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

[@Photography-Explained]

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[@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.

[@jonathanmurphy2065]

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.

[@Photography-Explained]

Cheers Jonathan, glad you enjoyed it mate. You get much more interesting wildlife than we do in the UK :).

[@patrickmcmahon818]

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.

[@Photography-Explained]

Glad you enjoyed the video Patrick!

[@johnbethell8666]

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.

[@Photography-Explained]

Glad it was helpful!

[@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!!!

[@Photography-Explained]

Amazing! I'm glad you enjoyed the video and hopefully it can help some of your friends who are just starting out.

[@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. 👍🤟🤙😎

[@Photography-Explained]

Appreciate the kind words :). Do you mean a ND filter rather than a UV filter? In that case, can you stack the ND on top of the polarizing filter to reduce more light?

[@MichaelHedegaardJensen]

@@Photography-Explained I had a UV filter and a polarizing filter with the camera... Then I bought a big set of cheap (24 piece) (I know) different square ND filters for Cokin P series with adapter rings of Amazon.. Didnt want to pay a lot, if I dont like working with them..

[@chandanc2064]

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

[@Photography-Explained]

Heck yeah!

[@johnwinter6061]

Think I got lucky. Started with my grandfathers Folding Brownie 60 years ago! Went though building my own darkroom enlarger, etc. Yep. I've got great gear. They make my job easier. And that's it. It's still up to me to compose the shot, etc. The camera doesn't know I've won awards and how I did that. I've seen great phone camera pics and some shockers. It's the content that makes or break a shot, no matter what you use. Shoot within the limits of what you have and concentrate on the composition.

[@TheEti1980]

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.

[@alanlee2751]

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 ? 🤔🤔

[@Photography-Explained]

Glad you enjoyed the video Alan. You're spot on with the camera gear.

[@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.

[@Photography-Explained]

They're all great cameras.

[@limwai6808]

1. Forget about camera gear 1:05 2. Be smart about lens choices 2:29 3. Get a photography coach 5:13 4. Buy photo books 7:12 5. Learn the rules (so you can break them later) 9:00 6. Spend money on experiences, not gear 11:16 7. Commit to one photography session per week 13:35

[@camper9356]

Shit, I bought a Hasselblad 907 100c with a 55v f28. At least I have only one lense.. Great video and going to get a coach.. in for a penny

[@suebelcher6560]

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 :(

[@Photography-Explained]

Borrowing a camera is underrated! If you're going to get serious about your photography then you need to edit your photos and it's probably just best to pay for Lightroom. I tried for years to avoid subscriptions by using alternative products and they're just not as good.

[@PeterBirt-x7g]

Questionable advice to someone new to photography. Get pictures right in the camera. Lightroom and other paid for services only useful to enhance pictures when you have learnt the basics by trial and error.@@Photography-Explained

[@Photography-Explained]

It's not possible to do the landscape photography that I do in camera. Thanks for commenting though.

[@suebelcher6560]

Thanks both, I’ll keep experimenting in camera and look at exploring light room a bit. Don’t mind trialling for a month. Also wouldn’t mind paying if it’s something I’ll use a lot, at the moment I’m managing to get out once a week with the camera so if I keep it up might be worth it.

[@PeterBirt-x7g]

@@suebelcher6560 sue forget lightroom for at least a year and don't waste your money. Believe me by that time you should be taking pictures you are happy with. Then you can decide if you really need to enhance your work and incur the expense. The free program Faststone Image Viewer is good for simple editing and is all I have used for many years to straighten horizons and reduce highlights work I used to do in the old B+W film days on the enlarger. Post processing is the fancy icing on a good well made fruit cake. I and many others prefer the cake without the icing and extra cost

[@Steve-qi7hc]

Just do it...

[@sigsegv111]

24-70 lenses are mockingly called by many photographers across genres the most boring lens for a reason ...

[@rangersmith4652]

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."