Photography!

[Apex]

Yes, I do this a lot too. hahaha

Long story short:
Taking a photo class right now.
Homework assignment is "motion". Must capture three types:
1. Fixed subject, blurred background
2. Blurred subject, fixed background
3. Fixed subject/background

So I have been taking photos like a madman. I went to a local high school and tackled over 600 photos in 2 hours. Shooting in RAW, that is >20MB a picture. Lots of memory! Glad I have two 64GB SD cards.

I spent some time talking with another photographer, and he basically told me who to talk to to get field passes for high school football, and also said he would invite me to help out at some soccer games in the future. Networking! hahaha

So, here are some shots from it.

Feel free to post up any photos you have taken! I'd like to see the differences in not only styles, but also locations.

[Whiskey]

Blurred subject fixed background wasn't really a priority for any of these

Some of it was sheer dumb luck, I shot ~1,200 in an afternoon, RAW, in burst mode

[Apex]

@Whiskey - Nice shots!

I'd love to shoot a motorcycle event. There are some local ones. I'm sure I could easily get on board at the local track. I may try that, since at least I could possibly sell them and make some money.

[dcj13]

Mark and Morgan are both excellent photographers! Thank you both for sharing your art.

[Whiskey]

Originally Posted by Apex

@Whiskey - Nice shots!

I'd love to shoot a motorcycle event. There are some local ones. I'm sure I could easily get on board at the local track. I may try that, since at least I could possibly sell them and make some money.

You'd want to sell a hell of a lot to cover the cost of a fast tele lens.

I would not open these links in front of your wife, or while standing up

200-400mm f4

400mm prime f2.8

[Apex]

Maybe one day!

Right now I have been checking out a slightly cheaper lens:
70-300 f/4.5-5.6G ED IF AF-S VR

It isn't as good, but it would work for the price.

[rasta]

Keep 'em coming guys! For what it's worth, I have a huge soft spot for landscapes shot in low light

[Apex]

I took this after one of my classes last week

[rasta]

How does one take a shot like that? Without staring straight at the sun for too long lol

[Apex]

Well, I hid right behind a branch. So I wasn't directly looking into the sun. The settings helped the sun appear to wrap around the branch.

[Finesse]

the sharp subject and blurred background is called panning and for that you need a slow enough shutter speed that the background blurs. usually 1/60 of a second or slower depending on how much light is available and what your ISO is

just keep in mind that blurred backgrounds can be from motion blur from your camera moving or the background moving; or it can be out of focus because of shallow depth of field (a larger aperture or smaller f/stop number such as f2.8)

it took like 100 shots of that tiger to get the right one - the camera has to be moving at the same velocity (speed and direction) as the subject. good thing the tiger was bored and pacing!

I took these with a nikon d200 and 70-200mm f/4.5-5.6 lens

[rasta]

@Finesse, that's an amazing tiger shot. Wowza. Best thread in a long time, mooooarrrrr photos!!

[antiant]

[antiant]

[antiant]

^Banksy





^Schoolhouse in the movie The Birds By Alfred Hitchcock







I need to organize my photos.

[Apex]

Originally Posted by Finesse

the sharp subject and blurred background is called panning and for that you need a slow enough shutter speed that the background blurs. usually 1/60 of a second or slower depending on how much light is available and what your ISO is

just keep in mind that blurred backgrounds can be from motion blur from your camera moving or the background moving; or it can be out of focus because of shallow depth of field (a larger aperture or smaller f/stop number such as f2.8)

it took like 100 shots of that tiger to get the right one - the camera has to be moving at the same velocity (speed and direction) as the subject. good thing the tiger was bored and pacing!

I took these with a nikon d200 and 70-200mm f/4.5-5.6 lens

@antiant is lighting up the thread!


Yeah, I know it is called panning. Just trying to keep it simple for those who aren't aware of photography lingo.

I say panning around my family and I get that deer in the headlights look. lol

[Apex]

These are for my photography course.

My lens was a Nikon 35mm f/1.8G AF-S DX on a D7000. Settings were 1/20, f/16.0, and ISO of 100.

I took three consecutive shots. I applied different filters and color settings to each in CS6.

I thought it came out pretty good.

