Fresh Photographer with a 1000D

[photomarcs]

Hi all!

I'm a new member, thanks to Cameron (Aim54x) been checking out DSLRuser's images for quite some time now. haha

Well.. i've now generated the courage to post my images on a forum. Fully open to all critique.. i'd prefer critique than gratitudes as I know it will definately give me ideas and strengths on bettering my images.

Enjoy!



is this image overblown on highlights? also.. how can i compose this better?


how can i compose this better? is there any other lighting effects i should be looking into without the use of flash? eg. reflectors anywhere?


i like this image here, yet i know i can do better. any advice?


Should i up the contrast on this picture a little? it was overblown.. but the recovery was alot nicer to me than usual.


all and any advice is nice!


thanks a bunch!


Marcus
http://www.marcuslimphotography.co.nr

[aim54x]

Great to see you stop lurking mate...

As for the images...now should i be nice? Hell with it....They all look soft...this could be a compression thing.

#1 you've done well with the exposure and the eye contact but it is still missing that bit more. Not sure what it is though. The highlights look fine to me.

#2 exposure has been controlled well...but do note that there is a bit of CA (purple fringe on the LHS of the arch). I would say either reshape the pose and/or crop tighter, the image looks too centered for my liking. This will help remove the dark wall either side of the arch.

#3 This is my pick of the set, people may say the landscape orientation is not great, but it works, the golden browns are set off by the white dress nicely, but more DOF would be nice, just to get more of the hair and the hands in focus.

#4 Great job on the recover, it is a nice spontaneous capture, and in this case the angle works.

Hope this helps you mate.

[gstark]

Hi Marcus, and welcome.

As Cameron has said, these all look a little soft.

In shooting an image like the second one here, you have a number of important decisions to make. The image as contained within the frame covers a dynamic rage way beyond anything that your camera's sensor is able to capture. You need to, and have, made a decision to work with the shadow areas of your model as the correct area for your exposure metering, and that is good, but you have asked about how to improve the lighting without using flash.

Why? The facing sides of the archway are in shadow; may I ask what was behind you as you made this image? This was shot in late afternoon or early morning, and while your desire to use reflectors is noble, I'm not too sure that, given the time of day and length of the shadows, that would have been a practical option.

So please expand upon your objection to the use of flash ...

Compositionally, I would probably have made this image from a little further to the left, thus moving the archway out of the dead centre location.

Cheers.

[photomarcs]

Thanks for your critique gstark! =D Much Appreciated!

And I'm loving dslrusers.com now.. haha becoming an addict soon!

The main reason for my objection to use flash is because i intended to restrict myself as much as possible when it came to fill flash.. also the availability of slave flashes at that time was next to none.

Also was wondering, on a Sigma 24-70 f2.8.. what would be the best suited for general portraiture? stick to the 2.8, or go to f4? big debate as to what the situation would be, but in general, would you be using the 2.8 in daylight? or would you be going to f4 to f8 ? At the moment, most of my portraits are taken at 2.8..otherwise when i REALLY believe i shud not be shooting 2.8, i go up to about f9.


Yes.. I know it's time to update my 1000D.. going onto the 7D..by which if i'm not happy with that.. I'll kick over to Nikon's d300s.

I still need to fix up my method of composition. I really want to start becoming full manual shooting. At the moment, i'm sitting happily on all my manual modes of the 1000D, but i'd really like to go full manual. Any tips besides practice would be appreciated! hahaha

[biggerry]

They all look soft...this could be a compression thing.

on that note, possibly have a look at how you are resizing for the web, progressive sharpening is essential to get a web quality image that does justice to the full res version.

Ignoring all the other factors, the image with the arch way is nice and I would consider looking at just cropping it a bit to remove the unused bricks/space, this would, for me anyway, draw the eye striaght to the subject, the girl.

[gstark]

The main reason for my objection to use flash is because i intended to restrict myself as much as possible when it came to fill flash.. also the availability of slave flashes at that time was next to none.

Ok, but why restrict yourself?

I fully accept that there are times and places where you may not be permitted to use flash, and that is fine. But in situations where there are no such restrictions, why would you immediately dismiss a technique that might be able to help obtain a better result?

Rather than pre-judging every situation and saying "I don't want to ......", isn't it better to have a full toolkit at your disposal?

In the situation of this second image, with such a high dynamic range within the viewfinder's range, I would certainly be looking to use fill flash as a way to reduce the dynamic range. Even if it was just to give me better exposure on the model; if it was able to bring the blown sky back into a usable range, would that be a good thing? I don't actually know; these are your images, but these are the questions that the shooter - you - should be asking

Further, if you're willing to consider the use of reflectors, why not consider the use of flash? A small portable strobe with a small softbox might have been of use here .... and probably would have been easier to carry and deploy than a few reflectors.

Also was wondering, on a Sigma 24-70 f2.8.. what would be the best suited for general portraiture? stick to the 2.8, or go to f4? big debate as to what the situation would be, but in general, would you be using the 2.8 in daylight?

Rarely.

If ever.

Just because a lens has a given maximum aperture does not mean that it should be used. Or used frequently. Yes, the aperture is there, but it's primary purpose, I would suggest, is to permit you to shoot at a faster shutter speed (thus maybe permitting you to hand-hold) in situations where the lighting is poor.

So, shooting in a bar or a restaurant, or at night, or by candlelight, you might want to open the lens up.

But remember that when you do, you are reducing the DoF that the lens can capture, and - this is the big one - you are probably not using the lens in its optimal range. Every lens has a sweet spot, and you should endeavour to find where that is. On this lens, I'd expect it to be between f/5.6 - f/11, but it also may vary along the range of available focal lengths. Take some time to shoot a range of test images across several focal lengths, and through different aperture settings, to find where your lens's sweet spots are. Do this with every lens that you have, and then use that as another tool to help you decide how best to shoot your images.

As a point of interest, my favourite lens is my Nikkor 85mm f/1.4, but I typically shoot it between f/5.6 ad f/11. I have the speed when it's needed, but I use it as and how I think it works best under the given conditions.

At the moment, most of my portraits are taken at 2.8.

And this could be partly why these images appear soft.

Yes.. I know it's time to update my 1000D.. going onto the 7D..by which if i'm not happy with that.. I'll kick over to Nikon's d300s.

Why?

In what way is the 1000D restricting your image making? What features does the 7D have that the 1000D lacks that would help you make better images?

And what glass do you have? Why do think a D300s would be better for you than a 7D or a 1000D?

Why did you buy the 1000D in the first instance?

And why would you expend money to buy a 7D if you think you might prefer a D300s? Have you had a good play with either? Why not save the money and just go straight to the Nikon?

Or just stay with the 1000D and invest in good L glass?

I still need to fix up my method of composition. I really want to start becoming full manual shooting. At the moment, i'm sitting happily on all my manual modes of the 1000D, but i'd really like to go full manual. Any tips besides practice would be appreciated! hahaha

Seriously, no. Practice is far and away the best advice we can offer. Practice, and post. And then listen to the suggestions offered. You might not agree with them, you may choose to reject the suggestions; that is fine. But shooting, and then shooting some more, is the only proven way to improve your .... shooting.