Some bike shots from the new guy [Archive] - Canon Digital Photography Forums

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RyanMerrill

29th of August 2007 (Wed), 11:58

new guy here, looking for some constructive criticism. I have't been doing this for long so take it easy on me.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1013/1149663026_690dd4a838.jpg?v=1187363431

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1434/1063133178_f0d167fff3.jpg?v=1186680693

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1168/1086707526_d7876a21df.jpg?v=1187016939

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1280/996117781_810de1ffdb.jpg?v=0

I know most of them are pretty dark, I have some new reflectors coming in this week so I can take some shots when it's a little lighter out. the third shot is my bike.

Colyn

29th of August 2007 (Wed), 12:44

The first shot is not too hot due to the background. The rest I like and you have captured some of the spirit of the bikes.

RyanMerrill

29th of August 2007 (Wed), 12:48

Hmm... the first shot was my favorite out of all of them. I liked the background and I thought it added to the shot. O well, I guess.

Thanks!

btw, I completely agree with the quote in your sig.

MotionEffects

29th of August 2007 (Wed), 13:12

Second shot is very nice

FerNie

29th of August 2007 (Wed), 13:24

I like the 2nd one best. I own a gixxer myself it's an 04 though.

dwnhillskater

29th of August 2007 (Wed), 14:05

Second one is a nice shot. Good job.

RyanMerrill

29th of August 2007 (Wed), 14:38

thanks everyone! any ideas on how I can improve?

Colyn

29th of August 2007 (Wed), 16:34

Hmm... the first shot was my favorite out of all of them. I liked the background and I thought it added to the shot. O well, I guess.

Thanks!

btw, I completely agree with the quote in your sig.

Ok let me be more specific about my comments.

That bike is a "brute" ... it is bundle of power and energy and this specific colour is really great.

Now if you want to capture the real spirit of the bike you need to try and get the bike to dominate the shot. Your shot is wrong for this for the following reasons ...

1. You shot the bike from low up and into the tail ... this makes the bike look like it is sloping down to the front and it diminishes the "brute" in it.

2. Your angle also makes the background overpower your shot.

Ok now let me make it very clear ... this is only my personal opinion and many people will differ from me. That is the nature of our passion ... 10 guys ... 10 opinions ;)

Your 2nd shot is a good shot but the catwalk steel clutter completely destroys the topline of the bike.

The last shot is the best of the GSX for me ... the angle is right and the bike looks very aggressive and ready to prance ... I like that ... I would cut the the bike in PS and do something with the background and retain the bike as is.

Being a very keen biker and living with bikes since the early 70's ... I do have a special feeling for these machines and I always try to make the bike "dominate' ... it is really important for me because these machines are really not worthy to be intimidated by their surroundings.

Enough babble ... great bike good shots and well done.

RyanMerrill

29th of August 2007 (Wed), 17:55

Ok let me be more specific about my comments.

That bike is a "brute" ... it is bundle of power and energy and this specific colour is really great.

Now if you want to capture the real spirit of the bike you need to try and get the bike to dominate the shot. Your shot is wrong for this for the following reasons ...

1. You shot the bike from low up and into the tail ... this makes the bike look like it is sloping down to the front and it diminishes the "brute" in it.

2. Your angle also makes the background overpower your shot.

Ok now let me make it very clear ... this is only my personal opinion and many people will differ from me. That is the nature of our passion ... 10 guys ... 10 opinions ;)

Your 2nd shot is a good shot but the catwalk steel clutter completely destroys the topline of the bike.

The last shot is the best of the GSX for me ... the angle is right and the bike looks very aggressive and ready to prance ... I like that ... I would cut the the bike in PS and do something with the background and retain the bike as is.

Being a very keen biker and living with bikes since the early 70's ... I do have a special feeling for these machines and I always try to make the bike "dominate' ... it is really important for me because these machines are really not worthy to be intimidated by their surroundings.

Enough babble ... great bike good shots and well done.

thanks! that was exactly the kind of comment I was looking for. I posted these pics up on flickr and all I got was "oh wow, how much horsepower does it have?".

I understand why you don't care for the backgrounds but I am trying to use the backgrounds to add to the image. I will never crop a bike out of the background and create my own. if the background doesn't fit the subject I would rather re-shoot the subject with a different background.

I completely agree that the catwalk steel clutter destroys the top line of that bike. it was something that I didn't see when I was there taking the shots (I blame the small viewfinder and small lcd screen on the rebel xt).

the gsxr looks better than the r6 in general because it's lowered. the r6 is still at stock height, combine that with the low angle, it makes it look even higher. it's hard to see, but he's missing the front fender because of a recent mishap on the highway. every shot that I took from the front of this bike looked goofy because of it.

again, thanks for your comments. I will keep those things in mind on future shots.

