22 Best Photography Cheat

Sheets & Infographics

We all need help from time to time with our photography. Whether it is trying to understand a
speci c process, or how to obtain a particular shot.

Luckily, we are here to help. We have collected the best photography cheat sheets. You can check them
when you need some help, or just print them o and take them with you!

And if you want some more, take a look at our Quick Capture Cheat Sheets!

Photo by Immortal shots from Pexels

22. Shutter Speed
Shutter speed is the most obvious contributing factor to an exposure. It has one of the most signi cant
e ects on your photos.

With a poor knowledge of how to use the correct shutter speed, you’ll end up with blurred results.

This cheat sheet will teach you the right shutter speed for the right situation.

21. Pet Photography Tips

Everyone needs a good pet photography cheat sheet. Photoshoots can be stressful, overwhelming,
anxiety-inducing, and a whole lot of fun.

Even if you do them every single day for thirty years, it can still be easy to forget something important.
To help you out, we have devised a photography cheat sheet on everything you’ll need for pet
photography!
20. Know Your Rights As a
Photographer
Knowing your rights as a photographer is very important. This is something you need to see if you are
out in public or private domains photographing.
This photography infographic comes from Digital Camera World. It covers street, architectural and
cityscape photography. It’s good even if you photograph models and portraits in an outside setting.
There is a lot of text, but it is very informative. It gives you all the information on where you can
photograph and what to do if you are stopped.

These are printable cheat sheets. Keep them with you as a quick reference in case you have any
trouble, or end up photographing in areas you are unsure about.

19. 10 Tips for Travel Photography

Travel photography is a mixture of di erent genres. You can expect it to cover landscapes, street,
documentary and architecture, and many other elds.

It makes sense to give you a few tips on how to cover all of these areas. Even if you aren’t a dedicated
travel photographer, your holiday images will bene t.

As far as photography cheat sheets go, this one from Visually is clear and full of text. There are no
images to help you along, but you get everything you need. Simple.
 https://visual.ly/community/infographic/travel/10-tips-travel-photography

18. Sunny 16 Rule

The sunny 16 rule is a smart guideline on how to photograph a scene without the use of a light meter.
This might sound a little redundant as every digital camera has one built-in.

But, if you are a lm photographer, you might not have access to a light meter. To ensure your images
are correctly exposed, use the Sunny 16 rule.

This photography cheat sheet from Get Totally Rad is a handy thing to have on you at all times. Use it
to guess what your exposure could be before you use your DSLR.
 Get Totally Rad – https://gettotallyrad.com

17. Colour Temperature Scale

This very helpful photography cheat sheet comes from Digital Camera World. It explains the di erent
colour temperatures you are going to experience photographing di erent scenes.

The colour temperature is important when it comes to setting your in-camera white balance. All
visible light falls on this scale, and each one is represented by a number of settings.

If you fail this step, you can always change the white balance during the post-production stage. For
this to be e ective, you really need to shoot in RAW format.

Digital Camera World – www.digitalcameraworld.com

16. The 6 Components of a Great

Property Photograph
Real estate photography is becoming one of the biggest elds of photography. More and more people
means more and more housing, which needs to be advertised.
Business ventures such as Airbnb also provide more opportunities for this type of photography.

This photography cheat sheet runs through the 6 most important components of a great photograph
in this eld. Take these tips from Focalagent and try them out!

Key Agent – https://www.keyagent.co.uk/

15. The History of the Camera

This Pixntell infographic is a great way to learn the history of the camera. It will let you know where
and how it all started, and just how far we came to have what we have today. The smartly shaped
images mixed with the supporting text makes this an interesting read.

It isn’t going to help you shoot better, but it’s nice to know the background of our modern-day
cameras.
Pixntell – http://www.pixntell.com/
14. What’s Your Wedding
Photography Style?
When you start photographing weddings, you’ll need to meet the couple before the big day.
You need to discuss all the important information that the couple wants and expects. It is essential to
discuss the style they want their images to be in.

This Simply Bridal wedding photography cheat sheet shows you ve of the most important shots. It
even looks at them through three di erent photography types.
Whether you are the photojournalistic, classic or even artistic type, there is something here for every
shooter.
 Simply Bridal – http://www.simplybridal.com/

13. Reading Your D-SLR’s

Viewfinder
The view nder on your camera gives you much more than just the framing of your scene. Here, you’ll
nd all sorts of information in regards to your camera’s settings.

The most important areas that you won’t nd anywhere else on your camera are the focus points. This
lets you know what part of your scene will be sharp, depending on your choice of lens.
This is really handy to know. This photography cheat sheet from Nikon isn’t something you’ll need
over and over. Look at it for a few minutes, and you’re ready.

