1st attempt at portraits CC welcome :)

People have all made good points regarding shutter speed and DOF. My additional suggestion would be to spend time looking at good composition. Read a little theory of what makes a balanced image but put in the time looking at and studying good examples, not only in photography but perhaps even more in painting. Look at how figures are placed in terms of pose, in relationship to each other and as part of the image as a whole. It is unfortunately the case that a photograph can be good technically but crap compositionally and so...crap. In my opinion it is also possible for a photograph to be less than perfect technically but strong compositionally and be good as a result. I have seen many photos in which the subject is not tack sharp but which are still phenomenal because compositionally they work and the story they tell is strong.
 
Peter Dransfield said:
People have all made good points regarding shutter speed and DOF. My additional suggestion would be to spend time looking at good composition. Read a little theory of what makes a balanced image but put in the time looking at and studying good examples, not only in photography but perhaps even more in painting. Look at how figures are placed in terms of pose, in relationship to each other and as part of the image as a whole. It is unfortunately the case that a photograph can be good technically but crap compositionally and so...crap. In my opinion it is also possible for a photograph to be less than perfect technically but strong compositionally and be good as a result. I have seen many photos in which the subject is not tack sharp but which are still phenomenal because compositionally they work and the story they tell is strong.
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Also this..
 
Ok then. Will have a good read.

So of the dog compositionally the paw in the corner is distracting for the eyes.

I feel the lighting on the the one with dog side view is good as there is a nice line of shadow from bottom. The paw is in the way bringing focus away from the dogs eyes.

On the front angle one there's the paw again and the highlights on the left side.

And then the draw back of not being sharp reduces contrast not making the focal point pop as much as it could.

Am I reading the pictures correctly?
 
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The out of focus paws are distracting in both photos Chris. It is always interesting to look for lines that guide the eye through the image and to help the energy of the picture so it is good that you identified that line near the bottom of the first image, however, there is no light on the dog's face and that is a big problem. You are photographing a black dog and so a black dog in shade is problematic especially if there is no light in the eyes or on the nose of the dog. The second photo is much better in this regard. The eyes in the second pic are almost sharp but the image is really let down with that OOF paw crossing over the nose. Pay attention to the edges of your frame - in the first image the ear has been cut but if you had included it the curve would have been pleasing and helped the eye to move around the image.

The bigger question is what story do you want to tell about your dog? If it is of a tired old dog with little left to give to life then these two images work but if not then other poses/situations need to be explored. Whatever the story get that light in the dog's eyes and on its muzzle and watch the framing. I hope this helps.
 
So I'm seeing the right things that's good then.

It all helps mate thank you

Yeah the story is it is a 12yo dog who won't be with us too much longer so I felt the pictures did portray that story.
 
They look better on my screen, but you're still missing any kind of interesting composition and shooting from odd angles. Is it not possible to shoot with a wider lens?
 
I prefer the second one Chris. The first one looks down at the dog and that never works (nor for Children). Getting down to the level of the dog as you have done with the second shot is a much better idea. With the second one you have cut off the claws so if this is a crop go back in and just pull back a little to get the claws comfortably in the frame. The focus is still off - if you look it seems to be sharpest behind the eyes about mid-way up the forehead - the eye should always be the focal point. I would also prefer the muzzle in focus. Try and place the dog in better light so you can increase your f stop without insanely high ISO. Remember the closer the subject is to the camera the more shallow the DOF is. When you come to shoot macro you will discover that even f-22 will only give you a millimeter or two. I would set your camera at F-8 to start and 1/80 and put ISO in auto. Take a couple of shots then check for sharpness. If sharp keep the same speed (if not nudge speed up a little) and increase your f-stop to f-11 and take another couple of shots. Each time focus on the eye then compare the depth of field they give. for each shot move your eyes around the edge of frame to check you are not cutting something off or including something that you don't want in the shot. Enjoy!
 
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If you can combine the pose of the second one with the slightly better focus of the first, you're getting close! It's all about the eyes with animals, particularly expressive ones like canines, but you need quite a bit of DOF to get that big old muzzle reasonably in focus too, which is tricky close up. Cats are a lot easier in this regard. :D Second shot with a smaller aperture and the focus nailed on the eyeballs would be a nice photo.

Worth noting that if you're attempting to manually judge focus through the viewfinder at anything wider than about F4 on a 50D, you're in for a bad time, as the focus screen just loses all hope of showing the correct depth of field by then - things look nice and sharp through the viewfinder (and often on the camera screen when not zoomed in) which turn out completely off when viewing the image full size. Use magnified live view for larger apertures close in, or let the AF handle it and check zoomed in on the camera screen.
 
