My pictures doesn't look right

[hamlet]

Looking at that extreme plant crop, I see a few things. 1)shallow depth of field, but then, that's obvious 2) a very slight doubling of the "lines" on the small parts of the plant. The "lines" are not distinct, but very subtle, like those caused by movement of either the plant, or the camera. Using VR when on a tripod can cause a feedback loop in the VR system, and can cause a similar type of movement. However, photographing plants outdoors at slowish speeds like 1/80 second, also sets you up for failure on things like what is called subject motion blur. One of the bigger issues with high-resolution images, and 24 megapixels on APS-C is definitely high-resolution, is that slower speeds WILL SHOW the slightest movement of the subject, or the camera, or the combined movement of the camera and the subject. The old idea that 1/focal length is a "safe" hand-holding speed is not true at high-resolution image levels, and it also totally neglects to factor in any kind of movement of the subject.

If "all of your pictures" are shot at slow speeds, it's likely that there will be subject movement visible when you zoom way in. I shot some photos of people who were just,literally, standing around outdoors, talking. I used a 70-300 VR lens at 1/320 second on a 24 MP camera...and guess what...when I zoomed in all the way, I could literally SEE MOVEMENT on 1/320 second shots. Hair blowing in the wind. Faint jagged edges on the arms and legs and ears--from the subjects' own movement!

Start thinking about using higher ISO levels, in order to get to 3x the focal length if you really want to start shooting for poster-sized images. You cannot sharply capture a lot of things at slowish speeds like 1/80 second, reliably. In fact, at speeds like that, it's often best to take 10 to 12 frames, and when you start looking through them, you will begin to see the very slight effects of less-than-perfect technique and less-than-perfect focusing, camera work, and so on.

I'll try this first thin in the morning.

 

[ISO]

1/80 sec, hand held and pixel peep dont mix. That is basically like shooting a macro handheld at 1/80

I've actually gotten superb results handheld at 1/60 with a canon 100mm F/2.8 L IS USM Macro, with an APS-C sensor, so at a 160mm equivalent.

 

[Overread]

ISO was that with the IS on or off - IS will help your hand holding ability and mean that you can use slower than normal speeds and still get a steady shot.
Plus in macro if you can crouch down and lean on something or even lean on the surface the subject is upon you can cancel out a lot of shake there and thus get better results than the conventional theory of handholding would suggest

 

[The_Traveler]

And also on the point of focusing on making more pleasing pictures: I have a very hard time to get started. I cant take amazing pictures that draw my audience in, i have a writers block.

No, what you have come up against is that fact that there is great experience and surprising skill involved in making 'amazing pictures.'

You might get one good image by chance but you want to buy some magic gear or learn some magic trick to make great pictures.
You are acting like a teenager or adolescent who believes that they can do anything by learning a trick.

Not going to happen.

Things have moved on since last we talked Lew. I know now that in my pursuit to look for pro gear, i got that mixed up with being able to take interesting shots. I acknowledge that now. But this thread was never made with the intent of learning how to be creative. That is a whole other can of worms i have to figure out for myself.

Things don't look different from the outside.
You are still asking questions that are essentially unanswerable because you don't have the knowledge to even frame the questions.

If you had gone about learning photography in some more structured or disciplined way, you would either have answered your own questions or you would know how to answer them.

As it is you are jumping along, getting small patches to your knowledge that are unrelated - and you aren't picking up the commensurate skills that you need.
So you will end up with fragmented, unorganized knowledge and you will have chewed up a lot of other people's time trying to help you.

This is like trying to diagnose an illness by talking to an 11 year old on the phone.

 

[hamlet]

No, what you have come up against is that fact that there is great experience and surprising skill involved in making 'amazing pictures.'

You might get one good image by chance but you want to buy some magic gear or learn some magic trick to make great pictures.
You are acting like a teenager or adolescent who believes that they can do anything by learning a trick.

Not going to happen.

Things have moved on since last we talked Lew. I know now that in my pursuit to look for pro gear, i got that mixed up with being able to take interesting shots. I acknowledge that now. But this thread was never made with the intent of learning how to be creative. That is a whole other can of worms i have to figure out for myself.

Things don't look different from the outside.
You are still asking questions that are essentially unanswerable because you don't have the knowledge to even frame the questions.

If you had gone about learning photography in some more structured or disciplined way, you would either have answered your own questions or you would know how to answer them.

As it is you are jumping along, getting small patches to your knowledge that are unrelated - and you aren't picking up the commensurate skills that you need.
So you will end up with fragmented, unorganized knowledge and you will have chewed up a lot of other people's time trying to help you.

This is like trying to diagnose an illness by talking to an 11 year old on the phone.

That makes perfect sense. I actually agree with you, though i didn't see this myself.

 

[pgriz]

It's not original with me, but it's a useful reminder: How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.

Lew has it right. You need to build up a coherent base of knowledge and experience to use as your point of departure for newer and better things.

There are many "foundational" issues in photography. Understanding exposure is one. Knowing how DOF works across apertures and focal lengths, is another. Understanding techniques to limit camera shake is still another. Knowing how to focus, where to focus, and which tools to use to help you focus, is another. Knowing how to light a subject to show the right amount of detail, is still another (this one's a biggie). And that's just the technical stuff.

