Photography

This is a natural feeling for any creator/artist. To always feel like your work is not good enough. It’s normal. Stop trying to get the absolute best look and quality. Focus (no pun intended) on creativity. This is why most of us started photography. This is what we enjoy doing. Try things out. Even things you don’t like. Capture images in different ways than what everyone else does. There are no rules. There are no standards. Experiment. There is no perfect shot. Use motion blur, noise, presets, lens filters, colour palets, shapes, reflections, inspiration and anything else to create art. Listen to music you like and visualize scenes, subjects, angles,…

I don't think Ive taken 10k photos in my life, just saying...

You need inspiration. Look at photographers you like, look at there themes and see what resonates with you the most. Don’t be afraid to copy certain things about them to create your own style.

Eventually over time you’ll start getting good at it. It took me years of frustration to finally pinpoint what I can do. I finally found it. Rather than limit myself with a specific theme or way of shooting, I take every photoshoot as its own unique style, and then post it on my instagram in sets of 3. If there’s more than one set, that means the shoot was awesome.

You got this tho.

I took more than 10k over the last 3 weeks and I only liked about 10. I'm pretty happy. Try to enjoy it more and care less about the results

I've been photographing around a year too, I like some of my photos but I'd not consider any of them good in comparison to people who have been photographers for years.

They're good enough for me for the first year, and I enjoy the act of taking the photo.

A photographer I follow says that one photo a month worthy of going in his portfolio is a normal aim, and he's been going far longer and does it as a full time job.

Look at the photos you think are good, identify SPECIFIC characteristics that you like. Learn to look for those characteristics and keep taking pictures of them. Look at photos you don’t like and note SPECIFIC things you don’t like and come up with a way to avoid those things. Don’t expect too many of your photos to be good. Most of them won’t be. I tend to be more selective of what I take pictures of almost as if I was using film.

When I go out I hope to get 1 or 2 good pics, and half the time I don’t even get that. Learn to enjoy the process not just the outcome. If you don’t get any good pics one day, so what, you went on a fun hike/walk still, and you have some photos that will help you identify things you don’t like and help you learn.

I'm not in a good position to say what to do as I began photography quite recently. But first things first, your photos are really nice !

If I can give you an advice as I was in the drawing before and feel that way, maybe you have to take some times off to clear your brain.

1 Don't compare yourself to anyone else. You aren't them. They aren't you. If you're doing photography to copy someone else then what's the point?

2 compare yourself to yourself, go back and look at your first few hundred shots and you'll feel way better about yourself. I routinely scroll through photos that are a decade old and think "WTF was I doing with this shot/edit" and will sometimes touch stuff up for fun to see how far I've come/how much my style has progressed.

Keep at it, the more you do the better you get, having a plan can really help me when I'm in a 'there's nothing to shoot' mood. Literally just got in the truck and drove hours to a mountain last weekend just to shoot leaves. Break the cycle. See you after your next 10k photos!

I took over 1 million photos last year. I like a handful. I still love photographing.

Twelve significant photographs in any one year is a good crop.

Ansel Adams

This doesn't change as you get better or more experienced or you take more photos. Your standards also go up and you become pickier and pickier.

Look at the photographs that you love and learn to take the exact thing. You will soon develop your own eye for it. Copying another artist's work can be a wonderful way to learn.

We are all our own harshest critic.

I can take over 10k photos over the course of 3 nights. Don't think that photos taken = good photos.

Spend more time looking at photos of the same niche you take and identify what about them you like. Is it composition? The colours? What about the photo makes you feel how you feel? Then learn to replicate it

Constant improvement is key. I am so much better than I was 20 years ago. I've better technique and better equipment, and its been a long haul since.

I had a lot of frustration when I bought my first DSLR. It was a package with a Nikon D70 and a short and long Tamron lenses that were super soft. I realized it wasn't me it was the crap Tamrons and got 18-200 Nikon and a 50mm 1.8 Nikon and the images were better. I had a few gigs and went to Africa with that setup and the pics were good but not half as good as I get today. That was 15 years ago, and since I've gotten better cameras and lenses with money from gigs. Its a slow gradual process getting the right tools you can afford. Now I really don't have any wants for more equipment. I look at old shots and I can see how far I've come. I can't believe people paid me for some of the pics I delivered haha.

Think of the future and where you want to be. Find photos you love by others and make them your goal. If I looked back I may not have gotten to where I am now!

