A few taken with my new lens

[sancho1983]

Have been around and about with my new 18-55 IS lens, comments and criticism (constructive!) is always appreciated

http://i635.photobucket.com/albums/uu79/sancho_1983/rutlandwater_92.jpg

http://i635.photobucket.com/albums/uu79/sancho_1983/rutlandwater_89.jpg

http://i635.photobucket.com/albums/uu79/sancho_1983/rutlandwater_68.jpg

http://i635.photobucket.com/albums/uu79/sancho_1983/uffington_17.jpg

[tonydee]

#1: think it suggests a bit of context in a clever way. Still, the flowers are quite a way to the left (and probably have to be to balance the picture overall), which does tend to push the eye away to the right, where the plaque is out of focus and unreadable. That's where it doesn't quite add up to me...

#2: very clever... evocative and thought-provoking with the juxtaposition of those particular words in a such a setting. Won't satisfy the curiosity it arouses, but cool none-the-less.

#3: this is too much of a departure from the rule of thirds, with the picture divided into four sections by the wire and brighter vertical pole behind, leaving the bottom right way too heavy for the shot overall. I think you should have framed the foreground post to fill the bottom right four ninths of the image. The flower vs barbed wire seem a little contrived too, if anyone bothers to consider it but it's not really thought provoking enough that such an objection comes naturally to my mind (we see lots of barbed wire and photos in here - get numb to it).

#4: I don't see the composition nor lighting here hanging together. The main, central, large and dark subject's stem enters the photo from a strange position compositionally. With so much not lit it's frustrating to look at, devoid of detail of surface and the detail of outline that comes from silhouettes. There are also a lot of bright elements crossing the border of the frame, which inevitably draws the eye out of the photo.

Cheers, Tony

[sancho1983]

Thanks for feedback, haven't been 'shooting' long, so there's loads to get my head round. Think i've finally grasped the concept of Aperture/Shutter speed etc, now need to work on composition etc. Can only get better with feedback!

Do you think the first one would be improved if the plaque was in focus? I quite liked it oof because it doesn't really matter who was on it, it represents more than just one person? I know nothing about things like that though!!

I see what you mean about number 3, the top of the post on the right is on a line of thirds, and the flower is on a right third, which is what i was looking at, but looking at it now i see you're right it's split up into quarters and quite unbalanced.

Perhaps if i removed some of the distractions in 4 it would improve? or is it a 'lost cause' :)

Thanks again, this site is really helping me improve with people offering critique.

[sancho1983]

Anybody have any other comments? They can't be that bad!!! :)

[ddave]

Maybe it's the choice of words that is bugging me in shot No.2.... I read "pleasure memorial" :)

[sancho1983]

lol, i suppose it is hard to get away from that once you've seen it :)

[Bonito]

I actually like the 3rd one a lot. I like the contrast between the harsh, rusted barb wire and the flower. Just my opinion.

[tonydee]

Thanks for feedback, haven't been 'shooting' long, so there's loads to get my head round. Think i've finally grasped the concept of Aperture/Shutter speed etc, now need to work on composition etc. Can only get better with feedback!

Quite so, and if you've only recently got the aperture/shutter-speed thing worked out, then I must say you're doing pretty well overall.

Do you think the first one would be improved if the plaque was in focus? I quite liked it oof because it doesn't really matter who was on it, it represents more than just one person? I know nothing about things like that though!!

I think it's one of those things where, as you become conscious of the issues, you hedge your bets and take two photos then see how you feel about them later. The beauty of digital and cheap 32GB cards nowadays. I suspect I'd prefer to see a name, though I do understand your point.

Perhaps if i removed some of the distractions in 4 it would improve? or is it a 'lost cause' :)

I think this one is a lost cause. I've taken quite a few shots like this, and seen many better ones in the magazines here in this photo-mad country, and it's a ways short of the mark. It'd be better to spend ten minutes reshooting from different angles, trying to get different backgrounds colour and lighting, depths-of-field, levels of magnification etc. rather than ten minutes on the computer.

All the best with it.

Cheers, Tony

[sancho1983]

I actually like the 3rd one a lot. I like the contrast between the harsh, rusted barb wire and the flower. Just my opinion.

Thanks

Quite so, and if you've only recently got the aperture/shutter-speed thing worked out, then I must say you're doing pretty well overall.

I've prety much sorted what i think of as the 'first tier'; aperture, ISO and Shutter speed, now need to understand more of the 'second tier' i.e. Which white balance to use when, and i still don't really understand metering, oh and AI Servo................

Always learning :D


I think this one is a lost cause. I've taken quite a few shots like this, and seen many better ones in the magazines here in this photo-mad country, and it's a ways short of the mark. It'd be better to spend ten minutes reshooting from different angles, trying to get different backgrounds colour and lighting, depths-of-field, levels of magnification etc. rather than ten minutes on the computer.

All the best with it.

Cheers, Tony

How would be the best way to make a sillhouette (sp?), would it be my position in relation to the head and the sun? Or is it an aperture /shutter speed adjustment?

Thanks again :)

[tonydee]

How would be the best way to make a sillhouette (sp?), would it be my position in relation to the head and the sun? Or is it an aperture /shutter speed adjustment?

It's more a matter of getting a dominant light source behind the subject, and (relatively) very little light from the side that the camera sees. Basically, try different times of day, cloud conditions, angles into/away-from the sun etc.. Failing this, as long as you can make the subject a bit darker than the background, you can accentuate the difference using a "curves" adjustment in post-processing. It's not always the best option in terms of final result, but it does highlight the outline and allow more deliberate composition based on that.

Cheers, Tony