How to start up. Advise please
Discussion
You'll get some excellent advice on this forum. Sometimes it can be a bit "forthright", but don't worry about that!
It's good practice to think about the subject before taking the shot. Consider what you are trying to achieve, what "message" you are attempting to convey. When looking through the viewfinder, consider everything in the frame; not just the "subject" of the shot. If an item doesn't "add" anything to the image, it probably shouldn't be there. Zoom in closer, change your perspective or move on to something else.
When you get the image on your computer, you get the chance to tweak the areas that don't work too well. The tortoise shot for example - what were you trying to convey? Presumably, the feeling of age, the leathery/wrinkly skin and the "character" etc. The first thing I see is that some of the shot is over-exposed and that has caused loss of definition in those areas. You might be able to correct that a bit, but if information is lost in burnt-out areas, it can't be recovered. If you're shooting in Av or TV modes, learn how to apply exposure compensation and situations where you'll need to use it.
Think about "framing" too. The tortoise is looking down to the right of the shot, so the head should preferably, be in the upper/left part of the shot. This gives it "space" to look into and a better balance to the composition. You could improve that with suitable cropping in post-processing. If you could have got closer, just a shot of the side of the head and one eye would have been worth trying. If you can, it's often good to get below eye-level of the subject in animal shots. As you've been advised already, don't by default put the subject in the middle of the frame.
Finally, don't worry about kit. Just learn how to use what you've got and how to make adjustments and change settings without thinking. Most of the important adjustments can be made without taking your eye from the viewfinder!
It's good practice to think about the subject before taking the shot. Consider what you are trying to achieve, what "message" you are attempting to convey. When looking through the viewfinder, consider everything in the frame; not just the "subject" of the shot. If an item doesn't "add" anything to the image, it probably shouldn't be there. Zoom in closer, change your perspective or move on to something else.
When you get the image on your computer, you get the chance to tweak the areas that don't work too well. The tortoise shot for example - what were you trying to convey? Presumably, the feeling of age, the leathery/wrinkly skin and the "character" etc. The first thing I see is that some of the shot is over-exposed and that has caused loss of definition in those areas. You might be able to correct that a bit, but if information is lost in burnt-out areas, it can't be recovered. If you're shooting in Av or TV modes, learn how to apply exposure compensation and situations where you'll need to use it.
Think about "framing" too. The tortoise is looking down to the right of the shot, so the head should preferably, be in the upper/left part of the shot. This gives it "space" to look into and a better balance to the composition. You could improve that with suitable cropping in post-processing. If you could have got closer, just a shot of the side of the head and one eye would have been worth trying. If you can, it's often good to get below eye-level of the subject in animal shots. As you've been advised already, don't by default put the subject in the middle of the frame.
Finally, don't worry about kit. Just learn how to use what you've got and how to make adjustments and change settings without thinking. Most of the important adjustments can be made without taking your eye from the viewfinder!
Simpo Two said:
One of those makes the grade for me with no major issues.
But let's turn this around - can you identify the issues with the others? If and when you can, then you're halfway to fixing them for next time.
I would say the pic with the three birds perched. The two egrets looking to the Ibis(?) as if he didn't belong there. I didn't take the shot thinking this but that is the message it now conveys to me.But let's turn this around - can you identify the issues with the others? If and when you can, then you're halfway to fixing them for next time.
Looking at the water-skier, I cropped the speedboat out. Maybe I should've left it in? Looking at it now, it seems odd there is nothing pulling the skier along. Itried to go by the 'thirds-of-frame' rule, cropping out a lot of pylons/poles taking up the skyline.
The gull is heavily cropped, trying to get the bird in the corner 'flying' into the space I left on the right of the frame. It seems to have lost quite a lot of sharpness.
I quite like the pic of my son smiling. It has been softened a little but doesn't seem to be much colour in it.
All your comments are very much appreciated. Especially the comment about the giant tortoise and trying to capture the leathery skin (I never thought of this!)and also an idea might be to take a shot of the eye.
Can creativeness be learnt of is it a natural talent? Am I in bad habits of taking non-skilled photos over the past 40 years with point & click?
