My First Weeks of Photography.

[Derricklmnop]

Hello. I just got my camera last week and i've taken tons of shots. I've created a Flickr, and i'm in love with it. Please let me know what you think! And add my on Flickr if you have one! =)

Flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/derricklmnop/

Here are a couple:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3630/3393671091_813f5a7c76.jpg?v=0

Description:
There's times in life where your vision can be as narrow and long as this hall way. Let's just say it will never end.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3435/3392013713_ef889cb9fa.jpg?v=0

Description:
Just roaming around a cold and tiring night with my cousin on the night of the Awak-a-thon until i found the Flickr Hotel. Who would of known.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3628/3390568099_9cfa774f80.jpg?v=0

Description:
Any day in my neighborhood is just another one normal day.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3634/3378361878_8df172978d.jpg?v=0

Description:
Not that i could ever accomplish grinding rails. I'd be too scared. Maybe i'll take a whack at it one day. Hopefully i won't fall on my face though.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3612/3374610606_bc4e0b472a.jpg?v=0

Description:
This is actually my first sky/clouds shot. I was at my local mall and just outside the food court window, i noticed the sky was so beautiful. I couldn't resist, i had to leave my friends for a while and take this picture.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3462/3371153517_a05f9ce3d0.jpg?v=0

Description:
I miss those times when you were in elementary school and when you'd be so excited for recess just so you can get on the swings. It's even better when someone pushes you.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3445/3383484329_1fbdd6c7ff.jpg?v=0

Description:
To me, life can be considered a book. We won't know about it unless we discover what is in store for us. If we do not travel and discover, we have only just started on page one.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3084/3381421142_acfb15a371.jpg?v=0

Description:
Have you ever looked through the mirror and thought everything would be okay? But in reality, things come crashing down on you that you can't even describe it. Have you ever looked through the mirror and saw yourself happy? But deep down inside, you were so hurt you could barely fall asleep. Maybe you just have to look a little bit closer.

Thanks in advance. =)

[Flo]

I really like the text you have added in the photos.....

Push Me and the last got my attention.

[Derricklmnop]

Thanks a lot Flo. =)

[Salma]

These are awesome :D

[Salma]

The last one is my favourite!

[Derricklmnop]

Yeah, many people like the last one i've created. Thanks Nashilee.

[Salma]

Welcome :D

[tonydee]

A good, energetic start. I suggest you google for "photography composition" and read the first dozen articles you find... some basic ideas like "rule of thirds", "lead in" lines, use of diagonals, etc. will take you to the next level. Also, be wary of over-exposing your shots... good to check the histogram on your camera, and if the highlights are blown - reshoot immediately a stop or two "underexposed". If this means nothing to you, let me know and I'll post a few screen shots and explain properly....

Cheers, Tony

[Derricklmnop]

Thanks for the info Tony. Actually, i've just been getting into what you're talking about. I've been reading articles and learning to read histograms to insure my highlight and shadow levels are proper. Thanks for your suggestion.

[LBaldwin]

It seems you have something to say and have found an outlet, good on ya mate!!
Keep shooting, you're doing just fine!

[perfeng702]

shot of the swing set is excellent.

[Derricklmnop]

Thanks guys. =)

[Grimlock]

These are great photos. Very creative and enjoyed the descriptions as well.

Keep posting.

[LBaldwin]

Hey Derrick, don't spend too much time on the books just yet, keep shooting that really the best school.

[Derricklmnop]

I appreciate it Les. That's actually what i'm doing right now. As much as it could be informative, i'm self-learning right now. And i think that's my best way to go. Just discovering.

[eror11]

I almost can't believe you just began. If that's true, I think you have great talent that you owe yourself to develop. I do see some technical faults in a few of them that kind of bug me, but that's minor considering.

[Derricklmnop]

Thank you. I appreciate the compliment.

[hawaiiboy]

I think this is a great start for you.....I love the first and last
shots...they both carry a lot of meaning for me with your
captions as well

Nice work

[Derricklmnop]

I just love giving meaning to the photographs i take. It's like expressing myself through photos. Thank you.

