A few car shots taken today...

[bwhinnen]

My first real shoot using RAW and M Mode. I usually use A and S. All shot with the 70-300G as I wanted to ensure I was not reflected in any shot I took at a straight angle.

Was a very birght day out there (even at 9:30 - 10:00 am) so I underexposed the subject to avoid overexposing the sky too much and then used D-Dee to bring them back. Some highlights just seemed inevitable and ruined one of the photos I really liked...

No the car is not mine, I was too lazy to wash mine to take some nice shots. Although I think I might seeing how some of these came out.

I liked the idea on this one, should have reduced the DOF to blur the foreground though I think (and turned the front wheels D'oh!)



The classic Magazine shot


Sweeet (just happens to be the owners favourite word)


Electrified


Cheers
Brett

[Killakoala]

Some nice pics there mate. Mind if i add some 'Constructive' criticism to them?

1. When shooting a stationary subject such as a car, it is best to use the 'rule of thirds' and give more room in front of the vehicle rather than behind as you have done in this image. This allows the eye to see the vehicle 'moving' across the image, even if it's not moving anywhere. There is also too much grass in the foreground. In fact, the grass takes up about 1/3rd of the entire photo. This takes the focus away from the subject (the WRX) and divides it between the grass, the car and the background. The exposure is very good though, as it is throughout all four photos.

2. This photo i really like. Sure it's a cliched magazine photo, but it looks professional. Pity about the orange thing in the background. I reckon if you'd taken this with the sugar cane in the next image, it would look absolutely sensational.

3. The sugar cane shot is quite nice, but i feel there's too much sky in the shot. A bit of a crop would make it look great and resemble a 'product shot'. I've seen a Ford Ute photo very similar in a magazine.

4. I really like the last photo, except i think you are too far away from the car. The power lines on both sides of the road (unusual) makes for a great pointer to the centre of the image, which is where the car is, but i think you need to have gotten a bit closer to your subject to reduce the haze and make it a bit larger, after all the centre of attention is the suberb WRX.

Overall i think you have done well.

Check this site out from some really helpful tips on composition, http://photoinf.com/General/Gary_Stanle ... ition.html

or this one

http://photoinf.com/Golden_Mean/Michael ... Basics.htm

But above all, practise practise practise.

I'd love to see more of your work.

Steve.

(BTW, i'm far from perfect and my comments are subjective. I just wanna help)

[bwhinnen]

Thanks Steve, I really appreciate your comments. I'm fairly new to photography and appreciate any criticism people make, it is afterall the best way to learn. I'm here to learn and with some of the photos I've seen on here, know I have a lot to learn

The one thing I like about forum's like this is that people spend the time to help and guide you and you can learn so much. I like to know where I may mess things up a little and learn it's the best way.

I had already decided I want to do the power poles photo again anyway and you're comments make perfect sense. The other one I'd like to try is the sugarcane one again but using the style of the second photo (could you call that the golden mean as described in one of the articles you pointed me to?).

Some crops...

I have no idea what the reflection in the front door is, and am annoyed that I didn't pick it up when taking the photo...





And the two you've seen, they look more pleasing...





And a moving target...



Thanks again!

Cheers
Brett

[dooda]

I think you've done a good job here as well. stationary cars can be tricky to make interesting.

I think Steve's critique was bang on too (cmon Steve, hows about some of those goods on my photos?)

One thing that I want to add, and this may sound nitpicky, but it's something you may look to do when you take some more shots, is to look for some back drops that contrast with the green blue of the car. most of these photos have either green or blue or both and the car sort of blends in. This is not by any means really experienced advice, so toss it aside if you like, but it may be something to consider for next time if you want.

[bwhinnen]

I think you've done a good job here as well. stationary cars can be tricky to make interesting.

I think Steve's critique was bang on too (cmon Steve, hows about some of those goods on my photos?)

One thing that I want to add, and this may sound nitpicky, but it's something you may look to do when you take some more shots, is to look for some back drops that contrast with the green blue of the car. most of these photos have either green or blue or both and the car sort of blends in. This is not by any means really experienced advice, so toss it aside if you like, but it may be something to consider for next time if you want.

Great point! I might have a quick play around in PS...

Thanks!

Brett

[Onyx]

Brett, I'm a fan of the Rex, and I think you did great capturing the shots of a nice shiny example.

One thing I noted: the third image, side profile - there's a slight slant of the ground, tilting the car backwards. If you applied 1 or 2 degrees rotation counter closewise this would be corrected.

[Killakoala]

Fantastic Brett, they are very good. Well done.

Of course, the 'Golden Rule' of composition (of any type of art) is that, 'Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.'

But that said, a finely composed image whether it be digital, film or on canvas looks good to everyone. And more to the point, it is very pleasing to oneself when we take that magic picture or paint that perfect picture.

As for Dooda (the party animal) and his suggestion that the colour of the car will look better with a distinctly contrasting colour background, i agree. However, i think the colour of the background (in this case) even compliments the colour of the car. FInding a colour that contrasts well with an unusual colour like that WRX could pose a problem. i reckon it would look great up against a black background, but where would you find one of those? Perhaps the car parked in full sunlight with a rainforest behind it and a depth of field to suit. Or how about blending the car in with a black and white background, perhaps an old house or a sea view, or maybe at a scenic lookout......So many ideas, so little time

Keep up the good work.

[Capturedview]

Nice compositions Brett.

I think if you shot at dusk it would greatly enhance the colours, especially in the "electrified" shot. If you were to shoot at dusk and light up the car with a flashgun, it would look sensational.

Also it might be an idea to buy a circular polariser for the day shots.