Need advice/critique on my photos

[Brett236]

It would be greatly appreciated to have some feed back on some of my photos. Be as brutal as you can because I really want to start improving on them.

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[ZapoTeX]

I like them a lot!
On the first one (and maybe the 4th one too) some fill flash would have given a better view of the rider's face. Too bad you cut the front wheel in the second.

A really good set, it shows how impressive the jumps are. Well done!

[Brett236]

Thanks ZapoTeX. By fill flash do you mean an off camera or just the flash from my camera? I was kind of bummed about the second one. My buddy just kind of came out of no where and that unfortunately was the best I was able to capture.

[jowensphoto]

Off camera flash will help tremendously. The exposure in these is all off.

It's hard to tell what your subject is in most of these; the skateboarder(s) doesn't fill enough of the frame. Whatch out for background "noise".

[Brett236]

I need to figure out a setup for off camera with my d5100 because i cant run it directly off the camera. I am new to photography so any tips for exposures?

[MReid]

Get closer...a lot.
Watch poles coming out of heads.
Expose for your subject, let the background go.

[imagemaker46]

Wow, um, exposures are all off, backgrounds are brutal, post growing out of one guys head. It looks like you just pointed the camera at a subject without knowing anything about the camera, or any of the basics of photography. I'd go back to the starting point, buy a book, and really look at what you are shooting. If there is no light on the subjects face when they are back to the sun, there won't be any light on the subjects face when you take the picture. Look at the background, it as important as the subject you are shooting, keep them clean, no wires, no posts, no trees.

[Brett236]

I need to invest in an off camera flash for sure. Can someone please give tips on improving exposure. So far pretty much everyone has said something about it but no correction advice. I am very new to photography so any tips are apreciated. That pole picture wasnt supossed to be in there I guess t slipped in because its part of a photography project I am doing for school and shows the risk of sports photography because I was inches from getting hit when he landed that.

[o hey tyler]

One thing I noticed was a dark mass in the lower left hand corner of your photos. Are you using a filter or anything on the front of your lens?

[Trever1t]

Exposure is correct for the sky but not your subject. You can run your camera in Manual, meter for your subject and blow out the background or use fill light, on or off camera. Decrease your DOF by using a larger aperture (smaller fraction).

[Brett236]

Tyler, yes I am.
Trever, thanks for the advice.

[jowensphoto]

Understanding Exposure, 3rd Edition: How to Shoot Great Photographs with Any Camera: Bryan Peterson: 9780817439392: Amazon.com: Books

[MReid]

Expose for your subject, let the background go.

Use spot metering if you have to.

[Brett236]

Use spot metering if you have to.

I'm not sure what that is but I will look into it.

[KmH]

Use spot metering if you have to.

I'm not sure what that is but I will look into it.

See page 68 of your D5100 User's Manual.