Took Pics today What is wrong????

[hydkaran420]

So you tried f13, f5 and then with f1.8...??? But why ? Why didn't you tried step by step ? You gotta know and understand exposure first. But I gotta say you really got a very good eye... Go on...

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[Elizabeth30]

I think these are all improvements on what you have posted on the forum thus far except for maybe the skyline one . Like already stated your DOF was 1.8 which is not even your lenses (did u say 50mm 1.8 lens) sweet spot for sharpness. Try 3.2 and up. You just need to keep working on the technical while continuing to develop your style cuz I think it's there. .and if you focus with your back button you can focus and recompose......... But what do I know?

Focus and recomposing changes the plane of focus slightly. So if you only have a couple inches of DOF then that slight change is going to cause you to miss focus. Doesn't matter if you lock focus with the half press of the shutter button or BBF. When shooting wide open the slightest focusing error (without focus and recompose) can cause you to miss focus so recomposing isn't going to help that at all.

YES! That's probably why they are off then! Ok but here's another question on my settings. Some times the AF was tring to focus more than just the middle point. like 3 or 4 points. is there a way to use just one AF point and not whatever the camera "thinks" it should use?

 

[Edsport]

You can also use a web based viewer to see the exif. Jeffrey's Exif viewer

 

[thereyougo!]

I think these are all improvements on what you have posted on the forum thus far except for maybe the skyline one . Like already stated your DOF was 1.8 which is not even your lenses (did u say 50mm 1.8 lens) sweet spot for sharpness. Try 3.2 and up. You just need to keep working on the technical while continuing to develop your style cuz I think it's there. .and if you focus with your back button you can focus and recompose......... But what do I know?

Focus and recomposing changes the plane of focus slightly. So if you only have a couple inches of DOF then that slight change is going to cause you to miss focus. Doesn't matter if you lock focus with the half press of the shutter button or BBF. When shooting wide open the slightest focusing error (without focus and recompose) can cause you to miss focus so recomposing isn't going to help that at all.

YES! That's probably why they are off then! Ok but here's another question on my settings. Some times the AF was tring to focus more than just the middle point. like 3 or 4 points. is there a way to use just one AF point and not whatever the camera "thinks" it should use?

Yes, you need to go into your menu or your focussing buttons to select a single point. I never allow my camera to decide where it wants to focus, too much chance of an error, and I shoot mainly landscape. It's even more crucial with portrait work as you want the eyes in focus.

 

[fsquare]

YES! That's probably why they are off then! Ok but here's another question on my settings. Some times the AF was tring to focus more than just the middle point. like 3 or 4 points. is there a way to use just one AF point and not whatever the camera "thinks" it should use?

#1 ) READ YOUR MANUAL!!!!!!!!!
#2) Pick up a book and start reading. Amazon.com: Understanding Exposure, 3rd Edition: How to Shoot Great Photographs with Any Camera (9780817439392): Bryan Peterson: Books

I can understand asking questions on the forum but you seem to not understand some of the basics. Instead of asking question after question why not just pick up a book and spend a week reading it? It's actually a very simple read. Reading your manual also helps.

It's not even to crap on you but I just can't grasp people asking question after question when it takes 2 seconds to look something with a google search.

 

[cgipson1]

I think she could be great if she got the basics down. She seems to have a good eye. Shooting wide open to get a shallow DOF and then missing focus isn't going to help her any though. Use a smaller aperture! Jeez - even at f/11 (really small aperture) and 4 feet away you are still going to have a shallow DOF.

Agree. BTW I might be getting a DSLR in a month or two, so this aparture jargon will actually apply to me!!!!

Cool! And if you start shooting everything wide open , I will fly to Florida and kick your bootie into the nearest swamp... gators and all!

 

[cgipson1]

In the upper right you see Film and an arrow - click on that and choose metadata

I still don't get why you shot at f/1.8 - especially with 2 people. Most people can't even get 2 eyes in focus at 1.8....

Not to mention that most lens are not at their sharpest wide open anyway!

 

[ph0enix]

2. Every 50mm1.8 lens on the planet

Guns don't kill people, other people do. Same analogy

 

[GnipGnop]

My focus was set to AF one shot, and I would use the center point, focus on my subject then recompose the photo and still did not have good focus. My exposure was all over the place too. I had a really hard time with my settings so I would appreciate any feedback on why you think my exposure or focus was off?

