Ameteur Teenager here

[Not_Your_1993_Steppin_Stone]

Hi, so I am 17. I have known that I wanted to be a photographer since 13. I started taking pictures seriously for almost 2 years now.
I'm currently at a 2 year college getting my AFA(Associate's of fine Arts) I plan on transferring to a 4 year. Probably FIT since I live in NJ.
I was just wondering if I could get any information/tips and/or ideas on how I could start; better learning the camera, bettering myself as a photographer both technically and artistically and if I could start making any money now (school tuition is going up!)

At the moment, I take what I call "test" photo shoots, which is when I basically have a photo shoot with a person and then if they like any of the pictures they pay me $5 pr picture. Whether they want prints or CD.

I am also taking pictures of my little brothers Little League Team and the other teams at our parks league. I am not exactly sure how to publicize myself, there aren't any other photographers there so would just walking around with my camera be enough? I have approval ton be on the field (but limited to the dugouts) during the games.

After baseball season is over, I will probably try to get permission to take pictures of my brothers football, but that actually does have a professional photographer, so I guess I will see if he would take me on as a helping hand.

When i take pictures of people, it feels like just that, taking pictures. I don't feel as if I am learning or growing as a photographer or as an artist. So I was thinking about having a sort of "personal assignment" Where I will take different kinds of quotes, or inspirational saying e.g. "Hear no Evil, See no Evil, Speak no Evil" and take a series of pictures which portrays that in different settings or scenarios.

Does this sound like a good idea?

I have the book
The 35mm Handbook by Micheal Freeman

I just got a Canon Rebel EOS t1i and I am now wholly dedicated to shooting manual while I am "working" (Yes, in the beginning I used auto until I finally grasped the basic concept of aperture and shutter speed)
As I said I am still learning, but I would REALLY appreciate the more experienced opinions of people here. I feel like I am doing something wrong, and my mom has been chewing my head off saying I am not putting enough effort, because "all you do is take pictures, you're not trying to learn"
pssst, tryiing to learn Manual is best learned when shooting in manual.

Thank you all for taking the time to read this, and I am sorry if this was posted in the wrong forum

~Nadine <3

[Niresangwa]

Participate in the assignments, post your 'best' shots in the critique section (and also attempt to critique the work of others) and spend a lot of time looking at other people's work... even just activly participating here on DPS you'll learn things...

...just don't get overwhelmed. You can't do it all at once, so be methodical.

[JFSanders]

Nadine, do you like to read? Books on composition, exposure, lighting are the foundation to making photographs instead of taking pictures. Creating a whole from the different elements requires you to use the tool between your ears. Develop your inner critic/editor. Decide on your final image and break it down to the individual elements that you can control (Sometimes you have to be very patient for the right element to become available especially if you are trying to use natural light). Shoot, shoot and shoot. Keep a photo exif journal along with contributing factors such as location, light. Learn about LIGHT and SHADOW.

Jim

[jonesbob]

Take courses in collage. Most 4 year schools have 2=6classes and a lot of CC offer 1=2 courses in photography. These are ususally slanted toward photography as a "fine art", little or nothing about the business. Your best photograph may be the next one you take or the next hundredth. The only way to learn photography is to take pictures. agre with above commits also. excuse misspelling and reversals, dyslexai.

[Rentham]

Originally Posted by Wanna-Be_Photographer

Hi, so I am 17. When i take pictures of people, it feels like just that, taking pictures. I don't feel as if I am learning or growing as a photographer or as an artist.

zarias.com :: Transform :: A short film for ScottKelby.com.

Watch that. If you've seen it, maybe it's time to watch it again.

[Not_Your_1993_Steppin_Stone]

Originally Posted by Niresangwa

Participate in the assignments, post your 'best' shots in the critique section (and also attempt to critique the work of others) and spend a lot of time looking at other people's work... even just activly participating here on DPS you'll learn things...

...just don't get overwhelmed. You can't do it all at once, so be methodical.

Sounds good I will!

Originally Posted by JFSanders

Nadine, do you like to read? Books on composition, exposure, lighting are the foundation to making photographs instead of taking pictures. Creating a whole from the different elements requires you to use the tool between your ears. Develop your inner critic/editor. Decide on your final image and break it down to the individual elements that you can control (Sometimes you have to be very patient for the right element to become available especially if you are trying to use natural light). Shoot, shoot and shoot. Keep a photo exif journal along with contributing factors such as location, light. Learn about LIGHT and SHADOW.

Jim

Yes I do love to read! Are there any specific books I should definitely be reading? and this may sound dumb but what exactly is a photo exif journal?

