Photo How To

Last week we posted an eye-opening tutorial describing common "myths" about ISO settings than can easily compromise the quality of landscape, nature, and wildlife photos. We're following up on that today by demonstrating how so-called "bad photography habits" may actually improve your imagery in several ways.

This video from Alex Kim is another example of why it's sometimes beneficial to ignore conventional wisdom as pertains to both capturing and processing your work. Kim is a notable street photographer based in Seoul, South Korea, and he described the motivation for today's episode like this: "I picked up some bad habits as my skills evolved, but it turns out that they were only bad because that's what I was told—and now they actually help me."

At the top of Kim's list is taking too many photos, a common habit among photographers who invest in cameras with a very high burst rate. Kim suggests capturing fewer but better images by shooting in One-Shot mode rather than setting the camera for a high burst and leaving your finger on the shutter button to shoot a barrage of photos. In other words, "don't spray and pray."

Another common misconception involves what's known as "chimping," whereby some photographers constantly interrupt the process by looking at the rear LCD of their camera to evaluate each image they capture. Conventional wisdom suggests that, "this snaps you out of your rhythm and can easily result in missing a decisive moment." But Kim chimps often and he explains why doing so can be beneficial.

Kim then turns to a familiar notion that dictates why you should always compose through the viewfinder while ignoring the rear LCD. So why does he consider this common technique to be so hurtful? He says he grew up with a habit of shooting without looking at the back screen before learning why some failed photos wouldn't have occurred had he first checked the LCD.

At this point you're barely halfway into the video and Kim has a lot more advice to impart as the lesson proceeds. The other bad habits that can actually be quite helpful involve Shutter Priority mode, whether or not to edit your photos, planning a shoot, collecting gear, and breaking other familiar rules.

Kim's popular YouTube channel offers many more instructional videos that are sure to elevate your skills even though they may be somewhat controversial. So be sure to pay a visit when you have time to explore.

And don't miss the tutorial mentioned above so you learn the true nature of ISO myths and understand how they may impact your photographs in ways you didn't realize.