New here, could use some advise

Traverse · Sep 6, 2010

Hey everyone, I just registered on this site and thought I'd give a quick intro and ask for some generic advice, info, etc.

I'm currently working on an undergrad. degree in journalism, and I'm working as a photographer for a few outlets around town and campus. I've been shooting mostly with a Canon T1i and a Sigma 28-70mm f/2.8 lens, but I just recently ordered a 50D as an upgrade (hasn't arrived yet).

Here's a few random shots:

You can find my entire flickr at flickr.com/brianmwells

I do a lot of sports photography, but I want to get into concerts and other low-lighting situations. I do very much consider myself a beginner, and I'm open to any advice, tutorials, or anything that anybody would want to recommend to me. I'm hard to offend/upset, so throw anything at me. I already found the photoflex tutorials, and plan to spend my night reading through that.

Thanks!

bigtwinky · Sep 6, 2010

get things off the center focus point. look up the rule of thirds.
all these have the main interest smack in the middle

1- not sure what the interest is...if it is the sign, then try and keep all corners in the image. but really, i dont get it.

2- a duck! its cute, but nothing really fun. its shot too straight on, try exploring intersting angles

3- need more shutter speed. sports photography is about people... players, their emotions. to display those to the viewer, get the player's eyes and faces in the image.

4- the image is very busy, lots of stuff going on. I love the idea of the graffiti, maybe get in closer there? Is that your camera bag in the lower right of the frame?

5- something off here...popup flash, too much saturation... I see no detail in the petals

6- its a blurry guy sitting and being serious.

Concerts are a pain... if you had issues with getting that last old dude in focus, you are going to need alot of practice (and maybe equipment). Look into a 50 f/1.8 with that 50D or even a 50 f/1.4

Oh, and space those images out and add numbers to them, makes it easier to comment and reference

Traverse · Sep 10, 2010

1- not sure what the interest is...if it is the sign, then try and keep all corners in the image. but really, i dont get it.

Yeah, it's supposed to be that sign. The room was pitch black, and the only way to light it without it looking terrible was to hold a flashlight on it. Plus it was freezing, which didn't help.

2- a duck! its cute, but nothing really fun. its shot too straight on, try exploring intersting angles

This was shot for a local publication to display one of the areas parks. I didn't have a lot of time to get interesting, plus I was standing right next to the water.

3- need more shutter speed. sports photography is about people... players, their emotions. to display those to the viewer, get the player's eyes and faces in the image.

When I can, I try and get that. Unfortunately my lens didn't zoom far enough.

4- the image is very busy, lots of stuff going on. I love the idea of the graffiti, maybe get in closer there? Is that your camera bag in the lower right of the frame?

Again, this was also shot for a publication. The way the light was hitting it made it hard to get a decent shot, and they kept coming out fuzzy even with my tripod. I think the humidity might have been fogging my stuff up. And no, that's not my camera bag.

5- something off here...popup flash, too much saturation... I see no detail in the petals

It was a cloudy day and I had to adjust the contrast. I suck with photoshop :lol:

6- its a blurry guy sitting and being serious.

This is my university's president. We were interviewing him for our local television station, which is why the background is pitch black and he's illuminated. At the size it was printed it didn't look blurry (which is what matters), but enlarged it does. Unfortuantely due to the audio equipment I couldn't set up a tripod, nor could I use a flash.