Feedback on this very Zen image

amayax · Jan 31, 2017

Slowly I feel like I am getting the hang of the camera and of this forum, thank you all for that

I saw this statue, and I felt it would make for a good picture. I ended up with two pictures, each with their own charms. I also wanted a picture of the full statue, but in landscape view I felt there were too many things on the background. In the wider view, I already feel a bit doubtful about the edge of the door on the right of the background. I tried in portrait view as well, but I feel like it lost the charms. The emptyness in front of the face of the statue added something, if that makes sense.

But those are my thoughts, please tell me what you think! Every bit of advice will help me improve down the road.

Both images are taken with ISO-3200, F/8 and 1/20s. The wider view is 110mm, and the close up on the face is 300mm.

Ysarex · Jan 31, 2017

The photos are too bright and lack normal contrast -- we would say flat.

Joe

amayax · Jan 31, 2017

Ysarex said:
The photos are too bright and lack normal contrast -- we would say flat.

Joe

Is that an aspect of the objects itself or of the way I captured it? any way to improve it?

limr · Jan 31, 2017

amayax said:
Ysarex said:

The photos are too bright and lack normal contrast -- we would say flat.

Joe

Click to expand...

Is that an aspect of the objects itself or of the way I captured it? any way to improve it?

The white wall is low contrast, but you also seem to have overexposed and lost texture in the wall.

Of the two compositions, I much prefer the second. The negative space seems purposeful in the second in a way that it does not in the first.

amayax · Jan 31, 2017

limr said:
The white wall is low contrast, but you also seem to have overexposed and lost texture in the wall.

Of the two compositions, I much prefer the second. The negative space seems purposeful in the second in a way that it does not in the first.

Thank you, I will see if I can try again tomorrow with some different settings!

Ysarex · Jan 31, 2017

amayax said:
Ysarex said:

The photos are too bright and lack normal contrast -- we would say flat.

Joe

Click to expand...

Is that an aspect of the objects itself or of the way I captured it? any way to improve it?

It's a capture and processing problem. The EXIF data with the photo indicates you had the camera in manual mode. How did you determine exposure? What if any processing are you doing and with what software?

Joe

amayax · Jan 31, 2017

I just played with the settings until it was a sharp image haha
I am very much a beginner, so I have no clue at all what I am doing

I have done no editing/processing

snap and post

DGMPhotography · Jan 31, 2017

Your shutter speed is way too slow. Unless you're using a tripod... but not sure why you'd be using a tripod when it's clearly day time.

When shooting by hand, your shutter speed should at least be as fast as your focal length, in order to eliminate camera shake. So 300mm should be at 1/300 shutter speed. And if you're using a dx camera (crop sensor) then that focal length is effectively multiplied, so your shutter speed should be around 1/450. Lower your ISO so your shutter speed can compensate. You should always try to keep your ISO as close to 100 as you can to eliminate noise. Use your shutter speed and f stop to set your exposure, and then change the ISO if you need to.

I would also say these images are overexposed and not in focus. If you aren't already, switch your camera to single point focus and use that point to focus your shots. Also remember it's always better to underexpose an image than overexpose. Make sure you're shooting in RAW and you will be able to bring the shadows up. You can also boost sharpness, etc. in post.

amayax · Jan 31, 2017

Thank you! I will try again!

I am shooting RAW images but photoshop refuses to open them

DGMPhotography · Jan 31, 2017

amayax said:
Thank you! I will try again!

I am shooting RAW images but photoshop refuses to open them

Make sure Photoshop is updated. They're always adding new compatibility. You probably want to edit the RAW photo in Lightroom.

amayax · Feb 1, 2017

Again no processing, but I attempted it again with a different settings, this time I also got a bit closer to the statue. I got ISO down to 100 with these two. 1/60s and F/5 at 40mm and 55mm respectively.

DGMPhotography · Feb 1, 2017

amayax said:
Again no processing, but I attempted it again with a different settings, this time I also got a bit closer to the statue. I got ISO down to 100 with these two. 1/60s and F/5 at 40mm and 55mm respectively.

Much better!

Question, what time of day are you shooting these?

amayax · Feb 2, 2017

The first ones were at around 4pm on a cloudy day. Second ones on around 11am with a bit more clear skies, but only a bit

DGMPhotography · Feb 2, 2017

Hm... You might consider bumping up your ISO to like 500 and increasing your shutter speed to match. And then do some processing in Lightroom and I think you'll be in the right spot.

birdbonkers84 · Feb 3, 2017

I'm still a "noob" myself, but from what I have learned so far, don't shoot in manual mode as a beginner. Use either aperture priority or shutter priority. If you are saying that the lighting isn't great then use shutter priority and let the camera set the aperture. If there is good light, use aperture priority and let the camera set the shutter speed. Bump up the ISO as a last resort. Head into PS or LR to amend any issues from the original capture.