UaeExile- I have 24mm prime...

Was trying to nail sharpness need an amazing photo to get u lot excited now after the worlds worst noob thread lol. Dog wasn't playing ball so had to move around.

Least I got lighting right and focus other than missing the the muzzle being out on 2nd Peter :) still improving from start so progress is being made.

Where I live at the mo we having mass overcast everyday so no good natural light coming from anywhere. Used off camera flash to camera right and from raw images on mac they were a bit bright think my view finder setting is a bit dim so they looked darker on test shots hence bumping ISO higher. Had to drop exposure slightly in post but now I know I need to up the live view display.

Noted close up animals with long nose higher f#

With being so close I am using AF ditched the mf tries after people explaining. Also have been using x10 zoom on live view to decide if settings looked good or not. I think I just managed to miss the eye in second one and hit forehead after paying attention to the edges for sharpness
 
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I wish to say something about being a beginner. Learning photography is much like learning to drive a car. When you first get taken on the road by an instructor its a nightmare. The car swerves about as you struggle with steering, but you are also struggling with brakes clutch, gear changes, trying not to hit the oncoming vehicles, what speed should you go, what does that road sign mean, road markings, even putting petrol in. Its a nightmare.

Well, more advance photography / cameras is just like that. There are just too many factors to keep in your head all at once. You get one right but screw up elsewhere - as with cars when you get the steering right but forget to change gear.

Its really normal and OK to feel its coming at you from all directions. It will not stay like this. Eventually you can just get in the car and drive down the road and it wont be hard any more. Because photography with phones and tablets is so common and so automated, people think thats it, its always easy. But its not, don't believe that illusion. Its why photographers get annoyed at people who say 'anyone can take a photo' - well yes they can, but anyone can crash a car too.

You are making some good starts here. I wanted to say something encouraging along with the others here as I remember my first SLR and the sudden sense of panic that I had spent all that money but was never going to do as well as I wanted to. Keep going, you are doing well so far.

And thats a lovely dog.
 
chrisboswell said:
UaeExile- I have 24mm prime...

Was trying to nail sharpness need an amazing photo to get u lot excited now after the worlds worst noob thread lol. Dog wasn't playing ball so had to move around.

Least I got lighting right and focus other than missing the the muzzle being out on 2nd Peter :) still improving from start so progress is being made.

Where I live at the mo we having mass overcast everyday so no good natural light coming from anywhere. Used off camera flash to camera right and from raw images on mac they were a bit bright think my view finder setting is a bit dim so they looked darker on test shots hence bumping ISO higher. Had to drop exposure slightly in post but now I know I need to up the live view display.

Noted close up animals with long nose higher f#

With being so close I am using AF ditched the mf tries after people explaining. Also have been using x10 zoom on live view to decide if settings looked good or not. I think I just managed to miss the eye in second one and hit forehead after paying attention to the edges for sharpness
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Not even close :D
 
UaeExile said:
Don't be too hard on yourself. Stick at it and in a few months you'll look at these photos and think "what the f*** was I thinking" :D
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Agreed! I deliberately keep the first few folders from when I bought my first DSLR specifically for those moments when I'm feeling frustrated with my photos - I look back and realise just how far I've come since then and usually feel a lot better. Believe me, some of the photos in this thread look like pin-sharp works of art compared to my first attempts. :eek:

I think with photography, you can read all the tips and advice in the world, but there's no substitute for doing it horribly wrong then working out how to make it right. Feels very satisfying when it all comes together!
 
Fuzzdog said:
Agreed! I deliberately keep the first few folders from when I bought my first DSLR specifically for those moments when I'm feeling frustrated with my photos - I look back and realise just how far I've come since then and usually feel a lot better. Believe me, some of the photos in this thread look like pin-sharp works of art compared to my first attempts. :eek:

I think with photography, you can read all the tips and advice in the world, but there's no substitute for doing it horribly wrong then working out how to make it right. Feels very satisfying when it all comes together!
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Absolutely.


The first photos I shared online a few years ago included a selective colour elephant ornament propped on the strings of my guitar. I'm not joking when I say I thought it was the bees knees and printed it off and until a few months ago... it was hanging on the wall in my bathroom :D:eek:
 
Your first 10 000 photographs are your worst. Henri Cartier Bresson

It is more important to click with people than to click the shutter. Can't remember who said that.

Both pertinent to my development as a (hobbyist) portrait photographer.

Much better things came after 10k photos - got more of a feel for my camera, understood why some of my pics were good and some were tosh.

As for clicking with people. Portraits for me are about connection. If you click with people you are more likely to draw an expression or make a connection.
 
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