Did you know you can improve your composition while you’re relaxing watching movies on TV? Just think about filmmakers’ reasons for using particular shots. And then use the same approaches in your photography.

In 2013, the Oxford Dictionary declared “selfie” the word of the year. The selfie is in short the photographic phenomenon of our age. But people, and artists especially, have been doing self-portraits since long before the birth of that word, or even the birth of photography.

The internet is full of various guides for producing “perfect” pictures. Zonerama Magazine isn’t the only place where you’ll read about things like the right way to compose, what lenses are good for what kinds of photos, and how to edit a photo using a histogram curve.

Good light is the foundation of photography. And in winter, photographers don’t get much good light—so they have more time available for other activities. Wondering how to spend the extra time that winter frees up? Read on for a few tips on exactly that.

Today’s smartphones have quite decent cameras and quick Internet access from almost everywhere. It is an ideal combination that lets you keep snapping practically nonstop. And if you’re the kind of photography fan who has lenses instead of eyes and sees the world in compositions, then this will be a great opportunity for you to get even better and promote your work.

Amateur photographer Mark Johnston lives with his wife and two children in Owensboro, Kentucky. We discovered Mark a short while ago on Zonerama. We didn’t wait a moment and wrote in to ask him if he as a power user of Zoner Photo Studio would answer a few photography questions for us.

There are many ways to approach photography. When something catches a beginner’s eye, they just point, and click. (What innocent bliss!) With experience, photographers start thinking about subject placement and the Golden Ratio. But have you ever thought about taking composition to the extreme, for example by shrinking the main subject until it’s almost invisible, or by practically eliminating the background? That’s minimalism. What do you get after that? Well, if you want to take a break from the sea of Christmas ornaments around you, read on.

You’re always going to have an inspiration that will influence your work. And it won’t always stay the same. As your photography matures, so will your photos—and your inspirations. It’s important to have a model or idol in your work. It motivates you to take better and better pictures! Your photographic inspiration can be a photo, a photographer, a movie, life itself, or even an event you want to respond to.