The 80/20 Rule of Photography: How to Improve Fast Without Burning Out
Everyone thinks they need ten lenses, fifty filters, a drone, a gimbal, and some mythical editing software that will magically turn their shots into Vogue covers. Hate to break it to you, that’s not how it works.
Here’s the truth: 20% of what you do in photography creates 80% of your growth. The rest is just heavy backpacks, messy memory cards, and way too many excuses.
The 80/20 rule is about cutting the crap. Focus on the few things that actually matter, and your work and your confidence will skyrocket.
1. The Big Three: Composition, Light, Perspective
Forget gear envy. The real power lives in these three skills:
Composition → Frame it like you mean it. Leading lines, negative space, rule of thirds (and breaking it when you feel like it). This is what makes people stop scrolling.
Light → Light isn’t just brightness, it’s emotion. Golden hour, harsh shadows, and reflections. Once you train your eye, you can shape any scene into something cinematic.
Perspective → Move. Bend. Lie on the floor if you have to. Tiny shifts in angle tell completely different stories.
Master these three, and you can outshoot someone with ten grand worth of gear using just your phone.
2. The “3 Frame Exercise”
This is my favourite hack for levelling up without frying your brain:
Pick literally anything, your coffee cup, a car on the street, your mate’s shoes.
Shoot it three ways:
Safe shot: Clean, standard, well lit.
Bold shot: Play with perspective, shadows, reflections, drama.
Weird shot: Break a rule. Crop it wrong. Blur it. Push your settings. Go wild.
Do this every day. In a week, your eyes start noticing things most people miss. In a month, you’ll feel like you’re seeing the world in frames. It’s like the gym, but for your vision.
3. The Gear Myth
Let’s talk straight, more gear does not make you a better photographer. It just makes your bag heavier.
A bad photo with a $5k lens? Still a bad photo.
A killer shot with your kit lens? That’s art.
Your eye is the magic. The rest is just tools. And honestly, the more you limit yourself, the more creative you become.
Take me, for example. I’m still running with my old Canon 6D. She’s been through dirt tracks, airports, sunsets, and countless late night edits with me. And yeah, I’m finally upgrading now, but that camera feels like home. I know her quirks, she knows mine. It’s not just a tool, it’s a full time relationship. Breaking up isn’t easy. But maybe, just maybe, I’ll let her share the spotlight with a newer body.
Because in the end, it’s not about what’s in your bag, it’s about how you see, and what you do with it.
… So, why to bother with 80/20?
Because it keeps you sane. It stops you from drowning in “someday I’ll be good when I have the latest camera, lenses, filters, tripod, lights, etc.” It puts the focus back on what actually builds your craft: seeing, framing, playing, and trusting your instincts.
Photography isn’t meant to burn you out. It’s meant to wake you up!
Let’s Grow, Frame by Frame
Here’s the deal: master the 20% that matters, composition, light, and perspective, and you’ll unlock 80% of the magic. Everything else is just noise.
📌 Wanna keep the fire going?
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Hang with me on Insta @kazvisuals.co for daily frames and experiments.
Or check the Gallery if you want to see how these rules look in real life.
And remember: the best camera isn’t the one with the biggest price tag. It’s the one in your hands, paired with guts, focus, and a bit of cheek.
…. So, what’s your 20%?
