Things They Don't Teach In Digital Photography Books

Don't get me wrong - digital photography books are a fun and informative way to learn a lot about the technicalities of digital photography. Since they tend to be on the pricey side because they contain a lot of illustrations, picking them up second-hand or getting them as gifts can be personally rewarding. But there is more to taking a good photography than just the technical aspects. It's the artistic aspects that usually aren't touched upon in digital photography books.

Subject Matter

Your choice of subject matter is one artistic means of making a good photo that's hard to explain in mere words. Digital photography books are usually catered for the beginner who just got a camera or for the professional who needs to know everything from equipment warranties to tax write offs for running his own studio. Digital photography books then focus on the usual kinds of pictures taken by people - portraits, holiday snapshots and some landscapes.

It can be a bit boring to take frame after frame of the same kinds of subject matter over and over again. If it gets boring for the photographer, it gets boring for the viewer. Have fun with your camera and choose a wide variety of subject matter from raindrops to whiskers on kittens … well, a few of your favorite things, anyway.

Every Picture Tells A Story

Sometimes it's fun to just randomly snap away and see what you get. But there are times you might want your photos to bring out a particular emotion in a viewer, or perhaps you want to illustrate a story. Then again, you might want the photo to tell a story in and of itself without any accompanying text.

Perhaps you wanted to tell the story of a new rider whose horse suddenly runs away with her. Which photo would better tell the story? A perfectly centered, perfectly focused picture of a horse and rider, or a blurry photo with streaks of the horse partially leaving the frame? The second tells a better story of what it's like to be stuck on the back of a runaway horse. That's something often not covered in digital photography books.

You also might want to take a photo of something we see everyday, like the side of a building, but just look at it with a different perspective. Get on the ground, lie on your belly and then shoot up. This might make a far more interesting picture.