Help me improve! Insects, Nature, Chinese Garden!

[TreInJapan]

Howdy! I've been shooting on a Canon 500D/T1i for about 2 months now and I'm learning more about a lot of things, but I could use some input as well! Any input is appreciated, composition included!

Adjusted in DPP, shot in RAW.

1) Entrance to Chinese Garden
18-55, ISO 100, F/5, 1/80
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/yy325/TreInJapan/IMG_5961.jpg?t=1255436915

2) Trees and Sky
18-55, ISO 100, F/8, 1/80
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/yy325/TreInJapan/IMG_6094.jpg?t=1255436981

3) Mountain w/ Clouds
I couldn't figure out how to catch details in the foreground AND on the mountain...I messed with the "highlight/shadow" tabs in DPP but couldn't really improve it.
50mm, ISO 100, f/10, 1/160
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/yy325/TreInJapan/IMG_6147.jpg?t=1255437000

4) Bee!
Was I hitting the limits of my lens with this shot in terms of detail? To not get too close but zoom in, I had to stand like 4 feet away (minimum focus range on 55-250) or so fully zoomed in. Also, the sun was setting behind him and he was sitting on a white car....so it was hard to get all the detail I wanted, I think.
55-250, ISO 100, f/5.6, 1/250
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/yy325/TreInJapan/IMG_6177.jpg?t=1255437019

Thank you!

Tre

[lindsaytblum]

今日は。

I like the perspective in #2, and love #3. To catch details in the foreground and the background, set your camera to a narrow aperture, say, f/11 and higher. You used f/10, which is good, too. Don't be afraid to use f/22!

[jetcode]

the bee is the best image in my opinion ... really nice composition and decent focus (a little behind the eyes)

[Flo]

..
You are off to a pretty great start.;)I also like #2..crisp colors and sharp focus.

[ScottKCooper]

Love the concept of #1 - perhaps the animal is partially blown (see halfway down its right side beard). I'm also somewhat distracted by its left side of its mouth. looks processed. was it?

[CLPalermo]

The second and third pictures look very exceptional...and the last shot of the bee is a very nice macro shot.

[Q-Man]

I really like the "Trees and Sky" shot.

Q

[TreInJapan]

Love the concept of #1 - perhaps the animal is partially blown (see halfway down its right side beard). I'm also somewhat distracted by its left side of its mouth. looks processed. was it?

Yeah, I didn't mess around with the exposure at all, and I'm realizing now that I probably should have to avoid blowing out the white. Is that correct?

The animal is made of like what seems like big salt crystals, so it actually had a lot of texture to it. I'm not sure what you mean by processed, but I only adjusted the pic in DPP.

Thanks also to everyone else for your compliments and input!

[Mu Eugene]

Holy Batman, that's not just any bee but a hornet (スズメバチ). 4 feet is about as close as I'd like to go based on my childhood experience. Tough conditions, nice outcome - backlit fuzz nicely captured.

If you care to, invest in a good cpl (circular polarizing filter) - it will bring additional contrast to your pictures, makes the sky deeper blue, and can double as neutral density filter of up to 2 stops.

That being said, my impression of Hokkaido is that it is a distinctly northern island separate from the other three main islands of Japan. Just in terms of landscape and color, it has a kind of pale grace (i.e. silver birch forests) as the rest of Japan can be lush especially in summer. I guess what I am trying to say is that you have captured the scenes of Hokkaido very well in #2 and #3.

Buy a tripod in time for the annual Snow Festival - I look forward to night shots.

[TreInJapan]

Holy Batman, that's not just any bee but a hornet (スズメバチ). 4 feet is about as close as I'd like to go based on my childhood experience. Tough conditions, nice outcome - backlit fuzz nicely captured.

If you care to, invest in a good cpl (circular polarizing filter) - it will bring additional contrast to your pictures, makes the sky deeper blue, and can double as neutral density filter of up to 2 stops.

That being said, my impression of Hokkaido is that it is a distinctly northern island separate from the other three main islands of Japan. Just in terms of landscape and color, it has a kind of pale grace (i.e. silver birch forests) as the rest of Japan can be lush especially in summer. I guess what I am trying to say is that you have captured the scenes of Hokkaido very well in #2 and #3.

Buy a tripod in time for the annual Snow Festival - I look forward to night shots.



Thanks for the input dude!

Yeah, the bee was SUPER HUGE. About the size of my thumb, haha. So you're probably right. Did you get stung when you were little? I've never seen anything like it, but from my experience so far, everything naturally occurring is huge in Hokkaido. The crows here look like they could carry off a small child, the scallops are like golf balls, the spiders are more like small animals than insects, and the bees, well, you can see here, haha.

I do have a (decent, I hope!) circular polarizing filter. It's a Hoya and it was like $30ish or so. I've done a couple of shots where it worked in making the sky a deeper blue, but that's really the only situation that I've figured out to use it in. Could you make some more suggestions? I'm not super familiar with the ND filters, and most people don't seem to really have a good grasp on when to use them, so any input would be great on that too!

Yeah, Hokkaido is super different from the rest of Japan. Everything from how spacious it is, to the lifestyle and religion, and the nature as well. I have yet to spend much time around the rest of Japan, but from what I've seen of pictures and videos, it seems like Hokkaido does have that "pale grace". Except the sky. The sky here is super beautiful. :D

I will definitely be heading down to the snow festival when it starts up! :D