depressed with my photography

bledyn125

bledyn125

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bleddyn
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well i went for a walk today to have another go with my tamron 17-50 vc and to say that im dissapointed in the results is an under statement.i feel quite depressed realy and im considering selling up and just grabbing a point and shoot camera.im not sure if the light helped today as it was very cloudy and the light was constentley changing plus i dont think i got the depth of field right on any of the images and they look soft.i have struggled getting to grips with some of the basics of photography due to an accident many years ago that left me with brain damage that caused many learning difficulties.
i was going to buy a sigma 150-500 for bird photography but now im not realy sure if its worth me spending lots of money on a lens that will never get used properley.

anybody got a spare lenght of rope they dont need :(


bleddyn
 
bledyn125 said:
well i went for a walk today to have another go with my tamron 17-50 vc and to say that im dissapointed in the results is an under statement.i feel quite depressed realy and im considering selling up and just grabbing a point and shoot camera.im not sure if the light helped today as it was very cloudy and the light was constentley changing plus i dont think i got the depth of field right on any of the images and they look soft.i have struggled getting to grips with some of the basics of photography due to an accident many years ago that left me with brain damage that caused many learning difficulties.
i was going to buy a sigma 150-500 for bird photography but now im not realy sure if its worth me spending lots of money on a lens that will never get used properley.

anybody got a spare lenght of rope they dont need :(


bleddyn
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It's an easy thing for me to say but don't give up on it Bleddyn. It's a journey which can have steep learning curves. Don't get too disheartened.

I would suggest putting your camera onto auto mode to begin with and take lots of photographs. Then when you get something you like, note the settings. Then when you feel confident enough, change from auto to say aperture priority, and change the aperture as you go along depending on what effect or depth of field you are after.
Changing just one thing at a time will be less confusing and easier to remember. I obviously don't know how deep your pockets are but I would suggest holding off buying a bigger/different lens and keep going with what you have to develop that initial learning. HTH (y) iain
 
Blakester beat me to saying the same
 
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When I was starting out I found it was simple things that make big differences. I would agree to take all camera technicalities out if it initially and shoot on auto. Give your attention to what you see through the view finder and think a little about composition and what makes an interesting image to you before pulling the shutter. Don't put too much pressure on yourself to shoot something brilliant every time you pick up the camera and accept things may not work out from time to time. We've all been there but please don't give up. You'll soon nail a beautiful shot which will be the hook you need.
 
Is there any local clubs or college courses that are available to you?

Sometimes someone will explain it a different way - suddenly it all clicks into place and makes sense! well it can be that way with me.
 
as above never give up on something... but my 2p on it too is that if you enjoy it and its for your own pleasure then who gives a monkeys do dars if the image is 100% sharp?

Don't be too harsh on yourself, if you are not selling your work then as long as you know you are enjoying taking your photos then that is all that matters..

and for what its worth, I would buy my 150-500mm lens again tomorrow if I had the need for two of them, awesome lens and you won't regret it.

keep your chin up!
 
Maybe if you indicate were you are located. Some member local to you can spend a little time to point you in the right direction.
 
bledyn125 said:
well i went for a walk today to have another go with my tamron 17-50 vc and to say that im dissapointed in the results is an under statement.i feel quite depressed realy and im considering selling up and just grabbing a point and shoot camera.im not sure if the light helped today as it was very cloudy and the light was constentley changing plus i dont think i got the depth of field right on any of the images and they look soft.i have struggled getting to grips with some of the basics of photography due to an accident many years ago that left me with brain damage that caused many learning difficulties.
i was going to buy a sigma 150-500 for bird photography but now im not realy sure if its worth me spending lots of money on a lens that will never get used properley.

anybody got a spare lenght of rope they dont need :(


bleddyn
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Taking good pictures is very hard without a good subject and good light ;)

