Seattle Great Wheel

[mikeWest]

What are your thoughts on this? I like the composition and the reflections. It's a bit too motion blurred but I'm not sure why, I was taking it on a cheap tripod but I can't imagine that a cheap tripod shakes enough to cause visible blur? I was also hoping to get this shot with the wheel turning but sadly that didn't work out -- I might come back and retry. I used a 18-55 kit lens on my T2i because that's the widest lens I have -- could I be reaching the limits of what this lens can do?

Anyway, what would you do differently/what are your thoughts?

 

[WesternGuy]

This is not really that bad - I don't really see the motion blur that you mention. The image is the water is blurred from the small ripples in the water, but that is okay. If I was going to do it again, I might leave a bit more space at the top and try and shoot it more straight on rather than at an angle as you have done here. Yes, having the wheel turning would be a definite bonus.

WesternGuy

 

[Majeed Badizadegan]

I might come back and retry. I used a 18-55 kit lens on my T2i because that's the widest lens I have -- could I be reaching the limits of what this lens can do?

Anyway, what would you do differently/what are your thoughts?

No, not really. Your timing isn't great.

Shoot just after dusk so there's a little bit of light in the sky. Most of this scene is dark which I don't find appealing.

One way I'd approach this subject is to go just after dusk. I'd probably use ND filters while the wheel is moving to get a slow shutter speed, both to smooth out the water and show motion in the wheel.

 

[Majeed Badizadegan]

Also, upon closer inspection of the image larger, it looks like there was slight movent of the camera during the exposure. This is indicated by the blur pattern of the lights in large view.

For long exposures, you need to be on a rock solid tripod. Using a self-timer or remote shutter release allows you to trigger the shutter without physically touching the camera.

 

[Rick50]

^^^ What he said... Use a good tripod and even hang some weight on it.