** A Picture I Took - 2010 **

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So question. I've recently gotten into photography. I've got a Canon DSLR Rebel XSi with a couple lenses. I'm really enjoying myself and have had a blast taking pictures, but I haven't figured out the settings yet.

Did most of you simply take pictures until you learn enough about your camera? I feel like I'm missing some really good shots due to inexperience. For example, I've made a couple trips to the city zoo, including a visit on the 4th of July. The zoo had tons of really cool stuff, like feeding a grizzly bear 5 tilapia or giving some squirrel monkeys some small piñatas. Anyways, I take my camera and try to set the correct fstop and iso and aperture, which I'm getting better at. But sometimes photos come out as really shaky and out of focus, or the focus is not on the subject that I wanted. Even trying to use manual focus, I've noticed that sometimes I focus on the wrong item (due to the viewfinder being small, not the lcd).

Any suggestions for getting better?
 
Did most of you simply take pictures until you learn enough about your camera?
That's pretty much the best way to go about it, yeah. There are plenty of websites around that will help you learn, check out the "photography sites" sticky thread.

I feel like I'm missing some really good shots due to inexperience. For example, I've made a couple trips to the city zoo, including a visit on the 4th of July. The zoo had tons of really cool stuff, like feeding a grizzly bear 5 tilapia or giving some squirrel monkeys some small piñatas. Anyways, I take my camera and try to set the correct fstop and iso and aperture, which I'm getting better at. But sometimes photos come out as really shaky and out of focus, or the focus is not on the subject that I wanted. Even trying to use manual focus, I've noticed that sometimes I focus on the wrong item (due to the viewfinder being small, not the lcd).

Any suggestions for getting better?
I'd say it's time to become intimately familiar with the exposure triangle; know all of the pros and cons to each of the following: Shutter speed / Aperture / ISO. Know how tweaking one will affect the other and when/why you should prioritize one over the other two.

One way to combat camera shake, for example, is to use as high a shutter speed as possible, adjusting your aperture and ISO to compensate within reason. A flash might be also be good idea. Another tip for avoiding blurry moving subjects is to set your focus mode to Ai Servo and to shoot in bursts. Your center, cross-type AF point will also be faster & more accurate than your other AF points if you use a lens with a maximum aperture of f/2.8 or faster.

Pick up a couple of magazines, read some sites, but most importantly get out there and practice!
 
This was my first solo wedding gig, and 2nd ever wedding shoot after accidentally falling into the role last fall.

I had a hard time with harsh shadows and squinting due to the afternoon sun, not to mention the heat! I think I also may have overdone my polarizing filter in several shots, which unfortunately is very hard to recover from (help?). Luckily, however, I was able to borrow a friend's 70-200 f/2.8L IS and 50D for the event, so between her camera and mine I wasn't lacking in gear!

Anyway, here are a few shots. I haven't finished editing yet, my 3wk old son isn't giving me a whole lot of spare time! More shots on my picasa album

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Crazy hippie gypsies!!!!

I would work a little bit more on Post Processing and add some texture to some of the photos. But that's just my opinion. Good looking shots though. :p
 
So question. I've recently gotten into photography. I've got a Canon DSLR Rebel XSi with a couple lenses. I'm really enjoying myself and have had a blast taking pictures, but I haven't figured out the settings yet.

Did most of you simply take pictures until you learn enough about your camera? I feel like I'm missing some really good shots due to inexperience. For example, I've made a couple trips to the city zoo, including a visit on the 4th of July. The zoo had tons of really cool stuff, like feeding a grizzly bear 5 tilapia or giving some squirrel monkeys some small piñatas. Anyways, I take my camera and try to set the correct fstop and iso and aperture, which I'm getting better at. But sometimes photos come out as really shaky and out of focus, or the focus is not on the subject that I wanted. Even trying to use manual focus, I've noticed that sometimes I focus on the wrong item (due to the viewfinder being small, not the lcd).

Any suggestions for getting better?

That is it, practice practice practice. I looked at magazines mostly, joined a few photography clubs (flickr, meetup, etc). But most of my experience is finding what I enjoyed shooting and went with that.. I started out with landscapes and travel and it evolved into other areas.. now I shoot people (with a camera) for fun... scary that people actually want me to take their pictures...I only started really doing this 3-4 years ago...
 
Here is a sample of my work:

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I still got a ton more photos to go through, plus a wedding session I did recently.

EDIT: I'm not sure where the white lines in a few of these pics are coming from. I think noise from using photobucket (aka photofucker).
 
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Some stuff from DC. Stupid new Flickr rules force me to link everything. I was a bit lazy with editing. so some need to be leveled a little.

Capitol:


Shot of the Metro. In reality, the Metro is very dimly lit. All are exposed a bit wrong; the actual brightness of the Metro is in between the first and second photos.





Pandas and other animals at the National Zoo.



Prairie dogs:


Lioness:


Amtrak trains at Union Station. The locomotive in the foreground is the one that pulled me all the way from Boston.


A pigeon:


The Monument, with much of the Mall in the foreground:


From another angle, with the reflecting pool in the foreground:



NJ Transit train while stopped at New York Penn Station:


Scenery from the train:

 
Ive never done photography but I just made my first DSLR camera purchase, been doing some reading online about aperature, shutter speed and ISO, took my camera out for a run. It can be somewhat frustrating but I think I took a few ok shots, is this decent?


