Adam’s Angle: Photo SmackDown & How You Can Take Better Photos

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I own 12 cameras ranging from a DSLR to an analog Fish Eye, but I would never call myself a photographer and prefer to stick with ‘photo taker’, because I just enjoy taking random snaps.

My bestie who we’ll call Adam is an acclaimed and award-winning photographer. We bond over our love of Jon Hamm, red wine, dark humour, and how we would change our sexual orientation for Carrie Brownstein (that’s the Portlandia one, not SATC).

When I asked him for tips I could implement in a photo tip post he (mainly because of the wine) agreed to help me. Since I didn’t want to do a boring photo guide post that you can see anywhere, I decided to show Adam some of my photos and he could smack them down and tell me how to improve in the future. And I hope you can learn something from my mistakes too.

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Want to really capture the whole building? Get your fat ass into gear and move back a bit! It’s not going to take itself for you!

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Where to start on this one…well, firstly I feel like I’m falling off the cliff – but maybe I should just jump if I have to look at this photo for much longer. Is your camera unbalanced? Or is this a style? Angles can work in some instances, but not this one. Thank god Instagram has an angle adjust.

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I’ve always been a firm believer in not getting your hands in photos – even if it’s meant to be cute.ย Each time I see this it’s like the adorable fingers are jabbing me in my eyes. Next time, cover the lense up with your spare hand instead.

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You wanted that romantic photo by the water right? Well, sort out the framing, or you deserve to be dropped in the river!

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You wanted a postcard to post online about how dreamy your holiday was. Well, this one doesn’t cut the mustard. Again, move around a bit – work up a sweat, you’re not in the shot, so no one will know.

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This is another lazy shot. Climb those stairs, you’ll get some exercise and maybe a good photo to prove you’re cultured.
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This photo is like a busy party with too much alcohol – not enough focus and too many bright colours. Narrow it down, crop it, do whatever, just make it less crowded, I have a headache from just looking at it.

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Was this takenon a bus? Even worse – it looks like it was taken by the bus driver. Get creative.

CIMG2489I see these gates as an escape from this terrible photo – let me out til the photographer learns how to frame and use symmetry.

Do you have any off-the-wall guidance for photo-taking that we should add to the mix?

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14 Comments

  1. Bahaha loving the commentary. I clearly need to work on my photography. What I’m understanding from his comments is that we should take some time to get a good photo. Try several times. Move to a new location. Focus on something different, :]

    // โ–ฒ itsCarmen.com โ–ฒ

  2. haha, this made me smile! Aw, your poor photos! As far as the Great Ocean Road pic goes, when the sea is involved, jaunty angles are nauseating ๐Ÿ˜‰

  3. Aha loved this internal monologue! I have to admit, I suck at taking photos! I’ve had a few friends and few internet videos teach me the ropes, but it’s a constant struggle and I’m ashamed to admit that a lot of my photos end up looking exactly like that!

  4. I loved this post- such a unique take! I’m definitely far from an expert photographer- just bought my first DSLR- but its amazing how much I’ve even learned over the past few months. When I look back at old pictures now I’m almost embarrassed that I used to think they were good!

  5. Your picture angles may not be the best (mine are a lot worse! Wish I could take pictures like yours), the angle of this article is great.

  6. Oh my, haha, that’s definitely a tutorial with a difference. I love the direction you took with this post and besides you know what they say – you gotta be cruel to be kind ๐Ÿ˜‰

  7. Haha, this is an awesome take on photo advice!
    Honestly I’d be crying when someone would review my photo’s like that, I don’t think I can’t handle that much snark ๐Ÿ˜‰

  8. This is hilarious! I love the honesty and sarcasm of it all. I have an unrealistic fear of being a stand out tourist who takes photos of everything. So I make my husband take them and I just have to deal with the outcome. BTW .. he sucks.