Beginner’s Guide to Magic

Many common magic tricks are easy to learn and only require common items such as matchboxes, cloths and coins to perform successfully. The most common tricks are playing card and coin tricks which are both a good way to practice technical and audience distraction skills.

Card tricks are one of the oldest forms of conjuring and perhaps the best introduction to learning magic tricks and performance for beginners. Whilst you can buy special card kits and find free magic tricks online, you should start out with a normal deck of playing cards and learn specific card magic techniques that don’t rely on props.

Start small and practice, practice, practice

Some magic tricks can be complicated and take months to perfect the illusion of reality. As a beginner or novice it’s important to start small with more simple tricks that require far less practice and patience. You’ll get results faster, gain confidence and experience the rush and delight of being a magician for the first time.

The most basic magic tricks can still be impressive without requiring expert skills but it’s important to practice as often as possible. The legendary Harry Houdini started by picking locks. He practiced so much that he could pick any lock with his hands tied or eyes blindfolded.

You can use simple household objects such as cloths, cups and bags as your props until you get the hang of each trick, then maybe you will want to buy more specialized equipment to amaze and amuse your friends and family all the more. In the meantime, it’s important to gain confidence in your magic tricks and abilities before performing in front of friends, family or any audience as your ability to perform and direct a crowd is as vital to your success as your speed with a deck of cards.

The art of distraction and misdirection

The most exciting aspect of any magic trick is it’s effect on a live audience. Whether you perform a magic show in front of a few friends and family or a crowd of hundreds, the buzz of hearing gasps of wonder and applause will keep you hooked for life.

Once you’ve mastered the basics and gained confidence in your technical abilities, you’ll need to start thinking about your audience and how to use distraction and misdirection to take your magic skills to the next level. Many of the greatest magic shows and tricks use a combination of misdirection and theatrical performance to control the audience while the magician performs his secret moves.

You’ll also need to develop your own style of performing magic tricks, not only to make your magic more entertaining, but as an additional prop that’s just as important to your success as your box of tricks. Developing dexterity or slight of hand and practicing eye contact skills with your subjects are both essential skills of any proficient performer of magic.

Top 5 tips for learning magic tricks

1. Start simple - begin with tricks that don’t require any props such as card tricks or coin tricks. Choose one trick and stick to it until you are proficient before learning another.
2. Practice - practice magic tricks until you are completely confident that you can make it work every time. Only then begin to perform it in front of others.
3. Confidence - Practice will give you confidence which is essential to convince your audience that not only is your magic trick magical but you are as well.
4. Attention and distraction - learn to hold the attention of your audience and control it with eye contact, humor and well practiced movements.
5. Performance and style - the best magicians are memorable not only because of their tricks, but because of the way they perform them. Give a thought to your appearance, your voice, your humor, your props and your location when performing a magic show.

Once you master these techniques, your magic tricks should leave the audience entertained and more importantly, mystified wanting to know more.

Magic tricks are mainly made up of two aspects, the presentation and the secret of how the trick is performed. Most tricks that are performed in close range of the on lookers make use of manipulation and misdirection skills.

Magic tricks are really fun to watch. It leaves many people entertained. Magic tricks always go down a big hit, and with practice you will be able to amaze the people around you.

Close-up magic is incredibly versatile. It can be used for “walk around” performances at parties and events, in street performances and for impromptu personal effects. Close-up magic is often seen at cocktail parties where the magician mingles amongst the guests performing miracles with borrowed objects and simple objects he has on him. He works without a table and uses peoples’ hands when he needs to.

Magic tricks are not only great for stage and street performance but are also well suited for entertainment at parties or as ice breakers at small gatherings. Card tricks are among some of the most popular and infamous illusions used by magicians. Magic tricks are designed to please crowds, which inevitably forms a majority at most gatherings. They are often amusing, surprising and make us think.

Magic tricks are based on scientific principles but people do not seem to connect magic and science. Magic tricks are fun and easy! It is something that seems to be a universal language that entertains both young and old. Magic of the close-up kind can be performed any time, anywhere. Magic is the most charming and challenging subject to those who know it and adult magic can be your guide to that charmed circle.

Magicians can turn one’s rueful mood into an amazed one. What could be more fun and fulfilling than making people forget their worries and stressful situations? Magicians, especially professional magicians, tend to guard their secrets jealously. It is rare indeed to find a performer who would reveal the secrets of their art to the uninitiated or to colleagues.

Magicians performing card tricks take in to account the tendency of the individual to ignore their actions when picking the card. Elaborate tricks use many gimmicks to divert attention from the main-stage to complete tricks such as beautiful assistants and fireworks.

Street magic is performed, as the name suggests, on the street. The audience consists primarily of random passers-by who would stop to watch you perform. It is rather new compared to the stage variety of magic. The people who do street magic most likely do not get professional training and they go about doing magic as they want or like.

Street magic is simply magic done in a different locale, with its own set of benefits and drawbacks. Street magic is now a well know form of entertainment and many magicians have crafted their own styles and techniques of this popular branch of magic and illusion. David Blaine showed his version of the Balducci levitation on worldwide television which appealed to millions of people’s fascination with levitation and levitating.

Street magic is not all about showing the miracle, you have to choose the right moments too. There are many more greats compared to Blaine, but he’s certainly one of them right now. Street magic is okay, but, no matter how good the performer, there is so much that be shown on TV.

Street magic is engaged on the ‘audience’s turf’, it is impromptu. There is no stage or props or a helping hand to fool the audience. It is a highly popular art these days that is practised by people across the world. Of course there are people out there pretending to be street magicians, when they’re really just trying to steal your money through illegal gambling which is often done with card tricks.

Street Magic is very powerful because it s on the spot and up close, but it has its limitations. Grand illusions can only be performed in the most controlled settings. Street magic is only one of them. David Blaine has performed some of these classic sleights on television with his unique, modern style and you can learn working versions of these tricks with the help of DVD resources and sites on the internet. If you put your mind to it you can learn magic conjuring tricks, easy and advanced card illusions with coin sleights, card shuffles, production and vanish illusions and a whole host of other tricks, it just takes perseverance and practice. Blaine takes some basic magic effects and uses a raw, straightforward and natural presentation to shock and amaze his audiences- ordinary people he approaches on the street. His idea is to see what great reactions he can get with easy-to-perform tricks like the Self-Levitation and the Bitten and Restored Quarter.

Street magic is being touted as a new kind of magic, a new form, a new style. Entire websites are devoted to the subject - entire product lines - and now, a new glossy magazine.