1st photo for cc

ccote321 · Dec 11, 2011

Hey all,

This is my first post on the forum and I'm looking for some cc on a photo I shot yesterday morning during the lunar eclipse on the west coast. I've been into photography for about a year now and figured a forum would be a good idea for me to develop my skills and hopefully learn some new things. I can handle criticism so please feel free to be honest, just don't bash me... I know forums can be pretty brutal sometimes :lmao:.

Looking forward to becoming a participating member of thephotoforum!

Lunar Eclipse setting over downtown Los Angeles

paigew · Dec 11, 2011

Wow! That is amazing! We couldn't see it here

cepwin · Dec 11, 2011

Love the red moon and the composition. The only thought I had (and this could be how its showing up on my screen) is it maybe possibe to do some photoshop tweaks to make the light/color have a tiny bit more punch. (if Im totally off base on that please correct me..im just learning myself)

Trever1t · Dec 11, 2011

great shot.

shootermcgavin · Dec 11, 2011

It looks really soft on my laptop, maybe it's just me though.

Dominantly · Dec 11, 2011

Awesome capture.

That being said, it is a bit soft, and the moon lacks much of it's detail. You also have some banding in the sky, what were your settings and did you do any processing?

ccote321 · Dec 11, 2011

I think the banding and softness is from re-sizing and uploading through the forum because it doesn't show up on my original... Like i said this was the first photo I uploaded here so hopefully once I get more familiar with the size limitations I'll be able to properly re-size to retain as much detail as possible. Also, at the moment this is the camera I'm shooting with.
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ35K 12.1 MP Digital Camera (Black)
Only 12mp and not the best image sensor in the world. (Gonna save for a good DSLR when i get my tax return

... Any suggestions for a good entry level camera?)As for giving it more punch, maybe i can increase the contrast a bit? I did process it in photoshop, used some selective coloring on the moon to bring out the red/orange hue in the moon and to bring down that ambient yellow light from the train depot. Thanks for the feedback!

cepwin · Dec 11, 2011

With a point an shoot?! You'll be scary (in a good way) with a nice DSLR in your hands. I just bought my first DSLR..a Nikon D3100 after some research. I like it so far. Other excellent entry cameras that I looked at are the Canon Rebel (T2i, T3i.) There is also the Nikon D5100 which is the next model up from the D3100. One import thing I learned is consider the brand as many expensive accessories will be specific to that brand (lens, etc.) So if you want to use your lenses on your next camera it will need to be the same brand. However, you can't go wrong with Canon or Nikon. Oh I should add I did also look at a nice sony model (they make good hardware in general) but it was autofocus only..no manual. Finally, if you can physically handle the camera *before* you buy it can make your decision. I was all set to go Canon T2i but after holding that and the Nikon I went Nikon as it fit my hands better..more natural for me (tiny hands.) Someone I know just got a T2i and is very happy with it but he's a tall fellow with much bigger hands than I so I can see the Canon feeling better in his hands.