I suck and I just can't get better....

Dear Board,

I am these days at a low point in my hobby. Down in the pits. I have a great digital SLR. I have great lenses. But at the end of the day, I think I suck at photography. I have studied shutter speeds. I know aperature. I know the sunny 16 rule. I know 1 over focal length for handheld shots. I know iso 6400. I know what the LR/Mogrify plug-in for Lightroom is. I have a POTN camera strap. In fact, I have TWO straps - black AND red. I know what DOF and PP and C&C mean when I had no idea what these terms meant when I joined POTN.

It's been a year of shooting digital, reading tips and tricks. Lots of lurking on this Board. Lots of bookmarks to ideas and tips. Yet, still, I can't shoot like you folks. My images just don't get above C+. I can't start a thread and get any 'GREAT shot...." or "wows" or any of that. My threads die silently, aside from the occasionall pity comment.

Is it possible I just suck at this hobby? I guess it's possible. Maybe I am technically minded.... which I am.... but I don't have the 'eye'?

Don't get me wrong. I still shoot better than any of my friends or anyone I know within my three degrees of separation. But I can't get to the B or B+ posting level of you pros on this site.

Is there a POTN week long seminar I should attend? What is the DAMN secret to bust through the creative stratusphere?

signed....

shutterbumming

i'm with you. i have all the equipment but without the skills. Nobody has given a positive comment on any of my photos. My wife likes them which is worth it to me.

I'll just keep practicing to establish a 'style.' I think photography is like any other hobby. You have to practice to get good.

It's time to stop reading about gear and the technical side of photography, and to start reading about the important stuff!

Read up on composition, storytelling, timing, technique, what works and what doesn't, what rules there are and when to break them. Look at other people's photos that you admire, analyse why it is you think they are effective and good photographs, browse the share and critique forums here in areas that interest you, learn how to post process, then go out and shoot and practice a LOT!

An understanding of this side, the REAL side of photography, coupled with a sound grasp of the technical elements and good technique can make you an unstoppable photographer.

My dad got me into photography, and the first book he got me to read was not about technical stuff. It was called 'Mastering Composition'. Starting out with that really, really helped.

Keep at it! That's the juicy stuff that photography is really about, and is so much more entertaining to read about and study and DO than the technical stuff, which is also important of course.

There's your problem. Your straps need to be blue and red.

I did try to order a composition book once that I read about on this Board. And i in-fact ordered it online, and my credit card never got charged nor did it ever get delivered.

Any good reference books for composition and the 'eye' you can suggest?

1080iAddict wrote in post #4968334
I did try to order a composition book once that I read about on this Board. And i in-fact ordered it online, and my credit card never got charged nor did it ever get delivered.

Any good reference books for composition and the 'eye' you can suggest?

Well Brian Peterson has his 'Learning to See Creatively', but I myself have never read it.

I read 'Mastering Composition with your Digital SLR' and it's a GREAT starting point. After that it's the internet, this forum, photography magazines, and looking at lots of photos and shooting a lot.

There's also the though process that goes into each shot, which is crucial. For me, my mind works like this:

Landscapes - lots of research beforehand; find the location, time of sunset/sunrise, direction of sunset/sunrise. Go there 3-4 hours early, scout the location. Then I sit there and just absorb the atmosphere of the area and how it makes me feel. From that, I think about what kind of look I want my final shots to be like. Then I scout around for compositions that would achieve that feel. I make sure I have a beginning, middle, and end to each shot, and go through a list of compositional things to bear in mind like foreground interest, leading lines and so on. I then decide whether or not they are relevant and how they will work in the final image. I write down 3-5 compositions that I want to make, then I sit, make sure my camera is set correctly, and wait for the light to be right. Then there are about 20-40 minutes of frantic shooting after all that preparation.

Portraits/glamour: if the model is professional, we just roll with it. If it's a non-pro model, I think about what the final image is going to be like, what kind of emotion, expression and pose we want. Then I make sure the lighting is nailed down. After that, it's all about the mouth. We chat, and I talk to the model and establish a rapport, and try to compose quickly and fire off frames at the perfect moments when the poses and expressions are right. The mouth, I find, is the most important tool in portraiture.

