Photo advice/critic and some issues i have..

[413x]

Hi guys,

I have amassed a few pictures now and would like some advice/critic and downright abuse.
Mostly i havent really used DOF in an arty way and have jst gone for sharpness, DOF effects are next i think

My main issue is that I get the feeling when i look at my photos that many of them seem to blurry.
Im not sure why this is. maybe there is something i am missing or just not doing.
The ones with the macro lens i am much more happy with, i think all these are hand held

If anyone want to take the time to check my Flickr account here is the link
http://www.flickr.com/photos/al4x/

Here are a few pics if not..

1-5) with 10-22mm


Alconbury Church -Back - Wide by Al4x, on Flickr


Alconbury Bridge Wide by Al4x, on Flickr


Park bench - AB by Al4x, on Flickr


Alconbury Meadow - Farm Eq by Al4x, on Flickr


Duxford War Museum 1 by Al4x, on Flickr




7-10) 50mm 1.8


Danger Fishing by Al4x, on Flickr


Io By Water by Al4x, on Flickr


Mad Dog by Al4x, on Flickr


Speedy Io by Al4x, on Flickr




10 - 16) 100mm L 2.8 macro


Stigma by Al4x, on Flickr


Water drop by Al4x, on Flickr


Watch by Al4x, on Flickr


Honey Bee Side by Al4x, on Flickr


Alconbury Brook by Al4x, on Flickr


Hannah and Dog by Al4x, on Flickr

 

[ElDude]

I think the main problem you're probably suffering from is composition, with awkward angles. I sometimes get stuck in the wrong frame of mind and can't see the shot and end up being unhappy with it. The first few with buildings, etc, that are at angles, seem to be at the 'wrong' angle, if you know what I mean.

The bench shot, seems to have no focal point as the bench is to the right, the tree is to the left and neither seem to be the subject. It has a floating feel to it as a result.

The dog running towards you seems to be crooked, but I like the running sideways one, although I prefer if the space is to the right so the subject is running into something, rather than out of something.

I like the bee shot (although I hate bees ) and the last one I like the colours and sharpness, but the wall behind being diagonal is off putting for me, as I'd prefer straight lines flowing down through the image.

I can't be more constructive than that at the moment as I'm exhausted and my eyes are killing me! Bed time!

 

[ElDude]

I had another look while I was bored in work on break today, but ran out of time to post

One thing that I didn't mention last night, in my drug fuelled exhausted state was the plane photo was bugging me, but I couldn't put my finger on why. I've realised today it's the fact it's landscape rather than portrait. The angle it's taken at feels awkward and simply tilting my head makes the image feel better to view. It's still got an angle to it then to make it interesting, and it feels like it correctly fills the image then. Still, that could easily be personal preference

To my eye, the danger fishing one would be better if cropped so you only have a portrait photo of the sign with the boat in the distance. As it stands, there's too much for the eye to aimlessly wander around. Personally I'd crop it so you can only see the water and not the buildings in the background.

The water shot, second from last isn't something I'd post if I'm honest. It's the sort of photo I imagine every one of us has taken at some point, trying to find an interesting abstract artistic shot that didn't come off.

Back to the dog running at the camera shot. Looking at it with tonights tired eyes, I actually think cropping it to portrait, so losing the left & right of it would actually add to this image. I thought it was crooked last night, but looking properly it's the ground on a slant as the trees are level.

The church isn't bad, but I think it would be helped by re-processing it to bring more from the sky, as there seems to be some detail there that could be pulled back a bit, and maybe tweaking the blues? There seems to be some fringing around the trees that could be fixed in lightroom too.

 

[juno_first]

Wide angle is making church fall over, climb a wall or move further away.
They all look sharp here.
Agree with other post about composition.
Theres something evocative about the tail fin of the plane, but the composition don't look right.
Nice macro shots.