I'll never forget working with a pro wedding photographer and watched how easy she made it look and how freaking crisp her images were....her stuff became my goal. And I've reached it and I think surpassed her style.

Another thing that really helped were all the articles on this page. Great stuff .. read every one!

There's a lot of things you can do! Change subject/genre, challenge yourself to use only one focal length or even your phone. If you need to exercise your creative side, join a group with monthly themes.

Print your favorite one, hang it on a wall and try to do better!

Photography is about a lot of things, light and composition being keys ingredients but subject matter to me is probably just as important. I think you need a plan, a purpose, an objective…..something actually interesting rather than just “snaps”.

I can't say that feeling will go away ever. Your photography will improve if you keep doing it and attempting to learn and improve in some way.

Although I may always feel like that, I do cherish the experiences that photography has brought me, the things I've seen and done, the feelings of excitement when I do like a photo, even if it doesn't last (or come until well after I took them). I do like how it's changed how I see and interpret the world.

According to North Korea's state run media, former leader Kim Jong-Il shot 38 under, including 11 holes-in-one, at the 7,700-yard championship course at Pyongyang in the very first golf round of his life.

Also, I met a photographer who told me nearly every shot he gets is perfect.

Of these two stories, I find the first more credible.

Attention to detail. Reread your post and see if you can find your mistakes. Take that same critical eye to your shots. Shoot less and be more critical. Mark all photos for deletion initially and keep only the best. 11k shots are not useful if you did not learn from every one.

This is from the perspective of a pro photographer...but it definitely applies to all creatives. I've always felt it should be required viewing for photographers:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZYlQ4Wv8lE

I dunno. Those aren't that bad. The depth of field plane shot was kinda cool. Maybe try a different airline ... I mean Ryan Air has ruined flying, maybe they're ruining your shots. Haha. In all seriousness, take your course and keep shooting. You will get better.

I've been taking photos for almost 30 years and I've never stopped learning or trying new things. I still have a lot to learn but I keep improving. It's not a race, and you're not going to learn everything in a year.
But if you're not enjoying it, maybe take a break. If it's not fun, why do it?

I suggest taking photography classes at your community college, or join a camera club, or even work as an apprentice with a professional.

Go buy a disposable black and white film camera and take photos with that. Take photos of things that you're passionate about or things that stand out to you. Forget the fancy gear and technical stuff

When I do event photography, I'll take about a thousand and only use about 50 or 100. That's kind of normal. Not every picture will be incredible. Also, just go out and keep practicing until you find a style you like.

For a lot of us other people's photographs will look better than they are and our own will look worse than they are.

Remember you see all your own flaws, but you only see the best of others because that's all anybody ever shows.

I still don t think my photos are good enough.

... as compared to what or whom? We are sometimes our own worst critics. You took a photo of something that means you saw something that YOU liked and the way you liked it. Unless you going to sell your photos or provide a service, if you love your shot, that is all that matters. If you plan to become a professionals, learn from one and correct your mistakes. From there spin off on your own style and compositions! Remember all the rules of compositions that you have learned, they forgot to teach you the last rule ... sometimes you need to break the rules! Go out, experiment, and try different ways to take a photo. Be creative and be an artist. The photographer is painting the picture for the rest of us to see and appreciate. Interpretation is up to the individual, including the artist (aka photographer). The fun comes in when one tries to figure out what the photographer is intending to illustrate. The photo may jump out and speak to us and then it may not; however, as long as the eyes that saw the picture appreciate the captured moment, it is all that matters.

I’ve been doing this 23 years. The number of shutter clicks is irrelevant. A year is not long enough to get good.

You’re getting the technical skills under your belt. This is great. You’re on the right path.

Your images really are fine. A couple of them even verging on good. This is a particularly challenging subject matter.

Focus some attention on studying composition, storytelling, and the decisive moment.

Digital makes it way too easy to take way too many images. You’re wasting shutter clicks.

Give it another year or two while spending more time seeing and less time clicking. You’ll get there. As long as you don’t give up.

Perhaps you’re trying to produce images like you see from others. Find your own voice. I’d quit social media (or at least stop looking at the work of others) before quitting photography. I produce odd images from different perspectives than you’d typically see. It’s not what’s trendy or whatever, but nothing wrong with how I’m doing things. Practicing photography my way fills a void for me that can’t be filled any other way.

First, don’t put more thought into the comparisons. People progress at different rates, they can leverage different experiences, etc. Just worry about getting better.