Fastchas said:
Can creativeness be learnt of is it a natural talent? Am I in bad habits of taking non-skilled photos over the past 40 years with point & click?
Difficult to answer, but you can definitely learn to take "better" photographs. Have you thought of joining a local camera club? There's nothing like listening to a visiting judge providing a critique of your shots, to help you understand where you are doing well and where you can improve! OK, competition photography is a specialist area, but it does help you to think about your work. Assessing a photograph's merits is just like looking at any artwork. Your eye is drawn around the composition and hopefully, ends up at what the photographer decided was the most interesting part. Distracting items at the edge can interrupt this process. That's what all the stuff about "rule of thirds" and "leading line" is about. It helps think about composition.Ed_P said:
Difficult to answer, but you can definitely learn to take "better" photographs. Have you thought of joining a local camera club? There's nothing like listening to a visiting judge providing a critique of your shots, to help you understand where you are doing well and where you can improve! OK, competition photography is a specialist area, but it does help you to think about your work. Assessing a photograph's merits is just like looking at any artwork. Your eye is drawn around the composition and hopefully, ends up at what the photographer decided was the most interesting part. Distracting items at the edge can interrupt this process. That's what all the stuff about "rule of thirds" and "leading line" is about. It helps think about composition.
A new libary hub opened by me recently and their FB page asked for suggestions for other activities so I suggested a camera club. We met last thursday for a preliminary, informal chat to see what we all wanted to get out of it. There was about 8 of us but a few others couldn't make that night so it seems quite a lot of folk are interested. We're next meeting on the 30th April. The Hub lady talked about getting pro's in as well for a chat.Fastchas said:
A new libary hub opened by me recently and their FB page asked for suggestions for other activities so I suggested a camera club. We met last thursday for a preliminary, informal chat to see what we all wanted to get out of it. There was about 8 of us but a few others couldn't make that night so it seems quite a lot of folk are interested. We're next meeting on the 30th April. The Hub lady talked about getting pro's in as well for a chat.
The important thing is that you've made a positive decision to improve your photography. Only good can come of it. The process never ends though!Fastchas said:
I would say the pic with the three birds perched. The two egrets looking to the Ibis(?) as if he didn't belong there. I didn't take the shot thinking this but that is the message it now conveys to me.
The egrets on the rail are fine but the background is a shambles. It may not have possible to reposition yourself to make it less offensive, but you need to look not only at the subject but everything else in the viewfinder - left, right, up, down, front and back.Fastchas said:
Looking at the water-skier, I cropped the speedboat out. Maybe I should've left it in? Looking at it now, it seems odd there is nothing pulling the skier along. Itried to go by the 'thirds-of-frame' rule, cropping out a lot of pylons/poles taking up the skyline.
Yes, you need the boat (or zoom in very much closer on the skier). And the horizon isn't level.Fastchas said:
The gull is heavily cropped, trying to get the bird in the corner 'flying' into the space I left on the right of the frame. It seems to have lost quite a lot of sharpness.
Yes again, this is a fail for me because it's not sharp - made more obvious by the heavy cropping. Birds in flight are hard to do. On composition you're right to move the bird to the left a bit but I think this is a bit far.Fastchas said:
I quite like the pic of my son smiling. It has been softened a little but doesn't seem to be much colour in it.
This is nice compositionally but underexposed - easy to fix in PP. Getting the white level right should give it the extra contrast it needs. Of the others, the tortoise is overexposed - rays of sunlight are a bugger. But you've used flash to fill in under the shell which is a useful technique.
Bird in tree - The X-shaped branches kill this for me and make it look ugly.
Landscape with gate - this was the best. Composition, colour, exposure all OK. You may like to clone out the bottom left sheep pen though.
U-shaped landscape - Almost right but flat. Needs the black level adjusted and some contrast for punch
Fastchas said:
Can creativeness be learnt of is it a natural talent? Am I in bad habits of taking non-skilled photos over the past 40 years with point & click?
I think you are used to taking photos of 'things', rather than taking photographs which are pictures in their own right. Photography is as much about science as it is about art; few people bring both to the ring, so you have to work on the bits you're short of 
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