Sunsets/Outdoors -- Please be honest -- new to this

[grantlewis]

I know there are a TON of photos, but if you could check them out and let me know that would be great. Most where taken on my D40, while some with my iPhone 5. I try not to edit my pics too much but there is some editing there. All photos can be found on my imgur and instagram too--if you wouldn't mind checking that out and letting me know.

Please be honest, but don't be rude, as I am just jumping into this whole photography thing.

Thank you all. :heart:

 

[Desi]

Hi Grant,

Welcome to the forum.

It's better to just take 1 or 2 photos and have a discussion about them.

Your shots have some major compositional problems......large areas of darkness, tilted horizons, centered subjects/horizons.

Look up the rule of thirds......it is really helpful in composition.

I like the last one. I think it would be better cropped differently. Just enough of the dark interior wood to suggest that you are looking through something, more of the view.

I'm glad that you are enjoying photography.

When posting a shot for criticism, post the settings. Shutter speed, aperture, ISO and whether shot in auto/program/manual/etc.

If you are just beginning.....focus on the basics of composition (my opinion) and then move on to exposure.

 

[weepete]

Hi mate,

There's simply too many photos here to give any meaningful critique. As Desi said pick 2 or three of your best and post them at the very most 5. The more photos there are the longer it takes to go through each one and there's only so long you can ask people to spend.

I'd agree with the above, though I like 3 and 4 best. I'd try and remember that in landscapes it's good to include foreground, middle ground and distance to give interest and a sense of depth.

 

[Trblmkr]

Beautiful sunsets, just need to work on the basics as listed above.

 

[Derrel]

On the sunsets, trying to locate a good foreground item that can be shown as a silhouette can really help. Like the way you did at that mountain lake, using the logs as "foreground"...while not an especially great sunset, the presence of something in the foreground REALLY made me enjoy looking more so than a shot where there is NOTHING until 1,000 meters out, which is kind of what the first six shots suffer from: just a "sunset in the distance" feel.

In shot #7, with the manhole cover and the small tree in the foreground, that's the right approach, although on that night the sky was not very spectacular.

 

[grantlewis]

Thank you all! As I said I'm still learning and I'll look into everything. And next time fewer pics for sure! Thanks for the helpful tips.

 

[jjphotos]

That last one would look nice if there wasn't the random stick in the way and maybe a subject in the background.