Anyone doing any online dating needs to learn basic photography skills

Anyone doing any online dating needs to learn basic photography skills. This is not hard: you need a little bit of time, money, inclination, and a camera. The data are clear: better cameras get better results. You need to get better pics to get better results.

Photography is the manipulation of three basic settings: aperture, ISO, and shutter speed, and the knowledge of a handful of other factors (light quality, lens length, sensor size, and framing). That's it. A reasonable person can learn almost everything important about photos with an afternoon of Googling and experimenting with a camera.

Today, cold approach is far better than online, but guys keep wanting online to work, often with insufficient effort on their part. Women I've met via online dating consistently say that my pics look better than most guys' and that I can actually write in complete sentences… they say this is rare, although I don't know if it is. In an age of cell phone pics, a real camera will improve your overall rate.

Basic skills that are likely to accentuate who you are and improve your overall outcomes are useful. As with many things in the seduction arts, this is another small boost and it will not compensate for weak game, cutting all simple carbs, social anxieties, and other problems that scupper men. A while ago I wrote about why you should ride a motorcycle. A motorcycle and camera in and of themselves will obviously not get you laid and will not compensate for poor fundamentals.

They, however, can augment your overall vibe and, used correctly, make you stand out and be more seductive. Both have skill components that are attractive to women. Judicious use of good photos on social networks like Snapchat may also lead to dead leads coming back to life. I do not advocate using social networks very much as for the most part they are a waste of scarce time, energy, and attention, but today's reality is also simple: most women are on them, a lot.

For example, if I have a reasonably strong connection or dead FWB with a woman, I will ping them to re-start in six to twelve months. This doesn't work often but it’s a quick way of picking up some easy lays without much work. If a woman likes a picture (they only look at pictures—don't bother writing), I assume she wants to sleep with me. Often this isn't borne out (ha ha! if only it were reliable), but it's a useful enough heuristic. Women are photo-centric and so being able to shoot good pics effectively, especially with other women (implicit social proof) is useful.

You may not know what camera to get. Here is the open secret: it DOESN'T MATTER. On the Internet camera geeks endlessly argue. Fuck them. I will tell you to start with a used Sony RX-100 III. This camera has a large sensor, a wide aperture, and a flip-up screen that allows for selfies. Women fucking love selfies, so the flip-up screen is key. It should be about $250 - $450. Right now Amazon Warehouse deals offers them for $400.

If that is too high, try an earlier RX-100 version I, which is still a good camera. Something more substantial is a Sony a6300 with a Sigma 30mm lens. But the camera isn't that important and you shouldn't fixate on the particular camera. If you can score an old Sony or Fuji mirrorless camera that will likely work fine.

Obviously it's also fun to take hot pics of sexy women, but you already know that so I won't belabor the point. Most contemporary women want to feel like models and want to pose for sexy guys.

Even okay-looking guys usually don't have sufficiently good pictures, then get frustrated with online dating. Online dating is a photo-first world. Improve your body, improve your style, then improve your photography.

Consider upping your lighting game.