How should I have taken this pic?

[Lisablueeyes]

Newbie to photography.. Hubby just bought me the EF 50mm f1.8 II Lens. Got the Canon T3i for xmas My first DSLR!

Please tell me how I should have taken this picture to make it better? Thanks


005 by Lisablueeyes10, on Flickr

 

[480sparky47 47]

Use a fill light or a reflector.

Shoot in portrait orientation.

Make some noise or have someone dance around to get the ears up.

Move to your left so the Christmas tree fills the background.


On the plus side, you NAILED the bokeh.

 

[Mully]

Needed off camera flash but you could open up the mid tones and that would help it.

 

[Lisablueeyes]

I had the setting on Av, ISO @ 800 and flash was off!
Is there anything else I should note?

 

[480sparky47 47]

I had the setting on Av, ISO @ 800 and flash was off!
.......

[TABLE="width: 100%"]
[TR="class: lookatme"]
[TH]Camera[/TH]
[TD]Canon EOS REBEL T3i[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: lookatme"]
[TH]Exposure[/TH]
[TD]0.1 sec (1/10)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: lookatme"]
[TH]Aperture[/TH]
[TD]f/1.8[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: lookatme"]
[TH]Focal Length[/TH]
[TD]50 mm[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]ISO Speed[/TH]
[TD]800[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Exposure Bias[/TH]
[TD]0 EV[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Flash[/TH]
[TD]Off, Did not fire[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Orientation[/TH]
[TD]Horizontal (normal)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]X-Resolution[/TH]
[TD]72 dpi[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Y-Resolution[/TH]
[TD]72 dpi[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Date and Time (Modified)[/TH]
[TD]2012:12:30 18:09:18[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]YCbCr Positioning[/TH]
[TD]Co-sited[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Exposure Program[/TH]
[TD]Program AE[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sensitivity Type[/TH]
[TD]Recommended Exposure Index[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Recommended Exposure Index[/TH]
[TD]800[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Date and Time (Original)[/TH]
[TD]2012:12:30 18:09:18[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Date and Time (Digitized)[/TH]
[TD]2012:12:30 18:09:18[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Metering Mode[/TH]
[TD]Multi-segment[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sub Sec Time[/TH]
[TD]59[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sub Sec Time Original[/TH]
[TD]59[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sub Sec Time Digitized[/TH]
[TD]59[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Color Space[/TH]
[TD]sRGB[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Focal Plane X-Resolution[/TH]
[TD]5728.176796 dpi[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Focal Plane Y-Resolution[/TH]
[TD]5808.403361 dpi[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Custom Rendered[/TH]
[TD]Normal[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Exposure Mode[/TH]
[TD]Auto[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]White Balance[/TH]
[TD]Auto[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Scene Capture Type[/TH]
[TD]Standard[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Serial Number[/TH]
[TD]232176077012[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Lens Info[/TH]
[TD]50mm f/?[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Lens Model[/TH]
[TD]EF50mm f/1.8 II[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Lens Serial Number[/TH]
[TD]0000000000[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Macro Mode[/TH]
[TD]Normal[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Self Timer[/TH]
[TD]Off[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Quality[/TH]
[TD]Fine[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Canon Flash Mode[/TH]
[TD]Off[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Continuous Drive[/TH]
[TD]Single[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Focus Mode[/TH]
[TD]One-shot AF[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Record Mode[/TH]
[TD]JPEG[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Canon Image Size[/TH]
[TD]Large[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Easy Mode[/TH]
[TD]Manual[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Digital Zoom[/TH]
[TD]None[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Contrast[/TH]
[TD]Normal[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Saturation[/TH]
[TD]Normal[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Focus Range[/TH]
[TD]Not Known[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Canon Exposure Mode[/TH]
[TD]Program AE[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Lens Type[/TH]
[TD]Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Short Focal[/TH]
[TD]50 mm[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Focal Units[/TH]
[TD]1/mm[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Max Aperture[/TH]
[TD]1.8[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Min Aperture[/TH]
[TD]23[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Flash Activity[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Flash Bits[/TH]
[TD](none)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Zoom Source Width[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Zoom Target Width[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Manual Flash Output[/TH]
[TD]n/a[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Color Tone[/TH]
[TD]Normal[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Auto ISO[/TH]
[TD]100[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Base ISO[/TH]
[TD]800[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Measured EV[/TH]
[TD]2.00[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Target Aperture[/TH]
[TD]1.8[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Target Exposure Time[/TH]
[TD]1/10[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]White Balance[/TH]
[TD]Auto[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Slow Shutter[/TH]
[TD]None[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sequence Number[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Optical Zoom Code[/TH]
[TD]n/a[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Camera Temperature[/TH]
[TD]35 C[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Flash Guide Number[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Flash Exposure Comp[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Auto Exposure Bracketing[/TH]
[TD]Off[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]AEBBracket Value[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Control Mode[/TH]
[TD]Camera Local Control[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Measured EV2[/TH]
[TD]2[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Bulb Duration[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Camera Type[/TH]
[TD]EOS High-end[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]NDFilter[/TH]
[TD]n/a[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Canon Firmware Version[/TH]
[TD]Firmware Version 1.0.2[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Highlight Tone Priority[/TH]
[TD]Off[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Flash Metering Mode[/TH]
[TD]Off[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Camera Orientation[/TH]
[TD]Horizontal (normal)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Focus Distance Upper[/TH]
[TD]0 m[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Focus Distance Lower[/TH]
[TD]0 m[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Color Temperature[/TH]
[TD]5200[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Picture Style[/TH]
[TD]Portrait[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Firmware Version[/TH]
[TD]1.0.2[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]File Index[/TH]
[TD]355[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Directory Index[/TH]
[TD]100[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Contrast Standard[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sharpness Standard[/TH]
[TD]3[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Saturation Standard[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Color Tone Standard[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Contrast Portrait[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sharpness Portrait[/TH]
[TD]2[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Saturation Portrait[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Color Tone Portrait[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Contrast Landscape[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sharpness Landscape[/TH]
