge. But mainly, i'm speculating for my own amusement. Still i'd say, that you don't need their approval for what makes you happy. You don't need anyone's approval for what brings you joy. Ultimately it's the exterior, something outside of yourself. Have a good day, and happy shooting! :)
This! Some of my favorites have the most grain and so much noise and I'm sure many technical photographers would deem them bad but I love them for some reason.
I can honestly say there isn’t a single video I have watched of yours that I haven’t enjoyed. Thanks for inspiring me to not only start photography but also start a UA-cam channel lol!
Finally, a photography channel. So many are gear heads talking nonsense, other than buy buy buy. I breathed a sign of relief after watching this video.
Composition of photo is not analoguous to the font or the book cover, it's analogous to the writer's choice of words. The imagery, the point-of-view, the metaphors, the details, and so on. These are the aesthetic aspects of writing. Composition in photography is as important or as unimportant as composition in writing. Each writer and each photographer has a certain style which make their works stand out and appeal to people.
When I started in photography I used a folding Ensign camera with 120 film stock, so 12 shots. On a long mountain walk I'd take a second film, just in case 12 wasn't enough. Sometimes I even used it, but usually not. When 35mm replaced the roll film I used 24 exposure cassettes because 36 exposures took too long to use and I didn't like waiting weeks for the results... Now I shoot digital and think myself profligate because I sometimes take 50-60 shots on a single walk, once I even went over 100... But never "hundreds", I can't begin to imagine what I'd do with all those frames. :-)
Yep, take lots and lots of photos, especially in the this digital age. The old adage when I was shooting film in collage was "one keeper out of 36 and you had a successful shoot."
taking hundreds or even thousands of photos at a time and hoping for a few good ones means you're not training your eyes ( and brain ) to see the things that you want to photograph - yes you may end up with a few good shots but someone who has ( for lack of a better term ) the " vision" to see what he or she is looking for and takes 6 photos - of which 5 are excellent and one is almost but not quite is way further ahead no matter how cheap sd cards or even film is ( and I started on film )...just my 2 cents
I disagree about the "bonus" trap. Better photographers may end up taking more shots, sure, but a major beginner mistake is to think you can shoot a ton of pictures to make up for a lack of thought and planning. You end up missing shots because you picked up the camera before considering other angles and subjects. Check out John Free's videos, he talks about this sometimes.
I really like your sentence ". . . do you have questions about it, and NOT questions like ´I wonder what focal length that was shot on or I wonder what aperture they used´ -- [but] questions about what´s happening in the photo . . ." I totally agree with this, as often indeed pictures are held favourable just "because they have pretty colors". Good post. And, concerning your "bonus trap" -- the issue about not taking enough photos and where you say that people would be surprised to learn how many pictures famous photographers take/took before getting the final image they publish. This is something which is not only true in the present, but was also the case in the past (with film). I read an article at least 25 years ago about a photographer for National Geographic Magazine who wrote that when on an assignment, he takes along about 200 rolls of film (36 exposures), sometimes even double for a longer assignment. In the end, maybe 10-15 images get published in the final article.
Interesting takes there, and not just on photography. On your remark about getting better feedback than you expected; I've experienced similar things where I've put loads of effort into something and had no or poor feed back and other times with no effort I get fantastic feedback, similarly some of my pictures which I love and think are brilliant get nothing while a "snapshot" taken with a point and shoot is raved about... makes you think.
Thanks James, just found your great channel. For me getting back into photography a couple of years ago it took a while to remember that I had more than just 12 exposures on my roll and could take as many as the card could take. So I was quite cautious with how many I took.
"...Shoot for what you enjoy shooting, shoot for yourself, and not because of the feedback of others". That, good Sir, is a life lesson as much as your intended lesson. Thank you.
Totally agree about not taking enough photos. This is one of the best tips. I can't stress enough how important it is to not just take one shot of something
You gave me the best insight in photography and I thank you very much for it. Before I click the button I ask myself : is this picture of this thing or about it? Sometimes I use presets as a starting point,not the finish point. I enjoy your photography philosophy as well as your pictures.
I subscribed when you mentioned not buying other peoples presets. Now I'm going to look for that video. Nice work man. Looking forward to checking out your channel.
Another great video! Glad to hear even the pros take lots of photos to ensure you are getting some keepers. Watching some, they give the impression every photo they publish was one and done.
Massive thumbs up for your observations on actually all 5 subjects of this video ! However especially re. Pre-sets (personal bête noire - hmm maybe I should start selling them !) and failure to learn how to edit.
Trap no. 5 - storing third tier raw files on your external hard drive will not make them magically better 4 years later. Instead of buying another expensive hard drive just spend 30 minutes on archive culling, suddenly you have 10 gigabytes of free space you thought you don't have. Same goes for B-roll, either put it on shutterstock and delete it, mate, you haven't looked at those files since 2014.
Ah fuck this comment is an actual video idea, have a go at it James but I am typing the script down right now for my own secret channel, this is my private account, we'll battle later!
