Photography tips: Get down!

Okay, I’ve got to get this of my chest. This morning, I visited the nearby city farm with my two year old son. There was this little boy petting a rabbit. And then there was this boy’s granddad taking pictures. His camera was a small sized Canon dSLR, probably a recent Rebel-version. It had a zoom lens with a red stripe, I think it was the 24-70L. (not that It matters though) Granddad was obviously very proud of his grandson and he was taking dozens of pictures of the little boy having fun at the farm. And although granddad was apparently not very old or crippled, he did not bend his knees once.

“What’s, the problem?”, you might ask. Well, the problem is that this guy spends an awful lot of money on gear and still fails to get a decent pic of his grandson. He is photographing the top of his grandson’s head, rather than the boy’s face. I see this happen a lot, people taking pictures of the top side of their dearly beloved child/grandchild/pet. It has to stop!

No matter the size or price of your camera, remember to get down to the level of the subject you are shooting. Pet or kid, you are picturing their world, and they live it at their level. Let the camera enter their world and lower it to their level as well. Don’t bother about getting dirty, a good picture is worth washing your trousers.

Really, if you weren’t already doing this, start doing it today. You’ll be amazed with the results. If you take only one lesson from this entire blog, let it be this one. Get down. Please!