Tear me to shreds...first post...first CC

[RONDAL]

This is my first post, though I have been lurking on here as a guest for a few months.
Little about me....brand new to photography and photoshop. Picked up my first DSLR a nikon D40 w/ kit lens on Friday after humming and hawwing for a few months over what I should get. First real camera.
Just getting into photography.

This weekend was my first crack using photoshop as well. Got a full suite of CS3 including lightroom, bridge and photoshop i've borrowed from a friend. Also downloaded the trial of photomatix.

Taken about 300 shots in 3 days learning all the new settings. Also worked through 5 chapters of a CS3 tutorial video package that shows how to use the suite properly to edit photos.

I'm fascinated by HDR and the possibilities it presents, which is why I got into this. I'm also all about taking photos and while keeping them realistic giving them that extra pop. So i know a few of you are going to say my photos are over processed...so that's okay. I'm still learning.

I'm prepared for the worst but hoping for the best....i can only get better right


The shots:

1. HDR image from my Balcony. No Tripod...exposures at -2, -1, 0, +1, +2
(Tripod is next on the wishlist)

2. Train Bridge from the underpass on my walk to work.

3. The park across from my office.

Have at it.

And I appreciate the comments...even from you old guys who hate us youngin's:hug::

 

[tirediron]

Welcome to the forums!

C&C per req:

1. Good HDR, with very little of the cartoonish appearance that mark so many of them today. It's a good image to show the range of the software, but perhaps not the best scene to photograph; the hard shadow lines of the building behind you are a bit distracting. This scene is just screaming for the use of a polarizing filter. Given the time of day, if you'd move a bit further to your left, you would have been able to get some really great colours.

2. Good exposure on the auto-rack and foreground concrete work, but between the featureless sky and deep shadow area underneath, I don't find this image very appealling. The problem is lack of depth. Everything is vertical, and very close to the "front" of the image, so your eye really can't travel "into" the image.

3. Good exposure, much better sky in this one, but the composition leaves me a little... underwhelmed. You've got much better depth in this one, but all of the vertical elements take my eye right up to the top of the picture. When I do force myself to look lower, I'm left wondering what is below the sign.

Overall, some good technical work. I don't know if the some of the artistic/composition points I mentioned were intentional or not, but those are purely subjective Looking forward to seeing more.

Just my $00.02 worth - your milage may vary.

~John

 

[RONDAL]

Welcome to the forums!

C&C per req:

1. Good HDR, with very little of the cartoonish appearance that mark so many of them today. It's a good image to show the range of the software, but perhaps not the best scene to photograph; the hard shadow lines of the building behind you are a bit distracting. This scene is just screaming for the use of a polarizing filter. Given the time of day, if you'd move a bit further to your left, you would have been able to get some really great colours.

2. Good exposure on the auto-rack and foreground concrete work, but between the featureless sky and deep shadow area underneath, I don't find this image very appealling. The problem is lack of depth. Everything is vertical, and very close to the "front" of the image, so your eye really can't travel "into" the image.

3. Good exposure, much better sky in this one, but the composition leaves me a little... underwhelmed. You've got much better depth in this one, but all of the vertical elements take my eye right up to the top of the picture. When I do force myself to look lower, I'm left wondering what is below the sign.

Overall, some good technical work. I don't know if the some of the artistic/composition points I mentioned were intentional or not, but those are purely subjective Looking forward to seeing more.

Just my $00.02 worth - your milage may vary.

~John

thanks man.

the train shot was a flat grey sky...the features you see are basically what you get.
Any further to the left on my balcony and i am in the neighbors wall haha.

i appreciate any and all feedback.