Hello Ladies and Gentlemen! Im an extremely new guy, I've been into photography for less than a month. The only experience I've ever had was with a disposable camera at a theme park! My name is David Holt, Im a beginning pastor, newly-wed, 25 years old and fresh out of college. I really wasnt all that into photography until lately. I went and bought a kodak digital camera on a wim and have loved it ever since. Anyways this picture is of a Lilac bush thats in my backyard. Mostly wanting a critique too see if I should continue on with nature photography and really learn it or if I should just keep taking silly pictures of stuff and never taking it all that serious. Thanks for your input, and please remember Im a total noob from central KY, so you might have to dumb down your responses and include refrences to Duct tape before I fully understand! Thanks for your help!
David:
You decision to continue has little to do with you current skills, but lies entirely w/ you passion. My first photo 30 years ago was nothing more than a snapshot. I learn new ways of seeing even today from trial and error, and from viewing works of others.
Few, if any photographers have an talent from the start. Galen Rowell wrote about this in one of his books. There is only one young (relative to me) photographer that I've seen in 30 years who is truly gifted.
So, let your passion drive you. Read, learn, experiment.
David, Welcome to one of the finest educational and critiquing sites ever founded. You will not regret sticking around. All of start out as beginners and most people here haven't forgotten that and are willing to assist with techs, advice, etc. Finding a past-time/hobby that you enjoy and one that enables you to enjoy the outdoors at the same time is a blessing. Stick with it!! As for your image, I would suggest the entire forward blossom/branch be in the frame as it tends to make my eye wander up and out of the picture. Keep at it!
Bruce
Thank you Peter and Bruce for the beginners advice! Im a bit timid to post on these forums, especially of my own work. Photography has been great thus far. I have no idea how to take pictures in the least bit, but I was a big computer nerd that just sat around and played video games and this has given me a reason to get out of the house and hit the trails again.
I appreciate the encouragement, and I do plan on continuing with photography. I'd like to be good at it someday, so who knows!
David - You really should post this to the Flora forum - you'll get much better/more feedback on what looks like a nicely composed and exposed shot. These forums are really for discussion topics only - so feel free to jump into the critique forums!! And welcome...
David B makes a good suggestion in that "critiques" are best requested for in the gallery forums; ie. Flora, Fauna, Earth Sea & Sky, etc. But having said that, we also don't want to discourage you from posting and your photography - there's lots of people here willing to help you along the way.
I really like what Peter said first off. I think he nailed it. It's really up to you and it really only matters if you enjoy what you do. If you have that passion and enjoyment for nature and photography, there's nothing stopping you. And to be honest, I don't think it would be a fair assessment to judge a single image and tell someone if they should persue photography or not. The bottom line is, if you enjoy it and like the images you create, then that's all that matters.
Over time, you will continue to learn and improve. Visit the various forums, read books, take some photography classes, join a camera club... there's endless opportunities to learn and grow. And NPN is a great place - but not the only place.
Having said all that, I think you were still looking for a critique of the image you posted. I too have a lilac bush/tree and I love those clusters of fragrant flowers. This is certainly not a bad image (again what matters is if you like it,) but there are a couple of things you can consider for the next time.
The first, is that the background lighting is really harsh - as if you were shooting towards or near the sun. Both film and digital cameras can only handle a narrow range of light and it's very difficult to include very bright areas and get the exposure even throughout. The only way around that is through digital processing on the computer using multiple exposures - called blending. Depending on the circumstances you could use some opaque material to shade and distribute the lighting. You can also look for different times of day or direction of lighting to avoid the harsh background lighting.
Secondly, depending on your camera you should be able to make choices in aperture and shutter speed to control the depth of field. It's not necessarily bad to have elements that are blurry or out of focus, but in the case of your image about 1/2 the image is soft due to a shallow depth of field. If you were to crop this in half just leaving the right half you could eliminate both the bright background and out of focus flowers. The color, exposure look good on the main cluster of flowers - and it looks reasonably sharp.
The possiblities are endless - the best advice is to get out and take pictures. Learn to recognize light, form, patterns and compositions - even when you don't have your camera.
David, I can relate to your "beginnings" as a nature photographer. I was about the same age when I started and used a Kodak Brownee before I progressed to a Nikon SLR. 33 years later, I am still as passionate about nature photography as I was then. If you have a desire to learn then this is the place to be.
One of the best things about nature photography is learning to see. You begin to see patterns and textures. And the way the light affects the subject. Nature photography opens up a beautiful world. And you are standing on the threshold to that now.
We all had to start somewhere Dave, so if you love it, simply do it. If its just for you, then its still worth while if you makes you feel good. Post a few shots in the correct forums and watch yourself grow and you will. Thats a given and I've seen it so many times and including myself.
Enough words, time for photos . All the best Dave and just jump in.
I certainly want to add my welcome to you, David, both as a new photographer and a new member of NPN. How exciting to be at the beginning of such wonderful adventures! The great thing about discovering your interests, your "loves" in life, is that you'll know it just feels right and that you cannot, under any circumstances, NOT do it. You will always want to learn and improve your skills. And I feel very happy for you that you found NPN at the start. Sure wish I had! Even coming to it when I did has been such a great experience.
