Beginner First photos taken - total newbie

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Name
Alice Molloy
Edit My Images
Yes
Hi Everyone,

I went for a walk today and wanted to play around with the camera. Thought I would upload some the photos, constructive criticism welcome!

Notice there is a size limit on uploads! Didnt realise that as I saved them as Jpeg & Raw.

Have a nice evening all.
 

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Hi Alice - I completely agree with what Dave says above - practice is key!

There is a lot to learn and it can be all a bit confusing at the start. So what you could do, is start by taking shots on aperture mode, and setting different apertures to see the difference to the in focus areas you take - also try this focusing on subjects quite close and further away - you'll be amazed at the difference it can make!

I quite like your second one of the fern. Your 3rd one I think you might have too slow a shutter speed as nothing is sharp and I'm not sure where the focus point is. As with the aperture mode, shutter speed mode is one to play around with.

Good start. keep going!

Al
 
Hi Everyone,

I went for a walk today and wanted to play around with the camera. Thought I would upload some the photos, constructive criticism welcome!

Notice there is a size limit on uploads! Didnt realise that as I saved them as Jpeg & Raw.

Have a nice evening all.

OK, CC follows. Note that this is intended to be helpful only - not personal.

1) Sunset - nice colours and cloud shapes. The foreground is slightly messy and the lamp post is intrusive (clone out if you have software/knowledge). To improve a shot like this, try to find a more pleasing foreground that rooftops, i.e. countryside, possibly reflections of the sky in water or some kind of structure that adds value to the image. If this were mine I'd probably try to crop away the rooftops & trees, simply using the clouds to make a skyscape.

2) Best of the set, you've got the focus on the fern in the middle with everything in front or behind out of focus, thus giving us a subject to alight on. The colours and general composition are pleasing and work well together, again bringing the eye to the subject effectively. Finally the exposure looks good, with detail in highlights and shadows and a pleasing overall level of brightness.

3) Spoiled by camera shake - as said by Al, your shutter speed was too slow or you moved while taking the picture. Not sure this would have worked so well as a photo because there are several elements all competing for attention across the frame, rather than leading the eye to a resting place.

Hope that's useful.

A very helpful discipline for a photographer is to look at pictures as they come past you and to ask yourself why you like or dislike that photo, what works or doesn't work about it, whether there are mistakes or flaws that spoil what would otherwise be good. As you start to 'read' other peoples pictures you will start to understand how to improve your own images.
 
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I guess with the first you were shooting for the moon :) and as you have discovered you need a really long lens to get those moon shots you see on line and on the telly. Watch the edges of the frame for distracting elements (or use software to crop the photo) and I'm sure you will "get your eye in" in terms of how things look in the view finder and how they appear in the final image.

I agree with the others that the second is the strongest image, well seen and captured. And the camera shake in the thirds has been mentioned, you have to keep the shutter speed up which you can do by opening up the aperture (lower the "f" number) and/or increasing the ISO. It's all good learning, thanks for posting, it's a great start.
 
Thank you all of your comments very helpful indeed.

I did find camera shake on a few of my photos I took today. So now knowing the reason behind that and how to limit it is very useful.
 
Thank you all of your comments very helpful indeed.

I did find camera shake on a few of my photos I took today. So now knowing the reason behind that and how to limit it is very useful.

A good guide for preventing camera shake is to use a shutter speed as a fraction of the focal length or larger. So for 18mm use no longer than 1/30th, for 50mm use 1/60th etc.

Also when taking the picture, support the camera under the lens with the left hand, pushing your left elbow into your tummy to support the camera, breathe out and then gently squeeze the shutter button. Also if there's something solid and immovable you can lean against then use it as a prop.
 
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