[jnoreiga]

Dude, you are very talented. I'm just starting out and the type of pictures you created is exactly what I would like to create. My first DSLR camera will be the t1i. Can't wait until May!

[Derricklmnop]

I'm happy to hear that. Good luck when you get your new camera. =) And if you have any questions about anything, feel free to ask.

[renton]

OP:

Nice work and vision. I especially like #1, great how it is but might be a great candidate for a slight bit of desaturation and overall darkening - could make for a good, creepy hallway.

Good job on including the text as well without making it over the top and distracting.

[davruns]

Excellent shots. That first one reminds me of the light at the end of the tunnel. Maybe you can add a light in the end of the hallway and some words to that one as well!

[Derricklmnop]

Thanks guys. =)

I recently took new ones. Tell me what you think of these:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3420/3397774536_d740837a9a.jpg?v=0

Description:
I used to think plucking the pedels on a beautiful flower telling myself "She loves me, she loves me not." would help me feel better about the one i loved. Until i got to the very end telling myself "She loves me not." did i realize that she loved me not.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3227/3399734931_6c5196fbb0.jpg?v=0

Description:
Love at first sight is easy to understand; it's when two people have been looking at each other for a lifetime that it becomes a miracle.

Est. 1980. My Mother and Father had just married and they both won these two lovely teddy bears together at Circus Circus. It symbolizes their love for each other.

[fixedwrench]

i really like the pp work done. especially like the "through the sky" photo.

[Derricklmnop]

Thanks. I try going day-to-day learning new techniques and better results. I don't really want them to start looking unnatural but still look unbelievable.

[mhart008]

I really like the addition of the text, to some great images. Keep it up!

[Derricklmnop]

Thanks Matt. =)

[kansascityshuffle]

Nice stuff...You've got the eye for it, now just keep shooting!

[julioangelortiz]

Wow, great for just beginning. You've got the knack / eye for it. As a fellow beginner, I'm jealous. ;-) Keep it up!

[Derricklmnop]

Thanks you two. I added you to Flickr Julio. Great stuff!

Anyway, i have another one i just took today. It's became. my favorite one yet.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3422/3403569028_6cb148f4b6.jpg?v=0

Description:
Sometimes i just want to get away from everything. See the world. Looking overhead at the beautiful sun and sky makes me wonder what the rest of the world is like out there. One day i'll find out. As for now, i can only close my eyes, feel the wind, and pretend as if i were swimming in the sky.

[PsychoMaiko]

I really like your work. It's hard to believe that you're just a beginner. You must have some background knowledge in other fields related to digital media before you started..

[Karizmatik]

You have some technical mistakes: Exposure, composition, etc

But for the most part, like people have said, they aren't bad for a beginner!

[Carerra]

Nice first shots, Once you work on composition and exposure then bang the world is yours, you have a great eye and it can only get better, keep up the good work!!:)

[Derricklmnop]

Yeah, actually I've been playing around with the exposure and contrast every new picture I take. But how do you know if the picture is overly contrasted? Or if the composition is bad?

[Derricklmnop]

I've been playing around with some stuff and i think this one came out really nice. I think i'm getting the hang of it. =)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3057/3406100794_3e16887325.jpg

Description:
Perspective: If we could see the miracle of a single flower clearly, our whole life would change.

It's amazing how a flower lives. They stand there all day in the hot son, not caring about what the world does. People may think that they are not much, but yes, they are living. If only we could see how a flower lives, our lives would change dramatically.

[tonydee]

Yeah, actually I've been playing around with the exposure and contrast every new picture I take. But how do you know if the picture is overly contrasted? Or if the composition is bad?

Technically, you can get some idea of the overall contrast from the histogram: a low-contrast image has the majority of the brightness levels in the image at around the same level in the histogram, which appears as a narrow tall curve somewhere along the histogram. High-contrast images have more dark area indicated by area at the left of the histogram, and bright areas at the right. If the centre has low readings then it's a very high contrast image.

