[Rainer.]

Here are some tips I wrote for more of the inexperienced crowd to improve your images:

1. Shoot! Shoot Shoot!
The number one way to get good pictures is to take as many as you possibly can. Look for things that things that might make an interesting picture. Look at things that may not seem interesting at first, and explore them. Once you've taken a shot, take a few more from different angles, or with different exposures. Above all, having a camera available and taking lots of shots is the most important thing you can to to get great shots.


Photo Credit: ApparentlyNothing



2. Pay attention to the amount of light.
Light is what makes a photograph a photograph. It's important to get a sense of how light affects the photographs you take. The sun is the brightest lighting you can get, and more often than not, outdoor photos in sunlight will have no problem with getting a very well lit image. Watch out indoors, though. Cameras have a lot of trouble "seeing" indoors, and without a strong light source, your pictures will often turn out dark, blurred, and flat, lacking in strong highlights and shadows. On the other hand, dark photos can be used dramatically, especially with a single light source. Getting correct exposure and supporting the camera in lower light situations (lest you move and blur your image) is crucial.


Photo Credit: Cadence
Shots at concerts are very hard to get right for photographers who do not have complete control and a lot of knowledge about exposure. This shot uses stage lights very effectively.



3. Pay attention to the direction of light.
The direction of light will determine which parts of your image are light and which are dark. These light and dark areas give a picture a sense of depth, shape, and texture. Avoid getting photos where the source of light is directly behind the camera, this will give a very flat image, as there will be no shadows. Pictures with shadows and highlights allow the eye to see a three-dimensional image, though the picture is two dimensional. Most photographers will tell you that the best times of day to shoot are in the morning and late afternoon.


Photo Credit: ApparentlyNothing
Taking photos when the sun is low in the sky gives more dramatic shadows.



4. Explore your subject.
Some things just look more interesting than other things. Maybe some things are more interesting from different angles. If you can, walk around your subject, find a lower or higher perspective on it, move closer, farther away, zoom in or out. Take a whole set of pictures. Find out what you find most interesting about your subject, and try to bring it out in your photographs.


Photo Credit: PontiusPirate
Perspective can make a subject interesting.



5. Simplify.
You don't usually need everything in your shot. Determine the subject, and try to emphasize it. Compose your shot in a way that leads the viewer's eyes right to what you're trying to point out. Try not to make a picture more complicated than it needs to be by including too many things or too much business. Focus on one object, move closer to it, try to make everything in the photo point to it.


Photo Credit: Cadence
There is beauty in the simplicity of this image. No distracting elements.



6. Look for interesting textures, shapes, colors, and lines.
Allow the viewer of the photo to "feel" the textures in your photo. Shapes provide interest in a picture, and give it form. Lines lead the viewer's eyes around the image. look for these things occurring naturally around you, and bring that out in photographs. Avoid lines that go straight vertical or horizontal. Rather, use lines that go diagonally on the page to give an image depth or movement. Some colors also have a tendency to evoke certain feelings, and also come colors work well together.


Photo Credit: RipVanWinkle
The textures in this shot really bring out the old and rustic vibe. There are very few smooth surfaces.



7. Compose your photo!
The Rule of Thirds states that images are more pleasing to the eye when subjects are placed on imaginary lines which cut the image into three parts, or subjects take up 1/3 or 2/3 of the frame. Avoid centering a subject in an image, and also avoid cutting the image into two parts with subjects that are equally on two halves of the image. Lines that cut the image into two parts are also less pleasing to the eye. In landscapes, use horizons that lie on a line two-thirds or one-third up the picture.


Photo Credit: Cadence
If you split the frame into thirds from left to right, the two main subjects occupy the left and right sections, while the middle is left blank. Also, there is a clear line across the bottom third of the image, and across the top third with the numbers. All of these elements provide for strong composition.



8. Capture the moment.
Look around you, see what's happening, capture it. For some photographers, the worst thing that can happen is missing a photo opportunity. If something is going to happen, anticipate it, and have the camera ready. Think of what you want the shot to look like, and then shoot when the moment is right. Cameras with a burst mode are especially helpful, as you can take multiple pictures right after another, and later pick the perfect image.


Photo Credit: SecretAgentRat



9. Use as many manual functions as you can.
When you use the manual functions of a camera, you are given a dramatically increased amount of creative control. Using the light meter in the camera along with the shutter and aperture controls will give you maximum control over how your image will look. Also, the camera's automatic decisions are often wrong, so be sure to use your eye and knowledge of getting a proper exposure to really nail shots.


Photo Credit: Rainer.
Slowing down the shutter can show motion blur. Usually only possible with a manual camera, as most cameras will automatically set the shutter as fast as possible.



Feel free to add to this list.