Second, do put more thought into the comparisons. These other photographers who have photos you like — what do you like about them? Color? Lighting? Composition? Subject? Sharpness? Softness? Realism? “Fantasticalism”? Pick one aspect and find a few examples of it and then try to reproduce it. Spend a month or two on it if that’s what it takes. Once you have the skill developed to your liking—doesn’t have to be exact—go on to another aspect.

I am an enthusiast who is good at composition and manual exposure but I have other areas that I need to work on: light, focus techniques, post-processing. So yeah I am bummed when I consider those areas - I think of missed shots, shots that could have been stronger, and edits that take forever and surely are not pulling the best from my images. But it’s just got to be one step at a time—keep plugging, try to get better, try some new techniques. Can’t learn everything at once though so just pick one thing and work on that till it is no longer the bottleneck.

The tricky part about photography is that is looks so easy. It's not. Even if you've learned all the technical skills, there is an infinite amount of things to photograph and even more ways to do it.

Developing your vision, the way you see the things around you, isn't something you learn in a month, or even a year. It takes practice, experience.

But there are things you can do. Look at the work of other photographers. Collect images. Make moodboards. What do you like? Why? Try out different styles. There are also plenty of books/YouTube videos on composition, colour, poses, etc... Take inspiration from other art forms, paintings, movies...

Remember that the work you see from successful photographers is only the tip of a mountain. You don't see the beginners work, the failures, the mediocre images, that came before.

They too, take 500 shots in a day, to select only 1 really good image. Sometimes none.

Remember, also, that even though some people are born with a natural talent, to become really good at something, in the end it's really a matter of putting the work and time in.

Don't give up! Good luck!

I can’t believe you can’t how many photos you’ve taken AND are aware of how many photos others have taken. Weird way to look at things.

I think your photos are cool. I like how you use the branch to frame.

I have been doing photography for a few years now and every now and then I get imposter syndrome. I get frustrated when things don't go my way. This happens to me with writing, drawing and drums. I got used to it.. Kind of. Lolz.

So if I were take 100 photos. Maybe 20 would be good and 5 would be VIP status. Depends I guess.

Not all photos are going to be hits.

Why did you begin photography? Remember it is your love and don't compare to others unless trying to sell a service. I just got out of this rut myself (my ADHD imposter syndrome feelings). Hang in, keep clicking God Bless

My friend, you are doing fine. I can't pull up Imgur at work, but I don't think I need to. You are just a year in. This is kind of to be expected, don't let it get you down.

If you can manage one photo a month that you are happy with then that is a good goal. You don't see the tens of thousands of bad shots everyone takes every day.

I picked the hobby back up about 6 months ago and I'm sitting at about 14k images taken and out of all of those there are probably about 5 that I consider great, and a bunch that I consider to be okay.

Also, don't discount the ones that don't speak to you today, you may review them 6 months from now and find a gem.

Another thing that has helped me is to spend some time studying art, color theory, and composition. I found it a lot easier to learn from the perspective of someone who paints/draw and then translate those concepts into framing an image.

Do an art course, analyse paintings sculpture architecture etc whenever possible, look at the masters (art/photography) work over and over and figure what makes it work, either yourself, group or workshops. Build your aesthetic. Mix it up, go street, find interesting scenes, learn to use your camera really well.

I didn't really start enjoying my pictures until I started shooting through cheap vintage glass, usually close to minimum focus distance at a wide aperture, but then experimenting. The process of hunting for interesting light on an object and slowly composing and focusing on it while getting the blurry background looking just right brings a lot of calm and contemplative joy.

It looks like you're shooting some inherently difficult subjects where a lot of environmental factors need to be aligned just right to offer you a fleeting moment.

Personally, I like shooting boring things, like leaves and grass and branches. I don't think my pictures are all that great, but at least I'm having fun getting them.

https://preview.redd.it/60em66pzvq0c1.jpeg?width=4896&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=06b0b4a8cb25b0e08592c4314aeda60f4342e7ec

Mossy branch over a puddle, Schneider-Kreuznach Xenar 1:4.5/135 & cheap 0.7x focal reducer on a Fuji X-Pro1.

I am a graduate student in photography and I have this thought all the time. Looking at your photos they are not terrible photos but they are not very engaging. Some more thought out composition and framing with a clear sense of why you are taking the photo takes practice but you will see improved photos and more responses to them.