It's considerably more difficult to quantify the localised contrasts within a picture, but by learning to adjust local contrast using software (possible in Gimp, LightZone, Photoshop etc), you get a more concrete feel for the amount of local contrast in out-of-the-camera shots, or ones someone else shows you.

For composition, you should get some insights from reading online articles on Composition. As you learn what makes for good composition, you'll get some idea what constitutes bad composition, though of course a small number of pictures break all the rules to spectacularly good effect. At that level, it's a highly subjective thing, and there'll be more disparity in the opinion different people will have of the work.

Good luck with it all,
Tony

[Derricklmnop]

Thanks for the info Tony, helped me greatly. =)

[Derricklmnop]

Decided to have a little fun. =)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3335/3411055016_9099e02908.jpg?v=0

Description:
I just found this guy on the grass getting a tan. And i said hey, can i get a picture of you? He said, yeah sure why not? So i did. Now we're best friends.

Credits to Arthur for the creative description.

[shadyhugs]

What great beginning shots! You are very talented. I'm new to this thing too, but I think you have a good head start on a lot of people. The photos and descriptions in the first post are especially nice!

As for composition, it just takes some time to work out. I feel like I am just now (after a year of working on my photography) starting to get the hang of composition. I still have a long way to go in all aspects, but composition is starting to make more sense to me.

As others have said, keep shooting, but also looking at other people's photos has really helped me. Over time I've gained a much better understanding of composition by shooting and always looking at others' works. Not to reproduce their styles, but to help me "see" better when I am out shooting.

I really like your work so far, and the style of your shots.

[Lightworks Imaging]

The swings... That shot is keeping me up at night. There's really something there. Nice work, technique, is learnable. The talent, composition, and such the conceptual ideas, come much harder for me. Wait until you add flash to your toolkit. Then it gets interesting. Nice work.

[Derricklmnop]

Thanks guys, it means a lot to me.

[Derricklmnop]

Some new photos this week. =)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3597/3411889881_586ff55e4b.jpg?v=0

Description:
The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely, or unhappy is to look outside. Better yet, go outside. Somewhere where you are able to feel the breeze, see the sun, find peace and more importantly, not be enclosed inside thinking too much about your problems.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3632/3415107442_f75229f31e.jpg?v=0

Description:
The moments we will always remember the most are those moments we have when we are at a late night dinner. It is not the dinner, it is not the date, nor is it the place. It's the conversations and laughters you share.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3407/3414577835_1b27bf1d55.jpg?v=0

Description:
There is nothing more relieving than coming home after a long and rough day. My place for shelter, peace, and family.

[Sisyphus]

I hope you continue adding the creative captions to your photos. They lend a personal dimension to the presentation, which I quite enjoy.

[tonydee]

I hope you continue adding the creative captions to your photos. They lend a personal dimension to the presentation, which I quite enjoy.

It is refreshing... quite fun just to see how everyone in the group has reacted to them... more feedback related to the captions that the images themselves. But it's back to the oft-repeated but rarely so literally (or literarily) followed concept: make your pictures tell a story.

Still, to a warped mind there's room for contrary thought sometimes...

The moments we will always remember the most are those moments we have when we are at a late night dinner. It is not the dinner, it is not the date, nor is it the place. It's the conversations and laughters you share. Yes... have we found a saint? And evidently, one who's never drunk beer to excess on cold days....

There is nothing more relieving than coming home after a long and rough day. My place for shelter, peace, and family.All good... a delightful contribution on many levels.

Cheers, Tony

[tonydee]

Lots of photos here: I'm probably not the only one who's been overwhelmed contemplating the usual style of critical feedback, strengths and weaknesses. Derrick's pictures are proving enormously popular, so hoping others will also chip in with some more concrete photographic points: can only make the "image + story" format he's using even more powerful.

post #1 --------------------

It will never end: Text placement is particularly subtle here, and the image itself isn't attractive as such, so the message is important to the presentation. For my taste, the contrast is too high, and the image too yellow, producing a bit of a garish character. Reducing the yellow does give a fresher appearance: less suggestion of a hospital corridor... but perhaps that overtone's not inappropriate to the message. Greyscale's a possibility, but doesn't add much. Compositionally very simple but well judged... I like the use of landscape where portrait might be more obvious... does make the viewer feel more like the image is wrapping around them, and not just out in front somewhere.

