A Picture I took - 2013

[UnknownSouljer]

 

[darktiger]

I will tell you what.. I love shooting at 1.2 with the EOS-M

 

[darktiger]

Here are a few I took 3 days after I got my M.... It was almost dark, stormy and started to rain.. but I snagged a few. All these were at f/1.2


Nadia by darktiger, on Flickr


Nadia by darktiger, on Flickr


Nadia by darktiger, on Flickr


Nadia by darktiger, on Flickr

 

[darktiger]

 

[Etherton]

I think you are over compensating Darktiger...

 

[UnknownSouljer]

 

[Empty_Quarter]

Jaws by Empty Quarter, on Flickr

 

[ComputerGeek]

How do you like the EOS m darktiger? I was thinking about pulling the trigger on the $249 deal but I want to see what the new one does, If a leak I found is right it should be out on July 31. The $249 deal is over anyway.

What cameras do you like that are more pocketable(doesn't have to fix in a pocket.)? I love my dslr but I would like to have something that I can't take everywhere, and not freak out if someone broke into my car.

 

[POTN_JS]

 

[Goatsongoats]

Hey guys, first time posting some photos in this thread for me. Have a bunch of photos I want to share and hear some honest critique on.


Piran by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


Mountains In Slovenia by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


Nothing Unusual by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


Alley by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


Love by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


Cuba Libre? by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


Booger by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


Wild kitteh by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


Forest by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


Climbing in Slovenia by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


Beautiful Sun by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


Dance Contest by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


Dance Contest by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


Kitteh by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


Sunset V2 by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


Orange! by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


Old Church by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


More Sunset by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


Alleys of Piran by derick.magnusen, on Flickr


Flowers by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

Thanks!

 

[UnknownSouljer]

Hey guys, first time posting some photos in this thread for me. Have a bunch of photos I want to share and hear some honest critique on.

Alright, I'll give it a go. I generally prefer to be brutal and straightforward so, take my critique with a grain of salt.

Piran by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

The first image is really lacking a strong subject matter. You used a wide angle which emphasized the foreground, but there isn't anything in the foreground that draws interest to the eye. It appears to be a small rock built structure. Which is part of the problem, I have no idea what the structure is. I can draw certain things from inference, like the fact that you're at the end of a point, and I can see you were going for some level of symmetry, but like I said, it's not particularly interesting to look at.

If you had another chance to shoot it again, I would recommend moving to the left or the right and perhaps getting a view down one of the lanes on either side. Maybe there isn't anything there, but it looks like there is a line/row of houses. That might have been a more interesting point of interest. Another option would have been to focus more on the foreground structure and trying to show the viewer what it actually is.

Mountains In Slovenia by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

This is generally a good pic. Jay Patel (and many others) basically say "follow the light". If the light looks good, it will generally make everything else look good. Such is the case here. I probably don't need to tell you that if it was midday and nothing was going on this shot framed exactly the same way would probably look unremarkable. Such is the power of excellent light.

Nothing Unusual by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

This is obviously a more whimsical and odd sort of image. You choose to use selective color. Here are some notes about that.

If you choose to use selective color, you should have a really good reason why, as anything that is in color when everything else isn't will draw the eye immediately. This works very well when there is only one subject in the frame. The problem is there are two subjects in this frame, the girl and the man with the horse head. So I find myself looking at her, and not really looking at him despite him being, probably, the more interesting thing to see. There is another issue as well, the flowers also draw my eye because of the selective color so I have a tendency to want to see them also rather than the man with the horse head.

I'm not a particular fan of this image, but if you wanted to continue to show it, I'd either move it directly to b&w, or keep it in color as I don't see a way to use selective color to great effect here.

Alley by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

This is generally a nice picture in Europe or wherever it's shot. It reminds me of some of Cartier-Bresson's work but without a personal element. It's a pretty strong image. I think it could have been even stronger if you would have managed to capture someone going about their daily lives in the shot. A bicyclist or a woman walking, etc. (Yes, I see the person way back there, but she's not close enough to help this image). People always add context to the frame. I used to try and shoot around people (not sure if that's what you did here), but more and more I've been finding that images are generally more powerful with people... so long as it's not a crowd.

Love by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

Abstract shot of locks is abstract shot of locks. Kind of cute I suppose with one being different at the front. But I'll be honest, this image doesn't do anything for me. Sort of reminds me of micro stock photography.

Cuba Libre? by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

An image of a sign. Not sure what there is to say here. You captured it well I suppose, but when I try to think of the purpose of this shot I struggle. For you personally it might have meaning, but for anyone else, it's unremarkable. Certainly no one would want to print this and hang it in their house.

