Another beginner...C&C please! (++Porcupines!)

[lrc3233]

I have the same story as all the others, I got inspired by seeing some photography, got a camera and started shooting!
On the recommendation of my photographer friend, I got a Nikon D70s as a beginner camera body. I also got Nikon 18mm - 55mm f/3.5-5.6G Lens.
Here's some shots I took around town and out on a hike...I have found myself drawn to textures and more abstract things as the images may show....
They all have some post processing and cropping in Lightroom and of course suggestions about that are welcome as well.
C&C encouraged! I need to get better! Thank you so much!


#1
This is an installation at a local museum. A tight crop makes an interesting picture/texture?

#2
Down into a train station. Perspective and lines hopefully making an interesting composition?

#3
Long exposure before I had a tripod. I set the camera on a bench. I really like the colors, they are pretty surreal...

#4 Long exposure of skyline, again set on a bench. Anyone guess what city?

#5 Went on a hike up a mountain...tried to get the sunset...

And just for fun since I didn't know these animals existed where I live
I SAW A PORCUPINE

It was not as excited to see me as I was to see it. Maybe because it knew what horrible pictures I would make of it...

Well, thanks for any comments!!

 

[Geaux]

I like 1 and 2 a lot, great job composition-ally.

3. Not a fan of the shot or the colors, long exposure caused the ducks to become blur spots...
4. Missed focus, buildings look soft. f/11'ish, Shoot lower iso, longer shutter. 1000 ISO is crazy high, for a night shot like this.
5. Don't really have much input on this, typical sunrise shot imo.
6. On camera flash...yuck. Of course, you probably shot it quick to get outta there, which is what i would do lol. Cool "look, a porcupine picture" on facebook, but other than that...doesn't do much.

 

[lrc3233]

Hi Geaux,

Thanks so much for your comments.
I will keep in mind about the ISO. I had it high for other shots at night and never changed it.

How do you know which settings to change to get the right exposure? I mean, I know there's the aperture, shutter speed, and ISO, but...there are several combinations that can produce the right exposure? Should you always go for the lowest ISO possible?

Re: The porcupine, yeah, its not a great shot, but it was getting dark and without flash you couldn't see it. I just posted it because I thought it might be fun

Thanks again

 

[fishiboii]

I don't consider myself a pro by any level but I quite like these. 1 & 2 are interesting. Dunno if it's just me but with the first one I'd be more central and straight on, looks like you cropped it from an angle.. I agree with 3 but I do like the colours which as you say adds to the surreal feel. I think 4 lacks detail, it's already been said to use a lower ISO. I like the composition however, makes for an interesting shot. In terms of the sunset on number 5, take it again with a sunset on a cloudy day, might make for an interesting shot. Also a lot of the detail is missed out in the foreground, probably your high ISO again

 

[bazooka]

Irc, it depends on how you want the shot to look or what restrictions you have. Just keep in mind that aperture affects depth of field, image quality, and patterns from specular highlights (street lights in night shots). If depth of field isn't important and motion blur isn't an issue, set it to something mid-range like f/8 to get the best image quality. Shutter speed affects motion blur, both the camera and the subject. A tripod will often give you quite a bit of leeway even if the subject is moving. ISO affects noise. You'll probably want to use the lowest ISO possible, but not always.