shooting textures and colors- time of the day

[keith breazeal]

I am going on a tangent away from airshows, motorcycle shows, and biker babes for a while. I had shot some cool bird houses a while back at mid day. This time I wanted a different look with lighting and textures. I waited till about an hour and a half before sunset and tried again. Instead of the 28-135mm, I opted for the 75-200L IS. The object was depth of field reduction, so I shot mostly at f2.8.

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa5/KBVP/IMG_7442a.jpg

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa5/KBVP/IMG_7365a.jpg

[howaboutnow]

I'd say you got the DOF very nicely.

[Bill Boehme]

I like the composition in #1.

[keith breazeal]

Thanks :) I pass by the ranch where all these bird houses are when I make the 25 mile trip to town. I have shot at different times of the day due the either some being in the shade or trying to get their old paint to pop out. Bird houses aren't my love of life, but these oldies are a challenge I need in order to learn the 40D and digital photography in general.

I have messed with this particular one and can't find a time of day or sun angle that is perfect. The light to dark paint and small detail just aren't happening. I have bracketed and tried mid-day and late afternoon.

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa5/KBVP/IMG_7522a.jpg

[tonydee]

Hi Keith.

All have good focus / DOF. #1's well composed, #2 and #3 too central. Rule of Thirds and all that... may seem trite but it works.

Am impressed by your quest for perfection... exposure and light for #3 looks pretty good to me... there's no obvious noise at the size posted, good detail in most of the shadows (agreed not ideal at the top of the post). Still... can try some other things like reflectors, waiting for a really overcast day where the whole sky is like a lightbox rather than directional lighting, flash fill.

When you used bracketing, you merged in PS or something? I'm surprised you found significant loss of detail... perhaps you could post some 100% crops from the pictures you are happy with, and those you're not? Not even sure what you mean by "light to dark paint... just [isn't] happening"...?

Sorry if I haven't been helpful.

Cheers, Tony

[keith breazeal]

re-cropped

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa5/KBVP/IMG_7522b.jpg

[Bill Boehme]

... can try some other things like reflectors, waiting for a really overcast day where the whole sky is like a lightbox rather than directional lighting, flash fill.

I was going to suggest shooting on an overcast day, so I will just second what Tony said. You might try a cloudy day with a broken ceiling (i.e., 60% or more cloud cover) or a day with a light overcast where there are no shadows or very soft shadows.