Must admit, hard drive cost is a pretty miniscule compared to what money i spend on photography in general. I mean, 10 gigs, it is only 1/4th of a dollar of HDD-space, you get 8 TB for around 200 dollars. For me that would store around 400 000 RAWs
I've also been wondering about this lately and started slowly culling out 'near-duplicates' and bad shots. Its so motivating to see over a GB of files in the trash bin just before you click 'empty' :D
I’m working my way through your videos and learning a lot thanks James. A video expanding on pre-production, production and post-production would be greatly appreciated! Perhaps try and summarise by taking us through those three elements for a particular shot that ended up being a keeper! Keep up the great work cheers! Nick
6:07 -- What I'm getting from this is : "Trap #3 : not going to awesome locations." Which leads me on to this questions : could you possibly share tips and tricks, or interesting stuff that might up an *amateur* photographer's game ? Someone with a day job, who can't just pack up and go to Greenland whenever ? I get how it's your job, so of course you can go. But I can't. Sorry if my comment's a bit passive agressive. It's just... I'm looking forward to a two week vacation in August, but until I get there, I'm stuck here, in the city, and sometimes it feels like I'm running out of things to shoot for fun, and when I see shots like these, I think "yeah, you can well say that what makes it a good photo is this clever composition", but come on! If I'd just shot a boat from far away anywhere else...
@@JamesPopsysPhoto I know... I guess I'm just not "game" enough. I'm always shy to whip out my camera when there's loads of people around... I do try, but it's a little awkward... Unless I'm on vacation and then I'm actually a tourist, so it's fine... Isn't this odd ?
Lovely advice, but I reacted on two things: 1. The quote "If your photo isn't good enough, you're not close enough" by Robert Capa, is, how I understood it, more about physically being close and in the scene than having a telephoto lens. By being close to your subject, you will be more in the scene of the action rather than observing the action from a distance. 2. Only minor but for instance taking 200 pictures of the same thing from the same angle won't help. I'm sure that was not what you meant but it can be a bit misleading. Personally I'd say to take pictures often rather than many :) Hope you'll see this :P haha
I am not a landscape photographer, my majority of shooting is wildlife/birds/macro, but I thoroughly enjoy your videos and your British dry sense of humor. I also agree, I take as many shots as possible, at the end of the day only a few are keepers, some day's none are keepers, but as long as I was out there shooting is all that matters to me.
I have been watching your UA-cam videos for some time and enjoy them very much. I was wondering if you use sky filters for lens protection and perhaps rely on the lens shade for that. Keep cranking out the videos!
Interesting point about the number of images taken. One thing that puts me off id the thought of the inevitable culling process, the "should I pick this one or that one", the umming and aahing over infinitesimal differences - any tips on efficient culling?
Awesome video as always. Really helpful. Also thanks for the code, just booked a ticket and will be going on the Tuesday as you'll be there, so looking forward to hearing you talk.
Good video. Sounding much better and less like an echo chamber! On the point of editing, do you have any recommendations on youtube videos to learn how to edit using either Lightroom or Photoshop? I want to get better, but I feel like at the moment I'm just fiddling with buttons which I have no idea what they do, and hoping it might make it look slightly better!
Not got my tickets for the show yet, so will use your link, save me money towards a new bag! But I'm going the Sunday, would have been good to hear you talk outside of a screen!
It's weird to me because I enjoy shooting almost 100% of the time simply because every time I want to compose a picture, the task of finding a good angle is just pure fun for me...
I also enjoy finding the right angle, or right composition for that matter. Also, i often think about what's the point in this picture, the main focus? But not too hard, better to just let it flow. At that point, it's often bye bye to straight horizons because they're NOT that important. Sometimes yes, but more often not in my current style.
Its nice to be able to tweak an image in post production but too much and you have to ask....is that really the picture I took! In my opinion, post production should just compliment an already good photo where necessary.
James, great discussion. All the points covered were covered well and in good detail. I completely agree with all and think they are ones that may not be so obvious to many people so lots of value here. The only part I found I didn’t entirely agree with is Trap 1 and where you said colour theory and composition are nice to haves but what’s more important is the story. I understand where your coming from but I’m learning more about colour theory and how much it can help convey a feeling or story. Also composition is pretty key to a great photo and telling story.. along with choosing the right focal length. Anyway- great discussion.
A lot of good comments James. Too many people have a "hang up" about getting it right in the camera. It's more about capturing the moment, especially in wildlife and sports photography, which is mainly what I do. When it's often better to take a wider shot, and crop to get the composition. When shooting a game of hockey or on a wildlife outing, I will typically take up to 300 shots, ending up with maybe 50 keepers.
Hi James, great points, as usual. Personaly, i'm not one for spending hours in front of a computer editing photos, i always to try to get as much right, as i can, in camera. But i always shoot in raw + jpeg, those raw files sure come in handy, especially for exposure latitude.
A few years ago I quit caffeine for a few weeks and a colleague was inspired to join me. After a few days he told me he felt amazing and had loads more energy than he’d had when he was drinking caffeine. Then one day I saw him making coffee in the staff kitchen and pointed out he was using the caffeinated coffee. Turned out he’d been mistakenly drinking the caffeinated coffee the whole time and having loads more of it than usual because he thought it was decaf 🤣
I absolutely love your videos. I whole-heartedly agree with taking a number of photos to find "the one" lightning in a bottle is rare. I could definitely improve in post-processing to interpret better what I saw initially; I prefer a "makeover" versus "plastic surgery" on my photos.
