7 Tricks For Taking Unique Photos

There’s no denying that photography is an interesting and fun pastime for all ages. While some take candid shots at leisure and for fun, others actually make money selling their photographs. Either way, being able to capture amazing, memorable shots is the goal!

If you want to improve your photo-taking skills, first learn how your equipment works and practice making adjustments to the settings. It also helps to know how lighting and distance play a role in how your images turn out. Additionally, I highly recommend keeping an open mind and allowing your creative side to come out. Here are a few tricks for taking unique photos.

Experiment with Equipment

If you’re a serious hobby photographer, you likely have at least one nice camera and maybe even some other cool accessories. If it’s in your budget, try experimenting with different devices to achieve different looks and better quality. For instance, you could use an old 35mm SLR camera to complete an “old-school” collection of shots.

If you want to take some aerial photographs, you don’t need to climb up the tallest tower to achieve your goal. Instead, you could use a drone like the ones shown at DrDrone to take photographs from above. There are no photography rules that say you must stick with just one device to take your photos. 

Play with Perspective and Angles

Taking creative, unique photos isn’t just for the pros. Take some time to experiment with your perspective and angles to find what you’re looking for. For example, if you want an object or subject to appear prominent, you could try taking photos from a low angle. Doing this truly can change ordinary things into works of photographic art.

Have Fun with Scale

If you’re an active social media user, you’ll likely have come across photos where the photographer played around with scale. One such example is a subject standing far away from the Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy and pretending to “hold it” with their hands.

Let’s say you want to photograph a large tree in a field. Taking a photograph of the tree itself doesn’t give viewers a sense of scale. But, if you get someone to stand near it and take a few shots at a distance, viewers will quickly gauge its true size. Of course, these aren’t the only ways you can have fun with scale. You can manipulate scale when you take the photos or in editing for all kinds of creative effects and optical illusions.

Use Props 

Another way to take unique photos is to use props. In a nutshell, props are objects that give detail, backdrop, or a story to the main object of your focus. Photographers use them for several reasons: to fill space, to create balance, and to add color, texture, and lines.

For example, you could hold a picture frame in one hand (or get a friend to hold it for you) against an object you wish to capture. You could take that shot, including your assistant’s fingers or hand, and even use depth of field to enhance your creative photos further. The point is to let your creativity shine with the addition of fun props.

Use Abstract

Abstract photography is another way to take creative pictures. You don’t need to travel far to find examples of elements like textures, patterns, lines, shapes, and colors to use for your abstract snaps.

The aim of abstract photography is to capture the essence of your subject. There’s no need to take in the entire object or backdrop. You can also use other techniques mentioned on this page like playing around with perspective and angles to get the perfect abstract pictures.

Use Silhouettes

Last but not least, you can use silhouettes to capture intriguing shots. Doing so adds an element of mystery and drama to your photography. The way to create silhouettes is simple: just position your subject in front of a strong light source. Picture that huge oak tree standing in front of a beautiful pink sunset. The tree creates a dark contrasting image that makes the sky pop even more. 

Use Creative Editing

One last thing…feel free to use some editing software like Adobe Photoshop to jazz up your photos! There are also some user-friendly amateur programs like PicMonkey that give you some practice and quality results without the high ticket price.