Flickr: Well, not really any message with that one, nor is it meant to be photographically anything but a pun, so not much to say. Very yellow.

One normal day: too much sky and not enough ground. Cropping into buildings, vehicles, light poles, trees etc. without showing their connection to the ground robs the image of vital visual clues to depth. I understand you don't want the details distracting attention from the open blue sky and message, but I think the wide angle is sufficient to diminish them, as long as you've got a pretty consistent expanse of grass or road immediately in front of the camera. A few spots are a bit overexposed too... a curves adjustment can help retain that optimistically bright overall feel without burning the highlights.

Grinding Rails: rail disappears into the corner which is good, and carries the eye into the shot, but the co-incidence with the grass's horizon tends to confuse the eye a bit. The height of that horizon is also awkward through the shot... that old Rule of Thirds is still a good guideline: put the important lines dividing the image a third in from an edge. You've done this instinctively by having the rail terminate about a third in from the right, which is great. The horizon is also tilted - the photo needs a small rotation counter-clockwise, and again it's a bit over-exposed. Shooting RAW - which captures a bit extra dynamic range - can sometimes help with these shots where some things are just a smidge too bright, but it almost coped. Really excessive lighting problems and you have to get into all that High Dynamic Range stuff... multiple bracketed exposures combined in software. Separately, this rail's purpose may be blindingly obvious to you, but I wouldn't have known what it was without a bit of guesswork and inference... I think a skateboard somewhere might have been a clue for the generally clueless, like me.

Through the sky: similar issue re chopping into elements on the ground without actually showing the ground... in this case the eye fixes on them then travels down and out of the photo, rather than meeting the ground and being encouraged to search within the photo for the next point of reference. This is another case where the dynamic range is huge, and given you're not trying to retain any shadow detail in the silhouettes, you can (and might have - not sure how bad it was out there) reduced the blown area by deliberately underexposing, then adjusting the brightness with "curves" to get the overall brightness you want through the picture, and the contrast through the clouds. Exposure issues don't look bad for a shot into the sun, so am curious whether you've already employed some tactic like this.

Swings: Rule of Thirds placement suggests the closer, dominant seat should probably be in a third from one side, rather than so central. That may also slightly deemphasise the dark underside, and help carry the eye along the seat from near-side to far-side, then on through the image. Again, shooting into the sun is generally a bad idea... the sky here is much less appealing for being washed out, and the buildings and other play facilities are dull for lack of reflected sunlight. I'm not complaining about that last bit - buildings and playground - as perhaps the dullness combines with the empty swing to give a feeling of remembrance and it being behind (timewise) and hence out of reach. Still, just a few minutes different and the sun would be below the horizon and the lighting much more flattering without compromising the dullness.

Life is like a book: Having the lamp only half included does pull the eye to the top, and the curving stand exacerbates the issue, but luckily the shape of the lamp is harmonious enough that I find myself looking around it and not as frustrated at not seeing the rest of what I know ought to be just above. Still worth contemplating something: you're not limited to the aspect ratio (the rectangular shape) that the camera is using by default. Many fine-art photos are taken on film cameras using a 4:5 ratio... much squarer, and that might have suited this shot. The textual story helps appreciate the aspects you're contemplating in deriving the simile "life is like a book": exploration = turning pages... but the image doesn't really communicate that to me... there's no element representing "life" in it.

