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How-To

Be A Photography Rebel

10 tips to create unique and powerful images

This Article Features Photo Zoom

1 Castle Geyser at night, Yellowstone National Park

In the age of inexpensive, high-quality digital cameras, suddenly everyone is a photographer. The digital revolution has unleashed a horde of shooters, all vying to become the next Ansel Adams. As a result, it gets tougher and tougher to stand out from the crowd. How can you break free from the pack with truly unique images?

Easy—become a photography rebel! Rebels break the rules, challenge perceptions and shatter expectations. Only by being a rebel will you truly explore the limits of your creativity. You might make a lot of bad images along the way (I know I have), but by experimenting and learning from your mistakes, you’ll start to make more and more great ones. Play it safe, and you’ll end up with the same shots as everyone else. Shoot on the edge, however, and you can make history. Here are 10 tips to help you unlock your creative potential, so you can start making cutting-edge photographs.

Shoot At Night
1 The dark of night is the closest thing to a blank canvas we as photographers will ever encounter. Take advantage! It’s your time to literally paint with light. Use flash to light portions of the landscape while stars wheel in the sky above—or try flashlights, car lights or your camp fire. Light from the moon or even distant city lights can illuminate a scene during long exposures.

Take a 30-second “test shot” at your camera’s highest ISO setting to see what your image will look like, then calculate your exposure time accordingly. For example, if your 30-second test shot is properly exposed at ISO 3200, an exposure time of eight minutes at ISO 200 is needed; add or subtract time or adjust the aperture if the scene was under- or overexposed in the test shot. Night exposures can last anywhere from several minutes to several hours, so bring your cable release (and a good book), make sure your batteries are fully charged, and turn on your camera’s noise-reduction feature.

Photography of wildlife at night can lead to some interesting images—if you can find any critters in the dark! Night photography may be difficult, but not being able to see anything is surprisingly conducive to creative image making.

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