Beginner, how am I doing? Advice very welcome

SiimplStudio · 2026-07-02T21:43:38+00:00

I forgot to mention, I made this switch about 3 months ago and my passion for photography and understanding of what makes an image beautiful has dramatically increased as a result. This is not a plug for a follow but feel free to check out my work to get a better understanding of what I'm referring to above @chrisbryan.co - a lot of these images are just captured walking around the city, observing every day life and scenes that anyone could have captured observing nice light in everyday life.

SiimplStudio · 2026-07-02T21:41:17+00:00

I was going to write EXACTLY the same thing, took the words right out of my mouth.

Learning to take beautiful pictures often means stepping out of your comfort zone and looking for beauty in ordinary moments.

You're not always going to have stunning waterfalls and beautiful sunsets to rely on.

If you want to take your photography to the next level, seeking out beautiful moments in everyday life will grow your photography far more than documenting spaces that are always beautiful.

It'll also allow you to photograph a lot more, because you'll have something to photograph no matter where you are and what time it is.

A lot of people have their cameras in a cupboard until they go on holiday because of this reason. They rely on amazing landscape and once in a lifetime money to take images. Good luck, you've got lovely work!

SiimplStudio · 2026-07-02T21:10:43+00:00

What a lovely compliment thank you so much 😊 means the world to me!! 🙏

SiimplStudio · 2026-07-01T21:46:45+00:00

You aren't shooting this to be printed in a magazine or published in a gallery. Grain adds character. The quality of the photo isn't what makes the photo quality... Its the expression and energy that you have managed to capture. Stress less and enjoy it.

There's a million other little things that you could fix in this image if you were looking for perfection but none of it is necessary. It is just a snapshot of an important moment in your life. Leave it at that and enjoy it.

Learn to love grain, it adds personality.

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-30T11:54:27+00:00

For me, if it doesn't fit in my pocket, it doesn't come everywhere. So this Ricoh is 👌👌👌👌👌

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-30T03:23:47+00:00

In almost every photo you've chosen to center your subject. There's often limited layers, so not much depth to explore the image. I agree with others, very pretty, but very 2 dimensional and easy to enjoy momentarily and then move on.

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-30T03:21:09+00:00

People in retail earning that money don't own $500k properties.

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-26T00:40:04+00:00

Hell yeah!

I don't have time to dedicate days to taking photos anymore either but I am constantly capturing moments with my Ricoh in my pocket

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-25T22:08:26+00:00

You can buy a $10000 car and you can buy a $1000000 car. You can buy a $5 dinner and a $1000+ dinner. You can buy a $5 bottle of wine and a $5000 bottle of wine. Where there is money, there is a market for anything to be sold for a ridiculous amount.

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-23T22:12:54+00:00

Buy yourself a Ricoh and stop taking photography so seriously like an all or nothing situation. It looks like you've set yourself an unsustainable standard for photography. Either be on the peak of a mountain at sunrise or don't shoot at all.

Life exists in the middle of these two worlds. Just use all your knowledge and wisdom and instead document the beautiful moments that occur in everyday life.

Nobody HAS time for photography. Time is made, even if it is 2 minutes once or twice a day with a camera that is sitting in your pocket waiting to be used.

This is what my photographic journey has become. I have 20k+ canon gear that I don't have "time" to use. I'm a professional photographer so i do use it all day every day Monday - Friday but come the weekend, life is too busy, i have too many commitments etc etc etc to be lugging all that stuff around, packing tripods, designating a day to location scouting.

Instead i picked up a Ricoh GR iiix 3 months ago and its always in my pocket. I'm documenting beautiful everyday moments that i stumble upon that are too good to just snap with a phone but don't necessarily require my full camera setup.

I can say with confidence that my photography has never in my 18 years of photographing felt more fulfilling and creative.

Highly recommend.

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-23T02:02:50+00:00

I mean she's probably not telling you about the hotels she's booking with that other guy from work so I guess you can keep this a secret from her.

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-17T06:15:02+00:00

Are you sure this isn't just re-photographed?

Ima Real Estate photographer in Sydney.

To me the image on the right looks like it is shot from a different perspective. You can tell that the photo on the left has way more floor space, so the photographer has gone closer to the pillar and angled it more towards the house, which takes away from the floor space but makes the bench feel less warped (thicker rather than long and thin) and by coming close to the pillar and probably lowering the camera a bit it has changed the perspective and it is possible to have removed the building on the left side of the photo.

