Goats At Play

[TiffanyW]

Soo...this is my first picture that I am actually posting on here (mainly cause I am my own worst critic and I think every shot I get is garbage. lol)

Harsh critique is welcomed. No need to sugar coat for me.

From my amateur eye, I know that it would have been a better shot if I were able to get their feet in the picture. The sharpness of the photo is not quite what I wanted. I think the white balance is off because the coat of the guy on the right looks to be a little blue to me. And the sky in the top right corner looks a little unnatural, but this is what my beginner self was able to accomplish in Lightroom.

Taken with a Canon Rebel T3, 70-300mm.

 

[tirediron]

Not bad, and excellent self-critique! You're right, including all of their legs might have been better, but I think an even better image would have been a tight crop on their heads. You've captured the eyes very nicely, and if you "step back" a bit, the heads are the only things that are really interesting; even their bodies don't add a lot to the image, but a close-up of their faces would be (IMO) quite interesting.

 

[TiffanyW]

Not bad, and excellent self-critique! You're right, including all of their legs might have been better, but I think an even better image would have been a tight crop on their heads. You've captured the eyes very nicely, and if you "step back" a bit, the heads are the only things that are really interesting; even their bodies don't add a lot to the image, but a close-up of their faces would be (IMO) quite interesting.

Thanks so much. I actually tried a tighter crop, but when I do I really notice just how much sharpness I am lacking in the photo. Thanks for the advice. I'm gonna play around with a crop of just their heads and see what I can come up with.

 

[weepete]

I totally agree with tirediron on this. There's just one other thing I'd add is be mindful of your shadows too, the blacks on the feet of goat on the left blend into the background a bit too much.

 

[TiffanyW]

I totally agree with tirediron on this. There's just one other thing I'd add is be mindful of your shadows too, the blacks on the feet of goat on the left blend into the background a bit too much.

Noted. Thanks so much!

 

[Gary A.]

Not bad, and excellent self-critique! You're right, including all of their legs might have been better, but I think an even better image would have been a tight crop on their heads. You've captured the eyes very nicely, and if you "step back" a bit, the heads are the only things that are really interesting; even their bodies don't add a lot to the image, but a close-up of their faces would be (IMO) quite interesting.

This guy always states what I'm thinking. He should add "Gary and I ..." to all his comments.

An iconic news photographer, Robert Capa, said "If your pictures aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough." So remember to always fill the frame with your subject.

 

[dannylightning]

its a bit dark or heavy on the shadows or something along the line of that It does not look bad but makes the goats kind of blend in to the background a little to much I think.

overall I think its pretty good.

 

[BillM]

I'm going to agree with the guys who agreed with each other. A closeup of the eyes would be interesting. Were you using a circular polarizer ? It looks under exposed by a good amount.

 

[Derrel]

I am going to agree with the guy above, who is the guy who agreed with the guys who agreed with each other above his post.

You know, sometimes a shot just doesn't work out exactly right, and there can be some reasons we can identify as to why it did not come together 100% successfully. And that's just the way it is.

You still owe us ALL TPF beef and bean burritos from the TPF Cafeteria!!!!

 

[tirediron]

...You still owe us ALL TPF beef and bean burritos from the TPF Cafeteria!!!!

Dude... look at the forum skin the owners bought... D'ya really believe that the "beef" in the cafeteria came from cows?

 

[Derrel]

Well, it SAYS "beef and been burrito, Lg. $2.29 sm. $1.39" on the board....but yeah...I have suspected that the "beef" miiiight be some mystery meat provided by the company that preps the frozen burritos down in Rancho Cucamonga, California....I am guessing possum or raccoon? Seems awfffffffuly greasy.....

 

[Gary A.]

Well, it SAYS "beef and been burrito, Lg. $2.29 sm. $1.39" on the board....but yeah...I have suspected that the "beef" miiiight be some mystery meat provided by the company that preps the frozen burritos down in Rancho Cucamonga, California....I am guessing possum or raccoon? Seems awfffffffuly greasy.....

I remember when it was called just 'Cucamonga'.

 

[TiffanyW]

I'm going to agree with the guys who agreed with each other. A closeup of the eyes would be interesting. Were you using a circular polarizer ? It looks under exposed by a good amount.

No. The only filter I use is a UV filter. But it was a super overcast day so I am not really sure if that would affect it.

I am going to agree with the guy above, who is the guy who agreed with the guys who agreed with each other above his post.

You know, sometimes a shot just doesn't work out exactly right, and there can be some reasons we can identify as to why it did not come together 100% successfully. And that's just the way it is.

You still owe us ALL TPF beef and bean burritos from the TPF Cafeteria!!!!

I had an idea. I wanted a darker image, but extremely under exposed was not the goal.

Well, live and learn. And my next attempt will hopefully be improved now that I have the courage to post shots on here.

 

[Gary A.]

"C O U R A G E", in the voice of the Lion from the Wizard of Oz.

 

[BillM]

What software are you using to edit ? I took a quick swing at it in Lightroom. I Cropped it to get more of the focus on the goats and brought up the exposure and shadows. I also added Clarity and some sharpness. It will probably look a little over sharpened now but I was just trying to stress how you can manipulate the photo in LR, hope this helps