Great video James, top points for traps, especially the Pen and Pencil comparison. Everyone should enjoy photography and it shouldn't be done to please others on social media. Shoot what makes us happy and every now and then we'll get that photo that fits somewhere in the middle, A win for everyone. Those fast new primes of yours look smashing mate.
Bonus trap was the real talk for me. Taking 500 shots makes me feel like ive increased the amount of effort I put into any of my special shots that stand out. I feel like it just adds more value too, due to the amount of trial and error needed when taking shot after shot!
Yes, I can easily take a couple of hundred pictures on a 2-hr shoot. Of course I do often take exposure bracketed sequences just to make sure to get the right exposure or knowing I want to try for an HDR photo. And then there is a raw file with each one that always drives the total way up. Sometimes I'm concerned about wearing out my shutter. Do you use electronic shutter often?
I use bought and self-made presets to get a overall view how my picture can look. When I start editing I often scroll through my presets and see what looks good to me. After I found one I start editing on my own. Sometimes I change almost every setting again but I often need this to see what is capable with my photo. I am still learning to edit properly so it helps me...
When I first got serious about photography when I was a teenager I met a guy who had been a professional photographer for 20 years. His exact words to me were "I've taken hundreds of thousands of photos... And probably a thousand or less of those were good and worth paying for" back then we were all shooting on film was the norm. I remember so many days of just cracking film canisters in the dark, throwing them in my development pot and then going into the lab to develop them... So many disappointing shots just to get the couple of good ones. Thank God for mirrorless digital cameras😅
Another great video James. I’m really struggling to get out and take photos, my area just seems so boring, just fields after fields in Essex. Any tips to help find places or to motivate myself?
Thanks :) It's definitely harder in some places than others but corny as it sounds - there is beauty everywhere. Try shooting more intimate scenes in places where big vistas don't quite do it - hope that helps :)
Thank you both. I’ll have to do some research online and find some nice places nearby to check out. It seems the beach’s are best, just quite far to travel to! :D
Great advices, all 4 of them . The one on lens choice for focal lenght better adapted to subject confort me on my choice on M43 as main system . Small light lenses allow me to be able to carry several of them and switch on location for various subjects . It is in fact the main reason i am still reluctant to get a FF limited to a single lens like the Tamron 28-75 . A matther of total weight and worry of dust on sensor. I would probably get a little more IQ, certainly more resolution and a lot better low light ability but i take too many good shots out of that range. By the way, try the Sigma 60mm f2.8 on M43 at f4 : in my opinion, best IQ for the price by far. I carry it with that 25mm f1.4 among others...
Thank you very much. Very useful, very much to the point, and valid, I think, for photographers at any stage. I'd love to hear you talk more about pre-production, when you get a chance.
Snorted coffee on myself laughing at parts of this video, so thanks for that! Stoked to hear you're at TPS - I've got a trade stand this year, first time Ive ever been! Come say hi on A71 if you find yourself with time to burn!
Great video, as always! Are you switching over to the S1or S1R now when panasonic is getting in to the fullframe world or will you stay with the micro four thirds?
@@JamesPopsysPhoto I´ll see why, m43 is a great system! Hope to see a future video and hear your thoughts about them. Even a comparison with the G9 would be nice to see! Take care!
Great video as always! Regarding the "bonus trap": you talk about having a 3% to 4% hit rate when it comes to photos you've take that you approve of. How worthwhile is it to you at this stage to work to increase that rate? Or is it the case that the hit rate initially increases as you move from beginner to novice, because as you improve technically and artistically, your ability to hit the bar for a shareable or publishable photo increases. But then as you move from novice to expert, perhaps the hit rate declines again, because you develop higher standards and a more discerning eye, and end up raising your own bar? Is it a problem that everytime your surpass your previous best effort, doing so again in the future becomes exponentially more difficult?
Birds and macro aficionado here. I almost never use presets. Heck, i don't even know how to install them! i always need to look for a tutorial to install them and use them. I almost always edit my photos from scratch. Sometimes i do a lot of adjustments. sometimes i do very little. And of course if i have many very similar photos and i have already found the right set of adjustments, i just copy settings and apply them to the rest of the photos and see which one i like the most. I think i enjoy editing more than taking the actual photos (which i love). So, yeah. Go and edit your pictures! it's the only way to actually show the story you want to tell with them!
What am I doing watching this video? I've been a photographer for 12 years! I'm no beginner! But still this video was so good, even experienced pros can get good advice from a video meant for beginners! Great video!
no sheep. what is this channel coming to ???? Good points on your traps.... there's always the delete key if you shoot a lot with no value seen after the fact...
Absolutely son, I sometimes think I shot to much. I have chosen to ignore this. The reason I shot alot is... I like my results. Always coming away with some good ones.
Totally agree whith the first point not, shoot to please others, im always getting bored of one style after sometime, and when I change new style i feel my audience doesn't appreciate new style and sometimes i go back shooting old style just to please the audience. But lately i just do what I like md make me happy. Just like to be dinamic
Not shooting for likes is a constant struggle in the age of social media, but is part of the reason that I've made the conscious decisions that I have with Instagram. You want to be successful on Instagram? Take big landscapes with a person in the frame, 4x5 aspect ratio, and vibrant colors. That's not what I enjoy shooting. I enjoy intimate and candid moments of friends and family, wedding clients, etc, and I enjoy shooting black and white. And if I bent to the will of the platform for popularity my feed would look entirely different, but I wouldn't be happy.
