Saturartion and Contrast; how much is too much?

[ItsssRyne]

Alright this is an editing question. It's quite simple; how much is too much when it comes to Saturation and Contrast. I've noticed when editing my photos that I like the saturated more colorful look with dark contrast. Is this frowned upon in the photography community? I personally like the deep colors. I think the more color the better. Or should I find somewhere in between? The same goes for contrast, I like bumping up the contrast a lot; and I find my pictures come out better when I do so.

I've been using iPhoto for the time being until I can get my hands on photoshop.

Just hoping to get some advice and have someone point me in the right direction.

These are some old photo's from my first month of photography:

1.

2.

What do you think? Am I in the right ball park? Or did I take a wrong turn at albuquerque?

 

[SCraig]

You took the photographs. You saw what they looked like in real life. Is that what they looked like?

To me they look heavily oversaturated but then I didn't see the scene in real life.

 

[bhop]

I think this is a subjective thing.. some people like saturation, some people like low contrast, or even black and white. Only you can decide how much is too much. That said, it's nice to be able to find a balance point.

For example, the blues in your top photo seem to be overpowering everything else. I think you should either tone the blue down, or brighten the greens up to balance it out. The bottom image looks ok to me as far as the color, but your composition could use some work.. (crooked, top is cut off..etc)