Overland Photography is a beautiful thing. The best part about it is you probably already have
the tools to start! My name is Dan Weinel. I am a full-time freelance photographer and videographer. I have been doing photography and videography full-time for 2 years now, and professionally for 5 years. One of the greatest things I’ve learned is it's not about the gear you have, but rather how you use it. Your phone’s camera is incredible. Some of my favorite shots I’ve ever taken were taken with my phone. Granted, having professional quality gear makes it better but it’s not necessary. My first bit of advice to you is get out of auto mode. Yea sure, it’s easy to just set everything to auto and let the software do the work. However, when you switch to doing
everything manually you open up a world of possibilities. Whether you’re using your phone
or a DSLR/mirrorless camera, changing your settings manually allows you to have greater
control, and with that comes greater creativity. I won’t dive too far into it but there are three
main settings for photography: aperture (how much is in focus), shutter speed
(how long the camera is capturing), and ISO (brightness). This trinity of settings all work
together to capture images. Learn these settings and what they do so that you can use them
to your advantage. My next bit of advice is to just shoot. Let me tell you, some of the first
photos I ever took were HORRENDOUS.
I had no idea what I was doing!! But over time, I learned more and developed my own style and soon I had people wanting to pay me for my work. It’s not easy, but it’s possible! My last piece of
advice is don’t compare yourself to or try to copy others. It’s so easy nowadays to find a person
online, with a ton of followers, and copy exactly what they do. The issue with that is, that person is already doing it, so you just look like a copycat. Don’t get me wrong, learning from what others are doing is a great way to help you advance, however you need to create your own style. Become an individual, not part of a crowd. Comparing your work to others is a surefire way to end up frustrated and discouraged. Trust me, I know from experience. At the end of the day, just have some freaking fun with it! I mean, cmon!! We get to travel and see the world in a way that most people can only dream of. So get out there, have fun,
and stay creative!
By Dan Weinel
