The first expansion pack for the Sims 4 Game includes a number of cool features, one of which is a photography skill. The photography skill allows your sim to take pictures of just about everyone and everything in the game. You can use a camera bought from the build, the buy mode, or even with your cell phone. It also allows you to sell those pictures for profit, which means your sim can make a living as a photographer if you want them to. The Sims 4 photography skill guide is relatively easy to learn and utilize in-game.
The skill has only five levels and, sadly, no unlockables. Clearly, EA dropped the ball by not including a super awesome camera as a final unlockable. However, they gave us the ability to own our own photography studio and retail space to sell your Sims photography.
Sims 4 Photography Skill Guide: How to Get Started
It’s easy to get started with the photography skill in Sims 4. All you need is a camera which can be found in the build buy mode of the game. There are three cameras available for purchase, but you can also use your phone’s camera as well. Cameras do affect the quality of the pictures. The phone will always return the worst pictures, while the cameras will take better pictures. The three cameras available to buy are listed below.
- Barley Better Digital Camera is the cheapest camera available for Sims to buy. It features landscape and portrait mode, flash control, but there is no zoom, and only small pictures can be taken. It also takes the lowest quality pictures out of all three of the cameras. However, it is the cheapest option for a Sim on a budget, only costing 85 simoleons.
- Appreciable Average Digital Camera this camera is a step up for your Sim or a solid starting camera if you have the extra dough. It features landscape and portrait mode, flash control, zoom functionality and allows for medium picture sizes. It takes mostly medium-quality pictures, especially with lower skill levels. It costs 670 simoleons, so it’s quite a bit more expensive.
- Crystal Clear Digital Camera is the nicest camera in Sims 4, but it comes with a pretty big price tag compared to its cheaper counterparts. A realistic fact about life Sims definitely got right. The camera features both landscape and portrait mods, flash control, zoom functionality, and the ability to create small and large pictures. Using this camera, you are more likely to get an outstanding picture even when you just start. This camera sells for 2,015 simoleons.
Taking Pictures & Controls
Taking a picture is simple in Sims 4, however, the camera controls aren’t very intuitive, which can make them frustrating for someone who is just learning how to take pictures in the game. To take a picture follow the steps below:
- Navigate to the entertainment tab (Icon that looks like a stereo speaker located on the bottom of your sims phone screen) on your Sims cellphone or choose a camera from their inventory and select one of the options.
- Take Photo Of: This Will allow you to choose a Sim to take a photo of, you can also choose what pose they are in.
- Take Photo With: Will let your Sim take a selfie with another Sim.
- Take Photo: Let’s your Sim take a photo of what’s around them.
- When the camera screen opens you will have various options to choose from for camera placement and filters.
- On the side of the camera screen, there is a button that allows you to change the filter of the photo. There are a variety of filters including sepia, grayscale and undersaturated.
- On the bottom left of the camera screen, you can change the size of the photo if that is an option.
- The middle of the camera screen contains the orientation button, flash button, and camera shutter button.
- The bottom right of the camera screen has the basic controls for the camera which allow you to change how high or low the camera is positioned and what the camera is pointing at.
- You can also adjust what the camera is pointing at by using the left and right arrow keys on your keyboard. This option is much smoother and allows for more detailed positioning.
- The Q and E keys can be used to adjust the height of the camera, this is also much smoother than using the arrows on the bottom of the camera screen.
- You can take five pictures before the camera screen closes automatically, or you can exit out after taking only one or two pictures. It’s recommended to take all five pictures to increase the chance of getting a picture that is excellent in quality. The pictures are stored in your sim’s inventory.
Raising the skill is as simple as taking pictures regularly, even if all you use is your sim’s cellphone. Additionally, the photography skill maxes out at 5, so it’s an easy skill to earn and doesn’t take nearly as long as some other skills. The boring part is it can get repetitive. One way I try to remedy that is by making photography part of the skill.
