My first pics!

deanx0r

TPF Noob!
Joined
Nov 14, 2006
Messages
26
Reaction score
0
This is my very first try at photography.

Pics were taken downtown Denver with a Fuji F30 without tripod. A lot of the shots were blurry, but a few stood out. Post processed with Adobe Element.


DSCF0128.jpg


DSCF0126.jpg


DSCF0131.jpg


DSCF0138.jpg
 
Hi Dean and welcome to ThePhotoForum!!!

It always surprises me to see that some start out with their photography doing night shots while it took me years and years and years to finally venture into that area of photography!

Well done - and without a tripod even.
But you will find out pretty soon that if nighttime photography is what fascinates you most you cannot avoid getting yourself a tripod. You don't want to end with "a lot of the shots were blurry" all the time you go out shooting at night, do you? ;)

Of the ones presented here in your "introductory thread" the first appeals to me most. The foreground leads us to the square behind which we find very interesting architecture, it all is bright enough for us to see everything ... one tip for the future (and you DO NEED THAT TRIPOD for that!): use a SMALLER aperture (that is: higher f-number) and a LONGER exposure and the light sources (streetlights etc.) will become more like little stars and less like light blobs. Try it. You'll be surprised :D.

Show us your new results.
These are already quite promising.
 
welcome to the forum!

i also like the first one most.

anyway, one thing you can do if you don't have a tripod is to look for something solid to place your camera on top and then use the self timer. so you don't touch the camera when the actual shot is taken. Don't move too far from the camera though as it might get stolen ;)

If there is nothing to put your camera on which will give you an acceptable composition of thge image, then try to press it against a lamp post or such while taking the picture, that will stabilise more compared to totally free handed.

I did lots of nice night shots without a tripod that way ... and even with an ISO 100 film ;)

of course, if you have a tripod at hand, that is always preferred.
 
Hi Dean and Welcome,

I recently took my first night shots as well and came to the same conclusion...I need a tripod! I tried using a stable object and that worked to some degree but i was still getting a little blur. Using the timer is an excellent suggeston Alex! I went out and got a cheap tripod now, so im anxious to see the results. Anyways cool pics and great subjects!
 
Personally.
I dig the second one. Has a nice sense of atmosphere. I'm guessing you textured it or something?

As an avid fan of nighttime photography and somebody that never uses a tripod.... I'd agree with whats been said, but it's not necessary. I find it just as easy to find something lo lean on to keep the camera still. Well maybe I'm just to lazy to lug my tripod around with me :p
I guess I'd use it if I had it with me :)
 
Thanks for tfeedback guys. I am still pretty much clueless about the technical aspect of my camera and photography in general, so those advices are very welcomed.

LaFoto said:
one tip for the future (and you DO NEED THAT TRIPOD for that!): use a SMALLER aperture (that is: higher f-number) and a LONGER exposure and the light sources (streetlights etc.) will become more like little stars and less like light blobs. Try it. You'll be surprised :D.
My camera (Fujifilm F30) has a nightshot scenery mode that allow me to crank the exposure time up to 15 seconds. However I can't control the aperture size at all, which is left wide open. All the shots I have taken with over 10 seconds of exposure time were overexposed, even at the lowest ISO setting (100). There is an aperture priority mode on the camera, but I am limited to a 1/4s exposure time only.

So yeah, the night mode of my camera doesn't make sense! It wont allow me any other control since it's a P&S.

gizmo2071 said:
Personally.
I dig the second one. Has a nice sense of atmosphere. I'm guessing you textured it or something?
The original picture is actuall very dull and very grainy (noise) due to the high ISO setting used (3200). I just desatured the picture, cranked up the contrast and applied a sharpen filter. Voila!
 
Welcome to the TPF!! Great captures, the first one is my favorite!
 
Hi deanx0r vbmenu_register("postmenu_605151", true); ,
Please share more with us (me) what’s your impression of using the F30 camera.

10x
 
emo_tr said:
Hi deanx0r vbmenu_register("postmenu_605151", true); ,
Please share more with us (me) what’s your impression of using the F30 camera.

10x

I have to admit it's not the most comfortable camera to use. There is something about the ergonomics and and some misplaced buttons that makes it feel very odd in hands. The body itself is kind of chubby compare to other compact P&S such as Lumix serie cameras.

The AF mechanism feels very clunky, slow (even in fast operation mode) and is noisy. Everytime the camera focuses, it readjust itself from closer to infinite focusing distance which gives you a blur/mozaic in the live preview. I think it's a very distracting issue.

