In this article, we’re going to go through some of the most common and costly mistakes photographers make.

What’s costly? Anything that will cause you to spend valuable resources such as time, money, and energy.

Are you guilty of any of these mistakes?

Read on to find out!

1. Buying a Cheap Tripod

Buying a cheap tripod isn’t going to save you money. Why? Because cheap tripods rarely last.

When I first started in photography, I bought an inexpensive tripod. The result was that it gave out on me within a month. But, I am still using the same quality tripod I replaced it with to this day.

Although better quality will come with a more significant price tag, you’ll be able to save money by not having to replace it frequently.

This is especially true for outdoor photography, which requires you to expose your equipment to a broader range of environments. In such cases, tripods that are built to withstand the elements are critical.

Also, those additional bucks often mean a great deal of difference in performance. A quality tripod is usually sturdy and built to stabilize your camera even in high winds.

You’ll also find that they’re quicker and easier to adjust to capture that perfect shot. Cheap tripods tend to require you to take extra time to loosen and tighten their locks. This will impede your ability to make changes quickly.

Needing to take a lot of time to adjust your tripod legs and lock them in place will not only slow you down but make you risk losing your shots.

That said, don’t forget that good tripod legs are only as good the tripod head.

2. Buying a Cheap Tripod Head

Similar to quality tripod legs, a good tripod head enables you to take your shots with ease. They are also often locked more securely than cheaper ones.

A quality tripod head isn’t going to be cheap. But, in the hopes of saving money, buying a cheap one may end up causing a catastrophic event that costs you your camera. At the very least, you may find yourself out an expensive lens.

Tripod heads come in two basic varieties: ball head and pan & tilt head. 

Like most things, there are disadvantages and advantages to both. Understanding them will play into your decision for which to use. 

I prefer a ball head. These tripod heads are quick to operate and easy to use. They also tend to be more compact, making it easy to conserve space in your bag.

For added ease of control, consider buying a ball head that is loosened and tightened using just a single lever. This will enable you to position your camera with minimal effort. 

However, there is a precision issue with ball heads. With the ball serving as a fulcrum, it can take a little fiddling to get just the right angle.

Pan & Tilt, on the other hand, are incredibly precise and feel more robust. But, they do occupy a bit more space in your camera bag thanks to the way their handles are designed. The jutting nature of these features can make it harder to get packed in nicely.

Which Tripod Head should you use?

If all you care about is being able to adjust the head rapidly, then a ball head is your go-to. If you tend to desire more precision in your shots than the pan & tilt head is for you.

Of course, you could also get both heads and decide based on the scene you are shooting. Tripod mounts are interchangeable, so one tripod does the job for both heads.

3. Using Cheap UV filters 

UV Filters are a standard tool for protecting your lens from harsh environments. 

But not all filters are created equal. Typically inexpensive UV filters made by smaller companies perform much worse than expensive branded ones.

Keep in mind that cheap UV filters will often have a negative impact on image quality. Using a cheap UV filter tends to cause focusing issues, produce unsharp images, and increase the occurrence of solar flares.

These issues are apparent in low as well as high-end lenses; they are more evident with high-end lenses. That said, I’d recommend never using a cheap UV filter on any lens. 

Now you’re probably wondering what protection do UV filters offer?

A UV filter will have little impact on whether your lens survives a drop. 

First, the front element of a lens is much stronger than a UV filter. Second, a UV filter cannot protect your lens from internal damage, which is the primary source of lens failure after a drop. In such cases, a lens hood offers more protection against drops than a UV filter. 

A UV filter can protect against sand, mud, dust, small rocks, and water hitting your lens. This means that if you are shooting in harsh conditions, you could use a UV filter to keep your lens clean and dry. 

Keep in mind that minor damages to the front element of a lens, such as scratches and scuffs, have little to no impact on image quality. 

In either situation, avoid using cheap UV filters, the little protection they may offer is not worth the reduction in image quality.

4. Failing To Back Up Your Work

Losing a chunk of your photographic work is not only costly but heartbreaking, which is why you must always, always keep a backup of your work.

Libraries of images represent pieces of history, moments you can never get back. Even stationary compositions, such as landscapes, will never look the same twice.

Very few photographers can honestly say that they haven’t accidentally lost a piece of their work. Whether a memory card was lost, a hard drive crashed, or a photo accidentally deleted, it’s happened to all of us.

Despite this, research has shown that 20% of all photographers fail to backup regularly.  

No excuse will bring your work back.  So make sure that you backup your library frequently so you don’t lose anything of value.