Travel to different neighborhoods or go on vacation and make taking pictures the goal of the trip. You can also invite friends over or use special events to gain skill by taking pictures of the events around you.
I also find that this can be an easy passive skill to learn if you like to document your Sims life with pictures of them and their loved ones to fill your house with. While you can make money with photography skills, I think one of the biggest advantages is to use them to document your Sims life. Screenshots are awesome for one-off funny things you want to share or for showing off your builds but the pictures taken by sims are a lot more personal and making for a fun and cheaper way to decorate the walls of your Sims home.
There are a few things that make the skill rise faster; the first is being the skill ideal mood. Most skills in Sims 4 have an ideal mood that matches the activity. In this case, the ideal mood is for your Sim to be inspired. Being inspired helps them take better pictures and gives your Sim a skill boost while the mood lasts.
There are a few ways to get inspired. The first is to give your sim the creative trait, which will automatically give your sim an inspired moodlet. The other ways are to cloud gaze, taking a thoughtful shower, admiring art if your sim has the art lover trait, and browsing art on the computer.
Making Money
The photography skill isn’t the most lucrative, but it can allow a Sim to live on it if they keep their expenses low, live in a multi-income household, or have roommates. Photos can be sold for up to 30 apiece depending on quality regardless of the size of the photo.
You can makeover 100 easily when selling photo sets directly from inventory. You can also sell your photos using retail, but it can cost more than you would make. Going without employees is one of the easiest ways to cut back if you go this route. You should also try to stock photos closer to the 30 simoleon range to avoid losing too much money if you need to restock the photo.
The last way to make money using this skill is to have a photography studio in your retail space. You can place the photo studio objects in your retail store, which allows you to take photos of individuals or groups of sims.
Although the more Sims in the group photo, the more the AI tends to struggle to get sims to respond. You only earn 10 to 50 simoleons for tending the photo booth, but you get to keep the photos you can sell from inventory or in your store. While the studio isn’t worth a lot, it is a bit of extra income and makes the game a little more fun and interactive.
FAQ
Question: What cheat can I use to automatically set my photography skill level?
Answer: Stats.set_skill_level Major_photography 5 will max out the skill through cheats. You must turn testingcheats on first.
Question: I see other cameras in my buy mode, will those work for the photography skill?
Answer: Island Living and Moschino Stuff both introduced a digital camera that works with photography skills. However, both are unlockables and not available at the start of the game. The first is the “Can You See Me Now?” The camera can be unlocked once your sim reaches level 10 in the conservationist career. The second is the ClickShot P10 Mirrorless Camera which is unlocked by maxing out the performance bar for the first time once joining the Freelance Fashion Photographer career.
Question: What other ways can I use the photography skill in Sims 4?
Answer: In addition to the freelance career options, your sim can now be a freelance fashion photographer. Once your sim registers as a freelancer, they must pick an agency to work with to get gigs.
Choosing the Tomorrow’s Style agency will allow them to become a fashion photographer. Your Sim will work on their own schedule and will earn raises instead of promotions. There are five raises that unlock various interactions within the career. Although the earning potential is uncapped and you can continue earring raises after the fifth. The base salary is $55 an hour, and the pay is determined based on your sims photography skill and photo quality after the base salary.
Final Thoughts
The Sims has a number of creative skills and ways to make money from creative endeavors. The photography skill feels right at home within the list and is a fun and different way for your sim to make a living. The photography skill is fun and easy to learn that adds money to your sim’s bank account and allows your sim to capture those special moments in the game.
You can associate an emotion with photos and tag the subjects by choosing the add memories option after the photo is in the sims inventory. This will give your sim the chosen emotion when looking at the photo. Whether you want your sim to travel the simverse and take pictures of everything they see or just want a memory photo wall for your generation family, the skill will become useful. Don’t forget you can also take countless pictures of your Sims pets as well.
Continue reading:
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