Official Misc Photography Crew, Part IV "You're not close enough."

[Harrock]

Couple of pics from Sunday, hope everyone had a nice Easter.

[jmelanson]

Bought a DJI Phantom 2 Vision Plus drone last week. Here are some of the first images out of it. 14 megapixel camera on board, also does 1080p video through a 3 axis gimbal. This thing is awesome!









You can see me on the pier, bottom, just left of center.



And here is my first video compilation from it.

[thetypicalasian]

Depends on what you'd like to shoot. if its portraits/product and/or you'd just like to learn more about light -- is the bible

Awesome, I'll definitely look into that. I was looking for books on composition as well if you had any more recommendations.

[pieceofdebri79]

Awesome, I'll definitely look into that. I was looking for books on composition as well if you had any more recommendations.

Click this link and watch all these videos. They'll help a ton with composition.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...Q_AyJSS_A1GD7N

[Lamborg]

Have any of you guys ever recovered stolen gear?

[Boakey]

First ever Owl pic.

I've wanted to shoot them ever since I started bird photography but have never really been able to find them or get close enough.


Coastal Great Horned Owl by FourB Photography, on Flickr

[obmas]

First ever Owl pic.

I've wanted to shoot them ever since I started bird photography but have never really been able to find them or get close enough.


Coastal Great Horned Owl by FourB Photography, on Flickr

never seen one in the wild before. there are a few at the zoo though....

speaking of birds, i went to the bird sanctuary / nature area last weekend, and spotted a tree sparrow and male and female downy woodpeckers.

[Vikes723]

Took photos for The Used (nostalgia central for me) and a couple more bands for my publisher... showed her some pics and was speechless lol

[NinjaKix]

Had an awesome shoot this past weekend, here are some of my fav's.

DSC_2577 by ninjakix, on Flickr

DSC_2612 by ninjakix, on Flickr

DSC_2609 by ninjakix, on Flickr

DSC_2593 by ninjakix, on Flickr

DSC_2637 by ninjakix, on Flickr

[VmissileX]

Lacking inspiration.


May just go out and shoot random things today to just mess around with stuff.

[thetypicalasian]

Click this link and watch all these videos. They'll help a ton with composition.

Just what I was looking for. Appreciate it mayn

[Dominik]

Just what I was looking for. Appreciate it mayn

To me it's a lot like music where you start out learning scales and chords but it's not music until you apply it in a creative way. Eventually you reach a point with photography where you're not thinking about rules or guidelines — you see the shot.

Keep a folder of images you like and spend a lot of time looking at them. Study them and try to figure out why they work. It's like reading books by great writers will improve your own writing.

Compositionally speaking, with landscapes probably the biggest mistake I see (and of course this is subjective based on my taste) is people using the widest lens available and trying to cram everything in which often results in a cluttered composition. It might work with a really large print but at normal sizes it's too busy.

You're better off using a longer lens to isolate something interesting and working your way back with a wider lens until you're happy with the composition.

[Foques]

To me it's a lot like music where you start out learning scales and chords but it's not music until you apply it in a creative way.

Mr. D here is a fellow musician as well?

[VmissileX]

I know a multitide of you guys assisted me in the past with finding a good CPL. I need some assistance finding a good VND filter aswell. I'd love to get a graduated one to even out DR, but i'm realizing being a bit more formal with HDR may be a better option. Eitherway....
I was considering the Hoya ND or the B+W ND 82mm: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/cont...G&Q=&A=details
Hoping it goes on sale...blagh


Or the B+W version: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc..._0_ND_MRC.html (this one typically goes on sale on amazon...)

any tips on what to look for?

[FrankGrimesJr]

What are some good photography forums?

So far I know the popular ones are Photograpy-On-The-Net, Fred Miranda, & DP Review.

[litljay]

So, I took the plunge today and ordered the:




Just too juicy a lens for the $$.

[KRANE]

Couple of pics from Sunday, hope everyone had a nice Easter.

[img]http://i.imgur.com/a1S8qOhl.jpg[img]

[img]http://i.imgur.com/pJNNnT0l.jpg[img]

Let me guess, wife and daughter? They both have the exact same smile. These photos are OK but there's so much unexplored potential in them you could fill a data base. Excellent job with the depth of field in your little girl's photo btw. I wish she would have been holding the basket. It took me a moment to figure out what she was holding.

Anyway, I took one photo of my nieces many years ago lined them up in order of age/height (4-14). Today, its my one and only cherished color film photos. It immediately says Christmas, and tasks me back to the moment. In fact, I can still remember scampering them out, and forcing them to pose for me. They hated it, but love the photo.