See this curreent thread - same problem, and a lot of helpful replies (y) http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=470873
 
bledyn125 said:
well i went for a walk today to have another go with my tamron 17-50 vc and to say that im dissapointed in the results is an under statement.i feel quite depressed realy and im considering selling up and just grabbing a point and shoot camera.im not sure if the light helped today as it was very cloudy and the light was constentley changing plus i dont think i got the depth of field right on any of the images and they look soft.i have struggled getting to grips with some of the basics of photography due to an accident many years ago that left me with brain damage that caused many learning difficulties.
i was going to buy a sigma 150-500 for bird photography but now im not realy sure if its worth me spending lots of money on a lens that will never get used properley.

anybody got a spare lenght of rope they dont need :(

bleddyn
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why not post a couple of photos on here and ask what would improve them. Don't edit so members can look at the exif file which can help.

Realspeed
 
It's all been said. I for my first DSLR about 3 years ago and I've been frustrated one and off over the 3 years.

My photography has I proved. IMHO. And yours will.

Keepmitmsimple :) Baby steps. Celebrate your wins and learn from your loses.

Post some.

Cheers.
 
HoppyUK said:
Taking good pictures is very hard without a good subject and good light ;)
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^This. dont give up buddy. you need not to beat yourself up. the question you need to ask yourself are YOU unhappy with the results or are worried about what other people think. myself take some great shots but i take countless shots that i just look at and delete instantly. im not worried if that day i may of taken loads of shots and only got 1 or 2 good ones im not bothered. i do it because i enjoy. if you think getting good shots is a task then your not going to enjoy it.
 
HoppyUK said:
Taking good pictures is very hard without a good subject and good light ;)

See this curreent thread - same problem, and a lot of helpful replies (y) http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=470873
Click to expand...

What Richard said.

I'll add; keep away from equipment threads. Some people would have you believe it's all about the gear, you'll even see it on the critique threads, 'great shot what focal length and settings did you use'. Which is complete nonsense:nuts:
 
Where are you based bud?
 
nobody got a spare rope then :LOL:

today was the first time ive actually taken the camera out with me for a month as i was pretty disapointed with the results of the tamron 17-50 vc then as the pictures where very soft so i have been only useing the canon 55-250 out of my window trying to shoot a few birds without any joy its just not long enough and i cant get any closer.

so today my wife wanted to go visit her mother so i dropped her off and went up the mountain behind her house to see if i could get some sharp in focus images properley exposed.i wasnt bothered about composition i was focused on exposure and sharpness.

when i got up the mountain i stuck the camera in full auto and took one pic to get an idea of the settings i would roughly need and then i put it into aperature priority where i tried a few different aperatures with diffrent iso settings as the light changed. the images looked ok on the lcd but when viewed on my computer they where pure carp.most if not all where exposed ok but they are soft the only pics that looked ok wernt even taken up the mountain.

heres the only two that i think look ok but i still think they look soft

this one has been cropped

028_zpsfd865ced.jpg


and this is straight out of the camera

048_zps10c38509.jpg


another problem i have is post procesing thats a no go as i just get confused and lost and ruin already carp images:LOL:

im from gilfach goch in south wales i have tried to find local photography courses and camera clubs but as i dont have any transport i cant actually get to any as most are held in the nights and the public transport in the nights where i live is nearley non existant after 6pm.

my other big problem with getting out to meets is im a full time carer for my wife and i cant leave her home alone as she has very serious mental health problems after being attacked and stabbed in the chest a few years ago. my son or daughter do look after her now and again for me but im reluctent to go to far has she has a history of self harm and that is constentley on my mind.

i honestley think my tamron 17-50 vc is a bad copy i wasnt impressed with its sharpness the first time i used it and i dont realy know how to tell my son that i think he bought me a dud lens:eek:

anyhow ive put my camera gear away now so i im going to concentrate on a bit of bird watching from my window and leave the camera alone for a few months.

thanks for the advice and support hopefully i can get into back into it in a few months time

thanks

bleddyn
 
Bleddyn - I am in a similar position to you. In that I think I'm pretty awful at photography.

