Downtown C&C

[major94]

I just got my first DSLR, its a canon rebel eos 300d. I got it with 2 lens' filters, remote cord..for a pretty good deal online.

So I have wanted to take a picture of downtown Omaha for awhile now, so I went and did it today. I used a polarized filter. What do you guys think? Anything I could have done better. The car did not show up that great in the shot.

Let me have it if the shots are terrible. I need to learn. Maybe give me some pointers and I will go back and retake the shots.

 

[lennon33x]

What kind of polarizing filter are you using? If it's a circular polarizer, they're designed to remove those "hot spots" by rotating them during prior to the shot to reduce glare. If that is the case, these shots didn't warrant the use as there is no glare. Had the sun been reflecting off of the buildings, I would have maybe considered using them.

The shots in general are drastically underexposed. Are you metering in the camera?

The car in the first shot seems out of focus. That may be due to the lack of ambient light for the focusing system. Using a tripod might help improve that.

In regard to composition, they're uninteresting. The sky is clear, and it takes up too much of the frame. There is not anything that sticks out to grab attention. Look into some blogs/books about composition. Try leading lines and the rule of thirds to get started. Example: Reposition the car in the first image to take up 2/3 of the right side of the frame - back up to include a portion of the ground. Use the skyline as something to "lead" your concept to the car. If the car is the subject, use a wider aperture to include more of the car and less of the skyline. Also, consider a sunset to make the background more interesting, and fill flash on the car.

That's how I would at least start in redoing the first image.

 

[Designer]

Hi, major94, and welcome! We understand you just got your camera, and want to go out and make pictures, but you have some learning to do. Learn about better composition, and learn about better use of light, and please try again. And again. Lots of practice.

As for the downtown shot, try to find a place where you can see something that is not normally seen. Take shots of individual buildings. Take shots of your car, but in better light. For now, take off all filters and just use the lens "naked". Pay attention to what the camera's meter is telling you. Later you can try some of the same shots in "manual" mode to add your own impressions.

Good luck!

 

[weepete]

Looks like you were in evaluative metering mode. What you have here is a nicely exposed sky but an underexposed subject. You can even this out a bit in software after as long as you don't clip the highlights or shadows, you can also use a flash to even up the exposure in foreground objects (though that is a field in itself).

You'll also need to watch your depth of field, for landscapes iit's common to use between f8 and f16, but I can't see what these were shot at but they look a bit soft.

I disagree with reavesce, polarizing filters are also used to help saturate colours, not purely to reduce glare and using a tripod will not help you autofocus in low light. Tripods are of use when you need to use a slow shutter speed as they are more stable than your hands.

I think at first you need to learn to use the cameras meter to expose your subject properly.

 

[major94]

Ok, so I went back. I couldnt get a good picture with the car and the backdrop blurry. But I could get this shot to work well.

 

[lennon33x]

Exposure is better. Now think about your shot.

Polarizers are used to enhance color saturation, but also remove glare. That's why they make polarized sunglasses.

Tripods are used to enhance sharpness as well - which is what I was aiming to say when the subject was out of focus.

Regardless, Major you should focus on what you are trying to say with your image. Focus on composition

 

[weags77]

Pick up a book on basics of photography and exposure. I recommend Bryan Peterson's Understanding Exposure, and read along while you play with your camera. It will be good preparation for the start of your learning process. It will also help you get the information you need here when you ask questions.

People will say practice, practice, practice and while that's true, I believe it can be counterintuitive when you don't know what you're supposed to be practicing.

It can be overwhelming at first, with all the stuff you THINK you need to focus on and you will quickly realize all the mistakes you've made with pictures you've taken so far. But you will hopefully appreciate this humbling process and it is very rewarding.

So my only advice would be to read and put to practical use what you are reading. Understand it. Then when you have a good basic understanding, branch out and try some things. Find what type of photographer you want to be and what you need to accomplish that. What skills you need to focus on. It will change as you grow but the basic fundamentals of a good exposure wont. And most of all enjoy it. Best of luck.

 

[lennon33x]

The other thing I would suggest is Lightroom. I look back and pictures I took a year ago and go...WTF was I thinking. The grid feature is great to do that to. Things like shots at the zoo...while it's great to capture animals like that, it's just not something I would consider doing again. If and when we take our little girls again, I will take far more pictures...because I'll make these count.