Pics of my frog

Took them with an EOS Digital Rebel XT I got from a friend using the 18-55mm lens it came with. I really have almost no experience with the camera but I would like to know what I could have done better and if the images can be improved with some kind of editing. Also, how big of a print can my camera make and where can I get them?

If it matters..........
Tv-1/60
Av-5.6
ISO-400
Shot them in Macro mode at 55mm.

Comments?

They came out pretty good. U didnt use the rule of thirds though. And the second looks crooked.

First one despite the central composition is pretty good, where as the second one is crooked and looks over exposed.

chomish wrote in post #9796459
They came out pretty good. U didnt use the rule of thirds though. And the second looks crooked.

Did not know about the rule of thirds. I do now though.

corkneyfonz wrote in post #9796541
First one despite the central composition is pretty good, where as the second one is crooked and looks over exposed.

Second one used flash. Guess it was too much.

Thanks for the input.

rules are made to be broken, in this case I dont think using the rule of 3rds would have necessarily made it a better photo, its not like there is anything else to focus on.

I think the shots are great and its a very cute frog

Both are not quite level but that is easily fixed. I like the first one better but the reflection in the second is better. May be if you are able to fix the over exposure of the top in the second one and then crop it a bit....

Rebel XT images can be printed in good quality up to 8 x 12" at 300 dpi.

Both are slightly OOF, and crops for sure would bring the frog front and center.#2 has some harsh lighting on its back.

For not being too familiar, I think you did a pretty nice job.

They both do look a bit overexposed, but should be easily fixed in PS or Lightroom. They also look slightly out of focus; since it's your frog, hopefully you can try a reshoot and work on that part.

Given that it is a) a frog and b) on a flat surface I don't think the "not level" part is too much of a detraction for these particular shots nor is rule of thirds, per se. Also, I like the foliage as the background for this little guy.

Thanks for all the input. I got Zoom Browser EX with the camera. Is that program any good? Anywhere I can read up on how to use it? Any suggestions on good books regarding editing photos? Thanks.

Well I know less about editing photos than I do about taking them. But I was playing around with the picture in that Zoom Browser program I have. Does it look any better?

Original

Not a huge difference. I started out with Zoombrowser, and its limited for sure. THere are free applications you can get.Picassa is one, I quite liked that one. I run a Mac now, so I bought a program.

contrast and color composition is unreal (in a good WOW way and not it sucks)