However, objectively your photo's arn't awful. I think in both cases your major problem is light. In the second photo this is really quite apparent. OK - there are ways of working around that, however you need to make life a bit easier for yourself, by choosing a nice sunny day to go and practise with.

I would say don't put the camera down. Take the advice that's been given. Keep trying and keep learning. You clearly have an interest as you have brought a camera and took the time to post on here. So you can either beat yourself up, or you can enjoy it!
 
Mate, if you make up some feeding tables with perches, introduce some food on a daily basis, you will be amazed how close birds will come.Even more so in winter. Move the tables nearer and nearer to your house over a period of time.Close the curtains and stick your lens through the curtains,preferably with the window open. The birds will get used to things pretty quickly.

Don`t get too involved in post processing to soon. Just some simple levels adjust,contrast and subtle satuartion will enhance most shots. Sharpening can seem daunting at first, but read on here, look at You Tube vids about it.

Don`t get disheartened, it will come to you, don`t rush it and enjoy what you are doing.If you don`t enjoy it, then you may as well sell your gear mate.

Just take your time fella, it WILL come to you.
 
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I thought your photo of the house wasn't that bad so I quickly messed around with it it Lightroom.

Bledyns_pic.jpg


Now I'm certainly no great shakes at post processing but I think it gives it a little more oomph.
My advance apologies if the consensus is that it's rubbish:D

edit: I see that I've left a tiny bit of rusty thing in right foreground, sorry!
 
I've done the same with this one too:

Bledyns_lady.jpg


as said, if you're shooting on a dull day or in very bright conditions then you simply have to adjust the the shots afterwards. You mention that you mess things up in post processing and lose the image, if you use Lightroom it's non-destructive so you can play all day with your shots and you wont lose a thing.
I fully understand your domestic situation makes it difficult to devote time to this, but if you can learn a bit about pp in Lightroom for instance then your spirits may be lifted as far as your photography goes.
 
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You beat me to it! I was just doing the same thing! haha :)

And an alternative look on it is the fact that while the light may be bad you could, turn it around into an urban style on the building which would quite suit the harsh lighting.

Secondly what apature was the camera taking the shots and also yourself?

Looking on a quick review of the lens it appears that it "can" be a trait of the vc version to be soft at 2.8 and sharpen up significantly at f/4 - f/5.6
 
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dont give up hope bud im pants at photography to lol its a pass time to me you could try having a play with your awb and try some settings in your garden and house etc and try to use the settings under different light settings like focus on a can of coke under different light till you get the hang of using white balance you could even try b&w on your photos
 
Well my friend I think that you are having a hard time at the moment so what I suggest you personally is just give this hobby a rest and save your money then come back to me later and buy a better lens and then maybe a better camera however I don't know what you using at the moment but I'm just saying lo that's my advice to you. with me I have many different hobbies somtimes i get to get frustrated with 1 hobby because something is not going right I just give it a rest now come back to it later take care
 
That photo of the church has a lot of potential, and it is only a learning journey to see that potential and make the most of it.

Maybe stand back a little, raise the camera up a bit so the top of the tree was in frame... only changes I would make tbh.
 
Suggestions:

Lady, turn her around with back to the sun for a rim-light effect, use a dash of fill-in flash as her face will then be in shadow. Add a smile. Sorted ;)

Church has potential with bright sun and dark sky. Foreground is empty so fill that with something like a gravestone, maybe a lower viewpoint to give the perspective a bit more oomph and show more sky, use hyperfocal distance focusing to make sure both foreground and background are sharp. Might look good as punchy black & white.

Bright sun casts strong shadows. If you don't want that, then turning the lady around is one way of getting rid of them. On the other hand, it's great for revealing texture and would probably do something quite nice on gravestones lettering.