Concerts: all about the moment and expression. I take frequent breaks, listen to the songs, and get a feel for the music and the band's personality. That helps me time my shutter releases so I can capture the emotion and moments that I want.

Birds: I just want the damn things in focus.

Everything else: it's all about adapting to the situation and deciding what you want your final image to do, and composing and adjusting your technique accordingly.

Some of mine do too!

Maybe you're too involved with tech stuff & not enough with your subject? This might help:
How do you guys get your IDEAS?

An easy point to me is keep it fun and simple

On the other hand learn to post process your photos in Photoshop

1080iAddict wrote in post #4968334
I did try to order a composition book once that I read about on this Board. And i in-fact ordered it online, and my credit card never got charged nor did it ever get delivered.

Any good reference books for composition and the 'eye' you can suggest?

Learning To See Creatively, by Bryan Peterson (who also wrote Understanding Exposure), is probably widely available, and is a nice starter book, because it is an easy read but with great ideas and practical exercises.

And, by the way, don't get too frustrated! You are not alone! I have shots from over the years that I'm quite happy with, and in '06 took a flying leap into DSLR photography and much more dedication to taking the time to learn, but to learn the "seeing" to create that "image" is daunting. People invest years to learn the craft and turn it into art.

And, yeah, I see pics in these forums that blow me away...especially the ones that say "whoo hoo, I got my first DSLR today and went out to take some test shots with the kit lens, and here's a few..." and they show a quality of vision that makes me feel...inadequate!

Anyway, have fun, find subjects you love to shoot (I've been doing a lot of wildlife refuge photography, a real expensive pastime and I enjoy it and in fact I do get some comments because a good shot of a cool looking critter is, well, cool! Kind of like how people practice on their cats and dogs and post the results here and everyone says "how cute! What a great shot!"

So, to me it has helped to pick a favorite subject and work it, learn the right skills and building up the right equipment and trying different approaches at different times and learning to "see" your subjects in different ways -- and, at the same time, applying what you've been learning to new subjects (people look more and more like birds to me!)...and, like I said, have a lot of fun!

tonylong wrote in post #4968493
people look more and more like birds to me

That's gotta be the funniest thing I've read all day

post some of your work or point us int he right direction...don't be so hard on yourself. I doubt it's really that bad.

If you do decided to just give up, lemme know and I'll get you my address to forward all your gear.

thanks!!

Hi 1080. I know what you're going thru and we've all been through the woes. When I first started, I always thought my shots were ok but, when I got here, I was like " Dayum!" I can't believe some of the work posted here. I think once you know about cameras,lenses, and all the unecessary gear we all don't really need. It's time to really dive into post processing. I can't tell you enough that post processing is where you can make your photos explode! My suggestion is to learn PS in and out and to find ways you can make the photo pop. To be honest, this is where I was my weakest. If you know how to expose properly, than alot shouldn't have to be done in post processing. We all have a vision of how we want our photos to look like but, it's just a matter of how you want them to look after pp. I think what most people are looking for is good workflow in there PP. There are a few books out there and I highly suggest Scott Kelby's book which was released in Janurary.
Link:http://www.amazon.com …oks&qid=1203651​094&sr=8-2

This book is very good at workflow from start to finish and Scott Kelby goes thru photos step-by-step. I gaurantee you will be making better photos once you're done. It def. has helped me. Hope this helped.

What a load of whiny butt crapola. Huuuwaa you are not satisfied with your images. You are right they might just suck. But I KNOW the camera sales didn't tell you but that is the point. You cannot learn creativity. You can press the button a million times and still take mediocre shots. Until you put down the darn books and go out and take pictures the stuff you do will still look just like the other stuff.

If your stuff looks just like what you see in the books then you are just a fancy xerox machine. Think about an image, plan it down to the details and go and execute it. Keep shooting and shoot and then shoot some more, and then when you are done shoot some more. Learn about light and it;s properties by playing - with light. Put your camera on a tripod and use a flashlight to shoot a teddy bear. You will learn much faster and far more satisfied if you grab the camera take it off the dummy modes and go shoot some images. Mistakes are how you learn.

So stop whining and go out and fill up your CF cards!! Join a camera club.

This one is very in depth:
http://www.amazon.com …gn-Digital/dp/0240809343/