 

[413x]

yeah i agree im not that good at composition yet

that was the limit for the church and i didnt see the tilt until i was home. is it simply an effect of trying to fit it all in on a wide lens?
i absolutely see what you mean by the church. with the light and trees. I will have to learn PS/LR a bit more to iron these things out.

the fishing sign, this was the sharpest of a few i took at different angles. the others were better with the sign to one side and the boat in the background.
I also tried with shallower Dof eith the sign in focus, but the sign was not in focus despite the focal point being on the sign

yep, cropping the dog running at the cam would be better. good idea.
I didnt even notice the last pic wasnt straight. I suppose that is easy enough to correct in post.

the dog was very very close when running past the camera (50mm)

the macro is my favourite, i knew it would be. The lens is absolutely fantastic. I dont know if it is the IS (i believe it is 2 axis IS?) or just the lens. But for me macro captures things i couldnt usually see with the eye. I also like nature and abstract and it lends itself to that quite well. Its nice i can use the lens handheld even with very very small DoF
For example..the pollen grains on the flower was a very very hard shot to get handheld. i would say the pollen grain covered part in focus is about 1-2mm and the whole shot from top of pic to bottom must only be 0.5cm. I had tubes on the macro lens. The DoF was in the 1mm range

i think with the plane i tried to get as much in as i could. Tilting my head does make it look better. weird.

maybe i am just over expectant on sharpness? Maybe i am thinking about this more than composition?

i appreciate both your comments

 

[ElDude]

yeah i agree im not that good at composition yet

that was the limit for the church and i didnt see the tilt until i was home. is it simply an effect of trying to fit it all in on a wide lens?
i absolutely see what you mean by the church. with the light and trees. I will have to learn PS/LR a bit more to iron these things out.

the fishing sign, this was the sharpest of a few i took at different angles. the others were better with the sign to one side and the boat in the background.
I also tried with shallower Dof eith the sign in focus, but the sign was not in focus despite the focal point being on the sign

yep, cropping the dog running at the cam would be better. good idea.
I didnt even notice the last pic wasnt straight. I suppose that is easy enough to correct in post.

the dog was very very close when running past the camera (50mm)

the macro is my favourite, i knew it would be. The lens is absolutely fantastic. I dont know if it is the IS (i believe it is 2 axis IS?) or just the lens. But for me macro captures things i couldnt usually see with the eye. I also like nature and abstract and it lends itself to that quite well. Its nice i can use the lens handheld even with very very small DoF
For example..the pollen grains on the flower was a very very hard shot to get handheld. i would say the pollen grain covered part in focus is about 1-2mm and the whole shot from top of pic to bottom must only be 0.5cm. I had tubes on the macro lens. The DoF was in the 1mm range

i think with the plane i tried to get as much in as i could. Tilting my head does make it look better. weird.

maybe i am just over expectant on sharpness? Maybe i am thinking about this more than composition?

i appreciate both your comments

That's just how wide angle lenses work with distortion. You can correct it in photoshop, etc if you want. That sort of thing isn't a deal breaker for most, although some don't like it. Next time you use it, move the camera around and you'll see the effect and which position gets the best angle with least distortion. Some use it for an artist look, especially when it's unavoidable.

If you use shallow depth of field you have less in focus, so less wiggle room if the lens may be front or back focusing slightly. I wouldn't worry about the sharpness, as these seem fine. You can use a bit of a trick in post processing by giving the contrast/clarity a nudge as that makes things look sharper than they actually are.

Macro lenses are often very sharp, due to the way they're designed, and are normally good value too.

 

[Baron C]

I'm still learning myself, I would say that it's defiantly a composition thing. Also although not hard rule, adhering to the 'rule of thirds' will help you get more shots with good composition.
I'm finding there is a fine line between a good compositional and creative shot and a bad image. I feel maybe once the technical hurdle and general techniques are habit is when things start to really get interesting. ( maybe I'm wrong

Your shots are sharp.

I like the faucet water drop especially.
If you haven't already invest in a hotshoe spirit level it helps loads with horizons.