Lots of good advice already given. I'll just emphasize to "jump right in." Shoot LOTS of photos, experiment and play, spin all the dials on that camera and shoot up a storm. Post your photos and questions in the critique forums, and you'll get lots of tips. Lon gave you a good critique on this shot. It's quite good for the composition and how you kept such a delicate pastel color intact with the harsh background light. The folks over in Flora have an expansive variety of ways to shoot flowers. Do put it up over there and see what they say; come back often! Look around the forums a lot, too, to study the images and the comments. And DO comment on photos you like or have questions about, or don't like and have questions about. Art is wonderful in that there is no right and wrong way but rather lots of room for personal expression and learning ways to bring out the best of it.
Btw, I am a new lay minister in my church and am very excited about it.
Wishing you all the best in both photography and ministry!
Great advice Cath and this line makes me smile with its honesty.
Art is wonderful in that there is no right and wrong way but rather lots of room for personal expression and learning ways to bring out the best of it.
Thank you all for such kind comments! I've decided to go ahead and make an investment into some gear.
I have absolutely zero clue about hardware or anything related to cameras, so keeping that in mind, by my best judgement, I decided that the Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi 400D Camera would be a good starting choice.
Can anyone confirm/deny? I've tried to read some reviews but I have yet to understand much of what they say. Could anyone give a very new guy some beginning advice to this piece of equipment compared to other cameras in its price range? Thanks so much for your time!
David - Given that you don't really understand all the in's and out's yet, I'd say that camera is a very good, safe choice. (There's a reason Canon sells so many Rebels.) It should allow you to do anything you want photographically for a while as you learn. And there isn't anything lacking about other gear and accesories if you find a niche you want to try.
One alternative you might want to look at, just because it's simpler and cheaper to start with, is a "superzoom" point and shoot camera. I've got a Canon S2 IS, and all of the shots in my portfolio are with that camera. (Not that they're great shots, but it gives you some idea.) And the big plus for me is it only cost me about $800 for everything I have (camera, case, batteries and charger, filters, good tripod). And operation of it is very SLR like. It has a viewfinder (albeit an electronic one) full SLR type modes (Av, Tv, Manual, exposure compensation, auto bracketing, etc.
And if I want to get an SLR (which I actually seem to be constantly considering) I'm not really losing much. Operating it will be similar, and the learning curve will be much less for me. If you're certain you want an SLR, and don't mind the size, then by all means go for it.
also, I started nature photography by picking up "digital nature photography" by john cpx, and landscape photography by tim fitzharris, both great books..and don't forget nature photography field guide, by john shaw.
It was Ansel Adams that said, "I am only as good as my last and next image..." What I think he meant by that was that his last image demonstraited his skills at that moment and the next one would dmonstraite the growth of his talent as he learned from the last image.
I have been approaching my own work the same way. lastly in any art, the best and worst critic is the artist him or herself. So with that, I say, hotography the things you are passionate about, photograph them in a way the expresses that passion then judge forrself if you did what you set out to do.
In viewing this one piece of work I could never judge yourl talents, but I can see that you do have the passion and that is 90% of the Art of Photography, the science part comes over time and only after you open yourself up more and more through your work.
My best teachers were those I may have met once or twie but never took a formal lesson from. Art Wolfe, Galen Rowell, John Shaw, George Lepp, Rich Buzzelli, Richard Norman, Andy Cook, Todd Caudle, Scott Bacon, the list goes on and I can go on with every member of this NPN group. The key is that I look at their images and see what appeals to me and I work towards those results in my own journey of nearly 30 years.
Finally I think everyone before just said the same thing, just in a different way. I certainly look forward to seeing moe posts from you!
Attend workshops, read books, magazines and Web Blogs, then take risks before during and after making the image and soak it all up. Welcome to the entire group, I encourage you to join a local group if you can and just have fun! Enjoy the ride and reap the rewards when you can.
See you in the field!
Discussion
13 repliesYou decision to continue has little to do with you current skills, but lies entirely w/ you passion. My first photo 30 years ago was nothing more than a snapshot. I learn new ways of seeing even today from trial and error, and from viewing works of others.
Few, if any photographers have an talent from the start. Galen Rowell wrote about this in one of his books. There is only one young (relative to me) photographer that I've seen in 30 years who is truly gifted.
So, let your passion drive you. Read, learn, experiment.
Pete
Bruce
I appreciate the encouragement, and I do plan on continuing with photography. I'd like to be good at it someday, so who knows!
--Dave
Welcome to NPN and thanks for posting.
David B makes a good suggestion in that "critiques" are best requested for in the gallery forums; ie. Flora, Fauna, Earth Sea & Sky, etc. But having said that, we also don't want to discourage you from posting and your photography - there's lots of people here willing to help you along the way.
I really like what Peter said first off. I think he nailed it. It's really up to you and it really only matters if you enjoy what you do. If you have that passion and enjoyment for nature and photography, there's nothing stopping you. And to be honest, I don't think it would be a fair assessment to judge a single image and tell someone if they should persue photography or not. The bottom line is, if you enjoy it and like the images you create, then that's all that matters.
