I thought it would be fun to share what we've learned via this forum.
Here are two funny examples of critiques / lessons I've gotten:
I was brand new to NPN and nature photography, and posted a shot of a fox I thought was a real winner - my first post in the then Fauna gallery. Brad Hill was kind enough to critique my image. He said some really nice things about the fox picture, and then, very gently added something to the effect: "In general, it is a good idea to get the eye of the animal you are photographing in focus." (My focus was on the nose!!!, and I didn't even realize it.) He said it so gently, and didn't discourage me, and I'll never forget that. Makes me laugh every time I think about it.
Another time, I was taking a workshop with Nate Chappell and Ken Archer out in Malheur. We were there for the Sage Grouse, but came upon a rabbit near the side of the road on the way back from an outing. Nate offered to stop and let me get out to photograph it. I got out of the car, but something about my approach scared off the animal. Upon returning to the vehicle, Nate said in a very patient, kind tone, "In general, it's usually best not to CHARGE the wild animal you are attempting to photograph." Priceless advice, right?!
More serious (and slightly more advanced) things I've learned thanks to NPN:
- try to get good feather detail in bird images;
- try to get a nice catchlight in a bird's eye;
- get a nice angle, as level with the animal as possible, as it makes for a more intimate image.
Posted by Ron Dudley on January 6, 2013 at 9:20 PM
NPN'ers have taught me a lot and saved my bacon more than once.
Top of the list - almost 6 years ago as a relative newbie I was trying to decide which lens to purchase for birds. I was pretty sure that my choice would be the 300 2.8 because I didn't want to spring for the big bucks for the 500 but just before the purchase I posted a question on NPN asking for advice. I got a lot of it, good stuff, from a variety of folks. But Tom Webster went the extra mile with me. He responded again and again, on the original thread and in private, and convinced me that if I was really serious about bird photography that eventually I would regret it if I didn't go for the 500. He was so right! I'll never forget Tom's excellent advice. Here's the link to the thread if you're interested. http://www.naturephotographers.net/imagecritique/bbs.cgi?a=vm&mr=18673&CGISESSID=464358fd45caba02e597dd26bd8de0bb&u=30516
Posted by Jim DeWitt on January 7, 2013 at 5:54 PM
Good topic, Rebecka.
Former NPN Avian moderator Bob Steele, critiquing one of my Arctic Tern shots: You can't take a photo in the field that is to sharp. You can only oversharpen in post-processing. He emphasized how important it is to get it right in the field and not count on Photoshop to "clean it up."
Posted by Brian Gatlin on January 7, 2013 at 7:18 PM
I had to think about this one for a while because I've learned so much here. If I had to boil it down to one thing (which encompasses pretty much everything else), it is to be my own harshest critic--to strive for excellence and demand the best.
Posted by Dan Roberts on January 7, 2013 at 9:01 PM
I guess a couple of things. First I was already aware but get reminded once in a while that I have trouble being objective with my own work. Not on techical aspects but on content. Invariably the photos that are my favorites rarely play well to an audience of impartial critics. This usually manifests itself in silence. It's pretty obvious when you get one comment for every 50 views of a posted image that it's not all that impressive. Particularly because the one or two comments in those cases are out of pity from the moderators
Another more technical sort of thing is to leave some room around critters. Paricularly with avian shots I tend to be so enchanted by the level of feather detail or if I get a good catch light that I crop too tightly to show the detail at the expense of the overall image. Every time someone has recommended a wider crop to me I agree with the end result (when re-cropping is possible).
Then of course there are some of the technical recommendations on post processing that I don't even understand but am embarassed to ask about
Discussion
4 repliesHere are two funny examples of critiques / lessons I've gotten:
I was brand new to NPN and nature photography, and posted a shot of a fox I thought was a real winner - my first post in the then Fauna gallery. Brad Hill was kind enough to critique my image. He said some really nice things about the fox picture, and then, very gently added something to the effect: "In general, it is a good idea to get the eye of the animal you are photographing in focus." (My focus was on the nose!!!, and I didn't even realize it.) He said it so gently, and didn't discourage me, and I'll never forget that. Makes me laugh every time I think about it.
Another time, I was taking a workshop with Nate Chappell and Ken Archer out in Malheur. We were there for the Sage Grouse, but came upon a rabbit near the side of the road on the way back from an outing. Nate offered to stop and let me get out to photograph it. I got out of the car, but something about my approach scared off the animal. Upon returning to the vehicle, Nate said in a very patient, kind tone, "In general, it's usually best not to CHARGE the wild animal you are attempting to photograph." Priceless advice, right?!
More serious (and slightly more advanced) things I've learned thanks to NPN:
- try to get good feather detail in bird images;
- try to get a nice catchlight in a bird's eye;
- get a nice angle, as level with the animal as possible, as it makes for a more intimate image.
Top of the list - almost 6 years ago as a relative newbie I was trying to decide which lens to purchase for birds. I was pretty sure that my choice would be the 300 2.8 because I didn't want to spring for the big bucks for the 500 but just before the purchase I posted a question on NPN asking for advice. I got a lot of it, good stuff, from a variety of folks. But Tom Webster went the extra mile with me. He responded again and again, on the original thread and in private, and convinced me that if I was really serious about bird photography that eventually I would regret it if I didn't go for the 500. He was so right! I'll never forget Tom's excellent advice. Here's the link to the thread if you're interested.
http://www.naturephotographers.net/imagecritique/bbs.cgi?a=vm&mr=18673&CGISESSID=464358fd45caba02e597dd26bd8de0bb&u=30516
Former NPN Avian moderator Bob Steele, critiquing one of my Arctic Tern shots: You can't take a photo in the field that is to sharp. You can only oversharpen in post-processing. He emphasized how important it is to get it right in the field and not count on Photoshop to "clean it up."
Another more technical sort of thing is to leave some room around critters. Paricularly with avian shots I tend to be so enchanted by the level of feather detail or if I get a good catch light that I crop too tightly to show the detail at the expense of the overall image. Every time someone has recommended a wider crop to me I agree with the end result (when re-cropping is possible).
Then of course there are some of the technical recommendations on post processing that I don't even understand but am embarassed to ask about