The Best Places To Learn Photography Online
I am a self-taught photographer. As far as I can remember I have always been taking photos since my young age. It was something common in my family and a way to capture memories along the years. It is only since 2015 that I started taking photography more seriously and that I bought my first camera: the Sony a5000.
It was a mirrorless camera, very user friendly that helped me to capture beautiful photos and get familiar with all the manual settings.
At that time, I was against editing my photos as I believed it was cheating...(don't judge me…!) Nevertheless, it was a great exercise and challenge not to edit my photos as it meant that I needed to nail the perfect exposure for my photos.
It took me 2 years to start getting familiar with my camera, the photography techniques and be able to replicate what I saw in real life the way I wanted it with my camera.
How did I do it? By learning and practicing, a LOT!
So if you are a beginner or intermediate photographer looking for a way to improve your photography. Here are 8 of my favourite websites I recommend to everyone who want to step up their photography game.
1. Youtube
YouTube is an incredible source of inspiration for content creators. We all have a different style of photography and it is always interesting to see what are other photographers creative process.
I spent and still spend a lot of time on YouTube learning from my favourite content creators. And the good news is that it is FREE.
If you don’t want to spend hours as I did and learn the exact formula I came up with that anyone can use to take professional-looking photos with your smartphone, download a copy of my free guide below.
This is one of the best resources to the photography community. They provide lots of great articles, and also have a useful forums with very engaged community. They also sell books if you are interested in purchasing one. But their articles are a great source of inspiration.
Yes my friend, magazines still exist. I read their digital version though that comes with my kindle unlimited subscription. Every month a new magazine releases with a ton of great advice and tips from the best photographers in the industry.
4. Skillshare
This is my go-to platform now after YouTube to learn photography and also network with a community of creators. This website is not only an online learning platform for creators but is also an online community that encourages to learn by doing and sharing best practices. I love it.
I wrote an article where I share my top 10 Photography classes on this platform if you are curious?
You can also get access to Skillshare and enjoy 2 FREE months of unlimited classes by using my referral link here or by clicking on the button below.
If you would like to learn more about Skillshare, check out this post I wrote How To Learn A New Skill Every Day With Skillshare.
5. CreativeLive
CreativeLive empowers you to unleash your potential by bringing the world’s greatest experts directly to you, live. Featuring workshops in photography, video, design, business, audio, music, crafting, and software training. You will need to pay for most of the classes, but remember that you will be learning from the best and that it will be cheaper than going to a photography school.
They also offer free live classes on weekly basis that covers different styles of photography.
Have a look at the Photography starter kit from John Greengo. It really covers everything you need to know about photography. Here is the link below:
6. Tutsplus
If tutorials is what you are looking for, you are being served. Tutsplus is one of the largest tutorial sites around. They cover web design, photography, video, and so much more. Just dive in the category of your choice and start learning.
7. Fstoppers
With more than 1 million visitors every month, Fstoppers is one of the biggest photography websites in the world. You will be able to find a huge collection of articles related to photography, gear reviews, industry news and so much more. They also have a YouTube channel.
8. Udemy
Udemy is also an online learning platform but contrary to Skillshare it is not focused only for creators. By connecting students all over the world to the best instructors, Udemy is helping individuals reach their goals and pursue their dreams. You can find paid courses but also FREE ones.
They offer discounted courses very often also as part of their promotional programs, so stay on the lookout for courses of your interest.
BONUS: Join A Photography Mastermind Group
Once I knew how to take better photos and that I started receiving messages on Instagram from people willing to buy my photos, I knew it was time to find a way to monetise this passion of mine. But I needed guidance.
Since I started my online photography journey, there's been one photographer that I really admired because his approach to life and business really resonated with me.
His name is Taylor Jackson. He is a wedding and travel photographer from Canada and has a huge success online selling his online courses and services.
He created a series of online courses to help aspiring photographers become a better wedding and travel photographer but also learn how to make money with photography.
His approach is very down to earth with practical examples, which is the type of approach I enjoy the most from a course creator.
He already had a Patreon membership but as he met some limitations with this platform he decided to create his own membership website.
He now offers 2 formulas:
- Either pay for a monthly membership at a very affordable price
- Or pay for individual courses you are the most interested in
On my end, I already bought one of his courses on travel photography back in 2016 and did not need courses only.
I needed his insights on the photography industry as an expert in his field. That’s the reason why I decided to go for the membership option. And I do not regret it.
Here are the benefits of joining his membership:
- Access to ALL his online courses and future courses
- Behind the scenes of how he runs his business
- Wedding Photography behind the scenes: From marketing to client consultation and follow up email templates
- How to partner with hotels and travel for free
- How to create a membership website
- How to sell your photography products and services online
- Access to his private Facebook Mastermind group with thousands of members from around the world sharing their best practices
He even runs some challenges within the group to encourage people to get out of their comfort zones and start taking actions on their photography careers.
And he sends you regular emails on weekly basis to keep you updated on new trends he discovered or experiences he’s had as a photographer.
All of this for only $30 per month (at the moment I write this article)! And if unhappy you can cancel anytime!
I recently started offering prints on my website following one of his tips and within a month launching the online shop I made nearly 1,000 euros profit!
This is in my opinion the best photography deal you will find online.
If you wish to make photography a full-time career or if like me you want to make some money on a side from your passion, I highly recommend you to think about joining his photography mastermind group.
You can click here or on the image below to learn more.
Those are my main resources to learn photography either for free or at a very affordable price online.
Also I kinda mentioned it in the bonus section, but the best way to get better at a specific photography style is to join workshops of one of your favourite photographers.
I am a big advocate of learning by doing. Watching tutorials is one thing but having someone to tell you exactly what to do and what not to do in order to get the best results and answer all your questions is for me ideal.
The main benefits being that you learn faster and have the opportunity to exchange directly with your mentor and other students.
Since a couple of years I started running workshops in Dublin sharing my approach to mobile photography and how it’s become easier nowadays to capture photos on the go.
If you are interested in learning my 3 Step Approach To Photography.
You can click here or on the button below to download a FREE copy of my ebook where I break down exactly what I teach to my students during the workshops in Dublin.
I do not believe that we ever can stop learning photography.
It is always a learning curve and there will always be new things to experiment to push our creativity to the next level. Especially nowadays with the new cameras on the market. They keep on getting better and better.
What about you? Where did you learn photography and where would you recommend beginners to learn online?
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