Everyone can focus on photography. Everyone makes now more photos than ever, especially since mobile phones offer that option. You always have your camera with you. But also the increasing popularity of social media contributes to the fact that people make more (fun) photos and share them, not in a classic album, but directly online via facebook, instagram, twitter and so on.

Pictures tell stories. As once said 'a picture tells more than a thousand words'. However, there is a big difference between snapshots and a photo. A snapshot is 'point and shoot', quickly in time. The difference with a taking a photo is that you first think about how you're going to take the picture. Of course not for hours, but you want to really take the picture with the image that already is in your head, because something attracts you in the scene that you really want to show as how you see it the picture. That is a combination of technology (everything that has to do with settings on your camera) and composition (what all is in the picture and how to photograph it). But there's no such thing as a perfect picture. The photo must be perfect for you. Of course you can speak technically of a good photo, but still assessing the result is something in the eyes of those who look at it. Moreover, the vast majority of equipment currently available 'take over' the technical profession in automatic modes. But at the same time to do it yourself, take control of the camera and create a good image by composing, that's photography. A picture can look so much better if you just take the time to make it. Photograph comes from the Greek 'writing with light'. Like a good story or poem, you write your story with a photograph. That is the essence of photography. I hope you find some inspiration on this site!

Videography is actually an old-fashioned term I use for the new video shooting using a digital (SLR) camera. So no video camera, but filming with the advanced features of a SLR camera. A kind of revolution is currently going on because the possibilities are endless, unlike a handycam. The biggest difference is caused by the optimal use of the field depth potentials of camera and lens. Something that your "flat" video lens can not get away with it. You can blur an image in both the background while the subject or person stays razor sharp. That adds a lot of emotion to a video. In addition, it is mainly the time lapses with sometimes hundreds of photos that produces impressive videos. This new video filming is very popular, because the expansion possibilities are virtually endless (interchangeable lenses, filters, sliders). The best part is that you can use both functions in a single device: photo and video. And again: also here it's not about shooting moving images, but producing a story.

The most important as last. I call it the storyboard, the main tool of the photographer and more important than the camera. Looking or seeing is quite a different thing. If you want to make a good photograph, the final story to tell with the picture, is the most important. That story should rather be in your head, before you take the shot. Ask yourself what you see through the lens, what appeals to you or what makes the photo so funny, scary, crazy, impressive or sad? Why is the emotion evoked in you?

Go work with the subject or object in your lens. Walk to it or go more away. Walk around it. Choose a composition, is there too much distraction visible that weakens the picture or add some surroundings that makes the photo more strong. Read the picture, read what you see. Looking through the lens. Dare to put the camera to A(perture)-setting mode, and change and play with the settings. Is more overall sharpness preferable or do you want to detach the subject totally blurred from the background. Look at the amount of light and shadow. Combinations of light and dark make a picture very interesting. Write with light. Use your imagination and creativity, your camera will do the rest. Take multiple photos, you can choose which picture ultimately does the best to justify the emotion you felt when seeing the scene or the subject.

For video a storyboard is even more important. What do you later at home want to show the viewer? Only moving images or a story with a beginning and ending. Try to imagine what message you want to convey with the video. Write in words what all belongs to your story. Take additional B-roll shots to not just try and film (boring) climaxes and allow to take a break with extra scenes that support and pauses the total movie. Take the viewer by the hand and film also situations that do not directly belong to the main theme, but support your production. A movie is more than successive scenes of 'highlights', here too the story is more important and the way you want to tell it.