Being Curious
Photography rules are useful. Curiosity is what actually makes you better
When I started out in photography, I spent a lot of time trying to learn all the rules. The rule of thirds, leading lines, and other rules of composition. What did people say was the right lens, the right shutter speed, the right aperture.
And I went nuts trying to remember it all.
Eventually I learned something else.
You also have to learn when to forget it all.
I still see new photographers getting hung up on the question of what’s right.
They ask questions like:
What lens should I buy?
What exposure should I use?
What film simulation is the best?
The problem with questions like these is that the “right” answer is usually very subjective.
The photographers answering them are giving their opinions. And those opinions come directly from their own taste, experience, and artistic style.
There’s nothing wrong with asking for other people’s opinions.
Just remember that they aren’t rules.
And be curious.
Some of the photographs I end up liking the most didn’t come from following a rule.
They came from doing something wrong. Something like shooting in bad light, or at the wrong time of the day. Going outside the what is “correct” and challenging myself to find a shot that actually worked.
With a digital camera, it costs literally nothing to experiment. Try different things. Break the “rules.” See what happens.
Curiosity will teach you more than any rule ever will.
What photography rule helped you when you started… and which one did you eventually ignore?
✅ Where to Find Me
You can find more of my work on the web at: Simmons Photography
If you want to work with me, or inquire about licensing images: Contact Page
More of my work can be seen on Vero and Flickr.
I avoided landscape for most of my career because of rules. You know the ones, exotic and spectacular location, must be golden hour with amazing and perfectly placed weather, perfect exposure, maximised hyper focal distance, expensive kit and of course always use a tripod. I now love landscape, and don’t follow any of those rules other than nailing exposure. I very rarely use a tripod, will quite happily shoot all day under a featureless sky and like my bed too much to be setting out at 3am for a sunrise shot! Liberating beyond belief.