our first outing with the cameras. c&c welcome.

[naptime]

well, i was nervous, and i knew i wouldn't get great shots. but more than anything my daughter and i had a blast today.

we went to the zoo in the freezing cold for a few hours. shot a few rolls and ran them down to walgreens for processing and a cd.

here's a few that came out halfway decent, after a bit of cropping.

remember this was our first day with slr's . (she posted hers in a different thread)

1

R2-02064-0017 by jaythomson, on Flickr

a shot of her, at breakfast this morning. my first attempt at bokeh

2

R1-02065-0013 by jaythomson, on Flickr

3

R1-02065-0010 by jaythomson, on Flickr

4

R1-02065-0004 by jaythomson, on Flickr

this is much fuzzier than i thought it would be. i'm really dissapointed. the cheetah would not stop moving. in this shot he was about 70-80 yards away, and walking towards me. i shot it with the quantaray 70-300 lens, zoomed all the way to 200mm.

5

R1-02065-0001 by jaythomson, on Flickr

the boyfriend showed up at the zoo with his family. so i grabbed a shot for her.

 

[naptime]

aside from the first one, when i look at them, i just get a "snapshot" feeling from them.

not sure how to break away from that.

 

[Kerbouchard]

aside from the first one, when i look at them, i just get a "snapshot" feeling from them.

not sure how to break away from that.

Lighting and composition are what separates a good shot from a snapshot. Notice the ones you don't like were taken with sunlight directly overhead. It will take some time before you learn to 'see the light' and know what will photograph well. The sun overhead will almost never result in flattering lighting.

 

[ConradM]

aside from the first one, when i look at them, i just get a "snapshot" feeling from them.

not sure how to break away from that.

Lighting and composition are what separates a good shot from a snapshot. Notice the ones you don't like were taken with sunlight directly overhead. It will take some time before you learn to 'see the light' and know what will photograph well. The sun overhead will almost never result in flattering lighting.

One thing I read over and over is that most people don't want to shoot in the middle of the day. Best times are an hour after sunrise and an hour before sunset so you get the warmest light.

 

[naptime]

thanks guys. Makes perfect sense. We went between 11-1 because I thought the noon sun would be perfect since it would be overhead, not in our eyes.

doh !

 

[KmH]

This time of year the Sun at mid-day is as low in the southern sky as it will get here in the Northern hemisphere, and it is far from being overhead in Toledo. The Sun only gets a little over 30° above the southern horizon at noon in late December in Toledo, or anywhere else at about N40° in latitude.

The real issue is the Sun is an apparently small light source and provides harsh light that makes harsh sharp edged shadows.

Putting your subjects in open shade and using the huge open sky as your main light provides very soft, diffuse edged shadows. Reflected or strobed light (flash) can then be used to add highlights, fill, or to enhance background separation.

The big issue with the first photo is the reflections in the glasses that are hiding her eyes.

There are many details that have to be checked in the viewfinder before the shutter gets released. Knowing what details need to be checked comes with education and experience.