5. Only Shooting in JPEG

This may strike you as an odd concept at first. Why would shooting in JPEG cost you anything?

The reason is that you’re failing to take advantage of everything your DSLR has to offer. RAW images provide many benefits over JPEGs. 

First, RAW images can store more detail than JPEGs. Although they are captured with the same camera, they experience different processing algorithms.

As a result, RAW images are unprocessed and posses the full technological potential of the camera. JPEGs, on the other hand, use lossy compression, which means data is removed to make the file smaller. 

Second, RAW images posses greater post-processing flexibility than JPRGs. During post-processing, nearly every element from a RAW image can be edited, such as exposure, contrast, white balance, noise, sharpness, and the list goes on.

JPEGs, on the other hand, have already experienced some level of processing by the camera. Typically, cameras will automatically apply white balance, sharpening, noise reduction, contrast, and saturation adjustments to JPEGs. 

If you are a photographer that does not perform any post-processing, JPEG may be the best format. This will allow you to produce processed images directly from your camera. 

When you shoot in JPEG, you severely limit your creative and artistic potential. IYou are accepting the images that are exported from your camera as finished.

Shooting in RAW encourages creative and artistic potential and gives you all the information you need to create the images you desire. In most cases, it won’t hurt to shoot in RAW to keep your possibilities open and then convert to JPEG later. 

Resource: RAW vs. JPEG: The Full Story 

6. Only Using Manual Mode

There’s a misconception that good photographers only use manual mode. But this isn’t the case.

Skilled photographers use any tool at their disposal to get the best image. Whether it’s manual or auto mode, good photographers understand that photography is about images, not about the technology you use.

There are times when shooting in priority or auto mode makes more sense. This is especially true in volatile compositions, such as when lighting conditions are changing rapidly.

In such cases, using manual mode will only slow you down and make you risk missing your shot. So, don’t hesitate to use auto and priority modes to get the right setting for your photo. Explore other modes and learn to utilize your camera to the best of its capabilities.

Resource: How to Use Your Camera: Understanding Camera Modes

7. Not Knowing Your Camera Well

You may think that the first thing that you do when you buy a new camera is familiarizing yourself with everything it can do. In spite of that, it’s incredibly common for photographers not to know the full potential of their cameras.

In my travels, there have been many times when someone asked me how to resolve an error on their camera. Without anyone to help, they would have missed that beautiful shot they came for.

I’m not guilt-free in this, I’ve done the same thing and learned some hard lessons as a result. Once in a lifetime shots were missed because I didn’t know how to operate my camera well.

Gear junkies often run into this problem as a result of having more cameras than they know intimately. But when you’ve been with a camera for a while, you’ll know exactly what to do when unexpected camera errors occur.

Further, when you’ve mastered your camera, you’ll effortlessly alter the settings without thinking. You may even begin to feel that your camera is an extension of yourself. Astrophotographers, in particular, benefit from this since they’re are often doing their work in low light.

When you have formed an intuitive connection with your camera, your shoots will flow effortlessly. Your instincts will guide you, and you’ll know what to do when that perfect shot shows up without thinking.

8. Investing in New Cameras and Not in New Lenses

In most cases, a photographer will see a more significant improvement in their photography from purchasing a new lens rather than a new camera.

I will start by saying if you don’t have a mirrorless or DSLR camera, then it’s a no brainer; you should invest in a new camera body. Now, if you own a camera body and it is several generations behind, you may benefit more from upgrading your camera body first rather than buying a new lens.

If you don’t fall into the two situations above, then it’s likely a new lens will have a greater impact on your photography.

Why? Because new cameras are often only slightly better than older models.

It’s common for a new camera to have more megapixels, greater low light performance, faster shutter speeds, and so on. But the differences in these new features are subtle and are unlikely to improve your images drastically.

On the other hand, buying a new lens can bring some noticeable improvements to your images.

For instance, a new lens can provide you with a new focal range, wider aperture, improved depth of field, improved image stabilization, and better focus.

Also, lenses don’t depreciate nearly as quickly as camera bodies do. That means that an expensive lens today won’t drop in value nearly as much as a camera five years from now.

So, although new lenses are a more expensive investment than a camera body, the investment you make is more long term than a new camera.

They also don’t go out of date. Lenses follow a standardized measurement system, so even if you buy a new camera, it will still be usable.

These are all the features that have a direct impact on the quality of your photos and the photographic opportunities you can take advantage of.