[TD]4[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Saturation Landscape[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Color Tone Landscape[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Contrast Neutral[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sharpness Neutral[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Saturation Neutral[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Color Tone Neutral[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Contrast Faithful[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sharpness Faithful[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Saturation Faithful[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Color Tone Faithful[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Contrast Monochrome[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sharpness Monochrome[/TH]
[TD]3[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Filter Effect Monochrome[/TH]
[TD]None[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Toning Effect Monochrome[/TH]
[TD]None[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Contrast User Def1[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sharpness User Def1[/TH]
[TD]3[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Saturation User Def1[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Color Tone User Def1[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Filter Effect User Def1[/TH]
[TD]None[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Toning Effect User Def1[/TH]
[TD]None[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Contrast User Def2[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sharpness User Def2[/TH]
[TD]3[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Saturation User Def2[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Color Tone User Def2[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Filter Effect User Def2[/TH]
[TD]None[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Toning Effect User Def2[/TH]
[TD]None[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Contrast User Def3[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sharpness User Def3[/TH]
[TD]3[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Saturation User Def3[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Color Tone User Def3[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Filter Effect User Def3[/TH]
[TD]None[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Toning Effect User Def3[/TH]
[TD]None[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]User Def1 Picture Style[/TH]
[TD]Auto[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]User Def2 Picture Style[/TH]
[TD]Auto[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]User Def3 Picture Style[/TH]
[TD]Auto[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Canon Model ID[/TH]
[TD]EOS Rebel T3i / 600D / Kiss X5[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]AFArea Mode[/TH]
[TD]Single-point AF[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Num AFPoints[/TH]
[TD]9[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Valid AFPoints[/TH]
[TD]1[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]AFArea Widths[/TH]
[TD]518 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]AFArea Heights[/TH]
[TD]691 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]AFPoints Selected[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Original Decision Data Offset[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Bracket Mode[/TH]
[TD]Off[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Bracket Value[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Bracket Shot Number[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Raw Jpg Size[/TH]
[TD]Large[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]WBBracket Mode[/TH]
[TD]Off[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]WBBracket Value AB[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]WBBracket Value GM[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Live View Shooting[/TH]
[TD]On[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Flash Exposure Lock[/TH]
[TD]Off[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Lens Model[/TH]
[TD]EF50mm f/1.8 II[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Internal Serial Number[/TH]
[TD]ZC1462562[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Dust Removal Data[/TH]
[TD](Binary data 1024 bytes, use -b option to extract)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Crop Left Margin[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Crop Right Margin[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Crop Top Margin[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Crop Bottom Margin[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Aspect Ratio[/TH]
[TD]3:2[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Cropped Image Width[/TH]
[TD]5184[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Cropped Image Height[/TH]
[TD]3456[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Tone Curve[/TH]
[TD]Standard[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sharpness[/TH]
[TD]2[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sharpness Frequency[/TH]
[TD]n/a[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sensor Red Level[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sensor Blue Level[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]White Balance Red[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]White Balance Blue[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Digital Gain[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]WBShift AB[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]WBShift GM[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Measured RGGB[/TH]
[TD]1079 1024 1024 310[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Color Space[/TH]
[TD]sRGB[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]VRDOffset[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sensor Width[/TH]
[TD]5344 (152-5335 used)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Sensor Height[/TH]
[TD]3516 (56-3511 used)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Black Mask Left Border[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Black Mask Top Border[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Black Mask Right Border[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Black Mask Bottom Border[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Color Data Version[/TH]
[TD]10 (600D)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]White Balance RGGB Levels[/TH]
[TD]1492 1024 1024 2444[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Color Temperature[/TH]
[TD]3205[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]WB_ RGGBLevels Measured[/TH]
[TD]1492 1024 1024 2444[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Color Temp Measured[/TH]
[TD]3205[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Raw Measured RGGB[/TH]
[TD]85375 78104 77145 21939[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Peripheral Lighting[/TH]
[TD]Off[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Peripheral Lighting Value[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Original Image Width[/TH]
[TD]5184[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Original Image Height[/TH]
[TD]3456[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Peripheral Lighting Setting[/TH]
[TD]Off[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Auto Lighting Optimizer[/TH]
[TD]Standard[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Ambience Selection[/TH]
[TD]Standard[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Exposure Level Increments[/TH]
[TD]1/3 Stop[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]ISOExpansion[/TH]
[TD]Off[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Flash Sync Speed Av[/TH]
[TD]Auto[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]High ISONoise Reduction[/TH]
[TD]Off[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Highlight Tone Priority[/TH]
[TD]Disable[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]AFAssist Beam[/TH]
[TD]Emits[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Mirror Lockup[/TH]
[TD]Disable[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Shutter Button AFOn Button[/TH]
[TD]Metering + AF start[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Set Button When Shooting[/TH]
[TD]Normal (disabled)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]LCDDisplay At Power On[/TH]
[TD]Display[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Add Original Decision Data[/TH]
[TD]Off[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Compression[/TH]
[TD]JPEG (old-style)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Rating[/TH]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Date Acquired[/TH]
[TD]2012:12:30 18:11:17.265[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]

