In the world of photography we find so many kinds of myth that influence our belief on some truths. Some of them are true but the rests are false. It is very important for us to analyze the information coming our way that are doing rounds in society. For common people, they believe those myths and they thrive with them. These are some false myths in photography which need to be kept straight:
1. You need to have an expensive camera and a set of expensive accessories
Expensive cameras as well as accessories are commonly high in quality especially to know that there are no cheap DSLR cameras around in the market. We often hear this kind of myth and sadly most of us believe it completely. We often consider the great works of professional are a given since they play with advanced and sophisticated instruments in their hands and you believe that is how they make great photos.
But the truth is these awesome cameras and instruments have very little credits to the result of a photo. No matter how sophisticated your camera is, it can never be able to give us an explanation of what is the suitable aperture setting for a certain shooting condition.
It is also unable to tell you the suitable foreground or background that will give the best result for a particular subject. It cannot set the composition automatically like the rule of third, rule of space and etc.
The choice is ours and what the camera can do is much lesser than what we can. This also applies in so many other fields of job. For instance, a writer who can use old computer to create his great piece or a musician who plays amazingly with his simple guitar and instrument but is still able to make great sounds. So do not believe this myth and throw this thought away.
2. We need to be in a beautiful place to get good photos.
Whenever we live whether it is in a big city or a country there will always be objects to shoot. There are so many extraordinary photos produced in unknown places rather than in popular tourism spots. In fact, when we see something “uncommon”, it is the chance for us to show them in our won style. Often time, we see images of a popular tourism spot which appear to be boring and not unique anymore.
As a photographer we need to able to see beauty of a place from many different perspectives. We need to learn, explore and create intimate bond with that place. We need to observe its condition during the night, morning and daylight. There must be something special there even though it is a small thing. For example, when we shoot in a street where cars are passing here and there. Of course there is nothing special about a road. We need to do some observation, for instance during the day, you will come across so many groups of bicycle riders or farmers who go to farm with their cows in the morning and many more.
3. There is one correct lighting setting for each situation.
People believe that balance lighting (not over exposure or under exposure) is the correct way in capturing a moment or a picture. But the truth is otherwise because there are so many photos that can look amazing under exposure condition as well as over exposure. In the matter of setting of lighting, there is no right or wrong but it is more about how you capture the beauty in front of you in your own way.
4. Megapixel myth
The megapixel number is the sum of millions of pixel that can be captured in one snap shot. These days, almost all cameras have 2 digits megapixel. Basically, megapixel does not affect the quality of a picture. It is more about how big the size or the resolution of the resulted image (for printing requirement)
So do not get deceived by advertisements that offer you a camera with big megapixel in cheaper price. Its size does not influence much for example a 3 megapixel camera with 2048 horizontal pixel and a 14 megapixel one with 4500 horizontal pixel, they don’t have much difference. The advantage of big megapixel is on the post processing stage because when we do some cropping (with adobe Photoshop for example, the result will still be big in size while it is a different case in a camera with small megapixel. What matters more on the quality of the output image in a digital camera is the quality of its sensor camera.
5. There is a standard rule to shoot.
Photography is an art and a way of expressing yourself. That is why there is not one rule in photography. There is only guidance that you can choose to follow or not to. People who learn photography will look at the techniques of successful photographers to find out what makes their images great. However, just like all the other types of art, innovation in photography is very important. For example, the rule of third which tells you not to place your object in the center of the frame but is more to the right or left and up and down corners.
Yet, of course there is a possibility to make great photos by placing the object right in the middle of the frame. Different and unique guidance may work when it is applied in a particular photo but not necessarily works the same magic in other photos. So you get to use your own artistic instinct to choose which one suit you best. Those rules are made to help you in your learning process and when you understand the basics of photography you can shoot as you like, out of the box, and break the rule or create your own unique character.
