Photography & Filmmaking Tips
In this blog post I answer some questions I received on my Instagram Q&A. I speak about how I got into photography & filmmaking, and provide some tips for anyone interested in starting. I hope you find it valuable in some way, and if there’s anything else you’d like to know feel free to reach out to me!
Where did you grow up and how did you get into photography & filmmaking?
I was born and raised in Cape Town, South Africa.
My interest in photography began during high school where I became obsessed with taking photos with my phone. I finally got my first entry-level DSLR camera in 2012, and started photographing my friends at school for fun. After shooting on “auto” for a while, I watched some online tutorials on how to shoot on manual mode.
After doing several free photoshoots, I eventually built a name for myself and started charging a low hourly rate. My first few clients were fellow students I knew from university where I was studying commerce. During this period, I also began learning videography so that by the time I graduated I was able to go into photography and videography full-time.
What was your very first camera setup?
Back in 2012 my very first camera setup was the Canon 550D with the 18-55mm f/4-5.6 lens (the equivalent to that now is the Canon 800D). I shot on this for 3 years before upgrading to the Canon 6D, and finally in 2018 I to switched to the Sony A7III since I started shooting more videography.
What’s in your camera bag now
Camera body: Sony A7III
Lenses: Sony 24-70mm f/2.8 GM, Sony 50mm f/1.8
Drone: DJI Mavic 2 Zoom
Other accessories: GoPro Hero11 Black, Rode VideoMic Go, Manfrotto Tripod
What were some key turning points in your career?
I think I’ve had a few. The first major turning point for me was when I first decided to take on photography & filmmaking full-time. I made this decision this while I was completing my B.com degree at university. I realised that the corporate world wasn’t for me, and that the only way to avoid it was to turn my passion for photography & filmmaking into my career.
The second major turning point for me was when I decided to leave my internship halfway through at a leading advertising agency. I was working as a photographer, videographer and editor, which was amazing, but it was a full-time 9-5 office job. I was required to sit at my desk… every. single. day. It negatively affected my emotional well-being and that’s when I decided to start freelancing full-time (July 2018).
The third and final turning point for me was realising that my work is valued by some incredible brands out there, which gives me so much more motivation to continue making my freelancing career a success.
Any basic tips for those interested in getting into photography & filmmaking?
Yes, I recommend following these 3 simple steps:
Shoot with what you have.
Whether it’s your cellphone or any camera you have lying around, just shoot with it until you’ve maximised its potential. Don’t fuss about having the latest camera gear because this can slow down the process. What’s important is that you understand the basics and that you practice shooting to set a good foundation for yourself. On the contrary, if you’re able to immediately invest in a decent setup then that’s great and I say go for it! As long as you don’t focus too much on the gear itself, but rather on actually gaining the knowledge and experience needed to help you grow.
Understand the basics.
You need to learn the three most important elements of photography and videography: shutter speed, aperture and ISO (i.e. “the Exposure Triangle”). Even if you don’t have a camera that can shoot in manual mode (yet), it’s important to have a good understanding of these. I also advise learning about composition (rule of thirds, symmetry, framing etc.), frame rates (25fps, 50fps, 100fps etc.), and video resolutions (4K, 1080p etc.).
Shoot what you love.
If you shoot what you love you will feel more passionate about it, which will motivate you to improve. If you aren’t too sure about what you love shooting, feel free to experiment with different categories until you find the ones that you enjoy the most. Avoid shooting things that you know for a fact you don’t enjoy. For example, you may see a successful fashion photographer / videographer and decide to start shooting fashion so you can be successful too, even though you don’t really enjoy it. But you will most likely lose motivation to carry on, so rather stick with what you love and watch how things fall into place. :)