Booger by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

This is framed well and shot well. Of course I'm not sure what the context is behind it, but it does look interesting and it does draw the eye. I generally like this one, but at the same time, I'm not a fan of your name of it. Despite seeing the joke.

Wild kitteh by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

The internet is for sharing pictures of cats. Meme satisfied... It's clean. The selective color here almost doesn't look like selective color at all. For this you choose yellow and the cat. It looks cute and perhaps is good practice, but this image doesn't do anything for me. People's pets generally don't. The animal would either have to be exotic or have to be doing something particularly interesting. If you can shoot the decisive moment of a cat really showing an extension of its personality, that would work better.

Forest by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

This is probably the most different image you have in this set (although I don't think these images really go together in generally). It looks really bleak. If that's what you were going for, it works well. I might try playing with the contrast and midtones a bit more. It looks awfully grey without a lot of differentiation. That could've been what you were going for though I suppose.

Climbing in Slovenia by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

This image is a lot like the other image of the mountains and clouds above. It's generally shot well with excellent lighting, which more or less makes the photo. I think the muted tones really play in your favor for this particular shot.

Beautiful Sun by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

This is generally a nice image. Good composition with the hiker on the far left of the frame with his path of walking towards the right. Shooting into the sun worked generally well for this shot, but I think you over-saturated the greens. Generally having a light source into the camera makes things less saturated and contrasted. I generally prefer to not try to "correct" against this as I think it looks more natural.

Dance Contest by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

Dance Contest by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

These two dance shots I'll take at the same time. I know you were trying to hit these at the apex of their movement to try and get the most dynamic image, but I'll be honest, it's just not there. I'm not opposed to shots of dancers (in fact, I would say shots of dancers in general are fantastic as you can see very interesting positions of the human form) but these seem drab. The well saturated colors make sense here so I think the pallet is okay, but both of these images feel like they just missed that pop.

I also note that both of these images look remarkably similar. Yes I know one has one person and the other has multiple-people but they are more or less in the same position. If you wanted to continue using these in your portfolio (not certain if you do...) then I would choose one or the other and not use both.

Kitteh by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

Another shot of a cat. Cute enough, shot lower this time. I like the color of the floor and the cat itself. But again, nothing interesting to see here.

Sunset V2 by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

This one I'd say the subject matter isn't framed well. The dock nor the sunset seem to be well composed. I'd either do higher up and looking down on the dock, or perhaps more to the side and shoot across the dock, or if you want the sunrise I'd have the bars framed to the far right or far left of the frame and have the eyes drawn more towards the background.

Orange! by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

This image works a lot better than any of your previous for selective color. You really intensified this orange to the point of looking very synthetic though. If that's the color of orange it was in person, I'd be very surprised.

My only other major note is the same one that I said about the girl and the man with the horsehead. The selective color draws the eyes. I'd ONLY have the shutters orange and get rid of the color from the rest of the frame. There is no reason to have the stripes on the right or the chimney on the left as well as that part of the building on the left orange. I think that will help strengthen the image.

Old Church by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

This is a nice enough building, but this angle doesn't seem quite right. It might have been better to get a focused shot of the door, straight on. Or a straight on shot of the profile, or some other detail shot. I can't really say much more without being there, but suffice it to say, this one is missing an interesting or dramatic angle.

More Sunset by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

The silhouette of the buildings to the right is nice, and I also like the sun and the clouds. I'm less of a fan of the bars on the dock, the water, and the boat. The bars on the dock I don't think you can do much with, although they just draw my eye, and don't look particularly attractive. The water and the boat don't look too interesting or dynamic. I think this image might look better with a different crop, perhaps cutting 1/3 off the bottom and having just a hint of water with the sunset, silhouettes and the boat. That will help the boat which seems two dimensional play in your favor.

Alleys of Piran by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

Another nice enough image of some city streets. Not sure why most of it is b&w but you left green all the way down the middle. I'd get rid of that and move it straight to a pure b&w conversion. Selective color should be used sparingly at most. It's cliched and played out, which is why I made my advisements earlier. Otherwise I think the image looks interesting enough.

Flowers by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

The macro/flower fans will probably like this one. At least the flower subject isn't one I see often so that is a definite plus. Past that though, flowers like cats on the internet don't do much for me. Someone else might appreciate this one much more though.

Thanks!

Well, I hope my comments were/are useful.

 

[Goatsongoats]

Alright, I'll give it a go. I generally prefer to be brutal and straightforward so, take my critique with a grain of salt.

