Pics taken today

[big dub]

I went out round Macclesfield Forest today trying out my Sony A350. I know the pics aren't in the same league as Mr Carter or many others on here, I am just starting out, but comments are very welcome.


http://s100.photobucket.com/albums/m10/bigdub_01/M...

[GolfGT]

all of them I like esp this one

[SamHH]

Good photos. Artistically I think the first one is the best. Could probably be improved by playing around with the contrast and saturation.

A general thought on getting the best out of your kit:

Looking at the exifs, it seems that you used quite a slow shutter speed which forced your camera to use a very small aperture. For example this one where you had a shutter speed of 1/3s and an aperture of f29:



Most lenses are at their best about two stops down from wide open and will deteriorate significantly from f16 downwards. Therefore unless you need to use a slow shutter speed to get blur or you [i]need[i] a small aperture to get more DoF, it's best to select an aperture of, say, f8 or f11 (with an f5.6 lens). Obviously with the moving water ones you have to use a slow shutter speed but you can put a neutral density filter on the front of the lens that reduces the amount of light that gets through allowing you to keep a wider aperture.

You also appear to have some dirt on the left side of either your sensor or lens that is visible in a lot of the photos.

[big dub]

Thanks for your feedback Sam. I'll try to remember all that

You must have good eye sight to spot any dirt on the lens/sensor, I can't see anything!

[SamHH]

That's the other thing with small apertures: it brings every tiny bit of dirt into sharp focus. Notice that the dirt in the lake photo (f36) is sharper than the dirt in the other one (f22)

Edited by SamHH on Monday 29th December 21:15

[big dub]

Blimey, never noticed before. Had a look on the lens and sensor, but couldn't see anything. Will take a few tomorrow and see if it's still there.


Rob

[GolfGT]

I thought that was a bird or something lol

[SamHH]

Take a photo of the sky or a white wall or something with the lens stopped down to the minimum aperture. If it's still there, look on the front and rear elements of the lens. Also, make sure you are looking at the sensor itself; i.e. with the mirror and the shutter retracted (you need to go into a menu on the camera to do this). Even then, dirt can be hard to see on the sensor. Needless to say, be very careful when removing whatever it is. If you think it's on the sensor, try blowing it off first, but not with air from your mouth or you might get saliva on it. If that doesn't work, then you'll probably need a special brush or swab, or lots of camera stores offer a sensor cleaning service.

[Bee_Jay]

That is definitely dust on the sensor.

TBH it would have to be a VERY big lump on the front of a lens to make a difference to an image. Try sticking a 5mmx5mm piece of paper to the end of one of your lenses and see if you can see it...

[GetCarter]

big dub said:

comments are very welcome.

I think you'd benefit from a Grad grey filter to stop the sky from 'whiting out' and / or the ground under-exposing. I use one a lot of the time.

Cokin do one with a holder adapter and filter for about £35 IIRC.

I like the way you use roads and fences to lead the eye into the photo.

IMHO - My only comment would be that I feel you should get in a bit more... when you have something in the foreground (which is always a good idea with a landscape), foreground interest needs to be clear and defined. You're are a bit too far off. Move in closer, Aperture or speed priority, and get as much depth of field as you can. (Tripod or holding against tree or rock helps).

Not my best photo by a long shot, but I think a good example of what I am trying to say (note the hill 3 miles away and the sign are both in focus - and a grad grey (or neutral density) filter keeps the sky blue, not white. The camera was held tight to the top of my car to take this, as I forgot my tripod!

Click on it to unsquish

Edited by GetCarter on Tuesday 30th December 12:28

[big dub]

Thanks for the tip Steve. If I can get a pic anywhere near yours above, I'll be very happy. I'm a complete novice, so I'm not really sure which settings to be using for each pic. I'll have a look out for one of the filters you mentioned.

[big dub]

Today I've been trying out B&W. All taken around Macclesfield town. Unfortunately I had the completely wrong lens on, 70-300mm , so was unable to get a lot of the shots I wanted

Hope you like.




Rest here:

B&W Pics

[GolfGT]

big dub said:

Today I've been trying out B&W. All taken around Macclesfield town. Unfortunately I had the completely wrong lens on, 70-300mm , so was unable to get a lot of the shots I wanted

Hope you like.




Rest here:

B&W Pics

why is 70-300mm the wrong lens?

[big dub]

With being in town I ideally needed the shorter lens cos I was having to go a long way back from the subject to get the pic and in a lot of cases I couldn't. Will have to take both lenses next time.