If I Wanted To Become a Photographer in 2025, I'd Do This

Let’s be honest, the rabbit hole of gear reviews, tutorials, and tips can swallow you whole. I’ve been there. But here’s the thing: photography doesn’t have to be that complicated. In this video, I’ll break down the exact steps to go from “I have no idea what I’m doing” to taking photos that actually make you proud.

[washingtonradio]

I tell beginners the only lenses they should buy are the kit lenses the OEM sells with their introductory photography kits. Then don't buy a lenses for at least a year but go out and take photos. After a year you should begin to find areas where you consistently needed another lens, maybe a macro, maybe a wide angle, maybe a couple of fast primes, etc. and buy that lens only. Any gear I buy now is for a specific purpose that I have identified as a major hole in my current kit. Once I have identified the hole, only then do research what is available at that time.

Also, mostly ignore gear reviews, any new/newish camera and lens (DSLR/mirrorless) will be a good choice from any of the major manufacturers.

If you live near a city, check out photography clubs and meetups as a way to meet other photographers in your area. Also, in the US at least, many colleges will have continuing education courses that you can sign up for which will be relatively inexpensive and fairly short on photography.

[patrickmcmahon]

Once again, an excellent video! OMG, when you talked about buying lenses that was me! Now I’m down to 3 lenses and the more I use them the more I learn and get better. A good way to see what you use, is to look at either your processing software or where you store your images in the cloud. Some will say which lens you use most or/and what is the focal length you go to for the majority of your photos. Then you can focus on these lenses and stop filling your bag with lenses and gear you’ll never use. I purposely bought a smaller backpack to force me to limit what I take. I’ve seen such an improvement over the last year. Great video, fantastic way to start the new year.

[Manosgarf]

This video is a real treasure of knowledge! I'm not a begginer photographer but i'll definitely recommend this video to people starting out! Thank you!!!

[jonathanmurphy]

Great video. Lots of good tips. One thing I've found is choosing a genre of photography that is available in your area makes it much easier to improve. I live in Canada and shoot local wildlife and hope to some day do a safari type trip. If I lived in the city I would probably choose city landscapes and architecture or artistic portrait photography. There's no point in dreaming of exotic photos you will likely never realistically take, instead build up your skills so if that time ever comes you are up to the challenge.

[johnbethell]

Excellent video! Been into photography for about 9 months now. Practicing heaps and learning fast. A coach would be next level! Joining a local photography club has also been excellent for me - helps with making the practice outings quite intentional. And good point about going steady on gear until you need it to do what you want to do within your niche or particular creative expression.

[MichaelHedegaardJensen]

Yet another great video from PhotographyExplained. 😉
I have been at it for almost 1 year...
I bought a used canon EOS1100D with Canon 18-55 mm, Canon 75-300 mm, no name camerabag, tripod, 1UV filter and 1 polarizing filter..
Thats good enough for me... im mostly shooting street photography...
I tried to buy a pack of different square filter with different ND and and some with haft/half... and a remote from Amazon...
I know that people have warned me about the filters, and tried to push more expensive filters.... but why spend a lot of money, when i dont know if I like working with them ?
I know the darkest isnt as dark as I wanted, but the at some point I can buy 1 or 2 really dark for long exposure...
But at least now I have something to try out.. and I can stack them or get different colors in the photos...
People also pushed for me to buy a better camera, but if what I have works, why fix it right now ?

Again love you channel and content. 👍🤟🤙😎

[alanlee]

Cheers for posting this video. Lots of really good advice here. Absolutely NO need to spend a king's ransom on gear. Older cameras are a great starting point and, for some of us, bags of fun for years ( I still enjoy occasionally picking up my 20 year old Sony, or 12 year old Canon for an afternoon's challenge). Regular practise is essential, but it's also worth checking the image data of your shots when you upload them to your computer - ie what were the camera settings you used on the shots you like, and the ones you're disappointed with ? 🤔🤔

[TheEti]

I started watching your videos a few weeks ago and must say they are very easy to understand and very well made. I am an amateur who likes to travel when I can. I have found though that although I understand the rules I get too caught up in moment and forget or rushed by people, etc. I want to focus on travel and street photography when I retire in 7 months. However, I want to also make it a project to photograph birds and keep track of when and where. I would like to ask, the way you framed your photos in background is very nice. What size photo? And how do you decide which to frame? I imagine you have many to choose from. Or do you switch out? Sorry for the mundane questions but has my mind thinking.

[chandanc]

Excellent video. You inspired me to go out and click pictures 👍

[rongrantga]

I agree with most of your suggestions. Why do you recommend the camera purchased be later than 2015? My Nikon D4, D700, D610 and D7000 are all older than that and take wonderful photos.

[suebelcher]

Thanks for this video, I started photography 6 months ago on a borrowed camera and am loving it! I am very overwhelmed by the editing though and programmes seem really expensive. Are they necessary or can anyone recommend a free one? I did have canon DPP but it won’t allow editing of photos taken on a Panasonic which is the camera I am currently using :(

[rangersmith]

Another "amateur does this, pro does that" video. While I agree about levels of knowledge and wisdom, I find this terminology to be condescending. Pros get paid to do something; amateurs don't. That's the distinction. It's got nothing to do with what you know or your level of experience. Better terms -- more accurate ones -- would be "novice" and "expert."