How To Hold A Camera Basics
Ok, this may seem like a silly subject to bring up…..I mean……”how to hold a camera?”………anyone can hold a camera, right?!
Well yes, of course they can. But, if they don’t hold it correctly they will greatly reduce their chances of getting good shots. The way you hold your DSLR camera not only effects how good your photos might be, it also effects how easily you can access the camera’s controls.
Let’s jump into how to hold your camera – probably the most important of photography how tos.
For a safe and reliable camera strap that will hold your camera when it’s NOT in your hands, check out my Best Camera Strap For DSLR blog post.
Get A Grip On How To Hold A Camera!
To risk stating the obvious right-out-of-the-box here – use two hands. You will get a much better and more stable grip on the camera with two hands than you ever could with one.
Grip the cameras hand-grip with three fingers of your right hand, leaving your index finger free to press the shutter button. Your thumb should be resting on the thumb grip at the back of the camera. From here, it can easily manipulate the controls back there.
Your left hand should be positioned underneath the lens, cupping it with your fingers. This enables the fingers and thumb of to grip the lens and rotate the zoom/focus rings as necessary.
Keep Your Elbows In
Your elbows should be drawn into your side and not flailing around like chicken wings. This helps provide a more stable platform for the camera to sit on. You will get less shake in your arms by doing this and hence less shake in your photos.
It can also be helpful to lean against something when taking a photo hand-held. Doing this steadies your body and prevents any movement it could make from transferring to your camera.
Happy Snapping!
That is pretty much all you need to know about how to hold a DSLR camera. Of course when you are taking photos when kneeling, laying down, or in portrait orientation; the way you hold it will change. I will cover this in another blog post.
Now you should be able to go out photographing with confidence. You are holding your camera correctly, and as a result, your photos will come out better.
For another photography tutorial for beginners on holding your camera steady without a tripod, watch my YouTube video “How To Hold a Camera Steady Without A Tripod – Tripod Alternatives”