[rasta]

Originally Posted by antiant

Awesome

Originally Posted by antiant

Fornicating lizards?

[antiant]

@rasta - Yeah, haha. I was lucky I caught that as I was hiking Vernal & Nevada Falls in Yosemite. It felt like I was a National Geographic photographer, for a minute.
@Apex - I have more, will post later.

[Apex]

Originally Posted by Apex

I went back to a few photos and touched them up again. Initially I went overboard with the saturation slider in CS6. I also cropped some of them as well. These are the ones so far; I plan on fixing all of the images.

Thanks to my instructor for telling me how it is. He helped me realize what I was doing wrong and I have taken steps to fix the issues.












I took this today:


EDIT: Oh, and it is late. I am not resizing those images at this point in time. I'm actually shutting down the laptop in a couple of minutes. I'll resize them later, if I remember.

[rasta]

Damn look at that texture. Looks like you sprayed shaving cream on a blue car

[Apex]

Took this today of my Sphynx kitten, Minie. I cranked the ISO down for this shot and used my wireless flash to get the light I wanted.


Nikon D7000, Nikon 28-80mm f/3.3-5.6, Nikon SB-900 flash (bounced off ceiling), and a sleepy kitty! hahaha
f/4.5, 1/60, ISO 100.

[Mountain Dew]

Well hopefully we can make this the official photography thread.

I just recently got into photography after buying my woman a Canon T2i. All of my shots worth sharing were taken on that, but because I was tired of having to trade the camera back and forth, I picked up a Nikon D40 for a very good deal on a whim. It was offered to me and I said yes. I very much enjoy it. It's a huge downgrade in resolution (18MP to 6.1MP), but I feel it's just a bit easier to use, even thought it doesn't have live view.

For the Canon, we have the kit 18-55 f/3.5, 50mm f/1.8, and a kit 28-90 f/3.5. For my Nikon, I have the kit 18-55 f/3.5, and I just bought a 35mm f/1.8.

I'm still very new to photography and editing, so my pictures aren't the greatest, but I try.

My first time *really* using the camera. ISO 6400 bleh noise. At a concert, two local bands, Lookout! Molly and Black Flag, an unsigned band, Mythological Horses, and my favorite, MC Lars.









My truck during a failed sunrise chase.



And a Vette shot during a cruise up a very twisty and rainy road.



Then me screwing around with some Hot Wheels. I think this is my new favorite thing.

[Apex]

Yeah, 6400 on a D40 will be quite grainy. Heck, my D7000 is grainy and I just got the thing less than a year ago new. Concerts are always hard to shoot with the constantly changing lighting.

That sunset was a great shot!


In class today this one won for "best shot of the week" for our assignment:


This was another one that got tossed in the "top 5" for this week:


These were some other shots for class:

[Mountain Dew]

My wording may have been a bit off, but the concert pics were taken with the T2i @ 6400 ISO. The D40 goes up to 1600 and has "Hi ISO," which is 3200. Also the lowest ISO it does is 200. But that doesn't really matter. ISO is just another sales tactic number like megapixels used to be.

Mark, do you edit any of your pictures?

In the hoop shot, it seems like the underside of the basket could be a bit brighter to bring out the detail, since it doesn't seem to be clipping/absolute black. And to me it just looks a bit crooked because none of the lines or parts are level with the horizon or vertical. Other than that, looks very nice.

And the one looking through the playground tunnel, seems the focus was on the inside of the tunnel, instead of the steering wheel. I think focusing on that would make it a bit more interesting, because as it is, the "windows" make a leading line to an out-of-focus subject.

Just my opinions though, as I am totally not even remotely close to being "seasoned."

Also took a bunch of shots at another failed sunrise attempt. Sky was too cloudy and I'm fairly certain I arrived after the sun peeked over the water. This was with the 18-55 kit @ 55mm, 1/50, f/5.6, ISO200. If I'm going to be doing any more watersport photography, I'll DEFINITELY need a telephoto lens, which may be the Nikkor 55-200 f/4 VR.



Sky was fairly hazy. No visibly sun. Wasn't able to zoom enough. Sand was ugly enough to want to frame it out of the picture. I wouldn't go to this beach again to take shots. But I would go to watch the sunrise.

[Edit] Yes, I see the sensor spots.