At the risk of spiking your dopamine levels and thereby influencing your creative preferences,.. yeah, that 25mm 1.4 Leica Lumix is dope. Your chin hairs have never looked better (not scarcasm). This front light (with eye catchlight/highlight?) and 2 lights on the back wall is a pretty good setup.
I've re-labeled my coffee to reduce my chance of a heart attack. Thanks for watching :)
You'd probably hate the area where my coffee is then.... Decaf is "banned" in our house.... But there's plenty of coffee beans here. Well, so some say, hubby and I kind of look at it and go "hmmm, we've got at most a month's supply, give or take"
One might suggest that Decaf coffee is a little like swilling de-alcoholized wine - why not drink something else.
So Mr James when are you coming to the states to do your teachings?
This would be the one time ink pen would be better than pencil. You don't want it to rub off ✒️✏️😊😂
I thought the whole point with drinking coffee (except it taste good) is to have the caffein boost. :-) Yes, and I admit, I take far too few photos but I´m working on it.
One thing I learned about taking as many photos as possible. Only you know what trash is on your memory card. The outside world sees the good stuff. If the memory card is filled with 99% trash, so what! That 1% may be masterpieces.
I think it depends on why you’re taking photos. Sometimes the ‘taking’ is the fun part as much as viewing the processed result.
*American hears "That coffee's knocked me for six"*
*Checks Urban Dictionary*
*Reads the phrase derives from a cricket score when the ball exits the circle without leaving the ground*
*Becomes even more confused*
hahaha!
think "home run / knocked out of the park"
spamboli - means becoming suddenly ill or overwhelmed. Knocked sideways is another way of expressing it. That flu knocked me for 6
ummm "without TOUCHING the ground" ? In fact leaving the ground is okay, they just have to retrieve it from the car park... oops sorry parking lot.
Twotone that would make more sense. I just copied what Urban Dictionary said. I don't know cricket (although I do know what a car park is).
Omg the top about likes is SO TRUE! I'm in a local photography group that love taking nature shots, macro butterflies, trees, leaves, etc... I find it so bloody boring to take photos of but feel I kind of "have" to because that's what everyone else does. The other day I was in London and had a great view of the shard, got some really lush shots of the Shard and the skyline (27th floor of Guy's hospital, great place for taking photos!) Then got lots of great shots underneath the shard. Swapped them all over to black and white, LOVE them! Black and white photos with really crisp lines and reflections, just love it. Gritty architecture shots are so much more my thing than endless photos of leaves for me!! 😁
Sounds awesome Niki - and what a building that is :)
Years back I used to take lots of shots of the same subject, just altering something to get a slightly better shot. Ultimately I often chose the first shot as best. Sometimes you should know when to stop and move on to another subject. Also, post processing is important for many, especially pros, however, for some it is the challenge to get the picture right in the camera that is key and post processing is a pain. I don't feel either approach is good or bad, they are just different ways we may wish to photograph. My two pence worth 😁
I've been binging a few of your videos lately and I may have found my new favorite youtuber when it comes to photography. Thank you for these vids!
Thanks so much :)
To speak on the post production point, I try to edit my photos as little as possible. Like maybe tweak the color a bit or crop it differently but that's it. I like the idea of a photo being as real as possible. It just seems like the point of photography for me. To share something as it was, not what it could have been. Not that there is anything wrong with editing. There is an art to a well edited photo, but I personally prefer the realness aspect of a photo over the art factor, if that makes any sense. I preferred all your before edited photos over the afters that you showed. Even though they were all artistically better after editing. Just my 2 cents.
Definitely depends on the style you are going for. Editing brings out alot if you're more of an impressionist shooter.
Mistake 5 ;letting the weather dictate when you take photos.
Michael Lowe I let weather dictate wen I shoot cause rain and snow can destroy my camera
Tbh I let whenever I feel inspired to dictate when I take photos
Unless its wind becomes fuck dirt in a lens
@@maxlin2800 Same
@@maxlin2800 get a pentax
Lol at this stage my best shots are the accidental ones, where I get myself in a position and can't see my screen or view finder.
I can't stress how important it is to just take pictures that make you happy. Quite honestly, some of my favorite photos have involved me just shooting around my house in monochrome, and in low light.
However, my family is unimpressed by them.
But, when I take pictures of people, they tend to like them more (despite the fact that street photography usually involves a lot of anxiety for me ... and thus, less joy).
Interesting. There could be many reasons, and we all like different things, but perhaps there are some issues with the family self image? Women especially. Almost as if some fantasy image, ideal, is upheld and now this black and white, straight-on picture is there to challenge. But mainly, i'm speculating for my own amusement. Still i'd say, that you don't need their approval for what makes you happy. You don't need anyone's approval for what brings you joy. Ultimately it's the exterior, something outside of yourself. Have a good day, and happy shooting! :)
This! Some of my favorites have the most grain and so much noise and I'm sure many technical photographers would deem them bad but I love them for some reason.
I can honestly say there isn’t a single video I have watched of yours that I haven’t enjoyed. Thanks for inspiring me to not only start photography but also start a UA-cam channel lol!
Finally, a photography channel. So many are gear heads talking nonsense, other than buy buy buy. I breathed a sign of relief after watching this video.
