My First ever DSLR shots. Canon 20D w/ 18-55.

UPDATE!! I have added some more recent pics i have taken. Im still using the 20D and have also purchased a 50mm too! Anywho the pics below are still my firsts, and if you scroll down, i have pics from now which is 2 months later! How am i doing so far? Any helpful hints? Updated pics are below in post 6


Hi everyone!

My name is Chris! Im 19 and a student at Central Michigan University. I always kinda thought photography was neat, but never really got into it. I meet a really good friend of mine who was into it and after talking with her alot, she talked me into picking up a nice condition used 20D. I then matched it up with a 18-55Ef-S IS lens to give me a nice, starter budget DSLR to get more into photography with.

Anywho, here are a few pics that i took over the few days after i bought the camera!

On a side note: Almost all shots were shot in a type of 'auto' mode. Also, i didnt pay attention to ISO so lots of the shots are at 1600 ISO..hahaha

Feel free to comment on anything about my photos! You guys can tell me what to do better, maybe better settings to use, what i could do better with editing....anything! I LOVE feedback! Since im just starting out...its nice to get some tips and pointers!

Hey Chris,

Welcome to the Canon family!

Good to see you having some fun trying out your new 20D

My fav's out of the bunch are number 4 and 5 actually. Number 4 (push button) would of been more interesting if it wasn't completely centered, I'm not sure why that one kind of struck me, it's not something you usually think of taking a picture of lol.

The building shot is nice, maybe could use a lil sharpening? Try playing around with some editing stuff maybe (I'm no pro) and see what you like.

Oh and btw, the self portraits.....hmmm. I'd suggest not doing shots like that again, the flash doesn't really compliment you wayyy too close up.

Keep taking pics!

howaboutnow wrote in post #7168105
Hey Chris,

Welcome to the Canon family!

Good to see you having some fun trying out your new 20D

My fav's out of the bunch are number 4 and 5 actually. Number 4 (push button) would of been more interesting if it wasn't completely centered, I'm not sure why that one kind of struck me, it's not something you usually think of taking a picture of lol.

The building shot is nice, maybe could use a lil sharpening? Try playing around with some editing stuff maybe (I'm no pro) and see what you like.

Oh and btw, the self portraits.....hmmm. I'd suggest not doing shots like that again, the flash doesn't really compliment you wayyy too close up.

Keep taking pics!

Thanks soo much!! hahaha.. Ill note everythign you said!!

Also, about my self shots. I dont like how they or "I" look. But i did them for more 'fun' than anything...hahaha..

Thanks soo much!!!

>Chris.

Hi Chris,

For someone just kicking it all off, you've hit the ground running. First one's not so sharp, but there are no technical or compositional choices you've made that would elicit a passionate cry of "oh no!" from me. Sometimes I prefer the creativity of someone who's seeing it all fresh, without experience becoming a constraint. We all need to seek that level of attention let stuff happen, like #3 and #4 above where you've obviously just said "this is interesting" and shot it the way you liked. And for me, it works. Maybe not in a "hang it on the wall" at home way, but that's a different thing from "it's cool for the web", or "it'd make a cool print for an office or ad". I like the self-portrait... why should they be complimentary? Grunge is good.

Cheers, Tony

tonydee wrote in post #7176488
Hi Chris,

For someone just kicking it all off, you've hit the ground running. First one's not so sharp, but there are no technical or compositional choices you've made that would elicit a passionate cry of "oh no!" from me. Sometimes I prefer the creativity of someone who's seeing it all fresh, without experience becoming a constraint. We all need to seek that level of attention let stuff happen, like #3 and #4 above where you've obviously just said "this is interesting" and shot it the way you liked. And for me, it works. Maybe not in a "hang it on the wall" at home way, but that's a different thing from "it's cool for the web", or "it'd make a cool print for an office or ad". I like the self-portrait... why should they be complimentary? Grunge is good.