The knack of seeing a picture within a picture is something you just pick up with experience.
 
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Light is like weather, there's no such thing as bad weather, just inappropriate clothes.
There's no such thing as bad light just inappropriate subjects.

New photographers seem to think a photo starts when you lift the camera to your eye and ought to be finished when you put it down again. Some people think its helpful to suggest stretching the end of the process into PP. But very few suggest the important bit. Which is what happens before you lift the camera. And what Richard is referring to above.

Frankly, snapshots are what you get with no forethought and snapshots with great PP are still snapshots.

Photographs are created in the planning stage. Great photographs come from knowledge and hard work.
 
I honestly dont see anything that wrong with your pics that you've posted, its just minor things if anything.

The picture of your good lady (I assume) .. in focus, the backgrounds nicely defocused, yes the light is harsh but its like that when you have days of cloud and bright sunshine.

The chapel picture is fine, I would suggest just looking at your composition, maybe take a step or two back so that all of the tree tops are included, but exposure wise you've captured the full range of tones including the light building and the dark sky, its in focus as well.. well done.

In the camera settings there should be the facility to display a "rule of thirds" grid overlay on the rear screen, its worth enabling that and using it to help you compose an image, so in the chapel shot you would place the chapel near the bottom of the screen thus making the most of the trees and sky behind it.

I too am disabled, in fact I'm bed-bound 24 hours a day and cant get out at all, have problems holding a camera etc but I manage to still shoot most days.
Its just a matter of working out what your limitations are and then working out ways around them, I even shoot garden birds through my double glazing.
My main problem was that I could no longer manage the weight of my canon kit, so I sold it and bought a lighter system (fuji x-pro1) and can now shoot again with no loss in quality from downsizing as the fuji is actually sharper & better all round than my old canon system.
I would also suggest as others have, setting up a bird feeding station or table and set up perches near it made from old branches, I do this and get a lot of birds within shooting range by doing it.

Shooting birds set your camera to spot metering, S ie shutter speed priority and the ISO to auto, set the shutter speed itself to at least 1/500th second for dull days, 1/1000th or higher for bright days and try and focus on the head or eyes if possible.

The reason for those settings is that birds are "twitchy" so the settings help freeze them.

Don't give up.. there are always ways to defeat the problem.

This shot was taken through double glazing on a dull day (monday this week) using a 60mm lens and is a 50% crop of the original, its pretty much straight out of the camera.

CDx12_zps6a153846.jpg
 
okay guys after wakeing up in a better mood today ive taken all the comments onboard and im going to crack on regardless.i think my main gripe was with the tamron 17-50 vc but nobody has said that the images look realy soft so i will have to make do with what i have got now.

good idea to move the feeders closer so when i get some time i will see about getting some more natural perches branches/logs.but i still need a longer lens for the summer as i intend to visit quite a few big rivers and a a trip or two to kenfig pool where there is a hide overlooking a nice lake

i have just taken a shot with the 55-250mm from roughley 6 metres away its not to bad but still to far away

siskins i think?

026-1_zpsc9e2958a.jpg


thanks again

bleddyn
 
Hi bleddyn
You mentioned the hide in kenfig but there are also feeders outside the visitor centre also just down the m4 by Whitchurch there is a place called forest farm there are two hides down there and a kingfisher is always there and a family of foxes has been seen
Don't give up butt we all get days like that when I go out I photograph for myself if I'm happy with the image all well and good don't put pressure on yourself it's a hobby nothing more if you want to go out one day let me know and will try and arrange something .
Mark
 
bledyn125 said:
okay guys after wakeing up in a better mood today
thanks again

bleddyn
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Good man, read and ask questions, loads of people will help you.

For the record, the siskins look like the camera has focussed on the feeder rather than the birds.Use spot focus for things like that.

