CC my first month with a DSLR

[Minty]

Please critique my first months worth of shots (that I'm kind of happy with).

New to photography and PP, so feel free to be brutal\give tips.

My own observations are that firstly, these shots look really dark on my work laptop compared to at home. Also, they all seem moody though perhaps a little boring. I struggle to find interesting subjects. I'm hoping my trip to Boston & Stowe in 2 weeks time will inspire me.

All taken with 450d and kit lens, or Sigma 10-20. Most with no tripod :oops:

Your thoughts.?
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3111/3175279470_4b79faa0d4_b.jpg (http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3111/3175279470_4b79faa0d4_b.jpg)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3098/3175104926_3cb8d5ccf0_b.jpg (http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3098/3175104926_3cb8d5ccf0_b.jpg)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3129/3174512699_e7a239c7ce_b.jpg (http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3129/3174512699_e7a239c7ce_b.jpg)

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1140/3174545185_b36ea20981_b.jpg (http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1140/3174545185_b36ea20981_b.jpg)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3525/3177112839_2a5799a925_b.jpg (http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3525/3177112839_2a5799a925_b.jpg)

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1050/3167507855_b6d3239b2f_b.jpg (http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1050/3167507855_b6d3239b2f_b.jpg)

[Minty]

Ignore - sorted now

[wardie]

Minty,

I actually like 1,2 & 5. 3 makes me motion sick :lol: & 4 has too much grain for me. I don't find them boring at all, yes a little dark on my notebook but that does not detract from them IMO. The composition appeals in most.

Wardie

[SwingBopper]

I think #3 and #6 are very nice shots. You could work on both in processing and maybe make them a little more dramatic. You have a nice eye for composition; but your ISO setting might be set too high if that's what's causing all the noise in your pictures.

[ssracer]

Looks to me like you are off to a very good start!

[Minty]

Hmm, more positive than I was expecting, so many thanks!

A couple are HDR's (new to that too!) which may cause more noise than normal.? The Doggy one was deliberately at ISO1600.

[Cmizzle]

1 and 6 are good..good job of composing them!

[theshape]

I like the majority of them. I like the brightness of the colors in #1 coupled with the darkness of the sky. Is it an HDR?
3 makes me motion sick
I was like...really? So I scrolled up and looked at it and it immediately made my stomach hurt. Which is a first. Weird.

[Minty]

I like the majority of them. I like the brightness of the colors in #1 coupled with the darkness of the sky. Is it an HDR?

I was like...really? So I scrolled up and looked at it and it immediately made my stomach hurt. Which is a first. Weird.
hehe, sowwy :p

Yep, #1 is a 'fake HDR' as is the terrace cottages, and red trailer thingy. All others are just 'normal' with VERY basic PS adjustments/

[JoYork]

The first image is a stunner. Beautiful.

[jessicainvt]

Your photographs are amazing.
I love the HDR look and feeling of the first one.
My other favorite has to be #5.

[Minty]

Thank you very much!! Comments like those make me want to keep it up (i usually get bored with most new hobbies after a month!) :lol:

[gmacmt]

You have the right idea in all of these. Keep practicing, your work will become technically better once you learn how to assess different situations. You have really good basic concepts and great composition. I think the first and the last are the strongest images. The only one that doesnt really belong in the set is the dog one because it is really really noisy.

[PETERSYMES]

I think you are being a little modest when you say you struggle to find interesting shots!!
Either that or somebody found most of these for you. I like the composition of no2 best but not so keen on the flat light.
High levels of noise are a big drawback with HDR especially if you only take a small number of exposures say 3, you are generally not getting the entire light range in the scene, try shooting by adjusting the shutter speed only whilst looking at the histogram to cover the entire range often 7-8 shots sometimes more.
Noise Ninja is a very effective program for removing noise in PP, there are others.

[howaboutnow]

Minty please tell me you'll keep taking beautiful pics like these ones. Thanks so much for sharing!

I love the light beams in the last pic, deff my fav!

DON'T STOP!

[1shot4u]

WOW...I think all the shots are wonderful...