Have fun and enjoy the process.

Realistically, a digital 101, or a digital 102 course go a long way. Self-instruction is hard but doable, but having somebody to give you some basics is invaluable

Just keep at it mate you will get better, you may fall out of love with photography by putting so much pressure on yourself. If you know your settings then taking a photo is mostly about you, find something you are passionate in and take shots of that. I'm a wedding photographer by trade but landscape is what reels me back into the whole love of photography again.

Find a subject your passionate about

The rest will fall into place.

That’s a part of the game tbh. When I spent 6 weeks traveling in India for photography, I took around 5000 photos on my old trusty D3300 and only think 3-4 of them are “portfolio grade images”. None of them I realized were even good until days after.

At the end of the day, If it’s not your job to shoot, just try to have fun. Enjoy capturing moments as they come; don’t try to make everything a masterpiece if they don’t need to be. Shoot on shutter/aperture priority if shooting manual is causing you to miss composition or pulls you out of a good flow state. Last thing I’ll say is find your niche. If you find a subject or content that’s captivates you, your photos will reflect that feeling.

I take thousands of photos and only happy sharing few. I set high standards for myself and what I share and that’s ok because I love the process at the end of the day. Do you enjoy going out and snapping?

Hey mate! Don't get frustrated over this... I'm a Formula 1 photographer and I shoot about 4 to 6 thousands photos on a weekend and just keep like 50 at the end. Just the best ones.

Something that worked for me at the beginning is just taking pictures of everyday objects and scenarios in different angles and lighting conditions. This way you can improve your composition and then make it shine when it matters.

Also learn editing. It's important to make sure the picture looks the way you intended from the beginning. Now, dont over do it as it'll look fake. Just some minor touches in lighting and color in my opinion.

Hope this helps!

Dog I take 100,000 photos a year. 10k is just scratching the surface. You have to keep practicing to get better. I take about 250 photos an hour to get 20-30 but a year ago I took about 1k-2k an hour to get 20-30 good shots. Just keep at it

Good image to bad ratio, what is it? If your getting five (5) good ones out of a thousand (1000) that is nothing to be worried about. You are shooting digital. The ratio used to be maybe two (2) or three (3) good out of a hundred when film was the media. Look at your progress from when you started to where you are now. Did you improve? Good, now go shoot more. Not improved, go shoot even more. Reread the camera manual see if you can get more creative with settings, maybe only 2-3 shots of something rather than banging off 20 of the exact same image, same settings, and expecting to get better, the manual controls on your camera are your best friend, it makes you think before you shoot. Then go shoot, and then shoot more. cheers.

Pick rules, and focus on them one at a time. First, learn the rule of thirds. Most cameras have a grid that you can use. You almost never center a subject. This rule can be practiced even when you have nothing interesting to shoot. Second, take photos within an hour of sunrise and sunset. Airplanes are always going to look the same and boring unless you can mix it with another subject. Also, look down to find interesting stuff. Maybe you live in a unique area that's boring to you, but interesting to others. It's really about using your imagination more than anything.

Others gave some good advice. Also, something I should mention - there are days when I'll take multiple thousands of photos.

Don't focus on your "photo count". Not at all. Just pick what you like, analyze it and try to re-create your successes.

Yeah, more often than not three hundred pictures get redacted to 5. 6 if I'm feeling generous that day.

I’ve stopped taking photos too, I get analysis paralysis, and spend more time learning/taking classes than actually taking photos. I don’t feel “inspired” enough (what’s enough?) and therefore I don’t shoot. Sometimes I just want to shoot anything without having a goal in mind. I feel I need to break out of these “shoulds” and just take photos. It’s overwhelming at times. It’s true that others may think my photos aren’t good enough. I’m ok with me thinking they’re good enough. I just need to get out there. That’s my main challenge. Getting out there. What I’m trying to say is: just take photos, no need to follow a straight line. Just go!

I like your airplane pics they are atmospheric and moody.

10k photos isn't that many photos, in my first term at uni I shoot around 200 36 exposure rolls of film. That's 7200 photos approx, only about 10 were any good for my project.

The point I'm making is don't count how many photos you've taken to use as a quantifier of your ability, choose a subject matter and keep photographing it till you get a picture you like.

If you don't know what you like look at some famous photographers till you see images that interest you.

I took nearly 10k photos at a single music festival weekend last year. I posted <200 of them. Put less than 20 in my portfolio. You're fine.