Composition of photo is not analoguous to the font or the book cover, it's analogous to the writer's choice of words. The imagery, the point-of-view, the metaphors, the details, and so on. These are the aesthetic aspects of writing. Composition in photography is as important or as unimportant as composition in writing. Each writer and each photographer has a certain style which make their works stand out and appeal to people.
First time watching your videos. Love that you're a professional giving real tips with such an insecurity on your points, it makes you real man.
Thanks so much :)
Thank you for saying what your "shit to hit" ratio is. Mine has always been an awful ratio and I'm glad that it's not just me.
When I started in photography I used a folding Ensign camera with 120 film stock, so 12 shots. On a long mountain walk I'd take a second film, just in case 12 wasn't enough. Sometimes I even used it, but usually not. When 35mm replaced the roll film I used 24 exposure cassettes because 36 exposures took too long to use and I didn't like waiting weeks for the results... Now I shoot digital and think myself profligate because I sometimes take 50-60 shots on a single walk, once I even went over 100... But never "hundreds", I can't begin to imagine what I'd do with all those frames. :-)
personal honesty is the best policy, You are a master of this...well in fella
Cheers mate :)
"Not taking near enough photos". I shoot film.
I shoot film too, but I take way more photos now that I upgraded to film than before on digital.
@@AnthonySchnitzel i understand!!! Shooting has this feel of rush and excitement so I also tend to take more shots than intended
Yep, take lots and lots of photos, especially in the this digital age. The old adage when I was shooting film in collage was "one keeper out of 36 and you had a successful shoot."
Get more film.
taking hundreds or even thousands of photos at a time and hoping for a few good ones means you're not training your eyes ( and brain ) to see the things that you want to photograph - yes you may end up with a few good shots but someone who has ( for lack of a better term ) the " vision" to see what he or she is looking for and takes 6 photos - of which 5 are excellent and one is almost but not quite is way further ahead no matter how cheap sd cards or even film is ( and I started on film )...just my 2 cents
I really like the way you present your content, really enjoying these videos, keep them coming 👍
I disagree about the "bonus" trap. Better photographers may end up taking more shots, sure, but a major beginner mistake is to think you can shoot a ton of pictures to make up for a lack of thought and planning. You end up missing shots because you picked up the camera before considering other angles and subjects. Check out John Free's videos, he talks about this sometimes.
I think there is a golden ratio of photos taken where you start to see opportunities you didn't before.
Super entertaining. Thank you for sharing your personality with the world
Love this video. It serves as a useful reminder about the pitfalls we can all fall into as photographers. Subbed!
I really like your sentence ". . . do you have questions about it, and NOT questions like ´I wonder what focal length that was shot on or I wonder what aperture they used´ -- [but] questions about what´s happening in the photo . . ." I totally agree with this, as often indeed pictures are held favourable just "because they have pretty colors". Good post.
And, concerning your "bonus trap" -- the issue about not taking enough photos and where you say that people would be surprised to learn how many pictures famous photographers take/took before getting the final image they publish. This is something which is not only true in the present, but was also the case in the past (with film). I read an article at least 25 years ago about a photographer for National Geographic Magazine who wrote that when on an assignment, he takes along about 200 rolls of film (36 exposures), sometimes even double for a longer assignment. In the end, maybe 10-15 images get published in the final article.
Interesting takes there, and not just on photography. On your remark about getting better feedback than you expected; I've experienced similar things where I've put loads of effort into something and had no or poor feed back and other times with no effort I get fantastic feedback, similarly some of my pictures which I love and think are brilliant get nothing while a "snapshot" taken with a point and shoot is raved about... makes you think.
Thanks James, just found your great channel. For me getting back into photography a couple of years ago it took a while to remember that I had more than just 12 exposures on my roll and could take as many as the card could take. So I was quite cautious with how many I took.
Great advice. Great information. Thanks
Thanks! :)
Great points!
Thanks mate :)
"...Shoot for what you enjoy shooting, shoot for yourself, and not because of the feedback of others". That, good Sir, is a life lesson as much as your intended lesson. Thank you.
Totally agree about not taking enough photos. This is one of the best tips. I can't stress enough how important it is to not just take one shot of something
Stick men idea was top shelf James. Perhaps a stick dog in the future vids and maybe some stick sheep.
Great videos. Thank you. Keep it up.
Very nice, thank you !
You gave me the best insight in photography and I thank you very much for it. Before I click the button I ask myself : is this picture of this thing or about it? Sometimes I use presets as a starting point,not the finish point. I enjoy your photography philosophy as well as your pictures.
I subscribed when you mentioned not buying other peoples presets. Now I'm going to look for that video. Nice work man. Looking forward to checking out your channel.
Another great video! Glad to hear even the pros take lots of photos to ensure you are getting some keepers. Watching some, they give the impression every photo they publish was one and done.
Cheers Phil! I'm sure some get it perfect in the field - I definitely don't :)
Thanks for this one! Excellent advice. My last outing (with dogs), I took 138 photos and kept six of them :)
i thought this was a clickbait but actually you said something that is underrated and not so banal for a beginner, thanks mate
Massive thumbs up for your observations on actually all 5 subjects of this video ! However especially re. Pre-sets (personal bête noire - hmm maybe I should start selling them !) and failure to learn how to edit.
