A common misconception in the photography world is that you need a DSLR to take good pictures. I won’t argue that DSLRs take a better quality photo, but there are many more factors that determine if a picture is good or not such as composition and lighting. Today I will be reviewing some easy techniques to improve composition and lighting which can be utilized with any point and shoot camera!

Rules of Thirds

One of the simplest rules of composition is called the rule or thirds. If you separate your picture into thirds (vertically or horizontally, or both) you want the focus point to land on one of those lines, or even better, where two lines cross.

A quick example.  Here’s a snapshot I took of my boys playing with water balloons.

A quick crop to make it agree with Rule of Thirds and I find it much more visually appealing.

Of course as with every rule, there are exceptions.

Camera Vantage Point

Also, try different angles and vantage points. Get down on the ground or up on a chair.

Here I am standing up and looking down at the subject.

Here I squatted down and got a more interesting shot.

That’s my basic intro to composition! The best tip I have is to try new things and see what fun pictures you can come up with!

Erin

Erin blogs about her homeschooling adventures at Royal Baloo and Logi Bear Too. Join them on their homeschooling journey on the Royal Baloo Facebook Page, as well as Pinterest and on follow @royalbaloo on Twitter!