The next time you’re looking to spend money on gear, make sure you put lenses at the top of your list. You’ll be glad you did after you see your new photos.

Resource:

New vs. Used Camera Body: Which One Should You Buy?

12 Tips on How to Use Wide Angle Lens in Landscape Photography

9. Not Having an Extra Battery

When you’re out with your camera, you should be having an adventure and enjoying the fun of photography. Failing to bring an additional battery means that your adventure could be cut short, and a perfect image lost.

Nothing is worse than seeing the photographic opportunity of a lifetime happen in front of you while your camera lay dead in your hands.

It doesn’t cost much to pick up an extra battery, and it beats the heck out of missing great photo ops. You’ll also be able to rest easy knowing that you have a backup if your battery fails, malfunctions, or if you forgot to charge it.

Speaking of extra things. Remember to bring additional memory cards with you. There’s no point in having all that extra battery if your camera is too full to use them.

10. Investing in Gear But Not Learning

Investing your money in your gear is a good step towards creating great images. But investing your time is the only way to develop the skills to create exceptional photography.

You will likely be better off sticking to a smaller supply of gear and instead spend time learning. Purchase books on photography and guides on post-processing to help yourself advance.

Otherwise, you may find yourself with an abundance of unnecessary equipment that won’t help you capture the images you want. 

Spend your time and money on experiences and exploration with your camera. Take the time to go out and take photos, and you’ll get more value for your money.

Resource: Why Having Less Camera Gear Makes You A Better Photographer

11. Never Practicing What You’ve Learned

This is another great challenge common to photographers. You may be an avid learner but have yet to spend any time putting that theoretical knowledge to work.

But, for images to get made, you need to pick up your camera and shoot. Putting what you’ve learned to use is the only way to make it valuable. 

I try to shoot more than I study and study more than I spend. Any other path has resulted in stagnation.

Experience comes from studying what the pros do, but more importantly, from trial and error. There is nothing like practice to help you learn.

From experience, you’ll be able to understand your mistakes and your successes. There is nothing more frustrating than struggling to identify why you don’t like about your images. Or being unable to replicate an image that you like. Experience solves that.

Get out in the world with your camera and keep shooting. Always aim to try new things. Expand your scope and find different ways you can grow in photography.

Resource: 59 Tips to Improve Your Photography

12. Waiting To Get Inspired

There is this pernicious myth that seems to touch all artists in every medium. That of the muse, and the stroke of inspiration. While being on fire with inspiration is an incredible feeling, you shouldn’t wait for it to happen. 

As Chuck Close once said, “Inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just show up and get to work.”

Inspiration doesn’t always have to come to you. You can get out in the world and find inspiration yourself. 

She hides in hidden alleys, in the reflection of secret groves, and behind the clouds in a moon filled sky. You won’t find these places if you aren’t out shooting.

For most creatives, it isn’t the quality of the individual work that creates a masterpiece. Instead, it is an ever-growing quantity of pieces that didn’t make the cut. 

When we look at the work of the paragons of art like Picasso, we see the same theme repeated. The art that represents their most iconic work is but a small sliver of all they created. Museums hold their grandest and most respected pieces.

Did you know that the combined work of Picasso’s life included 1,200 drawings and 1,800 paintings? He also created 2,800 ceramics and 1,200 sculptures. The most famous pieces that he created are only a tiny glimpse of his life’s work.

This pattern repeats itself with artists like Mozart. Six of his pieces have found their way into a list of the most important classical pieces ever. That represents 1/100th of his entire life’s work of 600 compositions.

Consider Bach, who only had 3 in that list. He created over 1,000 original compositions. Beethoven has only five in the list out of his 650 compositions.

Each of these artists represents some of history’s finest, and they all traveled the same road. An intense level of creation to produce a few powerful masterpieces.

The moral of the story? Keep shooting. No other path will help you develop your work and hone your vision. Every new click of the camera is another chance to improve your skills and create something great.

Resource: 5 Reasons Why You Should Aim to be a Prolific Photographer

13. Spending Too Much Time on Social Media

“The cost of anything is the amount of life you’ll exchange for it.”

This is a constant reminder I give to myself whenever I find myself spending too much time on social media. 

The time you spend mindlessly browsing your feed is a time you will never get back, and it’s time you could spend shooting.

Becoming obsessed with likes is one of the most pervasive perils of being an artist today. 

Too many creatives find themselves becoming obsessed with social media. Obsessed with chasing the golden calf of followers and likes. I’ve been guilty of this myself. 