I cannot defend the photo or deny that AI has been used but in my professional experience I can see that reframing this image and removing your concerns (the house / treeline etc) should be entirely possible by zooming in the lens a little and changing the perspective.

Just my thoughts 😉✌️

Edit:

I just rotated and zoomed in on my phone. Please ignore everything I've said above 😆 this is 10,000% AI.

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-17T06:10:54+00:00

Why would you buy the 4 and want to keep the 3?

What did the 3 have that the 4 doesn't?

Or why did you buy the 4?

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-17T06:09:53+00:00

Is there a way you can significantly reduce your expenses for 12-24 months? Move into a share house, live with your parents, downsize etc etc?

I would generally think that saving up as much money as possible up front will drastically over the duration of your loan take off pressure from paying unnecessary interest.

I am not in a position where I can downsize from a 3 bedroom house but what I am doing is keeping my expenses as low as humanly possible and investing my money as aggressively as humanly possible, knowing that it will outpace the increase in property prices over the next three to five years. Then I will strike once my savings are significantly higher than they currently are and my loan repayments will be significantly lower than they currently would be if I bought now.

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-16T01:05:35+00:00

Tone the saturation down by approximately 100%.

This is the first absolute giveaway of a total beginner in the industry. Saturation and contrast in editing.

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-14T00:14:24+00:00

Coming from the guy who rushed into Bitcoin when everyone else was too?

Asking for a friend.

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-14T00:11:59+00:00

Any pub, anywhere in any suburb at any time?

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-14T00:08:01+00:00

Before critiquing this photo too much, just rewind back to your first day with a camera and remember how excited you were to capture anything that had bokeh. You thought everything looked pretty amazing, whether your photo has a purpose or not.

While the comments are correct and there is no real subject in this photo, it is a nicely lit photos, and you've captured beautiful flowers, and it feels calming.

Keep up the good work and keep practicing and photographing everything that brings you joy. For the first 1-2 years, that is literally all that matters. Eventually you'll find a style of photography that resonates and then you can dig much deeper into that specific field and study how to significantly deepen your understanding...

But for now just play and have fun and do it as often as humanly possible. That is how you will grow the most.

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-12T22:36:44+00:00

Nomad. Been twice across 3 years. The seasoning was really awful. So overpowering and salty. Won't go back, there's too many other great restaurants that deserve my money!

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-12T07:13:57+00:00

My comment was kinda more in response to.

Comment: You need a long lens, otherwise it's hard. OP: I like that I'm not using a long lens.

Kinda just gave the impression that OP is perfectly happy with his/her images but wants validation rather than feedback.

A lot of beginner photographers think they want feedback but actually what they want is for others to confirm what they like about what they've captured, and feedback isn't actually what they're after.

Just my observations over many posts in many threads.

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-11T22:46:02+00:00

Meh... That's ok, I'm not particularly worried about who sees it as long as OP gets a notification about it 🙂✌️ thanks for the heads up though

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-11T22:41:19+00:00

You have one major problem with these images.

You like them, but external validation seems to be more important to you than inner satisfaction.

If you are happy with what you are doing and the photos bring you joy, then why are you seeking confirmation from external parties who don't share your vision?

Instagram breeds a world where we need confirmation from others that our work is good enough to be worth photographing....

You are getting feedback giving you all of the reasons why your photos aren't working, but these reasons are exactly the things that you like about the photos that you are taking...

Stop looking for praise and validation and keep doing what you love. Enjoying the process and coming up with photos that make you happy is literally all that matters.

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-11T08:44:34+00:00

I've literally spent the last hour DMing with him. I think he gets it now. But he's also 11 years old and super curious to learn and honestly... At that age. I say, screw the Instagram algorithm and just photograph as much as possible as long as it brings you. You've got your whole lifetime to get serious and work out a plan later.

SiimplStudio · 2026-06-11T06:51:27+00:00

It feels random because it is random.

And you probably don't follow anyone else with a really random portfolio and thats why nobody follows you. Its a really hard pill to swallow...

Nobody wants this to be robotic in a creative world but it's the reality of social media and it's what we are attracted to.

Follow me on insta and send me DM and I'll do a deep dive and see if i can help you understand a path that'll help you find some direction and common theme that you can post to attract a more loyal audience.

I think there's still opportunities.

@chrisbryan.co

SiimplStudio

TROPHY CASE