Wow, thank you so much for all the comments! I've been doing photography for a bit but I've been lazy about asking for critiques which is really an important part. I've been going down the route of asking family and friends but all non-photographers are just "ooo ahh I LOVE ALL THESE PHOTOS" etc. Getting a bit old and obviously not helping me push myself at all.

These photos aren't any particular theme or even my portfolio. They're just a collection of a wide spectrum and I'm curious as to what I'm doing right and what I'm doing wrong.

The first image is really lacking a strong subject matter. You used a wide angle which emphasized the foreground, but there isn't anything in the foreground that draws interest to the eye. It appears to be a small rock built structure. Which is part of the problem, I have no idea what the structure is. I can draw certain things from inference, like the fact that you're at the end of a point, and I can see you were going for some level of symmetry, but like I said, it's not particularly interesting to look at.

If you had another chance to shoot it again, I would recommend moving to the left or the right and perhaps getting a view down one of the lanes on either side. Maybe there isn't anything there, but it looks like there is a line/row of houses. That might have been a more interesting point of interest. Another option would have been to focus more on the foreground structure and trying to show the viewer what it actually is.

I think this shot was 6 or 7 different shots put together. I can see what you mean though. The wall is a bit "bland". I'd love to go back there before I leave Europe, hopefully I"ll be able to and reshoot it.

This is generally a good pic. Jay Patel (and many others) basically say "follow the light". If the light looks good, it will generally make everything else look good. Such is the case here. I probably don't need to tell you that if it was midday and nothing was going on this shot framed exactly the same way would probably look unremarkable. Such is the power of excellent light.

I definitely lucked out with the timing on this one. We had gone hiking without the goal of "reaching the summit at sunset" but it worked out perfectly. Next time I need to bring a wider angle instead of a 35mm only lol.

This is obviously a more whimsical and odd sort of image. You choose to use selective color. Here are some notes about that.

If you choose to use selective color, you should have a really good reason why, as anything that is in color when everything else isn't will draw the eye immediately. This works very well when there is only one subject in the frame. The problem is there are two subjects in this frame, the girl and the man with the horse head. So I find myself looking at her, and not really looking at him despite him being, probably, the more interesting thing to see. There is another issue as well, the flowers also draw my eye because of the selective color so I have a tendency to want to see them also rather than the man with the horse head.

I'm not a particular fan of this image, but if you wanted to continue to show it, I'd either move it directly to b&w, or keep it in color as I don't see a way to use selective color to great effect here.

These images are actually the first time I started to play around with selective color. I chose the reds/purples/pinks because of how they popped more but they definitely aren't the subject here like you said.

This is generally a nice picture in Europe or wherever it's shot. It reminds me of some of Cartier-Bresson's work but without a personal element. It's a pretty strong image. I think it could have been even stronger if you would have managed to capture someone going about their daily lives in the shot. A bicyclist or a woman walking, etc. (Yes, I see the person way back there, but she's not close enough to help this image). People always add context to the frame. I used to try and shoot around people (not sure if that's what you did here), but more and more I've been finding that images are generally more powerful with people... so long as it's not a crowd.

Oddly I usually do a lot of shots with people. I love the emotions and stories they can tell more than just objects. I'll probably put some more up later as I look through my HDD and find them.

Abstract shot of locks is abstract shot of locks. Kind of cute I suppose with one being different at the front. But I'll be honest, this image doesn't do anything for me. Sort of reminds me of micro stock photography.

An image of a sign. Not sure what there is to say here. You captured it well I suppose, but when I try to think of the purpose of this shot I struggle. For you personally it might have meaning, but for anyone else, it's unremarkable. Certainly no one would want to print this and hang it in their house.

Gotcha.

This is framed well and shot well. Of course I'm not sure what the context is behind it, but it does look interesting and it does draw the eye. I generally like this one, but at the same time, I'm not a fan of your name of it. Despite seeing the joke.

The names were really just the first word that popped into my head, no deep thoughts or anything here right now lol

The internet is for sharing pictures of cats. Meme satisfied... It's clean. The selective color here almost doesn't look like selective color at all. For this you choose yellow and the cat. It looks cute and perhaps is good practice, but this image doesn't do anything for me. People's pets generally don't. The animal would either have to be exotic or have to be doing something particularly interesting. If you can shoot the decisive moment of a cat really showing an extension of its personality, that would work better.

Cat photos are cat photos

This is probably the most different image you have in this set (although I don't think these images really go together in generally). It looks really bleak. If that's what you were going for, it works well. I might try playing with the contrast and midtones a bit more. It looks awfully grey without a lot of differentiation. That could've been what you were going for though I suppose.