Good vid, 3 and 4 definitely resonated with me. Shoot what you like. Good reminder.
Trap no. 5 - storing third tier raw files on your external hard drive will not make them magically better 4 years later. Instead of buying another expensive hard drive just spend 30 minutes on archive culling, suddenly you have 10 gigabytes of free space you thought you don't have. Same goes for B-roll, either put it on shutterstock and delete it, mate, you haven't looked at those files since 2014.
Ah fuck this comment is an actual video idea, have a go at it James but I am typing the script down right now for my own secret channel, this is my private account, we'll battle later!
Thats a good one for me! The number of drives I have full of underexposed, blurry rubbish is mad :)
Must admit, hard drive cost is a pretty miniscule compared to what money i spend on photography in general. I mean, 10 gigs, it is only 1/4th of a dollar of HDD-space, you get 8 TB for around 200 dollars. For me that would store around 400 000 RAWs
I've also been wondering about this lately and started slowly culling out 'near-duplicates' and bad shots. Its so motivating to see over a GB of files in the trash bin just before you click 'empty' :D
@@JamesPopsysPhoto Some Alien race will find them in 10,000 years and they will be hanging in Alien art museums.
All excellent points 👍🏻
New Subscriber - loving the videos James and in particular the emphasis towards enjoying the process rather then the technical aspects - thank you.
Great to hear Peter, thank you :)
absolutely spot on
I’m working my way through your videos and learning a lot thanks James. A video expanding on pre-production, production and post-production would be greatly appreciated! Perhaps try and summarise by taking us through those three elements for a particular shot that ended up being a keeper! Keep up the great work cheers! Nick
6:07 -- What I'm getting from this is : "Trap #3 : not going to awesome locations." Which leads me on to this questions : could you possibly share tips and tricks, or interesting stuff that might up an *amateur* photographer's game ? Someone with a day job, who can't just pack up and go to Greenland whenever ? I get how it's your job, so of course you can go. But I can't. Sorry if my comment's a bit passive agressive. It's just... I'm looking forward to a two week vacation in August, but until I get there, I'm stuck here, in the city, and sometimes it feels like I'm running out of things to shoot for fun, and when I see shots like these, I think "yeah, you can well say that what makes it a good photo is this clever composition", but come on! If I'd just shot a boat from far away anywhere else...
There's always plenty to shoot in cities mate :)
@@JamesPopsysPhoto I know... I guess I'm just not "game" enough. I'm always shy to whip out my camera when there's loads of people around... I do try, but it's a little awkward... Unless I'm on vacation and then I'm actually a tourist, so it's fine... Isn't this odd ?
Lovely advice, but I reacted on two things:
1. The quote "If your photo isn't good enough, you're not close enough" by Robert Capa, is, how I understood it, more about physically being close and in the scene than having a telephoto lens. By being close to your subject, you will be more in the scene of the action rather than observing the action from a distance.
2. Only minor but for instance taking 200 pictures of the same thing from the same angle won't help. I'm sure that was not what you meant but it can be a bit misleading. Personally I'd say to take pictures often rather than many :)
Hope you'll see this :P haha
All different angles mate - which is why I hate tripods :)
@@JamesPopsysPhoto Yeah, same same, usually only use the tripod as a stand for the camera when I'm not using it during a shoot :P
Your color grade looks really good
I am not a landscape photographer, my majority of shooting is wildlife/birds/macro, but I thoroughly enjoy your videos and your British dry sense of humor. I also agree, I take as many shots as possible, at the end of the day only a few are keepers, some day's none are keepers, but as long as I was out there shooting is all that matters to me.
Definitely! :)
I use other presets to build my own for quicker editing processes. Then from my presests I will tweak and finetune the details, exposure, etc.
I have been watching your UA-cam videos for some time and enjoy them very much. I was wondering if you use sky filters for lens protection and perhaps rely on the lens shade for that. Keep cranking out the videos!
Cheers John, mainly just hoods to be honest :)
very nice caps!
Thanks mate :)
Great tips!!! I'll stop feeling bad taking 600 images in a three hour shoot
Interesting point about the number of images taken. One thing that puts me off id the thought of the inevitable culling process, the "should I pick this one or that one", the umming and aahing over infinitesimal differences - any tips on efficient culling?
Do it with a beer :) it can be a painful process, although not as painful as getting home without the shot!
Awesome video as always. Really helpful. Also thanks for the code, just booked a ticket and will be going on the Tuesday as you'll be there, so looking forward to hearing you talk.
Good video. Sounding much better and less like an echo chamber!
On the point of editing, do you have any recommendations on youtube videos to learn how to edit using either Lightroom or Photoshop? I want to get better, but I feel like at the moment I'm just fiddling with buttons which I have no idea what they do, and hoping it might make it look slightly better!
I haven't watched any consistently for a while so it's hard to recommend, but I'll definitely put something together in the near future :)
Not got my tickets for the show yet, so will use your link, save me money towards a new bag! But I'm going the Sunday, would have been good to hear you talk outside of a screen!
It's weird to me because I enjoy shooting almost 100% of the time simply because every time I want to compose a picture, the task of finding a good angle is just pure fun for me...
