Today we present a step by step exercise that will instantly improve your photography.
So many of us want to improve food photography but don’t know how to and what is missing. So today, set up 15-30 mins for this exercise. Schedule a 15 to 30-min block on your calendar for yourself and follow these steps. These seven steps will teach you what type of photography do you like and what is missing in your own work.
7 Steps to Finding Your Photography POV
Below are 7 simple and straightforward steps to identifying your own POV – something unique about yourself.
Step 1 – List down five photographers you admire
You could start with looking at all the interviews we have done with outstanding food photographers. Pick five photographers whose work you love. Yes! you can pick more if you would like, but for now, start with five. List them down.
Step 2 – Find their portfolio
If you are using the central interview page, portfolio links are just one click away. They are listed on interview page under show notes.
Step 3 – Take a Look at the their photos
Choose one photographer. Take a look at their photographs. Go through their work. Write down the photo number/detail that you like. We will need this in the next step.
Step 4 – Now start reading
Pick the first photo that resonated with you. Start analyzing this photo. What camera angle was it shot at? How was the background? What about Depth of field? How is the lighting? Take note of everything that you can analyze. Write it down.
Step 5 – Repeat this with the next photo
Once you are done with one photo, repeat step 4 with next photo. Do that again, until you reach the last photo of that photographer.
Step 6 – Consolidate all your notes.
Once you have analyzed all the photos you love, take a look at your notes and list the things that are common or that you feel are important.
Step 7 – Look at your work
Now, here’s the important step. Take a look at your own work. Compare your photos and see how many photos have you taken that have same features. How many, for example, are shot at the angle that you found in step 6? If you’ve loved back lit photos, how many have you shot? If you love dark background, have you shot photos with dark background?
Once you are done with this you will have learned two things:
- What do you love about inspiring photographers’ work
- Understand your own work and where there is a disconnect.
If you love top view photographs, and you haven’t taken a single one, go and tak photos that are made top down.
THE Last Step
All this sounds pretty good, right? Sounds simple and all that? Still half of you will not do a thing after reading this post. The only way you will improve photography is by doing exercises like these. Reading books and blogs never made anyone a photographer. Take action.
Once done, here’s what to do
Once you have completed the exercise, in one line tell us – Your favorite photographer and what you learned from this work (Step 6). Leave a comment below.
Portfolio photo by Jason Schlachet
I’m surprised nobody has commented on this yet! This is a great exercise, I feel that you learn best by actively noting what you admire in any other person’s skill sets, and take the initiative to execute those skills in your own life. Simply looking at photos and saying “I like that,” and “I don’t like that one,” isn’t quite enough, you need to ask yourself WHY you like or don’t like a particular photo.
Thank you for sharing! I’m actually new to this website, but I’ve bookmarked it and plan to return regularly to keep my skills as a food photographer in check! My photos have improved by leaps and bounds since my first food photo, but I still have a long way to go to get to where I want to be.