I need your help. Took lots of photos and need advice!

Hello fellow POTN members! It was an absolutely beautiful but freezing cold day here at UW. So, I took this opportunity to take some pictures. Now before you give all your advice, please keep these things in mind.

- I am relatively new to this pocket-burning, absolutely addicting, I could shoot all day and night and not care about anything else hobby.
- I have not edited these photos in any way except resizing them in Pshop. (I only use Pshop and Bridge for post-processing).
- I know there are a lot of photos and one cannot give critiques, comments, advice, and suggestions on ALL the photos unless you want to, which is welcome. So, please comment on the ones that appeal to you in any way.
- I am open to having the photos edited as part of the advice giving. BUT, you must tell me what you did and why. Please remember I am here to learn and I figure this would be the best way.
-Please comment on composition, framing, and anything else that comes to mind.
-These photos were either taken with the "nifty-fifty" that I borrowed from a friend or the ghetto 28-90mm 4-5.6 that came with the camera when I purchased it. I am in dire need of a new lens, but too poor to buy one (college life indeed). So, if you feel quite generous, any "L" donations would be awesome!
- These pictures may not be color balanced properly as I do not have the resources nor technology to fix the color on my laptop. So please bear with me.

***I don't understand why or how, but as I uploaded these, the colors (especially the sky) had changed. This is disappointing as I would have liked to ask about how I would achieve consistency. There are some however that aren't affected. So if you could please advise me on consistency as well please.

THANKS!

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Same technique. f/5.6 1/200 ISO 100

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The sky is just about identical. I liked this shot as I was able to catch the rainbow refracting off the water from the fountain.
I was hiding in the shade for this shot.

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I understand you willingness to learn, but 49 views & no replies may give you a hint that few people will be willing to comment on 20 pics all at the same time? Better to post 1 or 2 at a time and number them so it's easier to refer to them.
Plus, IMAGE POSTING RULES only allow 8 embedded pics by the OP per thread. Another mod may delete the image tags, but I'll leave them in to serve as a bad example, until another similar thread comes along.

Bad excuse. Get the best out of what you have. Your snapshots are OK, & bear in mind that the "Known to be crappy" Kit lens paid for my 20D, 28-70 f/2.8, & 70-200 f/4.

Yes, you have. You have Photoshop. It can easily correct CB on a laptop. But that might not be the "correct", as in best, CB for that shot. Learn more in RAW, Post processing and printing

As for your statement, "I personally like the composition of this one minus the poeple. But then again, it's hard to avoid students on campus.", It's usually nice to hear about some of the problems that people had in "getting the shot", because we can learn from them. But not in this case. Either you waited for the right time to take it, or found a better angle, or you didn't. You didn't.

Someone else can take it from here. And, welcome to POTN!

PhotosGuy wrote in post #4205900
I understand you willingness to learn, but 49 views & no replies may give you a hint that few people will be willing to comment on 20 pics all at the same time? Better to post 1 or 2 at a time and number them so it's easier to refer to them.
Plus, IMAGE POSTING RULES only allow 8 embedded pics by the OP per thread. Another mod may delete the image tags, but I'll leave them in to serve as a bad example, until another similar thread comes along.
Bad excuse. Get the best out of what you have. Your snapshots are OK, & bear in mind that the "Known to be crappy" Kit lens paid for my 20D, 28-70 f/2.8, & 70-200 f/4. Yes, you have. You have Photoshop. It can easily correct CB on a laptop. But that might not be the "correct", as in best, CB for that shot. Learn more in RAW, Post processing and printing

As for your statement, "I personally like the composition of this one minus the poeple. But then again, it's hard to avoid students on campus.", It's usually nice to hear about some of the problems that people had in "getting the shot", because we can learn from them. But not in this case. Either you waited for the right time to take it, or found a better angle, or you didn't. You didn't.

Someone else can take it from here. And, welcome to POTN!

Thanks for the advice. I have been shooting in RAW and realize that CB can be achieved in Pshop. I just decided it may be better for critiquing purpose if they weren't processed. I will keep the posting limit in mind however.

Thanks again!

20 images is FAR too many for one thread. Be more selective, please!

herbzkim wrote in post #4204500
I am in dire need of a new lens

Not true at all. The kit lens is capable of producing superb images.

herbzkim wrote in post #4204500
These pictures may not be color balanced properly as I do not have the resources nor technology to fix the color on my laptop.

Not true, as Frank observed. Why are you not bothering to get the colour balance right?

herbzkim wrote in post #4204500
It was handheld, which is why it wasn't sharp.

So what do you expect us to say about it? If you're not happy with it, then bin it and take another one.

herbzkim wrote in post #4204570
I know that guy on the right side is distracting, but it could be easily cropped out.

So crop him out then.

herbzkim wrote in post #4204570
Wasn't thinking as I was taking this shot.

Hmmm.

herbzkim wrote in post #4204604
I personally like the composition of this one minus the poeple. But then again, it's hard to avoid students on campus.

Whoever said it was supposed to be easy? You have two options here: be more patient, or take a photo which you're not happy with. Which do you prefer?

herbzkim wrote in post #4204604
This shot was taken and came out with a blue hue. I think I had it on the "sun" WB. Is that the culprit?

See previous comment about colour balance.

I think, also, fewer pictures and larger size would help a lot in getting feedback. Good luck.

Re: the bokeh in the rose pictures .....

Bokeh quality *is* one of the things that is a function of the lens. You are seeing 5-sided bokeh because the 50 1.8 you used has a 5-bladed diaphragm.

Andrew