I was playing around with the midtons a lot but ended up deciding to go pretty neutral. Might play some more and put up the other results to see what people see.

This image is a lot like the other image of the mountains and clouds above. It's generally shot well with excellent lighting, which more or less makes the photo. I think the muted tones really play in your favor for this particular shot.

This is generally a nice image. Good composition with the hiker on the far left of the frame with his path of walking towards the right. Shooting into the sun worked generally well for this shot, but I think you over-saturated the greens. Generally having a light source into the camera makes things less saturated and contrasted. I generally prefer to not try to "correct" against this as I think it looks more natural.

Will do.

These two dance shots I'll take at the same time. I know you were trying to hit these at the apex of their movement to try and get the most dynamic image, but I'll be honest, it's just not there. I'm not opposed to shots of dancers (in fact, I would say shots of dancers in general are fantastic as you can see very interesting positions of the human form) but these seem drab. The well saturated colors make sense here so I think the pallet is okay, but both of these images feel like they just missed that pop.

I also note that both of these images look remarkably similar. Yes I know one has one person and the other has multiple-people but they are more or less in the same position. If you wanted to continue using these in your portfolio (not certain if you do...) then I would choose one or the other and not use both.

This was my first time shooting an event like this (not paid, just passed by it) so I was just more curious than anything if these had appeal etc.

Another shot of a cat. Cute enough, shot lower this time. I like the color of the floor and the cat itself. But again, nothing interesting to see here.

This one I'd say the subject matter isn't framed well. The dock nor the sunset seem to be well composed. I'd either do higher up and looking down on the dock, or perhaps more to the side and shoot across the dock, or if you want the sunrise I'd have the bars framed to the far right or far left of the frame and have the eyes drawn more towards the background.

I really need to go back to Piran and take some more.

This image works a lot better than any of your previous for selective color. You really intensified this orange to the point of looking very synthetic though. If that's the color of orange it was in person, I'd be very surprised.

My only other major note is the same one that I said about the girl and the man with the horsehead. The selective color draws the eyes. I'd ONLY have the shutters orange and get rid of the color from the rest of the frame. There is no reason to have the stripes on the right or the chimney on the left as well as that part of the building on the left orange. I think that will help strengthen the image.

Yeah the orange is a bit intensified here hehe

This is a nice enough building, but this angle doesn't seem quite right. It might have been better to get a focused shot of the door, straight on. Or a straight on shot of the profile, or some other detail shot. I can't really say much more without being there, but suffice it to say, this one is missing an interesting or dramatic angle.

The silhouette of the buildings to the right is nice, and I also like the sun and the clouds. I'm less of a fan of the bars on the dock, the water, and the boat. The bars on the dock I don't think you can do much with, although they just draw my eye, and don't look particularly attractive. The water and the boat don't look too interesting or dynamic. I think this image might look better with a different crop, perhaps cutting 1/3 off the bottom and having just a hint of water with the sunset, silhouettes and the boat. That will help the boat which seems two dimensional play in your favor.

I'll play some more and get back to you

Another nice enough image of some city streets. Not sure why most of it is b&w but you left green all the way down the middle. I'd get rid of that and move it straight to a pure b&w conversion. Selective color should be used sparingly at most. It's cliched and played out, which is why I made my advisements earlier. Otherwise I think the image looks interesting enough.

I'm not really sure what happened here to be honest. It should have been all B&W. Maybe I missed something.

The macro/flower fans will probably like this one. At least the flower subject isn't one I see often so that is a definite plus. Past that though, flowers like cats on the internet don't do much for me. Someone else might appreciate this one much more though.

Well, I hope my comments were/are useful.

Again, thank you, your comments were exactly what I was looking for. I definitely wasn't expecting so much cheers!

 

[POTN_JS]

 

[HeavensCloud]

[/QUOTE]

I'm not completely sure why, but I love this photo.

 

[POTN_JS]

Thank you!

 

[Daggah]

How do you like the EOS m darktiger? I was thinking about pulling the trigger on the $249 deal but I want to see what the new one does, If a leak I found is right it should be out on July 31. The $249 deal is over anyway.

What cameras do you like that are more pocketable(doesn't have to fix in a pocket.)? I love my dslr but I would like to have something that I can't take everywhere, and not freak out if someone broke into my car.

Unless you have a huge library of Canon lenses that you're itching to use on a mirrorless camera, you'd be much better off with one of the entry level m4/3 bodies. The EOS-M has no real advantage over any other mirrorless system to justify the purchase.

 

[northrop]

Messing around and trying new things. Not happy with the results, more testing will be required

 

[Empty_Quarter]

Great photos! I think the second one would be perfect if you could see the sears tower a little more. Chicago isnt chicago without sears. I love how you could see the fountain on the first one. I miss chicago, such a sexy city.