There are other issues such as night scenery mode being limited to a F2.8 aperture only. I couldn't get an exposure over 10sec without overexposing even at the lowest ISO setting. The pictures are also very dull out of the camera compare to my friends Canon SD700 which I dont really mind if I am going to post process the pictures.

However, where this camera shine is in low light compare to all other P&S on the market. Althought not on par with DSLR, It does a remarkable job in low light situation for its class. I have a bunch of clublife pictures that could have never been taken if it wasn't for the F30's sensor. The F30 is also one tough little camera: I went snowboarding with it a couple times, fell hard on snow or ice with it, and althout it took some cosmetic hits, it still work like a charm!

The camera has its drawbacks, but they are overwhelmed by the ability to take decent low light pictures with such a tiny package.
 
Personally, I like the third photo. It seems to portray a sense of solitude in the concrete jungle, but with a hint of wonder suggested by the architecture.

If the camera allows, you might try shooting in aperture priority mode rather than nightshot scenery mode. Even better would be if it allowed full manual control of exposure. Overall though, very impressive for a little P&S!
 
deanx0r said:
Althought not on par with DSLR, It does a remarkable job in low light situation for its class. I have a bunch of clublife pictures that could have never been taken if it wasn't for the F30's sensor.

I totally agree on it being a remarkable camera.

Sometimes, in simple photographic standard situations P&S iamges are not that different from an (D)SLR ... and then I really wonder why I brought all my heavy equipment with me ;)

Also I am thinking of maybe buying a P&S myself to have it on me and ready 24 hrs a day ... you miss so many chances for good pictures because you cannot have an SLR with you all the time ...

I would not give up on my SLR and DSLR though ... just when it is not with me a P&S might be good
 
Alex_B said:
I totally agree on it being a remarkable camera.

Sometimes, in simple photographic standard situations P&S iamges are not that different from an (D)SLR ... and then I really wonder why I brought all my heavy equipment with me ;)

Also I am thinking of maybe buying a P&S myself to have it on me and ready 24 hrs a day ... you miss so many chances for good pictures because you cannot have an SLR with you all the time ...

I would not give up on my SLR and DSLR though ... just when it is not with me a P&S might be good
Well, you do need both. The more pictures I took with the Fuji, the more I realized how limited I was with what I could do. But at the same time, I like the simplicity of p&s because you don't have to worry about toying with other settings.

I wish Fuji could come up with a wide angle p&s that support optical image stabilizer like Panasonic LX1. That camera associated with the Fuji sensor would be the ultimate p&s ^^ who would need a DSLR if there was such a camera :p

I was able to toy around with my friend's Canon Rebel --and maybe it was because I wasn't the familiar with the camera-- but taking pictures while trying to have a certain range of control over them resulted in more time fiddling with the camera than actually taking pictures. I am also having a hard time getting used to use DSLR viewfinders... Why can't they have live preview? that beats me... it would make life so much easier when taking pictures in very odd angles like with the camera way low to the ground or way above you.
 
deanx0r said:
I wish Fuji could come up with a wide angle p&s that support optical image stabilizer like Panasonic LX1. That camera associated with the Fuji sensor would be the ultimate p&s ^^ who would need a DSLR if there was such a camera
Primarily because of the interchangeable lenses.

deanx0r said:
I was able to toy around with my friend's Canon Rebel --and maybe it was because I wasn't the familiar with the camera-- but taking pictures while trying to have a certain range of control over them resulted in more time fiddling with the camera than actually taking pictures.
That would be overcome with experience.

deanx0r said:
I am also having a hard time getting used to use DSLR viewfinders... Why can't they have live preview? that beats me... it would make life so much easier when taking pictures in very odd angles like with the camera way low to the ground or way above you.
In a (D)SLR there is a mirror in the way. You can either have a view through the lens, or a preview LCD, but not both (for a reasonable cost).

That said, I carry a Sony T10 all the time, and a Canon 5D when the primary mission is photography. Both are capable cameras. The Sony can take pictures every bit as good as the 5D within its range of capability. So does a wide format or pinhole camera. You have to decide what your photographic "mission" is, then equip yourself for the task. A P&S can create art as effectively as a 25 megapixel 1200mm $25,000 camera. It is the artist that matters, not the equipment.

I like your image #1 very much, how the eye is drawn from foreground to background. I like the motion-blurred car and the litter on the ground! Different cameras and different choices for exposure would have resulted in different, but not necessarily better, images. I like this one. The monochromes I'm not so crazy about.
 

Most reactions

New Topics

Back
Top