Photo How To

When first starting out in photography everyone is bombarded with conventional wisdom about tools and techniques, along with a bunch of long-time "rules" for quickly evolving their shooting and editing skills. Some of this advice can be quite helpful (at least in the beginning) but other "essential" tips may hold you back—or even spoil your work.

If you're new to post-possessing we empathize with the plight and what must seem like an insurmountably steep learning curve due to the seemingly endless array of features and tools offered by just about any software you use. Today's video will help ease the pain and accelerate the process by identifying five common errors made by novices and even intermediate photographers.

Okay—you’ve taken all the prudent measures to protect your home and family from Mother Nature’s temper tirades. That’s terrific! But what about your cameras, image files and photographs? Whether or not you acknowledge global climate change, you’ve got to admit that there’s been some vicious weather juju going on recently. Let’s talk preparation.

Here’s a distressing problem that we’ve all encountered in the past: You come across a beautiful scene at the right time of day, the light is gorgeous, you brought the right gear, and can’t wait to view the “epic” shots on your computer. But alas, even though you nailed exposure and composition, all your images are unsharp.

Nothing spoils an otherwise great shot more than failing to achieve precise focus. You can compose a scene properly, nail exposure, and capture beautiful colors, but if the image is soft all is for naught.

One common concern when photographing outdoor photos under challenging light is that the images we capture don't appear as impressive on the computer as the scene we witness through the viewfinder. If that sounds familiar today's five-minute Lightroom tutorial will set you straight in a hurry.