Getting Ready For Spring Photography!

Late February and early March are pretty lackluster times for photography in the DMV area. Unless you’re shooting in a studio or doing nighttime photography, the color palette is mostly dull browns and gloomy grays. The only color we see is the beautiful blue of the sky.

But this is actually the perfect time to get yourself ready for the seasons ahead, especially springtime when we’ve got pent-up cabin fever!

Here are a few practices to help you get things in order so you’re in great shape to enjoy your photography come springtime:

1. Brush up on your skills

Photography books, classes, and online training sessions can all help sharpen your skills and inspire new ideas.

2. Organize your gear

Take time to sort through your lenses, filters, accessories, and bags. Clean what needs cleaning. Get rid of what you no longer use.

3. Purchase new gear (if needed)

If the lack of a particular piece of gear has been holding you back, now is a great time to look at purchasing options so you can be ready when spring arrives.

4. Memory card management

Gather your cards together. Format them so they’re ready to be used, just make sure the images from the cards are backed up before formatting (which clears the card completely).

5. Image organization

If your image library is in disarray, this is the perfect time to clean it up. I know it can feel overwhelming but don’t despair. Here are two simple approaches:

• Start with the current year and work backward.
  The images we care most about are usually the ones we’ve taken more recently.
• Or start fresh going forward.
  If looking backward feels too daunting, commit to a better system starting today. As you capture new images, organize them consistently. When you have more time in the future, you can work on older files but at least moving forward, you’ll be organized.

6. Schedule photography time

Plan a few dates on your calendar dedicated to photography. Don’t limit yourself to only these, feel free to schedule more (as you can) but at least you have some that are already set.

7. Set goals

If you didn’t set photography goals at the beginning of the year, now is a great time. Are there subjects you want to explore? Techniques you want to master? Skills you’ve been meaning to improve?