6 steps to learn to take pictures like a pro

imagine and choose

Look at the world identifying what you would like to photograph and think about how you would go about it. Choose a theme of your choice: nature, people, food… Then, analyze images taken by professional photographers to try to define what makes each photo special to you – is it the focus, the light, the framing?

seek inspirations

Look on the internet (or in books and exhibitions) for classic photographers of each style, such as Thomaz Farkas (b&w well contrasted), Sebastião Salgado (portraits in b&w), Henri Cartier-Bresson (father of photojournalism) and Robert Capa (war photographs ). Other very inspiring ones are Andreas Gursky, a photographer of architecture and colorful landscapes, and David La Chapelle, who is famous for his raving images of famous people.

buy the equipment

The choice here depends on the style you want to follow. If you intend to shoot surfing, you’ll need a camera with a good zoom that is waterproof (like the Sony Cyber ​​Shot DSC-TX10). Want to click to web? So you don’t need a machine with a lot of megapixels. To take pictures that will be printed, the camera must have at least 12 megapixels. It is more practical to start with a digital camera than an analog one. In addition to being easier to use, the maintenance of the equipment is cheaper, as you don’t have to spend money on film and development. The Reflex Digital model (found in Canon, Nikon and Sony brands) is good quality and price – and is considered semi-professional. An iPhone is also good for training your gaze and some techniques. Lomo and Polaroid are super stylish analogue cameras, but they don’t offer many possibilities. They only make photos with burst light effects and saturated colors.

realize the light

Note the variations in light throughout the day. Notice how objects reflect or cast shadows in morning, midday, or evening light. According to the brightness, adjust the ISO (light sensitivity) of your camera. On sunny days, a low ISO (100) is enough. In darker environments, however, it is necessary to use a high ISO (above 800) to achieve a clearer image. Test different sources of light besides the sun – a car headlight, a TV screen, a flashlight, moonlight… Don’t be afraid to be daring. Going against the rules and taking photos with the most blown light (when the ISO is high in a bright place) or half light (low ISO in a dark place) can be part of your proposal.

frame

When taking the photo, define what goes into the image and what doesn’t – decide which is the most important element and discard what is unnecessary. Try not to leave the person or thing photographed in the center of the image, but in one third of it; it can get a lot more interesting (look up “theory of thirds”). You can also learn more about framing by looking at paintings by great painters and film scenes by directors you admire. Note the angle and cutout chosen by them in each image to get inspired.

adjust focus

It defines the sharpest area of ​​the image and depends on the aperture of the diaphragm – blades that regulate the light that enters the camera. The more open diaphragm serves to focus the foreground and leave the background out of focus. The tighter diaphragm keeps everything in focus. But it is not always necessary to have something focused in the photo. Purposefully blurred images are also a photographic language.

time to treat

Read your digital camera manual! – In it you can learn how to remove red eye, change a color photo to b&w or sepia and increase the color contrast.

iPhone Apps – It is worth downloading Afterlight (R$ 0.99), which has more effects than Instagram and several frames (cuts); the VSCO Cam (free), which features vintage and analog camera effects; and Photoshop (free), which corrects light, focus and framing.

Photoshop – You can learn to use it yourself. A good resource is Liquify (located in the Filter menu), used to remove cellulite and adjust the silhouette. For pimples, scars and blemishes, use the Spot Healing Brush Tool (in the main menu). And to adjust the color and light of the photo, explore Levels (via the shortcut Ctrl+L). Just don’t go overboard, eh?

Sources: Carlos Frucci, Professor of Photography at Universidade Anhembi Morumbi; Hugo Fortes, professor of Arts and Design at USP; Érico Hiller, photographer for National Geographic magazine; and Lila Souza, specialist in photography