[Apex]

I edit them, but I am very loose with it. Most of the time I just adjust contrast and levels in CS6.

Here is one I have been working on for class, just for S&G's. I actually sat down and worked this one a bit more. I wanted to show high contrast in the image, so I brought out all the wrinkles in the shirt and on her. She is in my class as well.

I'm the only one other than the teacher that has Photoshop and knows how to use it decently. I am in no way a pro, but I do know a good amount. The middle image is the edit, and I experimented on the last one. I really like how it came out.

Click the image to open up a larger version (also on my FB photo account):

[Mountain Dew]

Oh god the middle picture looks like a 60s campy movie monster. I don't know enough to critique the composition other than basic stuff.

I like most of your shots, but at a bar minimum I'd suggest correcting the horizon/verticals. I think my favorite one of yours so far is the playground one, but only if the focus was different.

I use Lightroom 5 for editing, and I like it, other than the fact my laptop isn't fast enough to keep up, so half the time it's loading.

And as for my gear, I'm fairly certain I've settled on saving up for the 18-200 f/3.5 VR ($350-500 on eBay). That'll give me time to learn my 35mm, I'll be able to sell my 18-55 non VR kit, and I won't have to buy an 18-55 VR to replace it, I won't need a 55-200 for telephoto, and I'll only have to carry one loose lens. Reviews of the color and sharpness of it are great for an amateur lens.

[Mountain Dew]

Recent trip to the docks to help my friend pick up his recently imported (from exotic Oregon) 72 Bonny. This was done during mid-day, so the light and shadows are very harsh. I did the best I could.

Just rolled it out of the hand-made shipping crate (seen on left).


Very excited about it.


And getting ready to roll it off my truck. I love the ass end of both vehicles.

[img]

[Finesse]

^sweet bike, I love the design on the gas tank.

a little age progression photo series of my awesome white german shepherd Liffey who I got in November when he was 9 weeks old. he's the best, absolutely amazing creature

[Apex]

Originally Posted by Mountain Dew

Oh god the middle picture looks like a 60s campy movie monster. I don't know enough to critique the composition other than basic stuff.

I like most of your shots, but at a bar minimum I'd suggest correcting the horizon/verticals. I think my favorite one of yours so far is the playground one, but only if the focus was different.

I'm just shooting to shoot right now. I'm trying to get the shots required for class. I also have noticed that I tend to tilt the camera a certain way all the time. I need to correct that. That will come with time.

[Apex]

Snagged some more the other day while on campus.

[Alex]

[Apex]

Hahaha

The blonde in white had THE WORST striking face. So I did not include those. Hahaha

That brunette was just, wow.

[Mountain Dew]

I haven't taken many new shots, mainly because I haven't been "out" enough.

This was from two weeks ago.



Not all that happy with it. The colors are just too boring.

[Vad18]

Some randoms that I found. I have an actual photography folder somewhere...

[Apex]

Our neighborhood had a little Easter gathering with a petting zoo, camel rides, Easter bunny, egg hunt, and other stuff.

Here are some shots of my nieces from the event:

[csmith12]

Last years late spring pics. All pics where taken in my backyard.

[Apex]

I am taking a studio lighting course. Oh yeah. I want so many more goodies now.

The instructor brought in a model/friend to pose for us. They have worked together quite a bit in the past. Anyway, we took some shots using one light source (a monolight) and a radio transmitter to trigger. It was a lot of fun and I wish I could have spent more time in the saddle shooting her. It is amazing working with a professional model.

Here is one shot from my little collection. I will get more shots next week (I was slow to shoot because I was really trying to think up good angles and such).



(let me know if the image does not display)

[Mountain Dew]

As for the lighting in your picture, generally you want to have even lighting across their face. It doesn't flatter the female face. But for males, uneven lighting is good.

The lighting and the angle of her head make her look like a sunken-eyed alien. Focus seems tight on the eyes though, but it's hard to tell because facebook butchers uploaded images. I prefer imgur.

This satisfies both the alcoholic and car guy in me.

[Apex]

Joined a group on Facebook. They do monthly contests for fun, and it is good to stay motivated and shooting.

The theme for May is texture.

Here is what I took (let me know if it doesn't display)