[popsicle_pete]

the first and last pics in my opinion are the best of the sets with clear and crisp images. The composition is beautiful...a slight bit dark, however everyone has their opinion on beauty...well done

how do you like your sigma 10-22?

[Minty]

the first and last pics in my opinion are the best of the sets with clear and crisp images. The composition is beautiful...a slight bit dark, however everyone has their opinion on beauty...well done

how do you like your sigma 10-22?
Hi, thanks for the comments/advice (everyone!)

The sigma 10-20 is great so far (just got it though) - build quality is exeptional and I believe in a lot of reviews it beats the Canon equivalent, and it's half the price - bargain.

So far seems great for landscapes, but can't wait to take it to Boston (fly in 13 days) and try some shots - should be useful in the city when you can't get far away from the subject. Also want to try some Church/Cathedral interior shots etc.

TBH I've only taken about 20 shots with it thus far..

[gdelena]

I don't like them because they're better than mine.... :) kidding of course.

Mailbox and rays of sunlight are my faves. Too much grain in the clouds for the mailbox, but it gives me the feeling that a big tornado is on the way.

[PetPirate]

These are not boring at all, they're great! Print them nice and big :-)

My favourites are #1 & #3.

[1ruffryder]

wow very good start. i hope to see more of your work

[theshape]

You are your own worst critic, believe me. Half of the images on flickr that I am wowed by, I can create. Only when I do, I don't think they are that good.

What steps did you take to get the "fake" HDR? Did you use a filter like Topaz or something? I'd like to see the original SOOC shot.

[muttondraw]

Love the first image especially

M

[Minty]

What steps did you take to get the "fake" HDR? Did you use a filter like Topaz or something? I'd like to see the original SOOC shot.
I will try and dig it out (hopefully I did not delete it)

I just converted 3 images to tiff then ran through the free version of photomatix basic. Then tweaked using PS. Took about 10 mins in all.

[Hedley]

good stuff - be nice to try and boost those rays of light coming through the clouds maybe...?
And I'm sure others may disagree but I may have cropped the first closer on the right, up to the mailbox to make those diagonal leading lines reach nearer the corner.

[intelimac]

EXCELLENT images! Personally don't think number 2 should be here, it only weakens a great collection! Is no.6 Kimmerdige, Dorset?

[solodarwest]

Looks like you have a good eye for photography. The different perspectives, placement of foreground objects, and use of color are all very nice. The second photo seems a bit soft in terms of focus. But the rest are all very interesting.

[jenabean4]

Wow - you are brand new to photography??? Or its just a new camera?

These are great!

[Walczak Photo]

I think the technical aspects of these shots are very well done indeed with some very nice processing as well. The tonality of that first shot is wonderful...really looks like a nice HDR shot there. Personally however I find the compositions to be over-all a bit lacking. Again I think the first shot there is the best of the bunch...I might crop out some of that sky, but otherwise it's pretty good.

The second shot there...while I don't wish to be rude here, I think that shot is a throw away. To me it looks like it was perhaps an interesting scene and possibly some interesting lighting, but the position and angle this was shot from just ruined the image. In a situation such as this, I would have walked around that building there extensively to find a really good angle (assuming one existed).

The third shot of the pier...I get confused here as to what the actual subject of the image is supposed to be. If it's the water, then the pier is distracting, but then the water itself isn't strong enough to hold the composition. I think that more emphasis on the pier would have made for a much better image. Also, I can't say I really care for the sepia tone here either, but that's just a personal taste thing.

With the fourth shot, first off to me it looks like the framing was off. I would have allowed for a little more foreground and taken out less of the sky. Also, I don't really find that big red tank to be all that interesting as a central subject. Over-all this shot also looks rather dark on my monitor, but it looks like it was a rather difficult exposure as well....bright sky in the background with a much darker foreground.

The fifth shot says "Photo currently unavailable".

With the last shot, again I don't care for the black & white here. This is just my personal opinion, but I think that too many people just jump to black & white for no other reason than because they can. To me color is a WONDERFUL thing, particularly for a shot like this, and should be exploited to it's fullest potential. A vivid tonality in this shot as you had with that first shot would have given this image sooooooo much more life. Also, in my opinion, you have the horizon a little too low in the shot here...too much sky and not enough foreground. In this shot I would have gone with the strict adherence to the rule of thirds putting the horizon right in the "power point" of the lower third.