Originally Posted by jonesbob

Take courses in collage. Most 4 year schools have 2=6classes and a lot of CC offer 1=2 courses in photography. These are ususally slanted toward photography as a "fine art", little or nothing about the business. Your best photograph may be the next one you take or the next hundredth. The only way to learn photography is to take pictures. agre with above commits also. excuse misspelling and reversals, dyslexai.

My college doesn't offer photography classes

Originally Posted by Rentham

zarias.com :: Transform :: A short film for ScottKelby.com.

Watch that. If you've seen it, maybe it's time to watch it again.

0.o WOW Thank you very much for that video, I've never seen it before and that totally put things back into perspective

[JFSanders]

EXIF data;

(cribbed from Wikipedia) "
The metadata tags defined in the Exif standard cover a broad spectrum:

• Date and time information. Digital cameras will record the current date and time and save this in the metadata.
• Camera settings. This includes static information such as the camera model and make, and information that varies with each image such as orientation (rotation), aperture, shutter speed, focal length, metering mode, and ISO speed information.
• A thumbnail for previewing the picture on the camera's LCD screen, in file managers, or in photo manipulation software.
• Descriptions and copyright information."

If your photo development software is capable of handling this "meta-data" it will be available to you as you download your photos from the memory card onto your computer. It stays with the file unless it is stripped by another program during development or in the file saving process. It basically tells you what your camera was set to when you made that photograph and if your camera is a pro model it will also install xmp/itpc data which is used by news and journalists to maintain ownership and format usage rights.

But a simple use is to help you learn what happens when you set your camera to those settings in the light environment you were in at that time. The reason you would write these things down is because humans have poor memories for details especially if we are doing multiple things of a similar nature at the same time or nearly so. You don't have to stop and make notes as you go but you should notate lighting details and such before you begin. Unless the shot will be missed in which case forget all that stuff and shoot the photo!

DPS offers e-books on the big three which are pretty good. I also recommend Scott Kelby's, RC Concepcion, Bryan Peterson, Joe McNally and Michael Freeman.

Jim

[fotoengineer]

Nadine, I began my business when I was only sixteen years old so I know how daunting the decision to go pro or persue photo as a career can be. I think it's crucial that you find a college program that caters to your specific interests, i.e. are your more of a technician or an artist - not that you can't be both, but some programs are predominantly technical while others are more cerebral.

I wrote and published a book recently about getting into professional photography - you should check it out if you're presently looking for books/reosurces on this topic.

Amazon.com: Wedding Photojournalism: The Business of Aesthetics: A Guide for Professional Digital Photographers (9781608952946): Paul D. Van Hoy II: Books

Best of luck to you - email me if you ever have any direct questions.

Paul

[RuthMower]

If you choose to take college courses make sure they are teaching what you want to know. I worked at an university that focused on fine art/landscape photography. Students interested in portrait and journalism found few classes that met their needs. The biggest thing I learned was keep shooting. Pay attention to what you learn from a series of pictures then experiment with new ideas. Here at DPS is a great place to start. There are free blogs that you can start and get your pictures out there. You might want to start following photographer blogs that you like their work. May as well learn from those that are doing what you like.

[sophiadanielle]

Hey Nadine,
I know you're looking for some "experienced" replies, but I felt like I should reply despite the fact that I'm not really all that experienced. I guess it depends how you define experienced.

Anyway, I'm 17 as well and an aspiring photographer. I've been getting paid to take pictures for about a year and a half, maybe close to two. I only got my first camera about 3 years ago. I don't quite remember... doesn't matter. Hahah.

I've been able to make a good amount of money taking pictures, even when I was a lot less experienced and not nearly as good. I do photoshoots with people. Usually they are people I know from the church I attend, but for almost every person I've taken pictures for has referred me to someone else. The word gets out fast! The key is to just be confident in what you're doing, so don't be afraid to charge people for a session. I use Facebook to advertise and it works pretty well.

I've found that the more I do photoshoots, the better I get. I've taken classes and read books and all that, but the best learning experience you can get is real experience out there on the field working with senior, little kids, grumpy adults, fussy babies, etc.

Then when I get time, I take pictures of my friends for fun so that I can practice posing and get more people interested in what I do.

Also, I do attend a pretty big church, so if this is applicable in any way, I take a lot of pictures for my church so people there see me taking pictures and get interested. But if you don't do church or anything, I guess nevermind this paragraph. haha

Hope that helps in someway... here's my facebook if you want to see some of my work and I can definitely share my rates with you if you want a ballpark idea of what some people charge. Although, I'm inexpensive compared to most.

http://www.facbeook.com/fieldsofgreenphotography