Some photos from today. Some feedback/advice would be much appreciated!

[cutsman]

Got bored today in the afternoon, so I decided to take my new D50 w/ kit lens for a walk around my neighbourhood. I'm new to photography and this is my second time out shooting... so any help/advice for improvement would be much appreciated. Thanks!

 

[psycoswimmer]

I'm not a photographer, but to the average person like me, they seem very nice.

One thing you might want to do is edit your post and put <timg> </timg> tags around the images instead of <img> </img>. Then they won't be so large.

 

[Kamera RAWr]

Very nice pictures . I actually really like the second picture down... but the background is a little distracting to me... would be cool if you could make it black and white with some selective color with the red balls (really not sure what they are) in color. Same suggestion for the second one up from the bottom, background seems a little distracting. As I said though, really nice pictures... I like them . Keep up the good work

 

[epicwelshman]

You have a good eye, I like these.

 

[cutsman]

Thanks for the positive feedback guys! This photography thing is definitely addictive and A LOT of fun!

Kamera RAWr: i took your advice for the 2nd photo... and I think it definitely makes it a little cleaner and easy on the eyes... as for the 2nd one from the bottom... my photoshop skills do not allow me to do selective colouring for the flowers only...just couldnt get it to work

 

[shieldyoureyes]

Second time out shooting? I don't believe you!

These look great...you definately have a good eye for things!

I am definately a fan of that re-edited one!

 

[devilot]

Might just be me... But I think I'd prefer some more lighting contrast. Not much that you can do now, after the fact, I don't think. But I feel like some of those images are just a touch flat and could really pop more if light was used more to your advantage.

You can really tell what I mean when you use B&W because it removes the seduction of color and forces your eye to really see shape, line, composition, and values-- how dark do the darks go, how bright do the highlights get? Others might really like this feel... myself, personally? I'd like to see a greater range of values.

That said, I'm drawn to your images, but would be more so if... there was just a tiny bit more pop to 'em. Sorry if this is way off or if no one else agrees w/ me.

 

[cutsman]

Thanks for the advice, devilot. I think i know what you mean. Funny you mention B&W, because that is the one thing I noticed when i convert my photos to B&W. I just dont get a great range of black to white like you said... once i remove the colour, my photos thus far tend to look a tad dull and greyish, without great contrast, forcing me to play around with contrast and curves in PS to make the photos pop a bit more. Now, I'm not sure if this is normal.. or if "good" photographers are able to remove colour from their photos and pretty much use them as is without messing around a lot with contrast n such....

I definitely need to train my eye to spot things like this and focus more on lighting. I find when I shot today, i was concentrating firstly on composition, and secondly on dof... I really didnt think too much about anything else... lighting included..

so much to learn..

Might just be me... But I think I'd prefer some more lighting contrast. Not much that you can do now, after the fact, I don't think. But I feel like some of those images are just a touch flat and could really pop more if light was used more to your advantage.

You can really tell what I mean when you use B&W because it removes the seduction of color and forces your eye to really see shape, line, composition, and values-- how dark do the darks go, how bright do the highlights get? Others might really like this feel... myself, personally? I'd like to see a greater range of values.

That said, I'm drawn to your images, but would be more so if... there was just a tiny bit more pop to 'em. Sorry if this is way off or if no one else agrees w/ me.

 

[devilot]

I just dont get a great range of black to white like you said... once i remove the colour, my photos thus far tend to look a tad dull and greyish, without great contrast, forcing me to play around with contrast and curves in PS to make the photos pop a bit more. Now, I'm not sure if this is normal.. or if "good" photographers are able to remove colour from their photos and pretty much use them as is without messing around a lot with contrast n such....

Yup. I think that a good photographer (or photograph) shouldn't rely on processing. That said, processing can make a great photograph into an amazing one...

And that's also why most beginning or introductory photography courses focus only on B&W. It forces you to train your eye and to realize what photography's biggest foe and friend is-- light.

And to be clear, I don't think I take any photographs worth sharing and I enjoy your images thus far and respect you and all the others here who post their work for others to critique.

 

[Doylem]

Yes... "so much to learn"... but having an 'eye for a picture' is a great start. Everything else can be learned (books... classes... etc...), but 'seeing' pix is a skill that a lot of people will just never get. And a bag full of hardware isn't going to compensate for that...

One thought... I used to shoot colour and b/w on film (one camera body for colour, another for b/w), which meant I'd look differently at a subject, depending on which film I was using. If you want to end up with b/w images, maybe you should shoot in b/w... rather than just 'converting' colour shots.

Not enough 'pop'? well, it's all about light, you know...

if these pix are from your second day's shooting, you'll have a steep learning curve. enjoy the ride...

 

[epicwelshman]

Yes... "so much to learn"... but having an 'eye for a picture' is a great start. Everything else can be learned (books... classes... etc...), but 'seeing' pix is a skill that a lot of people will just never get. And a bag full of hardware isn't going to compensate for that...

One thought... I used to shoot colour and b/w on film (one camera body for colour, another for b/w), which meant I'd look differently at a subject, depending on which film I was using. If you want to end up with b/w images, maybe you should shoot in b/w... rather than just 'converting' colour shots.

Not enough 'pop'? well, it's all about light, you know...

if these pix are from your second day's shooting, you'll have a steep learning curve. enjoy the ride...

I have to slightly disagree with you. There's no sense for him to shoot in B&W as if he shoots in RAW the colour's right there anyway, and the in camera B&W function simply desaturates the photo, which makes it flat. He needs to learn to tone his images to get the right contrast etc.

 

[cutsman]

Thanks for the encouragement and advice everyone.

As for shooting RAW.... The shots I've taken thus far have all been jpegs. I eventually intend on going shooting RAW, but for now, I don't want to worry too much about PP (even though all pics I've posted have had some degree of PP and cropping done) and am just trying to get the hang of seeing photos, colours/contrast, compositions, lighting (i'll have to work hard at this one), etc.

Having only been shooting for such a short amount of time, I already feel like I could use a lens with greater reach... thinking about the 55-200 vr, but I'm not sure if I actually need/want it or if I just subconsciously think it'll somehow compensate for my lack of skill at this point in time and magically help me produce better shots.... I'll tell you though...it was quite the workout trying to chase down birds with my 18-55mm... for me AND them!

 

[Clix Pix]

Contrast is an important concept and an important thing to nail down in your photographs, whether they be B&W or color. Once you get the hang of that you will be pleasantly surprised at what a difference it can make in the quality of your images!

 

[cutsman]

Contrast is an important concept and an important thing to nail down in your photographs, whether they be B&W or color. Once you get the hang of that you will be pleasantly surprised at what a difference it can make in the quality of your images!

The question I have is how I actually manipulate or control contrast in my shots? Is contrast more a function of the lens type or is it controlled by your exposure? Or are we talking more about shot selection and taking shots whose subjects/background inherently have greater contrast in their colour?

 

[Clix Pix]

The question I have is how I actually manipulate or control contrast in my shots? Is contrast more a function of the lens type or is it controlled by your exposure? Or are we talking more about shot selection and taking shots whose subjects/background inherently have greater contrast in their colour?

Actually, all of the above! The choice of subject is key, yes -- in looking around you, notice how certain colors stand out and work with or against each other; that can be used to great effect in a photograph. If you are shooting black-and-white, look at subjects in terms of highlights and shadows, lines and shapes. With regard to the camera itself, there are settings for various levels of contrast. I keep mine at "normal," though, and then adjust contrast in post-processing (Aperture).