How to be a Pro at Photography

Hi fellow Fotographers,

First of all, thank you for reading this guide. I hope it helps everyone who doesn't have much experience yet, or anyone who simply wants to level up their photography. That's why I'm sharing my 10 years of experience with Forza Horizon photography. LET'S GET INTO IT!!!

In this guide, I'll walk you through my go-to tricks and tips for taking professional-looking photos.

You'll see examples of shots I've taken and i will explain very detailed how i did it.

Step 1

Let's start at the very beginning, you should look for what you want to take a Photo of, is it a car, or do you want to take a Photo of the scenery?

It doesn't matter, you can take Photos of anything you like. :)

Step 2

If you have found something that you want to take a Photo of, Let's say it's your favorite car that you've already tuned. You should be scouting for a Location there are many very cool Locations in the Base map already or you can create your own using the Tools that Forza gives you like the Garage Editing or the EventLab, i usually do my Photos in the Base map, I usually drive around the map for 20–30 minutes to find the right place.

Step 3

You've found a location you like? Nice! Now you can position your car however you want it can be straight or angled depending on the Location and look you are going for is it a Rolling shot, Drifting or Stationary ? that's on you. I do all kinds of Shots but i really enjoy Stationary shots because you can catch more details.

Step 4

Now that we have the preparation done we're ready to enter Photo Mode in Forza!! How do you use the Photo Mode, there are many sliders and options that you can use but you don't need to use all of them, because we are editing the Photo in Step 6.

These are the options/ sliders that you should be touching to get the most realistic look. (See Photos below)

For Rolling shots:

(Exposure can be changed depending on what Time of Day you use, in this Photo i used 93% because it was Dawn, Cloudy Post Rain and on the Highway where the area wasn't well lit, to make it easier in the Editing process).

Stationary shot:

Now lets get into the Settings.

Shutter Speed

The Shutter Speed gives you that motion blur in Rolling shots the more Shutter the more "faster" it will look, i recommend using it for Rolling shots how much motion blur you want is up to you.

Focus Mode

Focus Mode should most of the time be set to Tracking that means that where the focus point in the middle is it will focus it and make everything around it blurry

Focus

Controls the exact focus distance.

• Lower values focus on objects close to the camera.
• Higher values focus farther away.

Exposure

Controls the brightness of the image. Avoid overexposing bright skies or reflective paint. For most situations, I recommend keeping it around 50%

Increase Exposure -> Better for dark scenes

Decrease Exposure -> Better for sunsets or dramatic lighting

Aperture

Aperture Controls the depth of field (background blur).

Lower Aperture -> Less Blur

Higher Aperture -> More Blur

You can choose to your liking, i usually keep it between 15-30%

Bokeh Shape

Changes the shape of blurred highlights in the background. This only affects out-of-focus light sources. Choose whichever shape you prefer, or simply leave it on the default setting.

Sampling

Should always be set to Quality to get the best results.

Time of Day/ Weather

Both are entirely up to your personal style depending on what style you like or going for, my most used Time of Day is Dawn and Weather Cloudy/Clear Post Rain.

The other settings like Car lights and Steering etc. are optional personal preference, choose to your liking.

Step 5

Finding that right angle, look for the lighting and Shadows, you can let your creativity play.

You can also use photos from other people as reference for what you are going for.

Pro-Tip: Very important is that you play with the Zoom, getting that Depth in Photos can be achieved by Zooming in. Do not use the in-game Photo function, hide the UI and take a Screenshot because we all hate that Forza watermark in our Photos :)

Lets say you choose these settings for a stationary shot:

Location: Tokyo City (Shibuya Crossing)

Angle: Straight in lane (Stationary)

Shutter Speed: 0

Focus Mode: Tracking

Exposure: 50%

Aperture: 25%

Bokeh Shape: Circle

Sampling: Quality

Time of Day: Dawn

Weather: Clear Post Rain

Lights, Camera and Action:

(this is the RAW Photo straight out of FH6 with these settings)

I usually take around 20–30 photos from different angles and locations, then pick the best ones. "Not every shot you take is a cover art"

Step 6

Now that you've taken 67 photos of the same car, it's time for the editing process!

I personally use Adobe Lightroom (Paid) because it offers everything I need for color grading, exposure adjustments, masking, and fine-tuning my images. However, there are plenty of great free alternatives if you don't want to spend any money. "Editing isn't about completely changing your image, it's about enhancing what you already captured."

Here are a few options:

• Adobe Lightroom (Paid) – My personal choice. Excellent for color grading, lighting, and overall image quality.
• Darktable (Free) – The closest free alternative to Lightroom, perfect for RAW editing and color correction.
• RawTherapee (Free) – Great for advanced image adjustments and detailed editing.
• GIMP (Free) – Ideal for retouching, object removal, and more Photoshop-style editing.

Yes these are ChatGPT's Recommendations, since I've only used Lightroom i cannot share any experience with the other programs, but i've heard that Darktable seems to be next best option for Lightroom, feel free to look for an option that suits you.

After i made a couple adjustments in Lightroom it will look something like this:

Step 7

Now go post your photos!!

I really hope I didn't miss anything. It's hard to explain what to look for when you've been doing this for years, some things just become second nature, and I might forget to mention them. :)

If you found this Guide helpful, please let me know on Discord @elektronix or write a review.

Now go out there and keep shooting awesome photos like a pro!!!