But, these seemingly free accolades can become quite expensive if you let them. The process of generating and cultivating followers requires you to spend time, money, and energy, often better used for other things. 

What’s even more costly is when you let your ability to create social shares and likes define your success. Such metrics only serves to destroy the freedom and fun that got you creating, to begin with.

Instead of expanding and exploring the need to please will shackle you to keep trying to recreate prior successes.

What was once your source of joy will be replaced with worry and obligation. What once gave you validation instead brings you subjugation that destroys inspiration.

Does this mean you should be avoiding social media? Certainly not. But remember that it is an outlet for your art, it is not your art itself. Spend your time creating things you love, and those who love it will find you.

14. Not Leveraging Social Media

If you’ve been following this article carefully, you should have expected this. The only thing worse than becoming obsessed with social media is avoiding it completely.

This may seem contradictory, but I assure you it is not. Social media is a gold mine of inspiration. 

The community and support can also be amazing. Inspiration doesn’t only come from studying beautiful images, but also from connecting with people who have the same passions and aspirations as you.

The friendships that you find in the community are important. They become things that help sustain our dreams and goals. When we see our struggles shared, we gain confidence that we too can conquer them.

There is nothing like the feeling of pursuing our goals in the company of those who share our vision. The exception maybe being able to serve those communities. When our focus on work expands beyond ourselves, insight comes naturally.

Do your best to become involved in the photographic community, whether you’re gathering with local enthusiasts or joining forums and chat rooms. These connections will benefit you greatly in the long run.

Helping new photographers will also help you see just how far you’ve come over time. As you all grow together, you’ll build camaraderie, share experiences, and cultivate new ideas.

15. Rushing To Build A Portfolio

Some photographers feel pressured to produce a portfolio of work quickly.  But, beyond hard work, great portfolios are the result of time put in. And there is no shortcut to this process.

Throughout your career as a photographer, you’ll explore an expansive range of photographic ideas. But these images will not be able to be captured all in one go. 

Rushing to get every possible photograph in your list of things to shoot will only result in burnout. Don’t court frustration by hastening what should be a delight.

While doing producing more, faster, works for some careers, photography isn’t one of them.  

Along the way, you’ll make mistakes. You’ll miss out on amazing photographic opportunities.

Instead, you will experience mistakes, setbacks, and miss out on great photo opportunities. 

Rest easy, because these are all part of the journey. You’ll grow your collection over time, and your portfolio will expand.

Remembering that photography is a marathon, not a sprint, is essential to a lasting career.  Take the battles and challenges as they come and learn to trust the process.

16. Not Paying attention to the Relative Brightness 

Most beginner photographers don’t pay attention to the relative brightness of elements in their composition. But not doing so can make even the best photographic opportunities go to waste.

When someone looks at your photos, their eyes are inexorably drawn to the brightest object. This is a natural result of how the human brain works.

As such, when working on your composition, you should always explore which objects have the brightest color and which are more illuminated than others. Be sure to frame your shots in a way that will draw attention to your subject and not away from it.

Resource:

11 Compositional Mistakes Beginner Photographers Make

A Landscape Photographer’s Guide to Color Theory

17. Not Looking Behind

Similar to shooting in a horizontal format. Looking in front of us is more natural than constantly looking behind. 

This is especially true when the environment is changing fast. In such instances, we often find ourselves placing all our focus on that fleeting moment, making it easy to not pay attention to what’s around us. 

But failing to take notice of possible compositions behind you can cost you to miss out on the perfect composition.

There have been countless times where I spent entire sunsets only shooting what’s in front of me, only to realize that there’s a better composition behind me. 

Always look at what’s behind you. This little habit will create incredible opportunities.

18. Only Placing Subjects in the Center of the Frame

It’s a natural impulse to center your image around your subject, but that isn’t always the right thing to do. 

While there are times when you should center on your subject, it has the risk of creating an image that is lifeless and static. Remember to use the golden ratio and the rule of thirds in your images. Experiment with compositions besides putting your subject in the middle.

Resource:

23 Composition Techniques for Travel Photography

How to Use Rule of Thirds in Photography

19. Forgetting to Use the Vertical Format

It is natural for most photographers to shoot in a horizontal format. That is, photographers often shoot compositions that are wider than they are tall. 

One reason for this is that horizontal format follows the way we observe the world. That is, we typically look from side to side rather than up and down. Further, most cameras are designed to be held and used horizontally rather than vertically.   

Thus, it is easy for most beginners to forget that a vertical format exists, and they can adjust depending on what the situation needs.

