(Cover photo by Anna)

In several photography Facebook groups, it has become quite popular to post a comparison between a photo one has taken a few years back and a newer one to illustrate the development and learnings of the photographer.

So here you go, a few before and after photos of my photography development so far.

Landscape and Nature

These are some of the oldest digital photos I have that were taken by me:

2005, Canon Powershot A40

When I learned about the macro function, I started to almost only take photos like this one:

2005, Canon Powershot A40

Honestly though, nothing can beat the macro of specialized macro lens! This is how my macro shots looked a few years later:

2015, Canon Eos 40D + Canon 60mm f/2.8 Macro

Also my “single trees in front of a forest”-shots have changed a little - even though I must admit that the view from this top photo still is kinda epic. Wish I’d had a better camera back then!

2017, Canon Eos 6D + Canon 135mm f/2

Sunsets

When I found out about the magic of silhouettes in front of a sunset:

2005, Canon Powershot A40

2008, Canon Powershot A40

Last summer, I made a short trip to Klitmøller on the Danish west coast. I was unsually lucky with the weather, and one evening we had the chance to have cocktails outside while overlooking this beauty of a sunset:

2017, Canon Eos 6D + Canon 135mm f/2

Animals

2006, Canon Powershot A40

A photo that I was very proud of for a long time as it felt so edgy and dynamic. Also, I obviously like horses.

2015, Canon Eos 6D + Canon 50mm f/1.8

2018, Canon Eos 6D + Canon 135mm f/2
(See more photos of Nanna here)

Sunrises

2007, Canon Powershot A40

That was the first time ever I got up to drive to the beach and take pictures of a sunrise. This photo is the best and sharpest of all the photos of that morning. :D

For comparison, some of the recent sunrises we photographed look like this:

2016, Canon Eos 6D + Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8
(More photos of that holiday here)

2017, Canon Eos 6D + Canon 50mm f/1.8
(More photos of that cute panda-cow here)

Black and White

2007, Canon Powershot A40

From when I discovered that the camera had a mode that automatically converted photos to black and white.

By now, I take all our photos in RAW, so camera modes don’t really matter. I still like to take black and white photos, though. Like this one from the Sambuichi exhibition:

2017, Canon Eos 6D + Canon 50mm f/1.8
(More photos from the exhibition here)

Edgy

2008, Canon Powershot A40

I learned that I found smokers photogenic, even though I generally don’t approve of smoking. Quite a dilemma, I can tell you!

When I want to be edgy these days, I ask Jonathan to put some fingerpaint on his face and form some shapes with his e-cig vape:

2017, Canon Eos 6D + Canon 50mm f/1.8
(More photos of that series here)

Portraits

One of the aspects of photography that has improved pretty much rather recently is portrait photography. It kinda all started with a shoot of Costas, that I got rather pushed into. I was super nervous and would have prefered to bail, to be honest.

2015, Canon Eos 6D + Canon 50mm f/1.8

By now I feel a lot more confident before and during shoots, even though I still get excited and a little nervous. I’m really proud of of one of our recent projects, which gives me the motivation to push on my portrait photography game!

2017, Canon Eos 6D + Canon 135mm f/2
(More photos of the Blade Runner shoot here)

Summary

As you can see from the mentioned years, it was a very long process for me to get to where I am right now. Even though it might not have been very effective, photography has still been the constant, comforting hobby throughout my life. For most of the years, I didn’t have big ambitions to drastically push my photography skills, even though I always tried to improve it. It was less of a conscious seeking out of new challenges than more-or-less coincidental discoveries about the abilities, functions and perspective of my camera.

(There were also some years inbetween, where I wasn’t as interested in photography or had picked up videography instead.)

So if you like photography - keep doing it. Make it something that is valuable to you beyond likes and comments on Instagram.

Photography is a great motivator for getting out and moving.
Photography is a great motivator for interacting with people.
Photography is a great motivator for creating your own projects.

I have been so lucky to - on top of that - also know a lot of people that think likewise and whom I can share photography with.

PS - Summer Vacation 2018

While lookig through the archives, I also found these old photos from vacations in Ireland, and I’m greatly looking forward to comparing them to similar new photos of Scotland! I know they’re not the same, but both countries sport some pretty epic coastlines, so there will be some room for comparison.

2008, Canon Powershot A40

2008, Canon Powershot A40

2008, Canon Powershot A40