A Good Photographer Does Not Create Photos by Accident

Photograph in black and white of Caddo Lake in Texas.

Quality 22: "Understanding the Words Patience and Perseverance"

If you really want to become a good photographer, you must learn to be patient and to persevere.

If you want to create interesting photographs, you must know that it is very rare to capture them in your first session. In landscape photography, the lighting may cause you to wait a long time.

In wildlife photography, animal attitudes can create delays in production that may last for days, especially in Europe.

Both qualities are closely related. I believe that perseverance is the most difficult to acquire. I often come back to a scene 7 or 8 times to create the picture I dreamed. Even if I try to build it, it is likely that the light is missing.

Patience and perseverance are also important to understand, as they enable the photographer to capture the soul of a scene. To create a good photo, you must be in communion with all the elements surrounding you. You must immerse yourself in the atmosphere. If you stay neutral, you will never achieve the photos you want.

Quality 23: "Having Seen the Light"

Light is one of the three essential points I use to build photos with the ACANP method. It is necessary to create interesting photos; however, it is not enough.

Even if all the photographers discuss lighting, few can boast of having seen "The Light", that is, “light” with a big “L”.

If this has happened to you then you understand what I mean.

If this has not happened to you yet, you will see that everything will be different in your photographs when you have experienced this unique moment.

When we have seen “ The Light" we know exactly how to photograph. We know what is needed for the photos to be perfect.

"The Light" is an important moment in the life of a good photographer.

From this day, nothing is the same again. It is as if we have reached the nirvana of photography.

During my workshops, this is a subject that I do not mention because it is not imaginable or easily understood by those who have not experienced this moment of grace.

However, I have been lucky to see trainees come back with ecstatic looks. Seeing the looks on their faces, I understood what had happened. I did not ask them anything. I simply knew.

A few hours after we talked about it, they took a giant step.

Every single good photographer I have met has had the privilege of experiencing this intense moment. They saw "The Light". They now know what it looks like.

Seeing “The Light" requires perseverance and a great deal of self-sacrifice.

Quality 24: "Preventing Accidental Photos"

You are a good photographer when you do not wait until you are on the field to create your photos.

You must be mentally prepared before shooting and after development.

It is certain that some of your photos are taken with luck, in fact, luck is a necessary factor to create interesting photos. You must search for it.

Although luck is necessary, it should not control your photographic process. You must always know exactly what you are looking for when you wish create photos. If you do not know, once you are on the field, it will be too late. The beautiful lights will pass quickly. The extraordinary animal attitudes will disappear before you have realized how you wish to portray them.

On the field, you will face unforeseen difficult situations. Nothing ever happens as you planned. You will have to react as quickly as possible. By preparing correctly, you will avoid wasting time trying to find solutions to problems that have recently arisen. Preparation allows you to maintain efficiency.

Quality 25: "Understanding Your Equipment Perfectly"

You are a good photographer if you have perfectly mastered your photographic equipment.

Your camera should not be a secret to you. You must master all the settings and understand their impacts on your photographs. For example, you need to know the impact of aperture or speed on specific photos. You must know how to use the level and how to check if the area of sharpness has enough width.

If you are struggling with choosing your camera settings, you will waste time when you are finally in the field. The lights or the animal attitudes will have disappeared by the time you find a solution.

Simply knowing how your camera works is not enough to be successful. In landscape photography, knowing how to use a tripod, a remote trigger, and graduated filters is essential. In wildlife photography, mastering a gimbal head and using a cloth photo blind is essential.

Each photographic discipline has its own equipment. You must master the equipment before capturing your photos in the field.

You must always use equipment adjusted for your specific needs. For example, if you practice underwater photography, you should not need to use a 70-200mm lens. If you practice European wildlife photography, a 400mm lens is a necessity.

In conclusion, you must be well informed about the photo equipment. Do not hesitate to contact other photographers who have expertise. You will save a lot of time in learning from their mistakes.

Quality 26: "Technique Is Only the Means of Expression"

Knowing how to use your equipment and photographic techniques is necessary to create interesting photos.

Knowing and mastering the techniques of composition, framing, the theory of photographic elements, and the theory of masses is not enough.

Technique is only a way for you to express yourself.

You must master technique, but your creativity depends on yourself. Your imagination, definition of a clear artistic approach, curiosity, and desire to express yourself with photographic language are elements that will allow you to create interesting photos.

For years, while I animated nature photography workshops, I noticed that many photographers believed that an expensive and good quality camera was the only essential item needed to create photos. They thought that it was enough to look through the viewfinder, and that the camera would do the work for them. This was a terrible mistake. A camera is only hardware. Without a brain to direct it, nothing extraordinary will happen.

Quality 27: "Having a Photographic Consciousness "

To become a good photographer, you must develop a photographic consciousness. You must be able to relate to other photographers who may or may not have the same photographic activity as you.

You must be able to situate yourself in your own time and at your own pace.

You must be able to analyze your own experiences to improve your artistic approach.

Experience allows you to give meaning and value to your technique. It is for this reason that you must acquire patience and perseverance.

Quality 28: "Listening to the World Around You"

Being a Storyteller Is a Quality for a Good Photographer

Photograph in color of a goby on a colony of coral in the Red Sea.

Quality 14: "Perfectly Mastering Your Photo Equipment"

You are a good photographer when you completely master your photographic equipment and when you know its limits.

