DoF Tests (Two Photos for C&C)

[AgentDrex]

Yes, after quite awhile of not asking for this...I am...am I getting closer to hitting a good ratio between focus and unfocus?



A Clothespin (woopeedoo)
#1

At Minnesota's biggest winery (Carlos Creek Winery)
#2

EDIT: Stupid me didn't realize that the second photo is slightly under-exposed...my bad...pretty close...but this isn't a grenade or horse-shoes, now is it?

 

[AgentDrex]

Hahaha...I just have to ask...after reading some of these other threads....how's my "bokeh"? Silly humans make me laugh....

 

[bazooka]

Not bad for test shots. The background layer of #1 is nice... creamy yellow on light blue... very pastel and calming. I don't think the subject matches that feeling, but if you were just focused on creating a nice background, I think you accomplished this.

#2 is nice all around, although you are right in that is a bit dark and could use some punch. I like the repeating pattern of the window highlight but I feel like I'm seeing a bit too much of the floor and wooden rails and would like to see the bottles fill the frame more.

 

[AgentDrex]

Hmm...good points...I guess for the first one...it reminds me of the summer days hanging out with my grandma (RIP) helping her hang laundry outside...

As for the second photo, I tried and tried to find a good angle for this but I couldn't get anything the way I wanted....I can crop it closer...I am watching the front desk for the administrative assistant while she's out at lunch and running errands so as soon as I get back to my 'puter....I'll re-work it....

Thanks for the tips, you rock!

 

[MWG]

Can you please post the lens/camera. With all your camera settings, just wanna get an idea.

 

[AgentDrex]

Oh boy...my memory sucks...I'm one of those "dirty" stoners...

For sure I used my 1000d (Rebel XS) and for a lens I believe I was using my Pentacon 50mm or my Nikon 75mm-150mm ...I shoot old glass and have a ton of them (not literally) so I don't exactly remember which...sorry....

For the settings, I will have to get back to my 'puter and look at the exit...but aperture was most likely set at f/4 if I used my Pentacon or f/8 if I used my Nikon zoomed in...ISO would have been 200 for the outside shot and 800 for the inside shot I'm pretty sure


I really should carry a journal along when I go out with the camera....

 

[bazooka]

I made a few adjustments, hope you don't mind... this is how I would modify these images if they were mine....

Changed the Hue, Saturation, and Lightness on the green part of the wire to better match the pallette. Made a small contrast bump on the curve, bringing more detail into the highlights of the pin and darkening the background a bit which caused the colors to pop a bit more. This is really subjective... nothing wrong with the way you had the background, but I felt the entire scene seemed 'cloudy' and needed some contrast.

For this one, I adjusted the highlight side of the curve to bring the exposure up. The highlights off the bottles were right on the edge, but it's ok if they blow out because they are small specular highlights and don't need detail in this image. I also selectively desaturated, darkened, and nudged the hue a bit on the wood to put more emphasis on the red of the wine and it's highlights, which is the subject of the image.

 

[AgentDrex]

And this is why I allow edits to my photos...so that WE ALL learn...thank you so much...it means a lot to me that you took the time to correct the photos and I enjoy them even more...I wish my grandma had been able to stick around long enough to see me mature more into this as she knew I would...she was awesome and I miss her immensely!

 

[bazooka]

My pleasure. My grandparents also have a clothesline next to their house which is also surrounded with trees. This same shot very well could have been made there too, colors and all, so although I'm not a big fan of the composition, I understand the connection. My grandfather is no longer with us so I might go as far as to say that your shot reminds me of him and being at their house in the summer/fall.

I'm glad to hear my input has been helpful for you.

 

[AgentDrex]

My buddies Don and Steve would both like your avatar....Steve is a coin collector and my buddy Don is a treasure hunter...

 

[bazooka]

I was a treasure hunter... well, kinda. I was big into metal detecting before I got into photography. It naturally leads to something resembling coin collecting, but not really. It's most like 'treasure collecting'. Metal detecting fits comfortable between coin collecting and treasure hunting. www.dirtjournal.com is my blog/forum but I haven't updated in a good long while.

 

[AgentDrex]

I'll show the link to my buddy Don...I'm sure he'll enjoy it...even out-dated...I can't tell you how many old metal bullet casings he's given me...he found a class ring in the shallows of a lake one day...turns out it belonged to a guy that lost it 40 years ago while he was still a senior in high school...made the front page of the small town newspaper....Cass Lake, MN to be exact...

 

[bazooka]

Man, those are the cool stories. My friend and I were hunting an old WW1 campground/base (now a city park) here in Houston and we occasionally find dogtags from 1917... we had posted the names of the ones we could still read on my forum. The daughter of one of the guys (from Illinois) stumbled upon my forum and he was able to mail it to her. Probably the coolest recovery/reunite story I've ever heard and was thrilled to be a part of. 95 years lost in the dirt and it finds it's way back to it's family. Incredible.

 

[AgentDrex]

You treasure hunters rock....

Don is super professional and clean...when he digs a yard...I dare the owners to find where he looked after he's done...no one has been able to...

 

[Ron Evers]

With regard to the second photo, your DOF in conjunction with the angle of view is so short I cannot make out the label on a single bottle. You need a higher # f stop to make @ least one bottle clear.