A Big Night...

[pinupcollector]

We took close to 100 pictures and this is the only one I really liked... I'm so glad she is a good sport. This was actually taken in the morning and she had nowhere to go she just likes dressing up. I wish the grass wasn't so dead from the heat it would have been a much prettier shot. This is probably the best picture I have taken with my camera and while I like it, I would love feedback for improvement.

 

[pgriz]

Your camera has a lot of very clever programming built-in, which is why it is capable of producing some very good exposures on auto. However... if your specific situation is not understood by the camera's algorithms, then the result may be different from your expectations. When you do things in manual mode, you are substituting your own evaluations and judgments. With knowledge and experience, your efforts on manual will usually beat the camera's algorithmic selection on auto. So... let's start with the light - it is low and warm, which is good. However, it is also creating some strong shadows, so the shadow side needs some fill (either reflectors or fill flash), which would have lowered the very strong shadow at her nose. The background is too distinct, which means you are using a small aperture (small apertures like f/11, f/16, f/22 all give a deep depth-of-field, which in situations like this is usually not the desired effect). I will leave comments on posing to those who know these things.

If you're interested in doing some things with you making more of the decisions, consider using a mode such as Aperture priority, and experiment with the images trying to shoot the same composition with very different apertures. By looking at the results after the shoot, you'll begin to see some patterns in terms of what the settings are giving you as visual results. Build on this knowledge and you'll slowly start to understand how the different setting play out in terms of the visual effect. Hey, we all started as beginners. So there's lots of hope.

 

[pinupcollector]

Thank you, I am trying to work into Auto mode but, in this situation I didn't yet feel comfortable. We really just went out to play. I think, since I have such a willing participant I will get more opportunities and I hadn't thought of keeping her in a pose while I played with settings. I didn't think of using a reflector (strangely I have one) I will think of bringing it with me next time.

 

[DiskoJoe]

We took close to 100 pictures and this is the only one I really liked... I'm so glad she is a good sport. This was actually taken in the morning and she had nowhere to go she just likes dressing up. I wish the grass wasn't so dead from the heat it would have been a much prettier shot. This is probably the best picture I have taken with my camera and while I like it, I would love feedback for improvement.


View attachment 50749

This setting + that dress = not a good combo

She looks like shes dressed to go out on the town and your in a dead field. Whats up with that?