If you want to make "amazing" photographs, do some homework. Go and find over the next month or so the images that to you are "amazing". Record your subjective impressions - what is it that is so remarkable about each image. Then, do the technical deconstruction - what were the sources of light, was the "technical" aspect that made that image notable, what aspect of the image drew you in? I think you'll find Andrew's (Amolitor) comment coming up time and again: The image was taken at the right place, right time, right moment. Oh, and after you're done, show the same images to other people and see if they agree with you that they are "amazing". Maybe yes, maybe no. Either way, it'll be educational.

 

[Braineack]

Oh, and after you're done, show the same images to other people and see if they agree with you that they are "amazing". Maybe yes, maybe no. Either way, it'll be educational.

yep. A lot of pictures I've taken I thought were amazing, then I'd share them here and other's would say: you could of done this, or you shouldn't do that. It hurts at first, but once you really accept it and take it for what it's worth you'll see it as well, and it'll help you become even better when you apply it in the future.

 

[ISO]

Oh, and after you're done, show the same images to other people and see if they agree with you that they are "amazing". Maybe yes, maybe no. Either way, it'll be educational.

yep. A lot of pictures I've taken I thought were amazing, then I'd share them here and other's would say: you could of done this, or you shouldn't do that. It hurts at first, but once you really accept it and take it for what it's worth you'll see it as well, and it'll help you become even better when you apply it in the future.

Most pictures I post anywhere hardly get any crit, sometimes I wonder if they are simply so bad that no one bothers.

 

[weags77]

This is a thread that honestly should be read by everyone at the OPs stage of development. I wish I had read this then but I greatly benefitted from reading it right now. Very spot on tips and insight.

I was at that spot having my d3100 for a full year and having dreams of blowing up huge photos maybe make some money selling them, yada yada yada. So I went ahead and got me a brand new d600 and $800 wide angle lens. Took some pics and expected a huge difference. Not so much. Underwhelmed to say the least. I still question that purchase but I do love the camera. I wish I had someone to tell these things you're hearing here.

Would have saved me a ton of money and I can't help but wish I'd spent that money on some books or lessons and the time spent learning the craft.

Funny thing is is that I've only garnered a few compliments on the images I've posted here taken with my d600. But the other day I went to the zoo and grabbed my old 3100 a 55-200 and managed to come away with one of the most personally satisfying photo sessions I've ever had. And actually got multiple compliments on the photos as well as the story told.

I don't wanna sound like I'm bragging but I was genuinely happy about it and it was a very poignant lesson for me. Then reading this thread made me think even more about it. I guess moral of this extremely long story (sorry bout that) but the moral is that you could have given me the best equipment money could buy but if I don't know how take a good photo what good is it.

Im not saying you don't know how to take a good photo but it sounds like you are at that point where I've been very recently. Just good enough to really start looking at your own work in a critical fashion. Where I blamed my lack of creativity on my equipment and not my knowledge.

This forum has been an amazing I eye opener in many ways. My knowledge and skills have been humbled. But it's only driven me to learn more. I can honestly say I learn something, at least one thing, every time I come on this forum. Either by lurking or looking at other photos and critiquing them to the best of my ability. So I'd say soak up all this knowledge. Put it to the test.

Find out what kind of photographer you want to be. What you're good at and what interests you. Practice communicating that to yourself and others. If at that point in time you're equipment is limiting you from achieving what you know you can do, then you will know exactly what you need to buy.

Hope this helps and sorry for the book. This thread just kinda hit home for me. Thanks to all who contributed.

 

[hamlet]

This does reframe my view on how to go about learning. I just didn't realize how fragmented my knowledge was, but now i have a starting point to fill in all the gaps in my knowledge.

 

[matthewo]

Send it to me i will test it out and see how it works Jk

 

[hamlet]

I did a little investigating into zoom lenses. Pro grade lenses actually only perform a little better than this kit lens when comparing crops into the image, in quality prime lenses the differences are much more noticeable.

 

[gsgary]

I did a little investigating into zoom lenses. Pro grade lenses actually only perform a little better than this kit lens when comparing crops into the image, in quality prime lenses the differences are much more noticeable.

Pro lenses are far better than your kit lens

Sent from my GT-I9100P using Tapatalk 2

 

[hamlet]

I did a little investigating into zoom lenses. Pro grade lenses actually only perform a little better than this kit lens when comparing crops into the image, in quality prime lenses the differences are much more noticeable.

Pro lenses are far better than your kit lens

Sent from my GT-I9100P using Tapatalk 2

The zoom comparisons in kit lens and pro lenses are surprisingly unimpressive when comparing crop sharpness. Fixed lenses are the way to go if you want artisan pastry oven baked crispy goodness.

 

[enzodm]

Fixed lenses are the way to go if you want artisan pastry oven baked crispy goodness.

... and this is another example of one-sentence solution to a problem that has multiple components, so it does not work .

A picture taken with a pro zoom in the same conditions you took the original one will be very similarly unimpressive, because the main issue is not lens quality but photographer quality. A picture taken in the best possible conditions with a kit zoom vs. pro zoom will show some difference. Prime lenses can be better or not, depending on what you mean for better and how much you spend on. However, a prime lens used in suboptimal conditions will give you the same issues.