LocalNavy433 Photography

Hello and how the hell are you? If this is your first time here thanks for stopping by. In this blog I am going to talk about what I have learned about photography and life from being a Landscape photographer for over 6 years. To sum this up really fast for you is that I have learned to be a better person and appreciate the little things more in life. When I started down this adventure and that is what landscape photography is to me. I wanted to just capture the beauty that was around me. I wanted to tell my story of seeing the world in a different light.

First lesson

The first lesson was seeing the beauty where others did not see it. I start shooting in a small city (or as I called it a little big city), and the landscape was more of an urban one to say the least. I was hit with the downtown area of Casper Wyoming. This taught me to look for the intimate scenes in a big city. I was able to find nature hidden within the concert jungle the city had to offer. I was being told that I would find beauty in places that other took for granted. This opened my mind on what to look for while out on the walks that I was taking. I was shooting anything and everything to find that really cool landscape image.

A lone tree in a parking lot trying to make it look like you are out in nature was truly hard to pull off. The trick for me was looking closer to the little details that I could find. You see at the time I was held to just walking around the city because I could not afford to drive to the big locations to get the epic views that others were getting. So I learned to focus on the little details in a area for a good photo. This taught me that you don’t need to spend a lot of money to get a epic image. I also learned that you just need a basic camera and lens to get those killer shots.

Second lesson

The second lesson that I learned was gear doesn’t matter as much as you think it does. This shaped the way that I through about buying gear for my photography. You see when you research what you need for photography you are going to be hit right in the face with gear reviews for this or that. The only thing that you truly need is a camera that will get the images that you want. I was lost for many years trying to find this or that to make my images better and the only thing that I found was my images all looked the same no matter what lens I was using no matter what camera body I was shooting with.

This lesson was one that will take you a long time to learn as a beginner due to the algorithms that run the search engines on YouTube and Google alike. They are trying to get you to buy the next big thing to make you better. The Camera industry is great at marketing as well and that will not help you either. The one thing that is going to help you get better is getting out to shoot all those images in your head.

Third Lesson

The third lesson that I learned is the only person that you are going to need when out shooting is you. I can tell you how to do this or that but if you are not out shooting you are not going to learn anything. You see photography is just like anything else and the only way that you are going to get better is by getting out to shoot. One of my favorite photogs did a video a while back and it was titled “F8 and be there”. This is huge if you truly think about it. The only way that you are going to learn the weather patterns in your area is by being out in the field.

This is one that I never truly understood until that video. You see I would just show up and get what I get. Well the only way to improve your chances of getting a good image is to become a weather man or woman. This will totally increase your chances of getting the killer sunset or sunrise. The tools that you need are not even that big of a deal. You just need an app that will tell you the weather forecast for a few days out. This will give you a better idea on what to expect and all you have to do is be there on location to take the shot.

Fourth lesson

The fourth lesson that I learned was to slow down when on location. This is still one that I struggle with because you want to get the shot so you get out there and start shooting. Well the best shots are built around a subject or they are built around the light. These two things hardly ever line up perfectly with the first image you take. You need to slow down the process and look at the scene and take it all in before you even put the camera to your face. The concept of slowing down is made harder with the newer camera gear due to the fact that the more modern cameras will do just about everything for you.

The older gear will still get you a great image but you will have to take control of the gear and make it work for you. Learning that gear to the point that you can operate it with your eyes closed is one thing to try. If you are out shooting the Milky Way and you have forgotten your head lamp in the car you need to know what button does what in order to operate the camera.

Last lesson

The last lesson that I learned is stupid simple and you will not believe me until you actually experience it for yourself. You need to tell your story with every image. You see you can learn how to tell a story with your camera but are you really telling your story. The only way to tell your story is to take wide images, mid range images, and tight images. You need to get a set of three images that will explain what you are doing on the trial. I still have a hard time with this so I use the written word to tell most of my story with the image that I am posting on social media.

Your story is unique and no one will be able to tell it as good as you will. With all the AI images that are out there no days the story behind your images will set you apart from them. The images your create will be flawed, they will have moments that you cannot fix in post, and most of all they will have you written all over them. You can learn all that can from people like me but at the end of the day it has to be you out there putting in the work to get those images. SO STOP READING THIS GET OUT THERE AND TELL YOUR STORY WITH YOUR IMAGES MY FRIENDS. With all the love in the world I wish you the best and hope you get that image that makes you stand out from all the rest. Enjoy from St Johns AZ y’all