5 Tips to Start Taking Photos Like a Professional Photographer

In this video, I want to share with you 5 secrets that professional photographers use everyday to enhance their work. Knowing them will help you understand how you can use them too to improve your images.

I draw upon my 15+ years as a professional photographer, to give you advice to how you can take your photography to a new level using these tips.

🚀 Transform your photography and join my mentorship program for one-on-one video calls, mentee group seminars and membership to an exclusive global community.

👍 Enjoyed this video? Show your support by liking, subscribing, and consider a 'SuperThanks'! Your engagement helps me create more content like this.

In summary, here are my 5 steps to elevate your photography this year:

0:00 Introduction
01:14 Plan Around Light
03:05 Go Back Again
04:57 Edit! Edit! Edit!
06:22 Quality, Not Quantity
06:43 Find Your Purpose
09:42 Bring It All Together

Embark on a journey to refine your photography compositions and discover the artistry in everyday life with me.

[chadmullins]

I have recently been applying many of these "secrets" to my system. Really has helped me upgrade a lot. Very happy to hear you are teaching to do these specific things. Thank you!

[markusbolliger]

Excellent summary of what is really important in photography! Agree with every point, coincides with my own experience. Thank you very much Sean.

[DynastyUK]

I often find a lot of photographers find impossible is being ruthless, they would upload a carousel of very similar images. Sometimes it's for the Algorithm, since at one point carousels ranked higher on Instagram. If that's the case you're better off repeating the image but telling a story to go along with it, not lots of the same image at slightly different angles or poses etc. It only dilutes the quality.
I love to have a story or a issue, but sometimes things don't have to make sense. as David Lynch put it “I don't know why people expect art to make sense. yet, They accept the fact that life doesn't make sense.”. However there does need to be a cause for your not making sense. Fine line between art, and laziness. But who knows, one mans shite is another mans gold haha.

Nice work btw. I'd also add a "secret" is edit beyond what critics may say and DON'T follow rules of Photography award competition/judges. They only limit your creativity. If you want to photoshop an image beyond all recognition, DO IT. Do not let others ideas of what photography should be deter you. Otherwise we'd all be the same. It's just like music, we'd have no synth music if we hadn't completely adapted. It would all still be Lutes and fiddles. Or how we evolved from using "EVIL" notes in musical scales. Keep creating for YOU, and nobody else.

[joanneabramson]

I like that you pulled all the tips together at the end and showed them as a final reminder. I think that is an effective learning tool. I recently went out to photograph in a redwood forest with only one goal, to follow where the light led me. Basically watching for where the forest had a spotlight on a plant, tree, spiderweb, etc. A fun photographic challenge.

[masaradon]

Wow, I've watched a few of your YouTube videos but only now I learned your focus is on climate and the environment, which happens to be my field of work! I'm a climate scientist by profession and a hobbyist photographer.
I was thinking like if the light is so important in photography why you hadn't made a video focusing solely on that. But then, as I watched this video, I found it increasingly insightful, especially towards the end. I understand now that your skill as a storyteller contributes to your excellence as a photographer.
This video is truly amazing, and I really appreciate it.

[tandrylaksana]

you are so inspiring Sean. utmost respect and warm regards from Indonesia

[bernym]

I'm primarily interested in landscape photography and especially monochrome. I like to shoot in 'challenging' weather to get moody, gritty images. I have never been drawn to street/human interest photography but I confess your videos have whetted my appetite. I have 'chased the light' often. One memorable occasion was arising in the English mid summer at 3.30 am to get the dawn light on a lighthouse on a bleak windswept beach near Lancaster. On arrival at the location, I was dismayed to see the sun hidden behind a bank of cloud. Dispirited, I shot off a few uninspiring images and started to pack up my gear. Suddenly, the sun appeared and lit the scene in glorious light and I was lucky to get some fantastic images. But there is a moral to this tale. I learned to expect to fail when going to a location. When I adopted this frame of mind, I found I was much less apprehensive about going to places quite far away and stopped worrying that it would be a wasted journey. I learned to embrace the joy of the landscape even if it was not a good photo opportunity.
Thank you for your inspiration and increasing my pleasure in photography.

[AlbertoAcero]

The 2nd tip can go hand in hand with “waiting”, many times is just a matter of waiting for the light, even a few minutes can make the difference

[maycubaneando]

muy bueno , tremenda enseñanza, estoy haciendo un proyecto esto me ayudara gracias

[sadat.fateme]

Thank you for your profasional advices.🙏😍😊🌹☘️ they are useful for me

[didierpetre]

Excellent, sensible advice, based on experience and common sense.
So much more interesting than silly tester videos.

[willyonamountain]

Quality over quantity 💯. If I get one image from a day of hiking and shooting that could potentially be a print, I'm usually pleasantly surprised (that may also speak to my shoddy photography hahah).

[charlieross-BRM]

Off to a good start. @1:15 "Light" - I was in a business partnership where the other person would always want pictures, pictures, pictures. Often I would just look around; look up at the sky, and say "No." Or she'd tell me (not 'ask' which is what got my back up) to get a picture of her with some notable guest at an outdoor event and I would first pause to look up at the sky to gauge the sun instead of just snapping a shot of her and the Mayor or whomever, which drove her nuts, like I was drifting off or something. It's funny to think back to that.

[robinbhairam]

I took up photography a couple of years ago to decompress after 30 years in a stressful and traumatic based career. I’m still learning (and suspect I always will be), and have yet to find ‘my purpose’ though it is a question I ask and sometimes jot in my journal EVERYDAY …

[mukhtaaraxmed]

Can you please tell me the best time that I may get better lights

[BettyBee]

Do I need to copyright my photographs, before uploading them to sale sites ?

[jamespowers]

It's a bit of a truism that the difference between an amateur and a professional photographer is that no one ever sees the professional's bad photos. The trash can is your friend.

[robmcd]

But I shoot a Leica so every photo is pure artistry.

[luzr]

I'm a little uncertain as to what is to be understood by the term 'Professional Photographer'. The common understanding at this moment in history is probably something along the lines of a photographer who does it as a job. But, of course, whether or not someone draws an income from an activity tells us nothing about the quality of their performance. And so to the second and less common understanding of the term which is all about process and result. A particularly successful Coach in a particular elite activity made the distinction clearly and well: 'The difference between the Professional and the Amateur is that the Professional is dedicated to the total eradication of error. It has nothing whatsoever to do with money.' Obviously drawing this distinction is also historically located - roll back a Century or two and the Professional was very much someone paid to perform a task - play cricket, for instance - while many of the minds that laid the foundations of the Modern World where Amateurs - those with the time and freedom from want to pursue excellence and 'the total eradication of error' in their work.

[Juventinos]

everything you say I employ religiously. they are very good tips, but i wouldn't of got them if i wasn't already doing them, I don't know how to explain it.
My main issue is I'm overly critic with my photos and i don't know how to snap out of it