I also enjoy finding the right angle, or right composition for that matter. Also, i often think about what's the point in this picture, the main focus? But not too hard, better to just let it flow. At that point, it's often bye bye to straight horizons because they're NOT that important. Sometimes yes, but more often not in my current style.
Its nice to be able to tweak an image in post production but too much and you have to ask....is that really the picture I took! In my opinion, post production should just compliment an already good photo where necessary.
I really like you honest and even a bit goofy style. And I agree to all 4 points.
The video looked great - and thanks for the useful “trap” tips 😃
Cheers Paul :)
James, great discussion. All the points covered were covered well and in good detail. I completely agree with all and think they are ones that may not be so obvious to many people so lots of value here. The only part I found I didn’t entirely agree with is Trap 1 and where you said colour theory and composition are nice to haves but what’s more important is the story. I understand where your coming from but I’m learning more about colour theory and how much it can help convey a feeling or story. Also composition is pretty key to a great photo and telling story.. along with choosing the right focal length. Anyway- great discussion.
would love to hear an update on the 25 1.4 ! ive used the 1.7 version which wasnt bad at all
I love it, just wish it was weather sealed, but apart from that it's great :)
A lot of good comments James. Too many people have a "hang up" about
getting it right in the camera. It's more about capturing the moment, especially
in wildlife and sports photography, which is mainly what I do. When it's often
better to take a wider shot, and crop to get the composition. When shooting a
game of hockey or on a wildlife outing, I will typically take up to 300 shots, ending
up with maybe 50 keepers.
That's a nice ratio :)
Hi James, great points, as usual. Personaly, i'm not one for spending hours in front of a computer editing photos, i always to try to get as much right, as i can, in camera. But i always shoot in raw + jpeg, those raw files sure come in handy, especially for exposure latitude.
I know what you mean Derek, I much prefer to be outside - although I'll never say no to editing photos with a beer either :)
@@JamesPopsysPhoto Editing with LSD is the best, some say.
A few years ago I quit caffeine for a few weeks and a colleague was inspired to join me. After a few days he told me he felt amazing and had loads more energy than he’d had when he was drinking caffeine. Then one day I saw him making coffee in the staff kitchen and pointed out he was using the caffeinated coffee. Turned out he’d been mistakenly drinking the caffeinated coffee the whole time and having loads more of it than usual because he thought it was decaf 🤣
Great video James! Really good moral advice!
Couldn't agree more about the bonus trap (such a ridiculous phrase) - I take crazy amounts of shots and often just have 1 or 2 that I'm happy with.
I absolutely love your videos. I whole-heartedly agree with taking a number of photos to find "the one" lightning in a bottle is rare. I could definitely improve in post-processing to interpret better what I saw initially; I prefer a "makeover" versus "plastic surgery" on my photos.
Thanks Karen :)
Great video James, top points for traps, especially the Pen and Pencil comparison. Everyone should enjoy photography and it shouldn't be done to please others on social media. Shoot what makes us happy and every now and then we'll get that photo that fits somewhere in the middle, A win for everyone. Those fast new primes of yours look smashing mate.
Cheers Mark :)
Bonus trap was the real talk for me. Taking 500 shots makes me feel like ive increased the amount of effort I put into any of my special shots that stand out. I feel like it just adds more value too, due to the amount of trial and error needed when taking shot after shot!
I love the feeling of knowing I've given myself the best chance of a good result :)
Yes, I can easily take a couple of hundred pictures on a 2-hr shoot. Of course I do often take exposure bracketed sequences just to make sure to get the right exposure or knowing I want to try for an HDR photo. And then there is a raw file with each one that always drives the total way up. Sometimes I'm concerned about wearing out my shutter. Do you use electronic shutter often?
I loved your views mate. Appreciated!
Thanks mate! :)
I use bought and self-made presets to get a overall view how my picture can look. When I start editing I often scroll through my presets and see what looks good to me. After I found one I start editing on my own. Sometimes I change almost every setting again but I often need this to see what is capable with my photo. I am still learning to edit properly so it helps me...
Ah such a shame you can’t be there on the Saturday and Sunday! Would’ve loved to see you, maybe next year.
Me too Josh - hope you have a great weekend there :)
When I first got serious about photography when I was a teenager I met a guy who had been a professional photographer for 20 years. His exact words to me were "I've taken hundreds of thousands of photos... And probably a thousand or less of those were good and worth paying for" back then we were all shooting on film was the norm. I remember so many days of just cracking film canisters in the dark, throwing them in my development pot and then going into the lab to develop them... So many disappointing shots just to get the couple of good ones. Thank God for mirrorless digital cameras😅
The edit at 7:47, how did the mist come after post-processing?
Another great video James. I’m really struggling to get out and take photos, my area just seems so boring, just fields after fields in Essex. Any tips to help find places or to motivate myself?
Reptopia take a look at Justin’s site, his Facebook page and new book. www.justinminns.co.uk/
Thanks :) It's definitely harder in some places than others but corny as it sounds - there is beauty everywhere. Try shooting more intimate scenes in places where big vistas don't quite do it - hope that helps :)
Thank you both. I’ll have to do some research online and find some nice places nearby to check out. It seems the beach’s are best, just quite far to travel to! :D
Awesome video :) just want to say that I think the exact same way about presets as you explained in the video.