Any reason why you didnt use a lower ISO?

 

[ComputerGeek]

Unless you have a huge library of Canon lenses that you're itching to use on a mirrorless camera, you'd be much better off with one of the entry level m4/3 bodies. The EOS-M has no real advantage over any other mirrorless system to justify the purchase.

I don't really, and I am probably going to get the blackmagic pocket cinema camera, once I see some tests and reviews, which is mft so that probably makes more sense,

What M4/3 models would you recommend, and what lenses?

 

[Coaxial]

 

[northrop]

^Ha, That's awesome! Is it yours or did you just stumbled upon him in the wild?

Great photos! I think the second one would be perfect if you could see the sears tower a little more. Chicago isnt chicago without sears. I love how you could see the fountain on the first one. I miss chicago, such a sexy city.

Any reason why you didnt use a lower ISO?

Thanks. Indeed, Chicago does look a little different without Sears/Willis Tower, but in a way, the unique look is... well, unique Now, if I could only get a sky like in POTN's pics (kudos for the pics, btw. Awesome shots, amazing atmosphere!) here in Chicago, I would be a very happy camper

As for the ISO, that's me trying to salvage the situation, lol. I went out with a purpose of getting some long exposure shots of the skyline. I set my tripod, the camera, the filter... and... I forgot the cable release, lol. So in order to get somewhat proper exposure on the frame with 30seconds, I had to bump the ISO just a little bit. The noise is there, but to be fair, it never really bothered me in the D800. I'm not sure why, but it just doesn't look (and forgive me for saying this) digital.

 

[Coaxial]

^Ha, That's awesome! Is it yours or did you just stumbled upon him in the wild?

Thanks! No just a tiny spider that was on the back windshield of my car. Probably the size of a pushpin

 

[jbaczek]

Whoa! I won my first photography contest for this picture! I got $100 in gift certificates and am extremely honored. Their beer is amazing! If you live near central Massachusetts you have to give these guys a visit.

Super excited! Go Beer!


Tree House Brewing by bonscope, on Flickr

Link: Tree House Brewing Photography Contest

What do you guys think?

 

[wra18th]

it looks classy as hell. i would drink that beer just on viewing this pic.

 

[Goatsongoats]

Moon by derick.magnusen, on Flickr

 

[Coaxial]

 

[madFive]

^^Lots of good bug shots there! What lens are you using for those?

 

[Coaxial]

^^Lots of good bug shots there! What lens are you using for those?

Thanks! Some quantaray 28mm (no clue what mount) I picked up on eBay a couple years back for $17 or so, reversed. Almost all of my macro shooting is done with that.

 

[grnbtl]

Love this thread. Great inspiration for new photographers like myself.

 

[Empty_Quarter]

Very cool pics all, great spree of macro pics too!


Shipwreck by Empty Quarter, on Flickr

 

[madFive]

^^ Love the bright colors you're getting in these night shots!

(did I mention I can't wait to go play with this camera some more?)

 

[Empty_Quarter]

ty, though it was dawn, cant really say it was night


Tracks by Empty Quarter, on Flickr

 

[bonscope]

it looks classy as hell. i would drink that beer just on viewing this pic.

Thank you! That's exactly what I was going for! It turned out better than I hoped.

 

[ComputerGeek]

ty, though it was dawn, cant really say it was night


Tracks by Empty Quarter, on Flickr

Cool photo how was that done? Was the Green/Blue tint added after to some parts?

 

[Empty_Quarter]

Cool photo how was that done? Was the Green/Blue tint added after to some parts?

ty, I was on a moving train. Kept the camera still and used a slow shutter speed of 1/30s. Frame and snap . I wanted to try a slower shutter speed, but the train wasn't that smooth for me to pull it off.

The green is because of some shrubs that were poking through the tracks, and the blue is a reflection of the sky. I do tend to go overboard with pushing the blues though, and always find myself backing down from it

 

[POTN_JS]

 

[ben chi(f4)]

Pier - Outer Banks by persckyphotography.com, on Flickr

[
Pier - Outer Banks by persckyphotography.com, on Flickr

 

[Pappy]

 

[Empty_Quarter]

Great shots all

http://ravaged.gibhut.com/6D/AZThread20130723/IMG_8536_e_smaller.jpg[/IM G]

[IMG]http://ravaged.gibhut.com/6D/AZThread20130723/IMG_8553_smaller.jpg

This one is rather unique, cant say Ive seen this technique done this way before

 

[OEMlicense]

I personally like it.