Nikon

12. The Beginner’s Guide to

Newborn Photography
Newborn photography can be a very joyous eld to work in. By no means is it easy. You will need a lot
of patience, inspiration and, of course, talent.
This photography cheat sheet from Adorama runs through the basic ideas you need to know. It is a
great resource to ensure the best possible images.
From the best ways to keep the newborn comfortable, to little tips and techniques. You’ll be glad to
have this on hand when you complete your rst few shoots.
 Adorama – https://www.adorama.com/alc/0015051/article/Infographic-
Beginner-Guide-Newborn-Photography

11. Portrait Cropping Guide

This is the simplest photography cheat sheet there is. But by no means less important than any other
you see here in our list.
This guide from DCW shows you where you need to crop the body when doing portrait photography.
It goes from the widest full body shot to the tightest facial portrait.
Simple yet e ective. This is one of the most important things to know, ensuring your photographs
don’t look strange or unnatural.
 Digital Camera World –
www.digitalcameraworld.com

10. How to Read a Histogram

A histogram lets you see the range of tones within your scene and how they are captured by your
camera.
The histogram is broken down into three areas, known as shadows, mid-tones and highlights.

Every time you take an image, check your in-camera histogram to ensure you maintain a good tonal
range. After all, you don’t want highlights to be blown out. Or to nd that your image is too dark due
to unnecessary strong shadows.

This photography cheat sheet is one of the most important to learn. Thank god (or rather, Digital
Camera World) it is relatively simple.
 Digital Camera World – www.digitalcameraworld.com

9. How to Take Photos in Low Light

One of the biggest questions many beginner photographers have is how to shoot in low light
conditions.
You need to become familiar with new equipment and utilising the camera settings. This might mean
pushing some to their absolute limits.

There are many techniques and photography tips to nailing the shot in darker scenarios. I would say
you need to know as many as possible for each possibility.
Go through this great photography cheat sheet from Snapsort. You can even print it o and take it
with you.
8. Composition
Composition is one of the most important areas of photography. Once you have some of the basic
technical abilities down, you need to concentrate on the creativity.
This is where composition comes in, and this handy photography cheat sheet. Here, you’ll nd 19 of
the best examples, aimed at adding more interest to your images.
Some of these you will be able to pick up easily, such as the rule of thirds. Others will need more
practise and forethought.

Download and print this Lens Lounge photography cheat sheet pdf and keep it with you. This will
make it easier to review.
 The Lens Lounge – https://thelenslounge.com/

7. Lenses
It isn’t only a camera and the sensor within that makes a good picture. Your choice of lens is also
crucial in allowing you to grab that shot.
Lenses capture your scenes in di erent variations of focus, aperture, depth of eld and resolution.
This photography cheat sheet is from Sarah Ainsworth. It shows you a comparison between the
di erences between each lens’ eld of view and focal length.
It is a perfect way to show you how much of the scene you can capture with a speci c lens.

http://www.sarahainsworthblog.com/

6. Making Sense of F-Stops

F-stops and aperture can be very frustrating. This is especially true with digital photography, as there
aren’t only f/stops, but also 1/2 stops and 1/3rd stops.

This handy NPhoto DSLR cheat sheet tells you exactly which is the wider and narrower aperture
from where you are. The descriptions also let you know the di erence between di erent sizes.
 NPhoto

5. Shutter Speed
The shutter speed setting on your camera is related to the time your camera shutter stays open. This
lets you either freeze moving subjects or generate creative blur.
This photography cheat sheet is a great addition to your work ow. It will let you know quickly what
each shutter speed is going to o er your photography.
 Digital Camera World – www.digitalcameraworld.com

4. Exposure Triangle
The exposure triangle shows all three components that make up a photograph. These are the shutter
speed, the aperture and the ISO.

Each of these elements works together in capturing the light necessary for an image. Changing one of
these settings in manual mode means that you need to change one or both of the others.

This infographic is an ingenious way to let you know quickly which settings make the image lighter or
darker.
As far as cheat sheets go, this one from the Tripod Diaries is one of the best for camera settings.
 The Tripod diaries – http://tripoddiaries.blogspot.com/

3. When to Increase Your ISO

This handy infographic focuses on the ISO scale. It starts by brie y looking at understanding the ISO
scale. From there, it lets you know when you need to increase your ISO and why.

ISO is one of the most important parts of the exposure triangle. This makes it one of the
fundamentally important areas of photography overall.
Knowing how to use ISO allows you to maintain high resolutions of your images.
 Digital Camera World – www.digitalcameraworld.com

2. Find the Perfect Camera

Finding the perfect camera for you in the rst step towards your photography. Your system is going to
be stuck on you like glue, so it needs to be the right t.
Whether you are into landscapes, events or candid street photography, there is a camera just for you.
Having the best camera ensure you use it more.
This infographic from Optics Central will help you determine which camera is right for you.
 Optics Central – https://www.opticscentral.com.au/camera-guides.html

1. Fast Vs. Slow Shutter Speed

Knowing how to photograph is only half of the battle. Using these tools and techniques allow you to
capture the best possible images.

In this photographic cheat sheet, you’ll get to understand how to photograph fast-moving subjects.

It runs through each shutter speed and what each o ers you and your photography. It allows you to be
creative, showing you examples through images and supportive text.

As a photography cheat sheet, this is a little more in-depth. After you understand the basics, these are
the logical ‘next steps’.
Digital Camera World – www.digitalcameraworld.com