looking for a miracle

[lingling]

I am new to photgraphy and love it but it doesn't seem to love me.
I have taken a few local classes on exposure, compensation and a few other basic things and it seems all peachy keen on paper but my ability to apply is not so good!
I have a Nikon d90 and a 50mm f1.8 and a speedlight 600. But I have been unsucessful as of now to get a crisp picture. I shoot indoors 99% of the time and only of my kids. My goal is to capture my children's childhood. I have a daughter with bright blue eyes and you'd never know from my pics! I don't do any post processing yet, I want to master the camera first.

I shoot on s,m, and A but I am ever so tempted to shoot in Auto!

Here is an example of my constant struggle.

I think shutter speed is a huge issue with my kids who never sit still and I have my white balance on auto which I am not sure if I should.

I am totally looking to learn so don't be nice, I have thick skin.

 

[SrBiscuit]

welcome to the forum...if you came here to learn, this is the spot...there is a TON of knowledge on this board, and the people are great. you'll love your stay.

i think your second image is definitely on the right track.
something is certainly up with that first one...looks to me like a slow shutter speed (making the image soft) and some funky WB settings.

you mention that you shoot in A M or S...dont be afraid to try P (if the 90 has it)...im finding it to be a nice transition from Auto. (and good on ya for avoiding auto )

im sure more/better advice will come along, but in the meantime...shoot shoot shoot...try different things...that SB600 is a great tool. angle it, bounce it, diffuse it...lots of fun to be had there. i've not handled the d90, so im envious of that.

soak it up...

 

[DanCanon]

I agree with trying the P setting. If nothing else it is also a good starting point and you can adjust your apreture and shutter speed from there.

 

[LarryD]

There is nothing wrong with shooting in auto if that is what gets you the correct photo.... Somehow you have to arrive at the correct settings and guessing just isn't going to do it..

Take a look on auto and see what the settings are.......are those the same ones you would use if you were setting things up ??

When you have a known subject, use spot metering (or center weighted averaging) so the correct settings are for the subject and not for the entire scene..

Not sure about your camera, but there should be a bracketing feature where you can use the motor drive and shoot three pictures at a time, bracketing your exposure either side of your shown f-stop, or either side of white balance.... digital film is cheap..shoot 'til you get what you want.

 

[lingling]

Thanks for the advice.
I spend many hours just shooting away but still find myself at a loss to get a crisp picture. I am one of those learners that needs a person beside me telling me how to do it. I will try something, change a setting and try something new but forget what I did in the first place!

Is white balance the only thing that effects colour? I don't ever like the colours I get, they are so off.

 

[gsgary]

Here's one of my settings i use quite a bit it dosn't usually fail set on manual ISO800 1/60 @F4 WB 5600 and you will get just a bit of orange glow with tunsten lights

 

[lingling]

gsgary, that was great advice! I snapped a few and they were much more crisp. But I don't know why!! What it the higher ISO? I went even higher and thought that helped. I don't know why that WB number worked either. I was either choosing the shooting scenario.

Here a few I just snapped. No composition or anything because my subjects are very snotty these days!

I didn't use a flash, should I have?