Pro-Tip #13: Get Creative

I recently read an article on the web projecting the number of photos to be taken in 2014, and the numbers are so large its hard to wrap your mind around them. It is projected the world will take 880 billion photos in 2014. The world has definitely embraced the digital image revolution and most of us always have a camera with us these days. We are also sharing many of those photos on-line, Facebook gets 208,300 photo uploaded to it every minute and Instagram receives 27,800 per minute. In a seemingly infinite supply of images how do you make yours standout in the over crowded cyberspace?

Creativity is the answer. The vast majority of the 880 billion image to be taken in 2014 will likely be done by raising the camera to eye level set on auto and pressing the button. No thought, no creativity, no one will notice them. If you want to get your images to standout from the crowd than you need a more creative approach. The following fixes are simple and easy to do but you just have to think about them before you press the button. I put these creative fixes into four major catagories:

1. Camera Position - After you snap that eye level shot ask your self if a higher or lower camera position might improve your photo. Perhaps you can move left or right for a better composition. This is the simplest of actions to do and can take a very unnoticeable image to one that gets noticed because its different than all the rest.
2. Angle of View - Is the scene before you best shot with a wider than normal view or perhaps a narrower angle of view.  You don't have a zoom lens, zoom with you feet. Most any camera can take a panorama these days for an ultra-wide angle of view. Wide angles are great for showing the grand scenic view and allows you to include a close foreground through distant background and introduce some depth into your images.  While a telephoto excels at isolating your subject and compressing distances.
3. Exposure Settings -  I am not talking about getting the correct exposure--that's a given, but adjusting your shutter and aperture creatively to enhance your image. Will the subject before you benefit from a fast or slow shutter? Do you need to isolate your subject with a narrow depth of field or do you need to maximize what's sharp from near to far.
4. Timing - Are you at your location at the optimal time? This may be out of your control but I am talking about what is going on with the light and weather. Can you come back at sunrise or sunset? Perhaps a night time shot that includes the moon or the Milky Way would likely be  less common than the standard day time shot. Do you have clear blue skies, then come back when some clouds are out--clouds make most any shot better with their presence.

There are many other ways to get creative but these are the simplest and easiest to implement and only require a little bit of quick thought before pressing the button.  Anyone can do them but most will not.  So when you do them, your photos will standout that much more the eye level no thought photos making up the majority of the 880 billion photos competing for attention.