Best of luck.
 
taff63 said:
Hi bleddyn
You mentioned the hide in kenfig but there are also feeders outside the visitor centre also just down the m4 by Whitchurch there is a place called forest farm there are two hides down there and a kingfisher is always there and a family of foxes has been seen
Don't give up butt we all get days like that when I go out I photograph for myself if I'm happy with the image all well and good don't put pressure on yourself it's a hobby nothing more if you want to go out one day let me know and will try and arrange something .
Mark
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thanks mark i didnt know about forest farm it looks like a great place to visit.
also i think i know you.did you work at sunjuice in llantrisant and was you once a keen carp fisherman???

thanks for the tips on focusing fracster i will give that a go next time

and thanks again to everybody who has replied to this thread(y)

bleddyn
 
No worries, glad to help you along.Stick at it mate, you`ll get there.
 
i just sent you a pm mark we will have to meet up when the weather gets better


bleddyn
 
As another fairly recent photographer, all I can say is just keep taking pictures :) It doesn't cost anything so keep snapping away. Don't be afraid to go back to the same spots to re-take pictures when you don't get them right in the first place. I've been up on a nearby hill about 5-6 times so far to take pics from the same place lol

Other than that, the other major discovery for me was finding out exactly how much different the PP in something like Lightroom can do. Definitely worth getting hold of a copy of Lightroom and just playing around with shots you've taken. It's something you can do when the weather is poor and it's easy to get the basics learnt with trial and error.
 
I enjoyed reading this thread and love the OP's honesty about how frustrated he was. Isn't there a quote buy a famous photographer that states your first 10,000 images are your worst. That would suggest to me that you practice, practice and practice some more. I agree with what somebody has already said you need to enjoy the journey and not worry about getting to the destination. :)
 
If you haven't already considered it, you might wish to look at blipfoto.com. It is a type of photo journal site where people attempt to post one photo every day. You will see all sorts from the most amateur to absolutely brilliant shots posted here. Your work is as good as most I have seen. Having been away from photography for several years, I found the discipline of posting one shot a day helped my technique. I believe you would enjoy it, as you're not under any pressure other than what you set for yourself. The advice for you I've read from all the other posts is impressive. Good luck.
 
bledyn125 said:
well i went for a walk today to have another go with my tamron 17-50 vc and to say that im dissapointed in the results is an under statement.i feel quite depressed realy and im considering selling up and just grabbing a point and shoot camera.im not sure if the light helped today as it was very cloudy and the light was constentley changing plus i dont think i got the depth of field right on any of the images and they look soft.i have struggled getting to grips with some of the basics of photography due to an accident many years ago that left me with brain damage that caused many learning difficulties.
i was going to buy a sigma 150-500 for bird photography but now im not realy sure if its worth me spending lots of money on a lens that will never get used properley.

anybody got a spare lenght of rope they dont need :(

DONT GIVE UP, i had the same problem, spent £900 on a 60d and lens and five months later sold it all. A few months later i bought the canon G15 which is small, compact yet has the controls of a dslr (i really dont understand why these are called p&s camera's? they are far better than that). Its so easy to use and really got me understanding useing manual which i'd all but given up on.Now its on manual 90% of the time.
Now i've bought a cheaper 40d and in the process of getting 2 or 3 lenses, i got stumped with what photography's all about and how complicated it can be but since i got the G15 it gave me a new lease of life. I took too much on too soon


bleddyn
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Stick with it, Bleddyn. I think most people go through tricky patches where inspiration and faith in ability are shaken. Don't put pressure on yourself and keep taking pictures of things you enjoy. Once it clicks you'll be hooked again.
 
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I have issues with my photo's aswell, but every so often I take one that I like (mostly luck I think). As long as im happy with it I dont care what other people think, im rubbish @ PP, Im not very creative and I dont have any inspiration. I just pop out for walks every now and then.

Just gotta keep going with your head down, or not in this case as you will never get any pics.

I did see a pic you took of a sleeping man and a bird, that was a good photo.
 
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