Now in regards to your comment "these shots look really dark on my work laptop compared to at home", you do have both monitors calibrated correctly right? I'm guessing not. If you are going to be working on images on multiple computers, laptop or otherwise, every system you do work on should be calibrated. Also remember that many laptops (and or LCDs in general) can be a bit subjective in regards to brightness issues. For example, with my older IBM Thinkpad, if it's running on batteries, the screen will run at a lower power (and lower brightness) to save on battery power. In any case, if your using multiple monitors to view/edit your work, if they are not all calibrated (preferably using the same calibration tool), then your image can and often will appear quite different on each monitor.

Alrighty, just my usual $.02 worth,
Jim

[Andregen8]

Minty I know what its like to feel like you are taking "boring" pictures...however there is still a lot that can be said for your photos. Your composition is excellent, the use of textures, and using the depth of a scene to truly capture what you are seeing is remarkable. If you continue to take "boring" pictures in your opinion, then say you actually get to shoot something fascinating when you do travel?...you will blow your own hair back because you practiced shooting "boring" stuff continually and now are taking incredible images. I get bored shooting here in Alaska (even though it is sometimes breathtaking), but when I travel I get motivated to shoot for hours on end. Keep shooting...excellent images! (I liked the mail box actually...it is dark, yet mysterious...also, the red tank in the field your should try as B&W and see what happens!)

[twiggles]

#1 is really cool. I love that type of perspetive that one can get with the Sigma 10-20..what a great bargain lens! (compared to the Canon)

[JChangy510]

#1 is my favorite..basically looks like an HDR!

[Minty]

Only just got round to checking all the feedback. Thanks to everyone for spending the time to critque and offer their advice and opinions, it's very much appreciated.

To answer a few questions:

Yes, I am totally new to photography in general (though not so much now, I've been doing it for a 3 months now! :lol:) Only just got the photo bug really - been too busy with my other hobbies (Golf, track days, and Hi-Fi)

I did have a little P&S Casio, which I had for about a year and took a few pics with, such as this one from Cornwall...

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a371/keamat/th_Padstow.jpg (http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a371/keamat/?action=view&current=Padstow.jpg)

I love the Sigma WA lens, but I've been finding I need to force myself to take it off the camera and take more NON-wide angle shots. I've recently picked up a cheap telephoto (another Sigma!) but haven't used it yet. Hopefully this will give me some more experience framing different kinds of shots (going to try some wind surfing action shots me thinks)

I removed picture 5 by mistake from Flikr, but I just did not like it anyway and felt I could do a better job with the processing.

The last pic is indeed Kimmerage Bay - here's another taken with the kit lens (this was virtually THE first shot I took)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3105/3167507843_d1d814c703_b.jpg (http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3105/3167507843_d1d814c703_b.jpg)
They do appear to all be too dark on my work screen. compared to the one I process on. They also print dark. As suggested, I have not callibrated my monitor yet, purely because I have been looking to get an iMac, so will calibrate that one (been using my GF's laptop, and she's getting fed up!). Just need to find a decent CHEAP calibration device.
Since these were taken, I've been learning more about PP (currently using DPP and PS7) so I may go back to a few of these images and rework them.
Still a lot of learning to do!!!
Thanks!

[byron76]

Wow only on your 1st month and your compositions are PRO-like!! Nice shots!

[ScottKCooper]

well if you get bored, you can send your equipment to me. I'll even pay the shipping! Number 1 is my favorite. It has interesting features, causes the eye to travel along the fence to the building, and then of course, your eyes have to check out the clouds! Keep going, you're doing great!

[Lonnie]

#3 is great. You used a slow enough shutter speed to convey the movement of the water back out. The sense of motion in the picture really comes across well.

[banpreso]

i love the look of #1, great composition, and i was so sure it was HDR... haha

i love #3 too, i felt like i was getting sucked into the water