Over time, you will continue to learn and improve. Visit the various forums, read books, take some photography classes, join a camera club... there's endless opportunities to learn and grow. And NPN is a great place - but not the only place.
Having said all that, I think you were still looking for a critique of the image you posted. I too have a lilac bush/tree and I love those clusters of fragrant flowers. This is certainly not a bad image (again what matters is if you like it,) but there are a couple of things you can consider for the next time.
The first, is that the background lighting is really harsh - as if you were shooting towards or near the sun. Both film and digital cameras can only handle a narrow range of light and it's very difficult to include very bright areas and get the exposure even throughout. The only way around that is through digital processing on the computer using multiple exposures - called blending. Depending on the circumstances you could use some opaque material to shade and distribute the lighting. You can also look for different times of day or direction of lighting to avoid the harsh background lighting.
Secondly, depending on your camera you should be able to make choices in aperture and shutter speed to control the depth of field. It's not necessarily bad to have elements that are blurry or out of focus, but in the case of your image about 1/2 the image is soft due to a shallow depth of field. If you were to crop this in half just leaving the right half you could eliminate both the bright background and out of focus flowers. The color, exposure look good on the main cluster of flowers - and it looks reasonably sharp.
The possiblities are endless - the best advice is to get out and take pictures. Learn to recognize light, form, patterns and compositions - even when you don't have your camera.
Best of luck,
Lon
One of the best things about nature photography is learning to see. You begin to see patterns and textures. And the way the light affects the subject. Nature photography opens up a beautiful world. And you are standing on the threshold to that now.
Welcome.
Will
Edmonton, Alberta
Canada
Enough words, time for photos
Danny.
Lots of good advice already given. I'll just emphasize to "jump right in." Shoot LOTS of photos, experiment and play, spin all the dials on that camera and shoot up a storm. Post your photos and questions in the critique forums, and you'll get lots of tips. Lon gave you a good critique on this shot. It's quite good for the composition and how you kept such a delicate pastel color intact with the harsh background light. The folks over in Flora have an expansive variety of ways to shoot flowers. Do put it up over there and see what they say; come back often! Look around the forums a lot, too, to study the images and the comments. And DO comment on photos you like or have questions about, or don't like and have questions about. Art is wonderful in that there is no right and wrong way but rather lots of room for personal expression and learning ways to bring out the best of it.
Btw, I am a new lay minister in my church and am very excited about it.
Wishing you all the best in both photography and ministry!
Some of the best advice I've seen in years Cath
Danny.
I have absolutely zero clue about hardware or anything related to cameras, so keeping that in mind, by my best judgement, I decided that the Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi 400D Camera would be a good starting choice.
Can anyone confirm/deny? I've tried to read some reviews but I have yet to understand much of what they say. Could anyone give a very new guy some beginning advice to this piece of equipment compared to other cameras in its price range? Thanks so much for your time!
--David Holt
Campbellsville, Kentucky
One alternative you might want to look at, just because it's simpler and cheaper to start with, is a "superzoom" point and shoot camera. I've got a Canon S2 IS, and all of the shots in my portfolio are with that camera. (Not that they're great shots, but it gives you some idea.) And the big plus for me is it only cost me about $800 for everything I have (camera, case, batteries and charger, filters, good tripod). And operation of it is very SLR like. It has a viewfinder (albeit an electronic one) full SLR type modes (Av, Tv, Manual, exposure compensation, auto bracketing, etc.
And if I want to get an SLR (which I actually seem to be constantly considering) I'm not really losing much. Operating it will be similar, and the learning curve will be much less for me. If you're certain you want an SLR, and don't mind the size, then by all means go for it.
pete and lon both gave very good advice...
also, I started nature photography by picking up "digital nature photography" by john cpx, and landscape photography by tim fitzharris, both great books..and don't forget nature photography field guide, by john shaw.
read alot, shoot alot, post alot!
scott
I have been approaching my own work the same way. lastly in any art, the best and worst critic is the artist him or herself. So with that, I say, hotography the things you are passionate about, photograph them in a way the expresses that passion then judge forrself if you did what you set out to do.
In viewing this one piece of work I could never judge yourl talents, but I can see that you do have the passion and that is 90% of the Art of Photography, the science part comes over time and only after you open yourself up more and more through your work.
My best teachers were those I may have met once or twie but never took a formal lesson from. Art Wolfe, Galen Rowell, John Shaw, George Lepp, Rich Buzzelli, Richard Norman, Andy Cook, Todd Caudle, Scott Bacon, the list goes on and I can go on with every member of this NPN group. The key is that I look at their images and see what appeals to me and I work towards those results in my own journey of nearly 30 years.
Finally I think everyone before just said the same thing, just in a different way. I certainly look forward to seeing moe posts from you!
Attend workshops, read books, magazines and Web Blogs, then take risks before during and after making the image and soak it all up. Welcome to the entire group, I encourage you to join a local group if you can and just have fun! Enjoy the ride and reap the rewards when you can.
See you in the field!