Feelings hurt / am strong: very good... clever conception, good execution. Could WB it but clearly not inappropriate to the scene.

post #24 -------------------

She loves me / not: this is an interesting one technically, because the image is actually overexposed even though you don't have white areas. Notice how the petals are kind of "glowing" yellow, but in many places you can't see any texture (local differences in brightness or hue communicate texture)... instead they look smoothed and featureless. The image is actually over-exposed on the Red colour channel. When the camera takes pictures, it measures intensities for red, green and blue separately, and for JPEGs records a number from 0 = black through 255 = brightest possible for each. You put 255 red, green and blue all side by side and the eye sees white. But you put a lot of red and a bit of green and rather little blue, and you see yellow. Here you've got 255 reds all over, and that's why the detail is lacking... there's no headroom left for the image to go a bit brighter here or dimmer there. Also, the flower is a bit central, the flower immediately behind leads the eye up and out of the image, and the flower at bottom right is kind of awkwardly cropped in too. If you search the channel you'll find lots of flower shots with good and bad composition, and get a few more ideas about how to put a flower flatteringly in frame. Another aspect of that to look out for is depth of field... using a wider aperture tends to blur the background pleasingly... and that may look better.

Love at first sight: this is one where perhaps the aperture should be smaller, and depth of field greater. Note the right side of the male bear is loosing focus. It's a little bit of a strange crop and composition - quite front on and left/right down-the-middle - while I think something more creative may have worked better, I think it still works ok. The right bear's head though is clearly sporting something dark, creating some desire to see what it is that leads the eye out of the image. The "S" in "SO" is also obfuscated by some texture in the "fur"... might be good to blur the fur just a touch beforehand adding the text so it's easier to read... but then in your full size image maybe it's not so hard to begin with....

post #31 --------------

Swimming in the air: still shooting in to the sun, this time with flare. Clouds came out nicely wispy, which ties in with the swimming idea, but there's little ability to travel along the scene towards where the sun is, following your journey "out there", as the grass bank dominates much of the shot and isn't far from the camera, then there's the tiniest side-on slice of cityscape with no sense of depth, mountains and sun. You've got very little height of pixels representing all that distance from far bank to sun, which doesn't really mesh with encouraging the viewer to imagine traveling that distance. Again, it's a 1:1 horizontal divide rather than the textbook 2:1. In this case, the sky's the subject, so should probably be the "2", with a third of ground below. You've also got lines running across the image, but nothing much - just a crack in the bitumen - running towards the sun, and the destination it's meant to represent... the viewer's eye tends to slide left and right through the image, and pop in and out rather than have any progressive path to follow.

post #36 ----------------------

perspective: The shot's really good for taking an unusual angle on the flower, though the angle's probably unusual because it's not the most flattering. But this isn't about flattering the flower per-se, more the "miracle" of its existence, so the equal emphasis on stem and leaves is very clever and appropriate. I do think some elements running more through the shot, from front to back rather than consistently upright, would use changing levels of focus to carry the eye more harmoniously into the background and sky. As is, the eye hits the flower and kind of stops, then is either pulled upwards and out by the green wedge at right or downwards by the yellows at bottom left. Background blue is tending to get a bit "thin" and white because the blue channel is much more blown than the red or green (they're all a bit blown). Again, be careful of over exposure. I think you like bright images, but shoot them so the histogram and camera monitor aren't indicated over-exposure, then brighten them in a controlled way in post-processing (e.g. curves) and you'll be happier with the colour and saturation results, though may get a bit more noise.

post #39 --------------

STITCH: I like the focus through the grass, but the background is distracting. I can understand not necessarily wanting to angle the camera more downwards and have only grass, as this communicates an urban setting and a "lost toy" feel, but photographically it's distracting. Having his feet below the bottom of the image, and his eyes reaching up to the half way mark, is also an interesting choice... really makes him feel embedded into the ground... and again helps in conveying that lost and settled in aspect. The placement in a third from left works well here.

post #43 ----------------

Outside my window: really not much to look at here... I don't see the scene outside being an inviting, more energised or appealing place. Can understand wanting to keep it blurred and abstract, but some more greens, sky blue etc would help support the theme.

