RevengeBucks_Monica

If you have the camera, start shooting. Learn what happens when you shoot with a really large aperture, and then what happens when you shoot with a small one. That's going to blow your mind ;)

Learn how to shoot on manual, setting the aperture and shutter speeds yourself. Get good at that, responding to the light meter. You want this to come naturally so you aren't fiddling around while a model is waiting with a great pose.

Forget your camera came with an on board flash. Tape that sucker closed! Learn how to shoot in available light first. You can't do anything with light until you learn how to really see it. You need to recognize when there is enough light. Learn when there are shadows on certain parts of the face. Learn when there are things showing up in the frame that you don't want to show up.

Lighting is honestly really tricky business. All you can do is work with it. Practice in all different kinds of lighting. Sunlight, shadow, cloud, candles, lamps, fluorescent (blech).

I've seen plenty of self taught photographers make it in this biz... and plenty of different types of photographers. There is room for everything from very amateur to very touched up pro.

And you know, a lot of very successful photographers would get torn apart if you took their work to a photography college and put it up in a critique because they honestly aren't quite getting the lighting just so.... but the real important issue is, are they shooting something that is appealing to their audience? Is it sexy to them?

__________________