You're shooting wide open (a no-no in itself for the 1.8). You focus, and recompose and shoot. No wonder your focus is off, if what you're focusing on isn't when you end up shooting exactly. Focusing and recomposing doesn't work well when you shoot wide open with a 1.8, since the DoF is too shallow. If you had auto metering on, this could also be why your exposure was off as well.

 

[blackrose89]

I think she could be great if she got the basics down. She seems to have a good eye. Shooting wide open to get a shallow DOF and then missing focus isn't going to help her any though. Use a smaller aperture! Jeez - even at f/11 (really small aperture) and 4 feet away you are still going to have a shallow DOF.

Agree. BTW I might be getting a DSLR in a month or two, so this aparture jargon will actually apply to me!!!!

Cool! And if you start shooting everything wide open , I will fly to Florida and kick your bootie into the nearest swamp... gators and all!

Ok, but f 1.8 is what I want to shoot people and random objects with right??? Hahahaha!

 

[MLeeK]

Get a notebook to carry with you and make notes about EVERYTHING. The light-how much, where it is, what kind of light it is... The camera settings, the buildings around you, etc.
It does a couple of things for you-first it makes you STOP and THINK about every element of the images you are about to make. It forces you to take notice of the settings you are coming up with becuase you are about to write them down. You'll immediately notice HEY! My shutter can't be that low.
Then when you go back and look at the images you will be able to look at the notes and see things you don't see in the image thru those notes.

you have got to learn to watch your shutter speed. If you are in aperture priority and you see your shutter at less than 1/125 with a live subject you have to do something to make that come back up. Either reduce the aperture number or raise the ISO. You will never get a decent shot with shutter speeds that low.

 

[jake337]

Agree. BTW I might be getting a DSLR in a month or two, so this aparture jargon will actually apply to me!!!!

Cool! And if you start shooting everything wide open , I will fly to Florida and kick your bootie into the nearest swamp... gators and all!

Ok, but f 1.8 is what I want to shoot people and random objects with right??? Hahahaha!

I think the easiest way to shoot at wide open apertures is by using live view. On my D90 I set everything as desired, enable liveview, start to focus, once focus locks I zoom in as it will zoom in on the locked face, continue focusing untill desired focus is there and fire away.

I usually do this at any aperture, although when stopped down it gets difficult to see unless your in a well lit situation.

 

[2WheelPhoto]

A watermark to be proud of.

 

[The_Traveler]

Elizabeth,

You have completely the wrong idea about how forums are best used.
It is truly impossible to correct every conceivable foolish step you are making without any basic knowledge.
You will wear out your welcome very quickly, no matter how pleasant your attitude.

Read the references you were given.
Read the manual.

Stop doing 'shoots'
Just take pictures for instruction as you learn different facts.
And then start taking pictures for real.

 

[MLeeK]

My focus was set to AF one shot, and I would use the center point, focus on my subject then recompose the photo and still did not have good focus. My exposure was all over the place too. I had a really hard time with my settings so I would appreciate any feedback on why you think my exposure or focus was off?

You're shooting wide open (a no-no in itself for the 1.8). You focus, and recompose and shoot. No wonder your focus is off, if what you're focusing on isn't when you end up shooting exactly. Focusing and recomposing doesn't work well when you shoot wide open with a 1.8, since the DoF is too shallow. If you had auto metering on, this could also be why your exposure was off as well.

KEY!!! When you turn your head side to side your nose is then in a different distance from the subject-so is your sensor. It can be as much as an inch or two. Shooting wide open that just jacked the whole focus. Toggle to the focus point that lands where you want your focus to fall or you will never achieve focus wide open.
Or better yet, stop shooting wide open until you master a few other things. THEN play with the wide open aperture and focus.

You have to many things to learn to focus so hard on forcing yourself to shoot wide open. Not to mention that a lens is FAR from it's sharpest wide open anyway. If you stop down to f/3.5 you are going to have a sharper focus point even if it is only an inch in DOF still. These seem to have no focus what-so-ever in them and it's a combination of your aperture, the wide open softer part of the lens and the focus and recompose technique.

Don't concentrate on this for now. Concentrate on exposure and capturing the image properly first. Shooting at f/1.8 is hard. I RARELY shoot that wide open-the lens isn't going to be sharp as I want and the chances of missing focus are multiplied exponentially. Why take a chance?

As for your question on the AF points you really do need to read your manual. Then you need to keep it in your bag to refer to for the next year or so. You won't understand a lot of crap in there now, but at some point you'll be shooting and think... I know there's a way... THE MANUAL!