IMG_0292 by Huxley2011, on Flickr
 
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So question. I've recently gotten into photography. I've got a Canon DSLR Rebel XSi with a couple lenses. I'm really enjoying myself and have had a blast taking pictures, but I haven't figured out the settings yet.

Did most of you simply take pictures until you learn enough about your camera? I feel like I'm missing some really good shots due to inexperience. For example, I've made a couple trips to the city zoo, including a visit on the 4th of July. The zoo had tons of really cool stuff, like feeding a grizzly bear 5 tilapia or giving some squirrel monkeys some small piñatas. Anyways, I take my camera and try to set the correct fstop and iso and aperture, which I'm getting better at. But sometimes photos come out as really shaky and out of focus, or the focus is not on the subject that I wanted. Even trying to use manual focus, I've noticed that sometimes I focus on the wrong item (due to the viewfinder being small, not the lcd).

Any suggestions for getting better?
I am an extreme noob but the first thing I did was google beginners guide to aperature, shutter speed, ISO and beginner photo tips. I made a little cheat sheet to keep with my camera bag to help me memorize what the settings do. From what I have seen, its best to understand your camera as soon as you can and get off of auto.

There are a lot of good guides and beginner tips out on the web. Things I didnt even consider initially was looking for shapes that lead the eye into the photo, the rule of threes, where to place your target in a photo and how to manage background focus to force the eye more towards your center of your picture. I think most of it is learning the basics and getting out there and taking a ton of photos. Find a shot you think might be good and mess with your settings to see what you get. Most programs can give you XVIF (I think that is the acronym) data. This will tell you what settings you used for a shot you particularly liked. Plus digital cameras give you the option to take a crap ton of photos without wasting film, dont be afraid to take a dozen or more shots with different settings of the same subject. Also think of what you are trying to convey with a photo. Is it an emotion? Are you telling a story? What is the subject of your photo? The nice thing is artists have been working for thousands of years trying to find what makes an interesting painting and you can borrow all of their hard earned knowledge. Then again I am a newb so what do I know ehhh
 
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Ive never done photography but I just made my first DSLR camera purchase, been doing some reading online about aperature, shutter speed and ISO, took my camera out for a run. It can be somewhat frustrating but I think I took a few ok shots, is this decent?


IMG_0292 by Huxley2011, on Flickr
I like it. My tip for a beginner would be to always shoot RAW so you have more control over your final photo. Also, don't get discouraged if you take 400 shots and only 10 of them are keepers. Also, shoot in continuous mode (holding down the shutter release to take several photos of the same subject) so that when you get home, you can pick out the sharpest, most interesting one.

Over time, it will become second nature as to what settings to use, and even then, you will find creative ways to use settings in a way that you don't normally do. Also, invest in a good tripod and keep the ISO at its lowest if you can.

And finally, the books that all beginning photographers should read: http://www.amazon.com/Scott-Kelbys-...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1283095643&sr=8-1
 
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^^ Agreed! Love pretty much all of those, Volume! Great night-shots, and several I assume were in a museum or haunted house or something... very cool looking stuff, and loads of personality in the lighting and PP. Very nice! :)
 
Some really nice stuff there Volume.

^^ Agreed! Love pretty much all of those, Volume! Great night-shots, and several I assume were in a museum or haunted house or something... very cool looking stuff, and loads of personality in the lighting and PP. Very nice! :)
Thanks so much, guys :) The shots that look like they're from a display/exhibit are from House on the Rock in Wisconsin. Pretty cool place to visit if you're a photographer!
 
Thanks so much, guys :) The shots that look like they're from a display/exhibit are from House on the Rock in Wisconsin. Pretty cool place to visit if you're a photographer!

Ah thats cool, I live in Downtown St Paul, MN, have a cabin in Grantsburg WI!
 
Still going through my vacation shots. Here's one of my favorite from the Grand Canyon:

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The car for which I cried when my dad sold it 'cause I was too big for the back seat in 1st grade, way back in 1972. Image taken at FHC's round engines day. He was simply parked in the lot.

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I should have taken more/better shots, but I was late for the planes. :(

BB
 
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A friend of ours knitted my son an awesome Yoda-patterned sweater (made with natural fibers so as not to disturb the balance...):

1) Little Master Yoda contemplates the Force.
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2) Little Master Yoda performs the Jedi Mind Trick.
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3) "How you get so big, eating food of this kind?".
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^^^ Wow - awesome shots, Volume!

Here's a few from my hiking trips this past weekend.

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A few recent beach shots and one (practice) collage I made of my daughter's impromptu dance party"

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Thanks. Light editing, but the colors really were very vibrant to start with. There is a reason to get up before dawn! This is one I took at the same spot, same time, different angle, last summer:
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Thanks. Light editing, but the colors really were very vibrant to start with. There is a reason to get up before dawn! This is one I took at the same spot, same time, different angle, last summer:

You have more stuff on Flickr or anything? Where is that by the way?
 
Niagara-on-the-Lake...



You can see Downtown Toronto from here. (2.5 hours driving distance)
 
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