If you want to be a better photographer, you need to take a lot of photographs.Taking a lot of photographs can be tough. You’ll say “But what should be taking pictures of?” Here’s a great article from f-stoppers.com called An Easy Street Photography Project to Get You Out There .
While the article says you don’t need to get up close and personal with strangers, one technique I’ve often used to overcome my shyness at photographing people is to approach them slowly and quietly holding your camera about the middle of your chest. when they notice you, smile and say something like: “Excuse me, I’m in a photography class and our assignment this week is taking pictures of people. Would you let me take your picture, please?”
More often than not they will smile and enthusiastically agree, perhaps posing for you but you can ask them to go back to the positions they originally had or what they were doing. They will be very compliant and patient while you take a variety of pictures from different positions and poses. This is a good time to make sure you use the “Live” function on you camera.
After you’ve taken some pictures, your subjects will want to see what you go. Be familiar with tapping the small square thumbnail image in the lower left to switch to Photos so yo can show them. (The arrow in the upper left corner of the Photos screen will return the iPhone back to camera mode.)
Finally, be sure to cover the lens of the camera and take 5 or 6 black pictures so when you are showing folks their pictures you don’t accidentally scroll past theirs and start knowing them someone else that you have earlier taken pictures of. That could just be a little embarrassing.