Do I suck?

[Hegemon.]

I think I can take some pretty good pictures, but I also know that with $X,XXX invested in equiment I'm still taking some pictures that are nothing more than snapshots.

I'm going to post some pictures below. I don't need individual feedback—although it's welcome. I'm hoping that after looking at them you can sort of take an average and let me know where I'm at, and then suggest some photographic techniques for me to brush up on—I have no formal training.

thanks!

http://www.aww-kittah-aww.com/up/files/898/potn/IMG_3378.jpg
http://www.aww-kittah-aww.com/up/files/898/potn/IMG_3456.jpg
http://www.aww-kittah-aww.com/up/files/898/potn/n6000133_34470142_3672.jpg
http://www.aww-kittah-aww.com/up/files/898/potn/n6000133_34470143_3947.jpg
http://www.aww-kittah-aww.com/up/files/898/potn/n6000133_40745134_1377.jpg
http://www.aww-kittah-aww.com/up/files/898/potn/n6000133_40745255_6909.jpg
http://www.aww-kittah-aww.com/up/files/898/potn/n6000133_40842797_176.jpg
http://www.aww-kittah-aww.com/up/files/898/potn/n6000133_40990103_5704.jpg

[That_Fox]

I'd say that you're about average or a bit above. I think you need to focus on developing your "eye" at finding what is going to make an interesting photo. Ask yourself why you are taking the photo, what do you want the photo to show and what is the best composition to emphasize what you want the viewer to see. And also look up some of the older photography techniques such as the "rule" of thirds as they really do help to make photos more interesting.

As for individual photos, when I look at the first photo I don't know where to focus on and it generally seems uninteresting to me. On photos 2, 4 and 5 you have the subjects a bit awkwardly cropped. 5 needs to have the elbow and more of the body in the frame or less of the body in the frame as she looks like she has too big and long of arms currently. 4 needs to have the entire giraffe's head in the frame and the top part of the neck in the frame. 5 I definitely want the bottom of the tire in the frame and I want more car, a wider horizontal shot would work better here IMO.

And finally on the last shot of the panda, I want more background blur to help cure the business of it. I'd also like to have the subject looking at the camera in this instance or placed to the far left so that it is looking into the frame instead of looking out of the frame. And finally I'd like it if the tree branch on the right was somehow more mitigated as it is distracting for me.

[tdodd]

I'll try to give a very quick critique of each. It would be helpful if they were numbered, for reference, so I shall assume numbering of each. Apologies if my comments come across as somewhat negative but hopefully they will give you some ideas for the future...

1. I don't see a subject here. Where is the eye supposed to be drawn? It's a messy looking, nondescript scene.

2. What is the subject? The car is chopped off, seemingly at random, and the setting in which it sits is not really visible. The sky, of which there is a lot, is lacking interesting features. If the car is the subject then it is not lit well to attract interest. Some fill flash would have helped, as would turning on the car lights.

There is a common compositional technique, when things have a front end and a back end, to leave space in front of the subject for it to "move" into, even if it is a parked car. In this image it would be nice to be able to see more of what the car is "looking" at. I think a landscape orientation showing more of the background would give better context for the vehicle.

3. Very centred (dull) composition, yet given that it is slightly off centre, it goes against the compositional rule/guideline to leave more space in front of a subject than behind it. If you'd only positioned the head a little to the right of the frame instead of the left.... Also, given the nature of giraffes and their necks, why the landscape orientation? There is nothing of interest to either side of the giraffe.

4. Doesn't work for me. The animals are in their own shade and the composition is not great. I think you should have waited for the giraffes to position themselves in a more pleasing fashion, more head to head or face to face than head to base of neck.

5. Face is too centred. There is too much dead space above her head. She is face on to the camera in body and head position. a bit more of a quarter angle would be more appealing, I think. It does not look sharp - especially her face/eyes.

6. Actually quite nice, and quite dramatic looking, with great colour, but underexposed. I'm sure this could be livened up with some editing, especially if shot raw.

7. Very centred, once again. Background does not appear to have been considered - the bright glare on the bannister is distracting and not complementary in colour balance. If you'd changed your position, or gone portrait and tightened the framing you could have got a stonger image.

8. Compositionally, you have too much space behind your subject. The details in the black fur are completely lost, due to lack of light. This could probably do with some fill flash to cheer up the subject, or wait until the subject moved position to become better lit. It would also be nice if you could see the eyes properly (lighting/angle), and even better, have them looking at you.

To sum that lot up into key learning points....

1. Always be clear what your subject is and take account of the background against which it is set. The background can be just as important as the subject, so check you angles and your choice of aperture and thus DOF.
2. Look up some basic guidelines for composition, especially the rule of thirds and "lead space" or "nose space".
3. When you have a backlit subject, consider using flash to throw some light into the shadow areas. Flash is not only to be used when the scene as a whole is too dark (indoors or at night), but whenever you need to balance the light levels within a scene.

[DStanic]

How long have you been shooting with DSLR? Just because you have $x.xxx spend on gear doesn't mean anything. The more practise and the longer you shoot the better you will get as long as you realize what is good or bad about your pictures.

