focus area

[Webjunkie]

http://webjunkie1961.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d3ksca5
(could not get image to upload but the link goes to same image I am refering too )



I am brand new to photography in fact the linked picturewas from the first day I got a camera (Nikon D3000) using the 18-55 lens my question is... the focus area of this image is pretty small looks to be clearonly on tree near the closest mushroom is there a way to increase that focusarea. (not sure if I am using the correct terms as I am a novice.)

 

[analog.universe]

The term you're looking for is "depth of field", and you can get more of it by stopping down the aperture of the lens. You shot this at f/3.5, try going to 5.6 or 7.1 for a deeper in focus area. The tradeoff is that less light is collected so you'll need a slower shutter speed (and possibly a tripod, considering how slow it is already), or a higher ISO (which may introduce noise to the photo).

 

[Webjunkie]

Thank you as an old timer I learn slow hope I can learn enough to start taking good shots. the day I took that shot linked above I took over 600 and all but a very few where deleted due to bur sun or me being stupid lol

 

[Netskimmer]

Thank you as an old timer I learn slow hope I can learn enough to start taking good shots. the day I took that shot linked above I took over 600 and all but a very few where deleted due to bur sun or me being stupid lol

Letting go of unsatisfactory photos and deleting them in the field (aka chimping) is a lesson unto itself for many, so you are off to a good start. The most important things are to keep shooting and have fun with it. The rest sould come in its own time.

 

[KmH]

Thank you as an old timer I learn slow hope I can learn enough to start taking good shots. the day I took that shot linked above I took over 600 and all but a very few where deleted due to bur sun or me being stupid lol

Letting go of unsatisfactory photos and deleting them in the field (aka chimping) is a lesson unto itself for many, so you are off to a good start. The most important things are to keep shooting and have fun with it. The rest sould come in its own time.

If you want to learn how to make nice photographs you have to learn how your camera/lens/light works, their limitations, and what elements make pleasing visual art.

Snapping 600 photos a day is a monumental waste of time and effort if you use trial and error and not being aware that things such as framing, composition, lighting ratios, main subject image scale, and other factors (both technical and artisitic) apply.

You may want to visit Digital Photography Tutorials and Guidelines for Better Photographic Composition. to get a basic grounding in digital photography.

A couple of inexpensive books many new to photography find very informative are:

Understanding]Amazon.com: Understanding Exposure, 3rd Edition: How to Shoot Great Photographs with Any Camera (9780817439392): Bryan Peterson: Books Exposure, 3rd Edition: How to Shoot Great Photographs with Any Camera and Bryan Peterson's other books.

I also recommend:

The Photographer's Eye: Composition and Design for Better Digital Photos

The Photographer's Mind: Creative Thinking for Better Digital Photos


A more advanced tome would be The Elements of Photography, Second Edition: Understanding and Creating Sophisticated Images

 

[BJF]

Try to post you image here. ;-)

 

[Netskimmer]

Thank you as an old timer I learn slow hope I can learn enough to start taking good shots. the day I took that shot linked above I took over 600 and all but a very few where deleted due to bur sun or me being stupid lol

Letting go of unsatisfactory photos and deleting them in the field (aka chimping) is a lesson unto itself for many, so you are off to a good start. The most important things are to keep shooting and have fun with it. The rest sould come in its own time.

If you want to learn how to make nice photographs you have to learn how your camera/lens/light works, their limitations, and what elements make pleasing visual art.

Snapping 600 photos a day is a monumental waste of time and effort if you use trial and error and not being aware that things such as framing, composition, lighting ratios, main subject image scale, and other factors (both technical and artisitic) apply.

You may want to visit Digital Photography Tutorials and Guidelines for Better Photographic Composition. to get a basic grounding in digital photography.

A couple of inexpensive books many new to photography find very informative are:

Understanding]Amazon.com: Understanding Exposure, 3rd Edition: How to Shoot Great Photographs with Any Camera (9780817439392): Bryan Peterson: Books Exposure, 3rd Edition: How to Shoot Great Photographs with Any Camera and Bryan Peterson's other books.

I also recommend:

The Photographer's Eye: Composition and Design for Better Digital Photos

The Photographer's Mind: Creative Thinking for Better Digital Photos


A more advanced tome would be The Elements of Photography, Second Edition: Understanding and Creating Sophisticated Images

I should have been a little clearer there, by 'keep shooting and have fun with it' I meant don't get discouraged and give up and to let yourself absorb the information at your own pace. Just relax and enjoy the learning process.

I agree with everything that KmH said though I would specify that taking lots of photographs that you don't learn anything from isn't necessarily a waste of time if you enjoyed taking them. I am assuming he is doing this as a hobby and hobbies are meant to be fun after all.

 

[Webjunkie]

what I did when I was doing that was many many of the same shot just tweaking a setting and going through the gamut of how they looked when I got home. The software I have tells me what the settings where when I took the shot so I was able to compare them side by side to see how altering a setting would affect the final results. Since that day I now have a basic understanding of aperture as it relates to ISO what ISO is and how to set shutter speed. Soon I hope to grasp how they all work together for the shot I am taking but as we all know experience will help that

 

[Netskimmer]

what I did when I was doing that was many many of the same shot just tweaking a setting and going through the gamut of how they looked when I got home. The software I have tells me what the settings where when I took the shot so I was able to compare them side by side to see how altering a setting would affect the final results. Since that day I now have a basic understanding of aperture as it relates to ISO what ISO is and how to set shutter speed. Soon I hope to grasp how they all work together for the shot I am taking but as we all know experience will help that

That is an excellent way to absorb and comprehend how things work, reading the materials KmH suggested can help you streamline that process and possibly make it less tedious should you find it so. I am reading through 'Understanding Photography' by Bryan Peters and it is giving me insights I probably never would have fully understood just by taking photographs, or at least it would have taken me a lot longer. Reading your camera manual thouroughly is important as well. It's probably a dry read but it's imortant to know what your camera is capable of.