Late night dinner: not sure if the table tops are horizontal... looks a bit slanted down to the right...? Yellow colour is warm which is good... conveys comfort, but blown in parts. This is one of those nasty situations where HDR can help, even though it's a hassle. Because you've got down low, the eye can't travel along the table, and the relatively placements of chairs is important to guide the eye into the shot... this works ok down the left towards that most-blown picture, but the right side of the shot is impenetrable and "blocked up". It's a bit busy too. I think some additional small, inviting touches may have improve it, such as "opening" the angle of the chair whose back we see at right in a way to invite the viewer on to it (i.e. 30 degree counter-clockwise rotation from above). This could also provide a more complete view of the light shade behind it. The chair at extreme right should simply be moved out of frame. The menu overlapping the light-shade is too busy and confusing a combination. I'm not sure this place empty is a better way to convey the message than seeing it peopled, perhaps though with a 50% opacity overlay of the room empty to "ghost" the people and suggest that element of remembrance. But then shooting with people about is sometimes impractical (diners or restaurateurs might not appreciate it).

Home sweet home: well done for having the path take quite a large surface area and successfully suggest the journey back home... forms a good lead-in line and carries the eye through nicely but not too directly, emphasising the turn offs into individual properties. Lighting's clearly late afternoon from the blown highlights on the buildings at right... ties in with an (early) "end of day" feel while still being upbeat and bright.　　Plants at bottom right add considerable interest, and the light playing on the tree in the centre does too - it's big enough to play a useful role tying things together without being big enough to unbalance the shot. I do kind of wish the path wasn't so obviously sloping at bottom... would invite the viewer on a bit more reassuringly... but nothing you could do about it and would be a pain to correct in post processing.

Well, brain dump completed. 3:30am. Oh dear.

Cheers, Tony

[Derricklmnop]

Tony, i really appreciate the suggestions and analyzations. I didn't actually think you'd critique all of the images i posted up. Haha. So thank you so much. I'm actually really glad you took the time to let me know photogenically how i've improved or done of my photographs. So thanks again Tony, your help is really appreciated. I'll take what you said in consideration, and i'll read over this from time to time and see how i can improve. =)

[gitarmac]

I really like them overall. I didn't care for the sunset or flower pics, those topics bore me unless there is something differant about them. Oh I take them too, for practice, then I delete them.

The pictures and the phrases would make good cards.

[renton]

... Tony's detailed critique..


Awesome critique Tony. I am sure this very was helpful to the OP, but even just as an observer, it is very helpful to me as well. It is great to see a photo and then an accompanying thoughtful critique especially when it isn't your own photo. That way, you really have no attachment to the photo and can be objective in viewing the photo and absorbing the advice given.

kudos.

[Derricklmnop]

Thanks you two. As i told Tony, i really didn't want to post multiple threads, so i'll keep this my own little personal thread that i'll be able to show my latest ones for to everyone. Anyway, here's what i've been photographing lately.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3604/3420304822_1024ef30c5.jpg

Description:
Everyone gets 24 hours every day. No one gets 25 or 23. What do you choose with your time?

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3408/3422150141_a0aec0f775.jpg

Description:
There is a little bit of magic surrounding us each and every day. It is called love.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3378/3423236920_3344bce384.jpg

Description:
R.I.P Sandra Cantu

You can feel the energy and prayers within the crowd of people. Hundreds of people gathered from the Tracy community to support the family in which they are going through. This is probably the saddest day i've ever experienced. She was so innocent.. My condolences to her family. Rest in peace Sandra Cantu.


TRACY, Calif. -- Sandra Cantu's body was found Monday(April 06, 2009) inside a piece of luggage pulled from a San Joaquin County irrigation pond, Tracy police said. The 8-year-old girl disappeared more than a week ago.

www.kcra.com/news/19112110/detail.html

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3328/3425850078_3abe810a3a.jpg

Description:
The outside world may not always be as pretty as it seems. Terrible things happen every day. Being at the wrong place at the wrong time may be something to always remember.

------------------------------

The last two shots were shot in super darkness and low light conditions and i really didn't have the right equipment so i had to do what i had to do to make it atleast look decent. So yeah, i understand they look dark. Maybe in the near future, i'll atleast bring my tripod or get an external flash. Hehe.