Photography is an exciting and challenging hobby that is accessible to almost everyone who has an interest in it. The learning curve can be rough or steep depending on the methods you wish to learn, but for the most part everyone has the potential to pick up a camera and create interesting work right from the beginning. Then again, there are a few common pitfalls that you may wish to avoid if you’re just getting started.

Gear Everywhere!

It’s easy to get swept up in all of the possibilities for your photography gear. Tripods, extra lenses, filters, darkroom gear, timers, lights, reflectors – the list is endless. However, without a solid foundation and a clear understanding of what your camera is capable of on its own, you’ll never be able to show true mastery of all of those accessories. Start off small with a basic digital SLR or a basic 35mm camera and only one lens so you can really learn the photographic basics. Once you’ve gotten comfortable with using your equipment and have goten some great shots, it’s time to start looking at some new accessories.

Not Every Shot Will Turn Out

When you get started, you’re going to miss lots of shots. There will also be times when you get a shot but it turns out badly. That’s why you should generally take every picture (that you care about) at least twice or at least closely look at the digital image in the LCD screen to make sure it turned out. This will help teach you about the subtleties of your camera’s inner workings, as well as provide a bit of safety in knowing you won’t miss the important things. Besides, in the day of digital the cost of shooting thousands of images is no more than shooting only ten.

Turn the Flash Off

The flash really isn’t your friend. An automatic flash can prevent you from properly learning how to handle complex lighting situations and sometimes even ruin your images. Turn your flash off and force yourself to adapt to natural light using only your wits and your camera’s settings – you’ll be better for it in the long run. You can take pictures without a flash in almost any environment. All you have to do is be a little creative in how you use the light that’s available.

Improve Your Composition

Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need to put your subjects in the exact center of the frame. This can create unnecessary space in your pictures and make them less interesting. Picture the frame or viewfinder of your camera as a cropping tool so you’ll always compose exactly what you want in your picture. Framing your image properly in the viewfinder doesn’t take long to learn but will make a lasting difference in the quality of your photographs.

Point and Shoot

Simple digital cameras with giant LCD screens on the back are certainly tempting, but if you’re hoping to learn about the art of photography and challenge yourself to improve, you’re probably not going to get anything out of a point and shoot camera. Many beginners pick these cameras due to their convenience and affordability, which is absolutely fine if you’re only intending to use it for non-professional or artistic purposes. If you want to understand photographs and the ways in which you can create them, you need to start with the right tool for the job.

Overall, these five mistakes are easy to avoid and won’t cause you much harm if you happen to stumble into one now and again. When learning photography it’s important to establish good habits and skills early on so you can continue to build upon a solid base of knowledge going forward. Just keep taking pictures every day and before you know it you’ll be creating images that you’ll be proud to display in a picture frame in your home or office.