Cheers, Tony

Thanks alot Tony!!! I noticed that my ISO was really high, 1600 actually, for a few of those pics. Hopefully the pics i take now i can reduce some noise and make them sharper now that i have learned a bit more! Thanks for the pointers/complliments! Thanks a ton!


>Chris.

Updated pics from two months later


Like i said earlyer, these are my most recent pics i have taken. If you guys have any suggestions...or hints as to what i could do better i would appreciate that! Ive been happily shooting for about 2 months now and am loving ever second of it!

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Hey Chris, good to hear you are enjoying your new camera and hobby so much!!! You'll never get sick of it, I can guarantee you that lol You've got the shutterbuggg....

I really like your bridge shot, the sky is SOOO blue in that one! Wow! I actually like the other bridge picture on your Flickr page better then the one you posted here, it's lacking a "base", floor.. etc In my opinion.

The picture of your parents looks nice, but did you notice the shadows behind them? They're not overly big but they are still there, and had you had a little bit more room in between them and the background this could of been eliminated. I like the sharpness of this picture.

Also noticed you really like centering your objects, which is fine, but what happens when you move that object you're photographing and place it not dead center in the middle it makes your viewer pay attention more, because maybe you're trying to send a message as to why you chose to photograph your subject like this, and not centered. It makes it more intruiging, you already have their attention so why center your object? Experiment!

The second picture is pretty funny! I like his expression, the leveling is a bit off in this one, and once again pretty centered... you could of left a lil more room in front of him to create more of an illusion of him moving so to speak...

The flooded railing is neat!!! Do you have anymore that aren't so close up? In my humble opinion,,,, once again lol.... I would of maybe tried to get the "whole" tree in this shot.

Anyways, these are things that stood out for me!! Hope you appreciate the feedback and keep posing Thanks for sharing as well.

howaboutnow wrote in post #7640631
Hey Chris, good to hear you are enjoying your new camera and hobby so much!!! You'll never get sick of it, I can guarantee you that lol You've got the shutterbuggg....

I really like your bridge shot, the sky is SOOO blue in that one! Wow! I actually like the other bridge picture on your Flickr page better then the one you posted here, it's lacking a "base", floor.. etc In my opinion.

The picture of your parents looks nice, but did you notice the shadows behind them? They're not overly big but they are still there, and had you had a little bit more room in between them and the background this could of been eliminated. I like the sharpness of this picture.

Also noticed you really like centering your objects, which is fine, but what happens when you move that object you're photographing and place it not dead center in the middle it makes your viewer pay attention more, because maybe you're trying to send a message as to why you chose to photograph your subject like this, and not centered. It makes it more intruiging, you already have their attention so why center your object? Experiment!

The second picture is pretty funny! I like his expression, the leveling is a bit off in this one, and once again pretty centered... you could of left a lil more room in front of him to create more of an illusion of him moving so to speak...

The flooded railing is neat!!! Do you have anymore that aren't so close up? In my humble opinion,,,, once again lol.... I would of maybe tried to get the "whole" tree in this shot.

Anyways, these are things that stood out for me!! Hope you appreciate the feedback and keep posing Thanks for sharing as well.

Yayyy! Thanks for all the wonderful information!

The pic of my parents..i wasnt too keen of the draps behind there head, but there was nothing i could do about it, and the shadows, i noticed them, but did not know how to get rid of them! I was going to light up the back wall with a flash light or something! haha..i guess basic knowledge of moving them away would have been great! That may have also solved my "drapes protruding into my dads head'' problem! haha

THe second pic..was just a real quick shot i snapped really fast..haha...i didnt think all too much about compostion when i took it...haha

As for my picturs being centered. Ever time i shoot, i always try to keep the 'rule of thirds' in mind. I alway try to keep my subjects off centered and for the most part, i mostly do. But, now that i look...my subject are just slightly off center...haha..ive never really noticed how either centered my subjects are, or how slightly off centered they are. I always say to keep them off centered, but i guess when i press by shutter button...it never ends up how i think..haha

Thank you soo much for all the help and pointing out some things i didnt noticed and some things i had yet to know about!

Thanks again!