Body or Lens?

that1guy · Jul 29, 2012

not saying you don't know how to take pictures or how to be a photographer but if you're asking if camera take better pictures or ate they the lenses.... (yes new cameras = better technology) but I'm sure I can make my photos look just as good as a mkiii with my mkii

practice!

hukim0531 · Jul 29, 2012

Another important factor to consider is software. What software do you have for post editing? Most pictures you see on the web have gone through software editing to make ordinary and dull pictures to "pop". You can see many tutorials and examples from youtube. Below are some examples of "after and before" pp from one of my favorite contact in Flickr. As you can see, all of his pictures below were taken with 5D2 a very capable camera that you wish to upgrade to.

garden scenes in spring | Flickr - Photo Sharing!
a spring nap by the pond | Flickr - Photo Sharing!
Streets in Eastern Europe | Flickr - Photo Sharing!
spending some long nights in distant cities | Flickr - Photo Sharing!
foreign markets | Flickr - Photo Sharing!
sunbeam catching far away | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Looks like Chris has some online tutorials on how he used Photoshop to enhance his pictures.
Photoshop Packages | Sandbox Photoblog

neih59 · Jul 30, 2012

Hukim -- I think that's what I'm lacking. I think my photos are fine, it's just missing the post editing effects. I only know how to use simple Adobe Lightroom. Do you have any recommendation? Do you guys take a lot of time to edit your pics? From the large amount of beautiful photos posted, the majority looks like they've been edited...I just don't know the technique to do it.

Could some one kindly point to some leads on how to better post-edit photos? Styles, techniques, software, and how-to?

Thanks all.

MTVision · Jul 30, 2012

neih59 said:
Hukim -- I think that's what I'm lacking. I think my photos are fine, it's just missing the post editing effects. I only know how to use simple Adobe Lightroom. Do you have any recommendation? Do you guys take a lot of time to edit your pics? From the large amount of beautiful photos posted, the majority looks like they've been edited...I just don't know the technique to do it.

Could some one kindly point to some leads on how to better post-edit photos? Styles, techniques, software, and how-to?

Thanks all.

Lightroom is far from simple. You can do a lot in there for editing.

Watch some YouTube videos about Lighteoom. Learn what each tool/slider does - that will help tremendously. Then just google tutorials for specific things you want to learn. Lightroom is pretty intuitive so just watch/read some tutorials and you'll be good to go. Also, as long as you get it all right in camera (lighting, exposure, etc.) you shouldn't have to spend much time editing. Plus you can copy the edits from one picture to a whole group pictures in LR (only works if the pictures are from the same set with the same lighting).

neih59 · Jul 30, 2012

Thank you Megan for the insight. Do you feel that with knowledge of Lightroom alone is enough for post-editing? or do you think I need to tap into learning PS as well?

MTVision · Jul 30, 2012

neih59 said:
Thank you Megan for the insight. Do you feel that with knowledge of Lightroom alone is enough for post-editing? or do you think I need to tap into learning PS as well?

For the most part yes. Anything you do in Lightroom can be done in photoshop. A lot of people use LR alone for editing - even those who have both programs. Unless you want to do crazy editing things - like head swaps and such LR should be sufficient.

sovietdoc · Jul 30, 2012

Lightroom is a pretty extensible platform. Although not as extensible as Photoshop, it also has plugins and presets you can use to extend it past the basic functionality. Doing photography without Lightroom is like trying to compute difficult arithmetic without a calculator.

I use LR for filtering the photos (keeper, throwaway), first PP pass (color/exposure/focus) and then offload 70% done pictures to Photoshop to do the rest of the work.

bratkinson · Jul 31, 2012

From your original post and comments, it would seem that you are perhaps not correctly using a flash (I still have problems there), setting your ISO too high ($100 camera results), or not setting white balance properly in the camera. Also, post processing is pretty much a requirement for digital photography.

All in all, I suspect you need more learning/experience/practice with what you have before you go out and buy new gear. So do I, for that matter.

sm4him · Jul 31, 2012

Tony S said:
I also agree with others that you are not getting the best from the 7D most likely due to a lack of knowing the camera and skills to get the best from it. If you upgrade to a new body you will have the same experience.

Now another question for you to ponder... Do you notice a difference in image quality between the two lenses you currently have? Do the images from the 50mm f1.4 appear noticeably sharper and have more contrast than those from the 28-135? There should be.

Post up some examples so we can see what results you are currently getting out of your equipment and skills. Then we can give good honest answers as to what might help you best, the answer might be something all together different than what you expect.

:addpics:

Seriously, we are all just making guesses and blowing smoke if you don't post some pictures so we can SEE what you're producing. Without that, we have NO idea whether you need a new camera or better lenses, or need to learn some basics of photography, or need to focus on post-processing.

You say:

neih59 said:
...with my current equipment, I feels so...amateur. Everything looks like it's coming from a $100 camera. I'm not sure if it's the way I shoot...

neih59 said:
... It's not that I don't know how to use my gears, it's just that the outcome is not as good as I want it. So my question should rather be "Does the camera makes the picture more, or the lens?"

neih59 said:
I think that's what I'm lacking. I think my photos are fine, it's just missing the post editing effects...

In other words, you have NO idea what the problem is--whether it is your gear, your skill and understanding of photography, or your post processing.
So, post some examples, and then some of these very skilled folks can help you instead of just taking stabs in the dark as to the problem.

o hey tyler · Jul 31, 2012

The 50/1.4 is NOT an EF-S lens designed for APS-C cameras. It's an EF lens that can be used on both crop and full frame bodies.

PhotoBrody · Jul 31, 2012

The 7D is a fantastic camera. Sell your current lenses and get 1 good all purpose lens. One of my favorites - 17-40mm f4L. Won't break your bank, and will provide you with very nice shots with the 7D. If that still doesn't work..sell your cam and the lens.. and find a new hobby

neih59 · Jul 31, 2012

Here are some examples of my shots. They look just ok, but I want to take it to the next level. I did some very basic Lightroom post-edit (temp, color, exp, etc.), nothing serious. I want to improve but not sure where to start (better hardware, need softbox, learn Lightroom/photoshop?).

Please CC.

hukim0531 · Jul 31, 2012

Looks like lighting is (mostly) the culprit. If you like natural lights, near dusk and near dawn I hear are best time to take pictures outdoor. The sun is not as harsh and colors come out more vibrant. A decent flash will also be very helpful in relatively darkly lit subject compared to bright fore or background, and to even out such large variations in dynamic range within the frame of shot. The background in those photos do not look very appealing either. I'm just amateur mostly interested in taking pictures of my kids so take my words with grain of salt, but by frequenting this and other photo sites on internet, you can pick up quite a bit of good tips. Oh and Youtube too as I mentioned before.

neih59 · Jul 31, 2012

Thanks Hukim. I agree that the lighting is a bit harsh. But we can't always pick and choose the time of day for events. What I don't like about my pictures is that they seem washed out. They're not vivid, like your profile picture. Is it because the lighting or is it because I need to do better post editing? I tried increasing the temperature in lightroom, which helps in some pics, but most of the time, it just doesn't look natural.

Also, would the pics look better if I use my external flash 430ex and put it...say 45degree from the subject? would that help with the harsh natural light? or would that make the subject more harsh?

Thanks.