Here are two shots of the front of the r6, showing the missing fender.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1218/1143554168_0e7046ed4c.jpg?v=0

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1244/1149946908_e9d29ee27c.jpg?v=0

Colyn

29th of August 2007 (Wed), 18:21

RyanMerrill

29th of August 2007 (Wed), 18:47

The last shot is a good shot ... the bike dominates the scene and nothing in the background is breaking the topline of the bike. The shot above it shows some distortion from a wide angle and I dont like that because it trashes the original design lines of the bike ... again this is very personal and in no way meant to demean your shot ;) Any lover of big bikes usually have a sharp eye for design and the moment we take pictures that bend those lines the biker goes ... HUH ? :)

I think you misunderstood my mentioning of tweaking the background ... here is an example of what I am talking about ...

It was late afternoon and me and my friend travelled around 700kms for the day ... I was struggling with a severe eye infection and riding into the sinking sun did nothing to make me feel comfortable ;) ... so as we hit this small town he suggested that I park in this open spot and sit back while he searched for a guesthouse. The light was fast going out and I took a few shots of the bike. When I downloaded the shots I realised that the late sunlight did a great job on the golden bike but the background was horrific ... so I did this to salvage the shot for myself.

Forgive me for posting a shot in your thread and I will remove it if you want me to.

don't worry, I don't mind you posting the picture in this thread. I understand what you mean now. I agree about the wide angle, I only posted it to show the missing fender. I didn't really care for that shot much myself. sometimes I like when the design is distorted but not in this shot. I had originally thought about doing the selective coloring thing and making the background behind the gsxr into black and white but the green wall kinda grew on me.

the type of photos that I wish to do are like the ones this guy does - http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=323132
not necessarily those exact cars, but that style of photography.

I love those photos. I guess the bikes are too close to the background in my shots. I don't have much to chose from around here though. I kinda have to keep the bikes close in order to keep other things out of the frame.

Colyn

30th of August 2007 (Thu), 01:24

Yep I can see the style. Good luck with your mission ;)

kennys350d

30th of August 2007 (Thu), 01:48

2 & 4 are awesome!

PhotosGuy

30th of August 2007 (Thu), 09:09

take some shots when it's a little lighter out Well, no. You need to learn to shoot on "M" so you can control what is happening with the image before it gets into the camera. And use a tripod if you have to.

Start with aiming for a properly exposed flat-white & refine from there. The sky, water, reflection, might all throw the histogram off, so I use this to be sure that the bright areas "at the right" are the bright areas I want to keep: Need an exposure crutch? (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=89123)

Then look for the "right" light: A few Car Lighting Tips (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=70290)

The OFFICIAL Automotive Photography TIPS & TECHNIQUES | Resource Guide (http://www.m3forum.net/m3forum/showthread.php?t=135871)

And...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v218/PhotosGuy/Forum%20Junk/Welcome-ChargerRT_020.gif

RyanMerrill

30th of August 2007 (Thu), 09:45

Well, no. You need to learn to shoot on "M" so you can control what is happening with the image before it gets into the camera. And use a tripod if you have to.

Start with aiming for a properly exposed flat-white & refine from there. The sky, water, reflection, might all throw the histogram off, so I use this to be sure that the bright areas "at the right" are the bright areas I want to keep: Need an exposure crutch? (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=89123)

Then look for the "right" light: A few Car Lighting Tips (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=70290)

The OFFICIAL Automotive Photography TIPS & TECHNIQUES | Resource Guide (http://www.m3forum.net/m3forum/showthread.php?t=135871)

And...

I do shoot on "M"... all of these shots have barely any post processing if any at all. and I don't need to use a tripod if I'm using flashes... what I meant by taking shots when it's a little lighter out is taking some photos before the sun has gone down... all of these photos were taken around twilight because that's when I have the most control over the light when using small flashes. I have one reflector and a second, much larger one on the way so I can take photos during the "golden hour". I could use the flashes for that but sometimes it's easier to do with a reflector.

Are my shots really that bad, that I need to look through the basics? I thought I had pretty smooth lighting already.

PhotosGuy

30th of August 2007 (Thu), 12:36

Are my shots really that bad, that I need to look through the basics? They look dark, & you did say, "I have't been doing this for long..." so I tried to aim advice at your self-evaluated skill level.

Possible explanation: Have you calibrated your monitor lately?

RyanMerrill

30th of August 2007 (Thu), 13:01

They look dark, & you did say, "I have't been doing this for long..." so I tried to aim advice at your self-evaluated skill level.

Possible explanation: Have you calibrated your monitor lately?

neither of my monitors are calibrated, but I know they're not far off. I stated in my first post that they were a bit dark. I didn't want to crank up the exposure from raw because it will bring out more noise, and I can't go and reshoot any of these shots.

I haven't been doing automotive photography for long. but I do know my way around a camera and I know a lot about light. I guess I should have made that clearer in my first post.