I did the assignment anyway :)

[sm4him]

My husband and I moved the day after Christmas, so on top of the holidays, we were busy packing... moving... unpacking... and somewhere in there I was trying to find time to edit and go to shows and what not...

But since I'm immobilized today, I figured today would be a great day to stop in and curse you all with my presence.

Moving the day after Christmas; what fun! When I was six, my family actually moved on Christmas Eve!! I'm pretty sure my parents were insane, lol...FIVE kids, and they moved on Christmas Eve. My seven-year-old sister and I were distraught because we just knew that Santa wouldn't know where to find us.
When Christmas morning arrived, and Santa had left just the right things at our new home...well, that was the beginning of the end for me. I knew *something* had to be wrong with that picture, lol!

Hope you feel better soon!! Unless feeling better is going to take you away from TPF again...in that case, you can just stay sick. :lmao:

 

[thereyougo!]

Post the images in a flickr so I can see them. Particularly the f/1.8, 2.8 and 3.5 images.


e.rose:You have my deepest sympathies. Moving the day after Christmas is not something I EVER want to contemplate. You deserve a day of incapacitated!!

Ok, they are uploaded..... do I need put the aperture in description for you?
Aperture Test - a set on Flickr

Congratulations on your perseverence! I've looked at them but not in great detail. How stable was your tripod? I say this as there is motion blur in some and the position isn't always exactly the same. Were you affected by wind at all?

 

[Elizabeth30]

Post the images in a flickr so I can see them. Particularly the f/1.8, 2.8 and 3.5 images.


e.rose:You have my deepest sympathies. Moving the day after Christmas is not something I EVER want to contemplate. You deserve a day of incapacitated!!

Ok, they are uploaded..... do I need put the aperture in description for you?
Aperture Test - a set on Flickr

Congratulations on your perseverence! I've looked at them but not in great detail. How stable was your tripod? I say this as there is motion blur in some and the position isn't always exactly the same. Were you affected by wind at all?

a little wind but something isn't right with the tripod I think...... it seemed top heavy and the slightest touch would make it fall slightly. I tried tightening it but it did not want to go any tighter....

 

[e.rose]

The best one was at f/6.3 So that tells me that this small bottle didn't even have the best focus until f/6.3 so if I'm tring to focus a person (obviously much larger) then I'm really cheating myself out of a good photo by shooting wide open.

50mm f/1.8, 1/100, ISO100

This image is clearly out of focus.

50mm f/1.8, 1/80, ISO3200... under MUCH less light than an overcast day outside, AND my subject was *moving*

50mm f/1.8, 1/80, ISO3200... under MUCH less light than an overcast day outside, AND my subject was *moving*

.
.
.
.
.

So you are *definitely* not cheating yourself by taking photos of people with a small aperture. You just need to learn to get *better* at it. :sillysmi:

 

[thereyougo!]

Ok, they are uploaded..... do I need put the aperture in description for you?
Aperture Test - a set on Flickr

Congratulations on your perseverence! I've looked at them but not in great detail. How stable was your tripod? I say this as there is motion blur in some and the position isn't always exactly the same. Were you affected by wind at all?

a little wind but something isn't right with the tripod I think...... it seemed top heavy and the slightest touch would make it fall slightly. I tried tightening it but it did not want to go any tighter....

It's pretty crucial that you have your tripod stable as especially at the larger apertures (smaller numbers) just a tiny difference in position can mean that the results are hard to compare.

 

[e.rose]

Hope you feel better soon!! Unless feeling better is going to take you away from TPF again...in that case, you can just stay sick. :lmao:

Haha, I'll make you a deal... If I'm allowed to get better, I'll make more of an effort to visit once in a while.

 

[thereyougo!]

The best one was at f/6.3 So that tells me that this small bottle didn't even have the best focus until f/6.3 so if I'm tring to focus a person (obviously much larger) then I'm really cheating myself out of a good photo by shooting wide open.

50mm f/1.8, 1/100, ISO100

This image is clearly out of focus.

50mm f/1.8, 1/80, ISO3200... under MUCH less light than an overcast day outside, AND my subject was *moving*

50mm f/1.8, 1/80, ISO3200... under MUCH less light than an overcast day outside, AND my subject was *moving*

.
.
.
.
.

So you are *definitely* not cheating yourself by taking photos of people with a small aperture. You just need to learn to get *better* at it. :sillysmi:

Not having a dig, but what distance were you from the subject? Have you cropped the original at all. Was it comparable?

 

[e.rose]

Not having a dig, but what distance were you from the subject? Have you cropped the original at all. Was it comparable?

About 5 feet from both of them, which is why I chose those specific photos as an example. Obviously I don't have anything EXACTLY as what the OP has, because I didn't do her test, but what I posted is a "real world" example, if you will, of using f/1.8 on something larger than a bottle and not cheating myself out of a good photo. At least *I* don't think I did... opinions may vary. :lmao:

 

[Ron Evers]

Elizabeth, it sounds like your tripod is not of sufficient quality.

 

[MLeeK]

The first image shot at 1.8 isn't just soft, it's totally out of focus. F/2 is in good focus. Can you shoot a few more things at f/1.8 for me and post them. Just the same way. Preferably with a high shutter speed. The SS in that one was 1/100 and shouldn't be the problem, but something is NOT right there.

 

[TMBPhotography]

I disagree with peoples thoughts about going away for a week, shooting tons of pics and then coming back and posting what they believe is their best work. Reason being, I could shoot a 1000 pics tomorrow but if I haven't corrected my issues, the 1000 pics will be crap. if I shoot say 50 pics. Take my best one, post it, you all will tell me what I did wrong. I go back out, fix those errors and try again. Post that pic, find out my errors and so on and so on. My point being, if you don't know what you're looking for and what you're doing wrong, you're taking a ton of pics and not getting better. We noobs need your advice about what to fix cause we obviously didn't know it was wrong to begin with or else we would've corrected it by now. We all need critiques to point out our miscues in the beginning.

 

[Elizabeth30]

The first image shot at 1.8 isn't just soft, it's totally out of focus. F/2 is in good focus. Can you shoot a few more things at f/1.8 for me and post them. Just the same way. Preferably with a high shutter speed. The SS in that one was 1/100 and shouldn't be the problem, but something is NOT right there.

You mean tomorrow with the same set-up? Or now with anything?

 

[cgipson1]

elizabeth30, You might also consider using the self timer when you have the camera on a tripod.... or get a inexpensive cable release for it. (I wouldn't worry about mirror lockup right now.. you don't need it for these shots.).. but don't touch the camera or the tripod untill after the shot is over.

 

[RebeccaAPhotography]

elizabeth30, You might also consider using the self timer when you have the camera on a tripod.... or get a inexpensive cable release for it. (I wouldn't worry about mirror lockup right now.. you don't need it for these shots.).. but don't touch the camera or the tripod untill after the shot is over.

Oh gips you didn't give up on her after all. I just finished reading her other thread. Elizabeth you get quite the comments. Your still trying to help

Elizabeth sounds like you have a cheap tripod. Mleek I think your onto something. I agree I think the lens isn't working correctly.

 

[Elizabeth30]

So you are *definitely* not cheating yourself by taking photos of people with a small aperture. You just need to learn to get *better* at it. :sillysmi:

Nice shots!!