Thanks Lena :)
Great advices, all 4 of them . The one on lens choice for focal lenght better adapted to subject confort me on my choice on M43 as main system . Small light lenses allow me to be able to carry several of them and switch on location for various subjects .
It is in fact the main reason i am still reluctant to get a FF limited to a single lens like the Tamron 28-75 . A matther of total weight and worry of dust on sensor. I would probably get a little more IQ, certainly more resolution and a lot better low light ability but i take too many good shots out of that range.
By the way, try the Sigma 60mm f2.8 on M43 at f4 : in my opinion, best IQ for the price by far. I carry it with that 25mm f1.4 among others...
I've recently discovered your channel and I should have found it sooner. Love the style and great content. Thanks.
Thanks Matt! :)
This was extremely helpful. Thank you for the tips, they definitely hit home.
Thank you very much. Very useful, very much to the point, and valid, I think, for photographers at any stage. I'd love to hear you talk more about pre-production, when you get a chance.
That's a good idea Michael - will do :)
Snorted coffee on myself laughing at parts of this video, so thanks for that! Stoked to hear you're at TPS - I've got a trade stand this year, first time Ive ever been! Come say hi on A71 if you find yourself with time to burn!
Haha, thanks mate - see you in Brum!
Great video, as always! Are you switching over to the S1or S1R now when panasonic is getting in to the fullframe world or will you stay with the micro four thirds?
Thanks mate, looking forward to trying them but I think I'll be sticking with m43 for the time being, I love it :)
He shoots m43 partly for the size and the S1 and S1R are huge. Bigger than D750 iirc.
@@JamesPopsysPhoto I´ll see why, m43 is a great system! Hope to see a future video and hear your thoughts about them. Even a comparison with the G9 would be nice to see! Take care!
@@tankerbruja Yes, i know 😃
Great video as always! Regarding the "bonus trap": you talk about having a 3% to 4% hit rate when it comes to photos you've take that you approve of. How worthwhile is it to you at this stage to work to increase that rate? Or is it the case that the hit rate initially increases as you move from beginner to novice, because as you improve technically and artistically, your ability to hit the bar for a shareable or publishable photo increases. But then as you move from novice to expert, perhaps the hit rate declines again, because you develop higher standards and a more discerning eye, and end up raising your own bar? Is it a problem that everytime your surpass your previous best effort, doing so again in the future becomes exponentially more difficult?
That's exactly it - your expectations of yourself just keep rising - which can actually be quite annoying.. :)
Love you comment in relation to the book analogy.
Birds and macro aficionado here. I almost never use presets. Heck, i don't even know how to install them! i always need to look for a tutorial to install them and use them. I almost always edit my photos from scratch. Sometimes i do a lot of adjustments. sometimes i do very little. And of course if i have many very similar photos and i have already found the right set of adjustments, i just copy settings and apply them to the rest of the photos and see which one i like the most. I think i enjoy editing more than taking the actual photos (which i love). So, yeah. Go and edit your pictures! it's the only way to actually show the story you want to tell with them!
Man you're so on point.
Nice use of ethos and the focal length advice was helpful too.
Awesome to hear Martha :)
What am I doing watching this video? I've been a photographer for 12 years! I'm no beginner!
But still this video was so good, even experienced pros can get good advice from a video meant for beginners! Great video!
I hadn’t decided on what day to go up to the show, so I’ll come up on the Tuesday and meet up with you.
See you there! :)
@@JamesPopsysPhoto Can't miss me, fat bald northerner with a beard. I'll no doubt thank you for the great reviews of the G9 which led me to buy one.
The Greenland photo is beautiful. That was shot on the G9? And if so, how is that possible without a full frame camera? ;)
It sure was! The stabilisation helped a lot with the 80mph winds - and iso 1600 from memory :)
Don't fall for marketing hype. You don't need full frame to take great images. ;)
@@JamesPopsysPhoto Thx for the answer. Great channel.
Great video! Very helpful
Cheers mate :)
no sheep. what is this channel coming to ???? Good points on your traps.... there's always the delete key if you shoot a lot with no value seen after the fact...
I know Lyle! I've had to quickly upload some on my instagram to balance things out :)
Absolutely son, I sometimes think I shot to much. I have chosen to ignore this. The reason I shot alot is... I like my results. Always coming away with some good ones.
Totally agree whith the first point not, shoot to please others, im always getting bored of one style after sometime, and when I change new style i feel my audience doesn't appreciate new style and sometimes i go back shooting old style just to please the audience. But lately i just do what I like md make me happy. Just like to be dinamic
I needed to see this.
Not shooting for likes is a constant struggle in the age of social media, but is part of the reason that I've made the conscious decisions that I have with Instagram.
You want to be successful on Instagram? Take big landscapes with a person in the frame, 4x5 aspect ratio, and vibrant colors.
That's not what I enjoy shooting. I enjoy intimate and candid moments of friends and family, wedding clients, etc, and I enjoy shooting black and white. And if I bent to the will of the platform for popularity my feed would look entirely different, but I wouldn't be happy.
couldn't have said it better
Great advice!
At the risk of spiking your dopamine levels and thereby influencing your creative preferences,.. yeah, that 25mm 1.4 Leica Lumix is dope. Your chin hairs have never looked better (not scarcasm). This front light (with eye catchlight/highlight?) and 2 lights on the back wall is a pretty good setup.
Cheers Greg :)