But, turning your camera vertically can be beneficial in many cases. 

For instance, it can help you draw the viewer’s eye to move up and down across the image instead of side to side. This can be especially helpful with images that have a lot of tall vertical lines, such as trees and buildings.

By turning your frame vertically, you can enhance moods that evoke power and grandiose in your images.

20. Failing to Challenge Your Perspective

Not challenging your perspective is not only costly in terms of the missed photo opportunities but also costly in the missed learning opportunity.

There’s a lot we can learn when we push our creativity to its limits. It may be hard at first. But it is what will make everything easier later.

Plus, the best images often require you to work for them. Sure, many compositions are great and simple to get. But, sticking to what is safe and comfortable will rarely help you capture your inspiring images, just easy ones. 

It always pays to invest some time and extra effort in looking past the obvious and what has already been done. 

As you push the boundaries of your talents, you’ll find out that everything becomes easier. Take the time to expand your range and move outside your comfort zone, and your future self will thank you.

21. Misfocused Images

Photoshop is capable of some truly incredible things, but one that lay beyond its scope is fixing misfocus.

Focus determines which details are picked up in an image. It is the result of the convergence of light on the sensor in your camera. You can take detail away post-op, but you can’t add it.

You determine focus by altering the shutter speed and aperture size of your lens. 

The aperture setting alters the depth-of-field of your image. The distance between the nearest and farthest objects that are in sharp detail is your depth-of-field. 

Smaller apertures result in a shallow depth-of-field. Wider apertures do the opposite, creating broader ones. Only those areas that are within the depth-of-field can be in focus and sharp; all things outside of it will be blurry. 

Your shutter speed affects focus by influencing motion blur. When you choose a slower shutter speed than what is appropriate for the scene, your images will come out blurry. 

One example is when you have a dynamic subject. If your subject is moving, you will need to use a shutter speed fast enough to freeze the motion. Choosing a slower shutter speed than necessary will result in an out of focus image. 

Another example shutter speed will cause you to have an out of focus shot is through camera shake. Camera shake occurs when you shoot handheld and your shutter speed is too slow. The result is a blurry image.

Blurry images occur when you move the camera while the shutter is still open. This causes light to be spread in multiple pixels resulting in a blurry picture. To avoid camera shake, use fast shutter speeds or a tripod.

The rule of thumb to avoid camera shake is to use shutter speeds faster than 1 divided by your focal length. 

22. Clipping 

Clipping is another thing that you cannot rectify in photoshop. Underexposing and overexposing your images to the point that detail is lost cannot be undone in post-processing. 

Clipping is the result of choosing the incorrect shutter speed, aperture, and or ISO settings. 

In particular, overexposed images are the result of setting your shutter speed to slow, your aperture too wide, or your ISO too high. 

Conversely, underexposure results from setting your shutter speed too fast, your aperture too narrow, or your ISO too low. 

To help you avoid clipping, try using some of the camera’s built-in tools such as histogram, auto-modes, or exposure compensation.

Your camera’s histogram displays information telling you how the tones are distributed through your image. It’s often more reliable to use when gauging your exposure than the LCD screen on your camera.

Using the auto-modes that we talked about prior, such as shutter priority and aperture priority, is also a great way to minimize clipping in your shots.

If your camera’s light meter isn’t reading the scene correctly, try using exposure compensation.  

This mode lets you adjust exposure even in auto-mode.

Caveat: Keep in mind that you can use both over and underexposure as a creative tool. They aren’t always mistakes; they can be used to alter the mood of an image. 

For instance, overexposure can add an ethereal quality to your image while underexposure can make them evocative and moody. But unless you’re doing it deliberately, know that these lost details are not retrievable. 

Resource: How to Use Your Camera: Understanding Exposure

23. Giving Up 

It’s easy to remain engaged with a new activity and develop a new skill. Continuing to develop it once you’ve moved beyond the basics is much harder. 

Novelty is a powerful motivator, but persistence is required when the novelty has faded.

Once you move beyond the excitement of learning something new, you’re at risk of being caught in the dip. Seth Godin refers to the “The Dip” as the uncanny valley that lay between hard-earned success and beginner’s luck. 

The dip is an observable phenomenon in the resumes of great photographers. Even the most successful in the world will show a brief speed bump before landing success.

Don’t be discouraged once you get to the dip. Just like Rome, your photography career won’t be built in a day.

Remember, it’s easy to work as a lauded photographer, but it’s hard to work your way through the dip to get there.