Five lessons every photographer should know

Regardless of experience, there are a few photography essentials that should be learned. These lessons prove time and again to be useful in any situation. Photographers can also use these lessons to enrich their existing knowledge and take better shots. 

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Know your camera: What is a photographer without his camera? Well, a pretty useless one, to be quite honest. Photographers should always take the time to know their cameras -- from every setting to every feature. Most novices start shooting straight away; too caught up in the excitement of having a new camera and being able to capture images. However, great photographers are those that know every facet of their equipment. Knowing your camera is also ideal when branching out to more action-packed branches like sports or wildlife photography. 

Understand exposure: Once you’ve learned the basics of aperture, shutter speed, and ISO, you need to know how to put them all together to learn how to balance them for good exposure. There is no one-size fits all definition to exposure. Many photographers have various definitions of what constitutes "good exposure," but in general, it really depends on your own outlook of how bright or dark you want the picture to be. 

Work with the light: One of the greatest lessons to learn is working with light. Every image is dependent on the blending of different lights and shadows. There are many ways to manipulate lighting, and it is important to know and understand each of them. 

Learn depth of field: Never underestimate this feature. This helps adjust the focal length, subject-to-background distance, and camera-to-subject distance. Aperture may or may not come into play here. 

Perspectives are key: A single photo says a thousand messages, right? Well, it also depends on the angle in which it is shot. Always remember that perspective is a special spatial relationship between objects in the frame and the space between them. Sometimes even the most "common" shot can become extraordinary with a different perspective. 

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Remember: practice is also a key factor to better photography. Always keep practicing! 

Radha C. Singh from NJ is a passionate photographer. She loves sharing some tips and advice on Twitter.