 

[Lisablueeyes]

Needed off camera flash but you could open up the mid tones and that would help it.

How do I open up "mid tones"? i did not edit the picture as of yet.. Thats something I'm learning how to do.

 

[texkam]

Shoot it in raw.

 

[pic_chick]

raw will help with editing as it stores a lot more data then a jep. Take a photo in auto see what setting the camera choose these are great starting point. now look at the photo see what you dislike about it write down the auto setting go to M put in the same setting then change just the one one at a time ans see what changes it makes in your photo keep notes of your changes and keep looking at each photo side by side to see the differences as you make them. this way you will leanr what each funtion does and how it effects your image. This is time consuming but it helped me out a lot.

more light would have "opened the midtones" if you do not have an off camera flash sry taping a white card to your popup and bonucing the light of a white wall back to you subject from side or the celing if a wall is not handy a white posterboard or sheet will work.

[h=1]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LvNTB5A1noA[/h]

For times when you got to get the shot for now don't feel like you are cheating by going to full auto

 

[xposurepro]

Just some general info for you. You shot f/1.8 .. ISO800 .. 1/10 sec .. 50mm

Increasing ISO introduces color noise .. the higher you go the more you introduce. It will be most noticeable to you in the darker area of the fireplace on the left. See how it looks splotchy. It's not bad in this shot but in some conditions it will completely ruin the image and make it good for only small viewing, like 4x6 prints or online.

1/10 .. that was your shutter speed. If you're not using a tripod a good rule of thumb is that your focal length is never greater than the speed. Your camera has a crop factor of 1.6 so your 50mm should be considered a 80mm focal length. That means your safe shutter speed would be 1/80 .. You were way under it. View your image at 100% actual pixels and you'll see that it's not in focus. This was from the camera shake from shooting at 1/10 on that lens.

f/1.8 .. I shoot with apertures like this all the time. The thing to realize though is that your depth of field is very shallow. This means the area in front and behind the spot you focus on is very small. It's great for creating the Bokeh that 480Sparky mentioned but it means you also have to be extra careful of things like camera shake or multiple points that need to be in focus. For example if you had a kid in the pic with the puppy. One would be in focus and the other would not because they fell outside of the depth of field.

Just some fun stuff for you to learn and congrats on getting such an exciting Christmas present. I'm sure the hubby scored some extra brownie points with that one.

 

[shefjr]

After further investigation, I removed my post due to misinformation. Sorry :/
Cute puppy BTW.

 

[Photo Lady]

Newbie to photography.. Hubby just bought me the EF 50mm f1.8 II Lens. Got the Canon T3i for xmas My first DSLR!

Please tell me how I should have taken this picture to make it better? Thanks


005 by Lisablueeyes10, on Flickr

he is adorable

 

[Lisablueeyes]

Thanks!!