Photography thread (closed thread, see first and last post)

[Queen Mum]

I just started reading this thread! Am I too late? I have a Samsun VLUU WB8500 12.5 Megapixel 24 X optical zoom. Lots of settings and is pretty adjustable.

I have shaky hands so I use a tripod as often as humanly possible. Here are some of my best shots and some of my not so good shots

This was an easy shot. It was stationary and was almost set up from the beginning...

This one, was a once in a lifetime picture. It was pouring rain. The dragonflies couldn't fly. If I had had my camera when they all landed on the lavender, the shot would have been a lot more dramatic. Live and learn...

It was a grey snowy day, but I wanted this picture to look better than it did. Could I have set it up better?

I want to learn to take good pictures of my animals. Mama is much prettier than this picture shows. How can I do better?

 

[redtailgal]

Of course, its not too late. I LOVE LOVE LOVE talking photography, anytime!

I really like the first picture. It has a unique quality that is very eyecatching. It is fairly sharp all the way into the background and the colors are nicely saturated. One thing that catches my eye is the round green thing in the left side of the circle. Subtle repitition of shapes really pleases the eye. I also am drawn to the upright section in the middle, I like that it is slightly off center.

You have a bit of a hot spot in the top of the circle, you can about this by not using flash. You can hold a piece of wax paper an inch or so infront of your flash to diffuse the light a little and that will help. I would play with cropping this shot, maybe a more upright crop a little closer into the circle to give it just a tad more pop.

The dragon flies are also a nice shot. You have the repeating element, and diagonal lines (diagonals in photos are very good, they lead the eye to cover more of the shot).
I also like the nature in the concrete jungle thing goin on here. Excellent catch.

The third pic, with the snow and the building. This shot is also nicely exposed and sharp. I think that your angle is off, though. Perhaps if you had stood closer to the wall, and taken your shot, making the wall a 45 degree angle in your shot? I think this would have added some depth and visual layers, as well as using that wall to guide the eye along the picture.

And Mama. There are several things that you could have done here to improve the shot. First of all, focus. When photographing a person or animal, focus on the eye. You will have a {} or something in your viewfinder, put this directly over the eye, press your shutter release halfway, then frame your shot. It takes some practice to be able to this quickly. Also, your lighting wasnt optimal for this shot. See how the grass behind her is so much brighter? Maybe if you had been on the other side of her, you would have had better lighting. The other thing is basic compostion. When you are photographing a moving animal, give them room to go forward in the shot. If she were more to the right of the pic, the eye would recognize that she was moving forward, thus making it a more interesting shot. Look closely at the pic, I am amused at the flower that looks like it is growing out of her butt, lol.

Animals are tough to photograph. If you see a shot that you like, dont risk missing it in order to set up just so. Could this shot be better? sure it could. But it's still a good shot of a pretty mama!

Check out this page (there is lots of good info there, along with a page on pet photography)

http://www.backyardherds.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=14312

 

[Livinwright Farm]

Moon photography, eh?
How's this?

I would love to get a shot of the moon in tungsten sometime... or sepia... I think it would be pretty neat... but not sure my camera would allow for it. I have to use the video setting in order to get the good zoom on the moon, and I don't think I can set the color in the video setting. :/

 

[Livinwright Farm]

nevermind about video setting and color... I just discovered that I can set it to Black & White, Tungsten, Sepia, Fluorescent, Fluorescent H(not sure what the difference is), Neutral, Vivid, or Low Sharpening!

 

[Arabian Horse]

I LOVE Photography!!

Here's some pics.. what do you think?

 

[redtailgal]

Arabian:

I see the name in the corner of the pics from a professional called "HC Photography". It would be in poor taste for me to critque anothers professional work in this forum, so I will leave it at "Nice!". (I hope you understand that I typed with a smile, I dont mean to sound snarky)

Livinwright:
Good job on that moon! Will your camera allow you to adjust ISO settings and shutter speeds? You can get some radicaly different pics of the same ights moon with minor changes in your settings. Its a fun to see the changes.

 

[Livinwright Farm]

Livinwright:
Good job on that moon! Will your camera allow you to adjust ISO settings and shutter speeds? You can get some radicaly different pics of the same ights moon with minor changes in your settings. Its a fun to see the changes.

I can, but not while under the video setting... I double checked, I can see it, but it won't allow me to select it under the functions menu.
And even with the best tripod/flat surface to steady the camera, I cannot get the same zoom-ability outside of the video setting.

 

[Queen Mum]

Of course, its not too late. I LOVE LOVE LOVE talking photography, anytime!

I really like the first picture. It has a unique quality that is very eyecatching. It is fairly sharp all the way into the background and the colors are nicely saturated. One thing that catches my eye is the round green thing in the left side of the circle. Subtle repitition of shapes really pleases the eye. I also am drawn to the upright section in the middle, I like that it is slightly off center.

You have a bit of a hot spot in the top of the circle, you can about this by not using flash. You can hold a piece of wax paper an inch or so infront of your flash to diffuse the light a little and that will help. I would play with cropping this shot, maybe a more upright crop a little closer into the circle to give it just a tad more pop.

...


Check out this page (there is lots of good info there, along with a page on pet photography)

http://www.backyardherds.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=14312

Wow! Thanks for the great info... This is just what I need. I'm going to try these techniques all week and will get back with some new shots.

BTW, the first picture wasn't done with a flash. The hot spot was a light hanging down in the picture. I couldn't get it out of the frame. (I was at a garden show. ) Is there anyway to minimize lighting that is extraneous?

 

[redtailgal]

ahhh, I see! lol, my mistake on the flash.

Nope, your pretty much stuck with something like that. sorry!

 

[Queen Mum]

ahhh, I see! lol, my mistake on the flash.

Nope, your pretty much stuck with something like that. sorry!

Ok, well, I am learning tons reading those threads. This is great. I love photography. It is such a great way to capture what you see. I have been all over the place and there are so many "images" to catch. It is the only way to shout a quiet thought.