[Walczak Photo]

I'm not going to bother with each image specifically here but the two consistent problems I'm seeing are that you need to pay more attention to composition/framing and lighting. For example, the first shot there...I have no idea at all what you were taking a picture of. Also, I'm not sure what the point of the car shot was either. The shot of the girl under the giraffes isn't bad, but it needs to be cropped tighter. The shot of the statue just above the panda might have worked if it had of been composed differently...perhaps a portrait again cropped in more. With the shot of the ruins, I would have gone with the rule of thirds here and also, the shot is too dark.



My biggest suggestion to you would to be spend a little more time thinking about the shot before you press the shutter. Look at the scene thru the view finder and look for ways to improve it...can you find a better angle? Should you move/zoom in closer? Get a book or video or two from the library or just look up "photography composition" on the internet and learn what makes for a good and interesting picture then try to apply those things to you own work. Also, I would suggest that you pay more attention to your lighting. Good or dramatic lighting can make or break a photo. In many of these shots they look like very flat or very harsh lighting...pay more attention to the time of day you are shooting and try and keep the sun behind you. Over-all you seem to have a pretty good eye for subject matter but you haven't learned how to "fine tune" your skills yet to really bring you images beyond snap shots.

Just my $.02 worth,
Jim

[Erich in Az]

I'll also add that you might want to think about taking shots from angles that vary from those that the average person sees when looking at something.

In other words, get down low, get up close, change something. make people see ordinary things in extraordinary ways ;)

[MacBailey]

First I would ask you a question. What do you think makes a great shot/photograph? Are you wanting to make good photos or create Art? Today, anyone can buy a self focusing, auto exposure camera and take a well focused and correctly exposed picture and most unknowing people will think it is good. However, you must first learn to do that before you can go on. No one starts out taking great shots much less ART. Don't feel bad if you have not reached the level you desire. Each level of photography builds upon what you have previously learned.

Nothing can take the place of a good eye. Can you learn that, I think so if you try. To give you advice on what to do better here I would say study photos that grab you and ask yourself what about this makes it good. Because you can take a photo that is well focused and properly exposed that has nothing to say. Great photos have something to say a story to tell. That takes time to learn.

One thing I notice in most of your photos is your subjects are mostly dead center. Learn how to compose what you are shooting to bring attention to it. Learn the rule of 3rds. Leading lines etc. Look at paintings and study them. SHOOT SHOOT SHOOT and study them. Once shot try cropping them in different ways to see what looks better.

Good luck and no one sucks. we are all learning...

[Hegemon.]

I've gotten used to using the center AF point when I shoot; I don't trust full-AF. Should I change that, or just crop more carefully?

Thanks for your suggestions, guys.

[MacBailey]

I use the center point mostly also. "Back in the day" of manual focus cameras your focus prism was always in the center so I just got used to focusing and then recomposing. It is easy to fall into the trap of placing every thing center. Often I have seen beginners think if it is not centered it was wrong. That is the learning process. Some time when I am shooting something that is fast moving or action I will shoot it center and crop later. Play around with cropping and see what comes up. But when you have time try doing it in camera. It will make you a better shooter and help train you eye. Just keep making mental notes of things you see that inspire you and try to use what you learn in what you shoot. Remember when placing something in your viewfinder and it is facing more one way than another what is behind the person is not near as important than the direction they are facing or angled toward. Just a tip.

[Walczak Photo]

I've gotten used to using the center AF point when I shoot; I don't trust full-AF. Should I change that, or just crop more carefully?

Thanks for your suggestions, guys.


How you focus your camera...as in which focus point you use, has little to do with how you frame/crop your images. It's simply the point that the AF system will focus on. While I know other's are often against this, I do often use a single AF point myself and if I'm using a shallow DOF on something, I will often focus, then recompose the shot and click the shutter. Full AF does work well in many situations too but -how- you use your auto focus really depends on what you are shooting (and often why). For example, if I'm shooting portraits of dogs (which I often do), I'll use one of the end AF points (with the camera sideways for a "portrait) and aim that at the dog's eye so that the eyes are sharp. Once the focus locks, I'll keep the button down and recompose the shot a bit to how I want it (assuming the dog doesn't move or something, LOL!).

Again though I would have to reiterate that the issue with your shots here doesn't seem to be focus as much as simply composition. I would personally spend less time worrying about "which auto focus point to use" and more time worrying about how the image looks in the view finder. Now a days cameras are pretty "smart" and it's pretty easy to get a sharp, well exposed image with the camera on full auto, but if that image is still boring to look it, no one's really going to care.

Peace,
Jim

[rammy]

I agree with Jim (Walczak Photo) on his comments about light and composition.

For scenic's, use the rule of thirds and interest in the foreground, middle and background. For portraits (of anything), get in close and think about object isolation.

Most of the time you can't shoot everything in the early morning or evening when the sun is within the golden hours, mainly because the light is golden for less than an hour, so plan your day. Go where you want to take your scenic in the morning and evening golden hours and take what you can. Through the day concentrate on close-ups.

Best of luck on your progression.

[rsscp1]

I think it's good that you allow yourself to be critical of your work and that you can see that there's room for improvement. I think this is key to becoming a better photographer.