Starting over...........

[AMOMENT]

....reading tutorials now =) but off to bed in a few....you have all been INCREDIBLY HELPFUL and I sincerely appreciate you giving me your valuable time and knowledge! I have never downloaded a spellcheck or grammar check because I really do know how to write efficiently.. .. Goodnight.....happy photo dreams! I'm excited to learn more tomorrow!

 

[AMOMENT]

thanks, MTV..........knowing that most photographers do tweak gives me a little more confidence.

 

[Kerbouchard]

First advice, stop shooting at 1.8. It's hard, and I mean it's hard for everybody. One, you don't have much DOF, so you will miss focus more often with a moving subject. Two, the lens is not at it's sharpest at 1.8. By 2.8 it is razor sharp. Three, your D3100 has a crappy viewfinder and doesn't really have a great focusing module. It would be hard for anybody to tell what is in focus and what isn't.

If you are going to shoot in RAW, which is fine, consider shooting RAW +JPEG. Your post processing skills aren't quite where they need to be to make all the decisions. Let the camera at least show you it's version of it. If you have a different vision for it, go for it with the RAW file. The sharpness is a function of missed focus and shooting wide open. Neither will help you out for achieving sharp photos. The white balance is also off. Consider a $25 calibration target if you want to shoot in RAW. You don't have to set a custom white balance(although in static situations it can be a great time saver), but just having taken the shot of the target will give you something to base your corrections off of when you go into post processing. I like this one DT6020 PhotoVision 6" One-Shot Digital Mini Calibration Target with DVD, an Exposure Aid for Digital Cameras

As far as post processing, you will always have to post process a RAW file. If you shoot JPEG, the camera will tweak contrast, sharpness, etc based on how you have your shooting menu set up. In RAW, you get the RAW data. You have to sculpt it into what you want it to be. Trying to achieve photos that require no post processing is a worthy goal but is unrealistic. Every image can benefit from a curves adjustment and sharpening. Every image is a bit different and will require different amounts of attention. You can shoot JPEG and go with the one size fits all solution, or you can shoot RAW and customize every image. Personally, I prefer to customize every image so that I get what I want out of it, but 'perfect SOOC' is a myth. You can get pretty good SOOC shooting JPEG, but it can't be done in RAW.

 

[tirediron]

The "green" is my backyard...lololol. What would you do to fix this picture? (in terms of settings)

Think he was talking about the first picture of the girl on the rock looking down

That, but primarily the two in post #7.

 

[AMOMENT]

1.

I like the bokeh'...but not thrilled with the depth. 2.

hating the shadows. 3.

somewhat satisfied with the photo though I wish I had composed a better setting ....(this was improv. because we were in a rush to get my daughter to her first dance class. Tear, Tear.)
4.

any suggestions? .....ok..thanks everyone....goodnight!!!!

 

[Derrel]

First off, STOP shooting with a 50mm lens set to f/1.8!!! Just do not do that!!! At closer distances, like the first photo in Post #10, of your step-daughter with her hands on her knees...all of the parts of her that are extending toward the camera are seriously out of focus. That looks bad. That results directly from using too large (too wide, too low of an f/NUMBER) a lens aperture setting . That shot is also over-exposed; se the yellowish coloration near the crook of her elbow??? That is what over-exposure looks like from a d-slr...unpleasant yellowish, candle-flame-looking skin tones.

I think a guy or gal could make a living using D3100 bodies and good Nikkor lenses. The bodies are so low-cost a fellow could buy three of them, and keep a good lens on each one of them. TWO D3100's would be enough for a small family photography business. Some more skill at exposure, and skill and PRACTICE at finding and creating good location lighting would be most helpful.

 

[tevo]

1.

I like the bokeh'...but not thrilled with the depth. 2.

hating the shadows. 3.

somewhat satisfied with the photo though I wish I had composed a better setting ....(this was improv. because we were in a rush to get my daughter to her first dance class. Tear, Tear.)
4.

any suggestions? .....ok..thanks everyone....goodnight!!!!

Agree with what Derrel said, and besides having an intense hatred for that type of hat (#1) these are pretty good.

 

[Infinite_Day]

For what it's worth - it looks like you are starting to develop a good eye for portrait photography. The 4th photo in your last series would have been a very cute shot if you had framed a tad wider and hit the focus on her eyes. I am glad that things are going better for you this time around. Sometimes you have to walk on glass around here. I think most people are going to suggest you focus your initial budget on some lighting equipment and a very good lens for portrait work. The D3100 should be enough body for you to start growing with and is easy to upgrade if you start making a few bucks here and there from your work.

 

[12sndsgood]

i agree with just keeping your camera. i picked up a D3000 year before last and then started on here and wishing i had bought a more expensive camera. but my skills didn't warrent it. i didnt even really know why i needed one. now that ive used my camera for a year or two im starting to find out the limitation of my camera and learning to work around them, learning why something isnt turning out right, or knowing the conditions that won't be right for my camera and trying to find alterntatives. so now whenever i am ready to make a jump to a new camera i know exactly what things that i will want improvement on and to have better control of. use what you have. learn its strengths and weakeness and work around for its flaws and by then, you yourself will know what you need in a better camera.



I am not the best at PP skills. but are you sharpening the eyes in some of those photos? some of them look like they are oversharpened and look almost pixelated a bit. it might not be cause im at work right now and these moniters i have are horrid, but when I learned to sharpen eyes I overdid it and thats what a few of your pics remind me of.

looks like you got the focus on the babies bow in the last pic u posted. that would have been a great shot if you had gotten the babies face in focus.

 

[Forkie]

Your camera is fine, and actually I think your composition is not bad at all - you just need to watch your backgrounds and exposure a bit. Some others have said about not shooting at f/1.8 especially outside in the sun - you just don't need it and you're losing valuable sharpness.

One thing I really must beg of you though, is please, please, please stop using that Gaussian Blur to try to create shallow DOF that isn't there. People won't think less of you for having a deeper depth of field and, as you can see from your images the edges of your subjects are getting a very distracting blur, which makes them look like they've been printed on tissue paper and the colour is bleeding.

For better DOF, move your subject further away from their background.

Keep practicing though, you're definitely getting there!

 

[LizardKing]

Besides all the tips and comments you've got so far, I'd recommend you these 2 books that will help you get better compositions and exposures:

Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson
Learning To See Creatively by Bryan Peterson

I'm also taking my first steps in photography and they were VERY helpful.

Finally, I don't have that much experience shooting portraits but most of the times is best to focus on the eyes. Specially when you're working with kids.

Regards,
LizardKing

 

[bennielou]

Actually, I think with some major white balance and curves tweaks (and maybe a power crop or two), these could be pretty wickedly good. JMO.

 

[AMOMENT]

WOW, THANKS EVERYONE!!! I have to learn about adjusting my white balance. Can anyone elaborate on that? For example, on a cloudy day or a sunny day but positioned in the shade. What would you set your white balance/temp?

 

[480sparky68 67]

WOW, THANKS EVERYONE!!! I have to learn about adjusting my white balance. Can anyone elaborate on that? For example, on a cloudy day or a sunny day but positioned in the shade. What would you set your white balance/temp?

Shade.

However, if you shoot in raw, you can always change the WB in post.

Personally, I use a WB filter, even when shooting raw.