When it comes to photography, I think it’s really important to recognize that you must do the thing itself in order to learn the thing itself. No amount of studying the history of photography, understanding gear, or learning online will do you anything. I really do believe in this notion that you must do and practice daily with repetition in order to improve your photography.
“The doer alone learneth.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
Stick to the plan
What’s the plan? The plan is to actually go out there and make more pictures! You can’t just sit around and plan all day and think about things like it’s some sort of arts and crafts project in middle school. You actually have to do the work. I really do believe that you must stick to this notion of actually committing and making an effort each day to make pictures. It’s not complicated and requires minimal effort to make photographs. It’s really about being present and recognizing life in front of you. The camera, the composition, the lighting, the color, the contrast, the moment, etc. All of this BS comes naturally. It’s something that you recognize in the and you connect the dots with your intuition.
Movement is improvement
In order to make new pictures, you must be moving. Do not remain stagnant, and be in a constant flow state of moving your physical body through the world. Whether you’re walking around your neighborhood, going to work, commuting on the train, etc. There are an infinite amount of opportunities for you to photograph throughout your day. To me, there’s really no excuse not to make pictures unless you’re lazy. You should be out there, making pictures no matter the conditions, weather, or time of the day. Embrace whatever mundane traces of life present to you and try to make something out of it. The more that you move your physical body, the more you will see, and the more that you ultimately will do.
No more gimmicks
There’s no camera, lens, or system that’s going to make you a better photographer. Truly, that notion about gear and why it doesn’t matter is a good thing to consider. You could go out there with your iPhone, and make the same pictures as the next guy doing a professional shoot as a photojournalist. It really doesn’t matter what camera you use at this point. It has nothing to do with whether it was shot on film, or digital, or whether you did a backflip and a 360 no scope before you took the picture. Did you get the shot? Is it blurry? Is it sharp? Who cares! The point is to make sure you press that damn shutter more than less!