Disclosure: Life as Leels has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free. All opinions are 100% my own.

Long before my days as a blogger, I loved taking photos. I took a photography class in high school and have always loved capturing memories on film, and now digitally. I feel they not only give you a glimpse into the photographer’s eyes, but it is the best way to keep and retain memories.

Unfortunately, I am one of those “photographers” who only catches amazing shots when not trying and all the rest of my shots… well, they weren’t so great. They needed some dire editing skills and well, frankly, I’m not that great in that department either!

I mean sure, I could do the red eye removal in the free programs and adjust the exposure, but that was it. Anything else was a lost cause and my pictures would remain in their less than great form.

Now with Adobe Elements software, I can be a {pretend} pro photographer!

How to be a {pretend} pro photographer

Have a camera of some sort.

I used to have a basic point in shoot (still do) but do most of my photo taking with my DSLR. My boss on the other hand, does all of his business photos via his iPhone (and they turn out wonderfully.) Whether it’s a point and shoot, a DSLR, or your phone – you need a camera!

Know how to use the camera.

Point and shoot cameras are so darn easy! I have had my DSLR for almost two years and have zero clue how to use the manual settings!

Have a subject.

Kids and animals have got to be the hardest subjects to photograph! Especially if there is more than one child! But you can photograph anything! Just beware – your photos may come out blurry when kids and animals are involved!!

Be aware of your surroundings.

I am so guilty of taking “the best picture” and then when I go to edit it or look at it, there is a mess in the background or a photobomb of an animal or random person. I do this so many times! And then of course, the “perfect picture” is lost because it was one of the kids or an animal and they are long gone now!

Lighting.

In the years of blogging, I have learned that natural light really does photograph best, but if you can’t have natural light, make sure you have bright light on your subject. Try to refrain from over using your flash and white washing your photo.

Have a good editing program.

There are plenty of free options that you can find online, but in my experience, nothing compares to PhotoShop.

is perfect for the casual {pretend} pro photographer or just learning the editing process.

It is an easy way to organize, edit, and share both your photos and your videos. You can make quick edits, add artistic touches, and or add cool effects.

In my personal opinion, it has been quite easy to use and learn.

Over the past weekend, we took the kids to the corn maze and hubby took a few shots of the kids and me. It wasn’t planned so the only camera we had a available was his mobile phone camera.

Here is the before:

A few minutes in Adobe Elements 14 and I came out with this:

I personally feel like it could still use some work, but I am still learning and tweaking how I use Adobe Elements 14 and know that in no time, I can be a {pretend} pro photographer with awesome pics!

Do you have any pointers or tips to becoming a {pretend} pro photographer? I’d love to hear them!