The worlds greatest hobby is photography. Today everyone has a camera, but a lot of potentially good settings go to waste through lack of experience and knowledge. With a little help, our holiday snaps can become great images to share with your friends and family.

These days, everyone has a digital camera and the concept of taking reasonable images is quite simple, thanks to the higher spec of cameras - but how many people know exactly what makes a good picture?

Knowing what makes a good image will result in improvements in your photography.

A good photograph should have a theme. The theme of the photograph should be clear and simple. The theme in most types of photography is the model or the subject that you are shooting. You must focus attention on your subject to make that image perfect. Most great images are simplified by removing any unwanted material in the background that might take from the subject.

A good image should be sharp and in focus - and thanks to digital technology most new decent cameras will do this for you. Understand your camera settings to get the maximum results. All new cameras will have standard auto-focusing settings.

Your images can be brought to an even higher standard by using light correctly. Light transforms everything - it creates mood in an image, and also adds impact. Once you are able to understand how to use light correctly, you will soon start to see an improvement in your pictures.

There are three things to consider when looking at light: strength, direction and colour.

Strength: Cloudy days bring soft and defused light. Light can be very harsh and too bright at midday when the sun is high in the sky. Low light at sunrise and sunset is warm and good for adding mood to images.

Direction: this refers to light placement. There are three main categories of light placement: front lighting, back lighting and side lighting. Side-lighting produces more texture between light and shade. Frontal lighting can be too harsh and back lighting can be tough to control and does not always add to an image.

Colour: the colour of sunlight varies depending on conditions and time of day. Sun shine at the beginning or the end of the day is the most dramatic and therefore make the best time to take images - the colour of the light will be much warmer, and will lead to much more mood in your scene.

One of the most rewarding aspects that any person can take from photography is the manner in which we learn to see different objects through light. Light, and the way we use light is so very important - this is as important in portrait photography as it is in any other type of photography.

Photography is a powerful means of storing memories. The key to capturing these memories through photography is how we combine the elements of light and good photography techniques. Creating everlasting memories that are worth viewing time after time is priceless.