The main difference between a good photographer and a technically competent photographer is that a good photographer masters his equipment. A technically competent photographer is not the same as a good photographer because he is simply knowledgeable about his equipment.

When you are in the field for a photo session, time is running out for you whether underwater or on land. The light changes quickly. In wildlife photography, animals change behavior very quickly.

If you ask yourself questions about the technical setting while shooting, you will lose time. You will miss those crucial moments that make photographs outstanding.

Quality 15: "Forgetting About Technique"

You are a good photographer when you are no longer concerned with technique because it comes naturally to you. Good technical reflexes become automatic.

The photo technique and the material are subject to the creativity.

I often tell participants in my nature photography workshops to practice in their garden or in natural places close to their home. They must be able to change speed and aperture, to evaluate a sharpness area, and to change sensitivity without searching for the buttons on the camera. Once on the field, everything must be automatic.

The equipment must become an extension of yourself as if it is an arm or leg.

Quality 16: "Deleting Photos Solely for Artistic Reasons"

You may realize that you are a good photographer when you erase pictures from your camera not for technical reasons but because the pictures do not correlate with your vision.

This quality is the consequence of experience. As you master your equipment perfectly, your photographs will be “good” from a technical perspective. That is, you will adeptly manage the exposure, contrast, colors, and sharpness.

When you are skilled in technique, you erase photos directly from your camera because the composition and the framing do not match the subject of your focus.

Quality 17: "Photographing Is Not Free"

You are a good photographer when you understand that photographing is not free, nor is simple.

Anyone can "make" a photo, but not everyone is able to carefully construct a photo or series. Not everyone is a photographer.

Photography is a true form of expression.

Photography gives you a chance to capture and preserve unique moments, experiences, and emotions. Photography is a true creative field, a form of art.

Art is such an important activity. You must fully understand it to best apply it in expressions. Photographic art is an extraordinary way to access freedom. Photography must be treated with respect.

Quality 18: “Be Attentive to the World"

You are a good photographer when you look at the world around you with care and respect.

In nature photography, when you are in sync with the elements of a scene, you can express yourself.

You are a good photographer when you know how to use photographic elements to convey your emotions, translate your feelings, and speak in the photographic language.

To create my photos, I developed a concept that I refer to as "The Theory of Photographic Elements". I share this idea in my nature photography courses.

You are a skilled artistic photographer when you know how to reflect an interpretation of the surrounding world.

Quality 19: "Knowing How to Tell Stories"Quality 19: "Knowing How to Tell Stories"

You are a good photographer when you know how to tell stories about your series of photos.

I think it is very important that you know how to show series or individual photos by telling a story.

Never forget that we are in a society where speech is crucial for daily life. Oral communication is important. Our knowledge is transmitted to others mainly in this way.

Quality 20: "Creating the Pictures You Dream Of"

A good photographer always tries to create the pictures he dreams of.
Benoit Personnaz.

Benoit Personnaz is a participant in my wildlife photography workshops. I deeply respect his photographic approach. It was during a workshop dedicated to the rut of the red deer stag that he told me that an essential quality of a good photographer is when he or she chases their dreams.

If you want to create interesting and meaningful photographs, I recommend that you imagine what details you wish to include before shooting.

Most good photographers follow this approach. When waking up in the morning, it is important to know what you are going to do in the field or in the development phase.

Planning your final photos will save you time because you will not lose time looking for your scene or your computer.

To stimulate your imagination, I recommend you browse a wide collection of books and photo magazines. You'll find inspiration and ideas by analyzing and judging the photographic approach of other photographers.

Personally, this is the method I adopt for most of my photo projects. When I do not know the territory, I'm going to be exploring, I conduct a vast amount of research on that work has been accomplished by other photographers in my field and in similar projects.

When I know the area where I am going to build my photos, it is easier. I analyze the photos already taken by others. Then I build myself a miniature scenario by imagining what can be done better.

I recognize that learning to visualize your next photographic creations is not easy. It is for this reason that you must train before each session. Photographic visualization will gradually become a habit.

Quality 21: “Practicing Humility"

Even the largest of the oaks was once a small acorn.
Yves Mazoyer.

Yves Mazoyer is another faithful participant in my wildlife photography workshops. It was during a workshop devoted to fawns that he explained to me how he behaves in the face of new photographic challenges.

Since receiving his wisdom, I have adopted this philosophy. Every day, I repeat this phrase as a mantra. As soon as I enter a new technical or creative subject, I patiently demonstrate humility.

If you want to become a good photographer, I strongly encourage that you practice humility. You must accept that you do not know everything, and that you are exploring the unfamiliar.

You will always face photographers who have better skills in a certain field. You must agree to learn, train, and consider new techniques of shooting or creative detours.

Your photographic foundations will become stronger with time.

This is what I call creative photographic plasticity.

Digital photography is practiced by a growing number of people. Each brings their skills, sensitivity, and expertise. You must be able to adapt by acknowledging your strengths and weaknesses in this huge cognitive reservoir of information. You must understand the layout of the photographic areas you have chosen.

A good photographer is a humble person who knows his limits. A good photographer is always ready to take on new challenges by preparing carefully and practicing patience.

A good photographer is ready to step out of his comfort zone into unfamiliar territory.