[Jamestrussel]

I need some assistance finding a good VND filter aswell. I'd love to get a graduated one to even out DR

any tips on what to look for?

A lot of time lapse photographers get great results with Lee filters: http://www.leefilters.com/index.php/camera/system

Pro: Total control - stacking filters, grad vs uniform, angles etc
Can use same filters on any lens you have, just need the different diameter lens ring to attach to

Con: cost - expensive to get the lens ring, filter kit, the filters are around $150 each and not included with the kit
ex: Filter kit $88
Lens ring $60
3.0 nd $140
or a .3 .6 .9 pack of gradient filters $260

[thetypicalasian]

To me it's a lot like music where you start out learning scales and chords but it's not music until you apply it in a creative way. Eventually you reach a point with photography where you're not thinking about rules or guidelines � you see the shot.

Keep a folder of images you like and spend a lot of time looking at them. Study them and try to figure out why they work. It's like reading books by great writers will improve your own writing.

Compositionally speaking, with landscapes probably the biggest mistake I see (and of course this is subjective based on my taste) is people using the widest lens available and trying to cram everything in which often results in a cluttered composition. It might work with a really large print but at normal sizes it's too busy.

You're better off using a longer lens to isolate something interesting and working your way back with a wider lens until you're happy with the composition.

Sounds great, I appreciate the wisdom. At the moment I'm just so overwhelmed with what to shoot. And if I do happen to capture something, I worry that it might not turn out great since there are so many rules to follow.

Luckily I won't have to worry about investing in a wide lens because I just got a 50mm that I'm trying to get comfortable with.

[M0tibation]

On the subject of ND filters...what are some good, and cheaper alternatives? I don't even need graduated since I bracket expose everything but I just want to be able to stop down by maybe 6 stops for water/cloud movement.

[ch1120]

Had an awesome shoot this past weekend, here are some of my fav's.

These are really pretty, I bet she loves them. LOVE your bw conversion. Are you using actions on these(or presets) I especially like the last two, would love to know how you edited them if you feel like sharing. Highlights look a little hot on second to last, might want to tone down for print. Really pretty work!

[Jamestrussel]

On the subject of ND filters...what are some good, and cheaper alternatives? I don't even need graduated since I bracket expose everything but I just want to be able to stop down by maybe 6 stops for water/cloud movement.

CPLs can vary from ~1.2 to nearly 3 stops of light reduction depending on how they're rotated. They also have the added benefit of reducing glare on water/glass and can make the blue sky appear more blue depending on the angle they're shooting at in relation to the sun (great for landscapes)


You can't see the light reduction here since it's correctly exposed in both shots, but the glare reduction is readily noticeable.

For straight-up ND, you can get a few kinds of filters that will just screw onto the front of your lens, they come in graduated, solid, and variable. You said you don't need graduated so that leaves solid (ex 2 stops reduction) or variable (can rotate the filter through a range of reductions ex 2-8 stops). Solid nd filters will be the cheaper choice, while variable filters tend to be quite a bit more expensive.

A 3 stop solid filter is about $46. The price goes up as the light reduction goes up.
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...sity_NDX8.html

while a variable filter is about three times as much.
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...nd_filter.html

Many people also report that variable nd filters are hard to use since they are basically rotating 2 cpls against each other for reduction. They aren't really neutral, in lower cost models the filter color shifts as the density changes.

[VmissileX]

A lot of time lapse photographers get great results with Lee filters: http://www.leefilters.com/index.php/camera/system

Pro: Total control - stacking filters, grad vs uniform, angles etc
Can use same filters on any lens you have, just need the different diameter lens ring to attach to

Con: cost - expensive to get the lens ring, filter kit, the filters are around $150 each and not included with the kit
ex: Filter kit $88
Lens ring $60
3.0 nd $140
or a .3 .6 .9 pack of gradient filters $260

I was considering the Lee system, but man does that add up quick...

I do want to start with just some VND's to work on some neato long exposure stuff.

[K3Fallout]

Misc, I'm a beginner photographer and I only have maybe 1-2 shots on my flickr. Does anyone else only really put up stuff that they really like/inspire them or am I just being a pretentious prick?

[ko300zx]

Misc, I'm a beginner photographer and I only have maybe 1-2 shots on my flickr. Does anyone else only really put up stuff that they really like/inspire them or am I just being a pretentious prick?

Can help to share other shots to get feedback on where you can improve. They can still be shots you really like, but they can also be random just to get other people's opinions.

[Vikes723]

more from last night, still alot of photos to go through haha

[VmissileX]

Misc, I'm a beginner photographer and I only have maybe 1-2 shots on my flickr. Does anyone else only really put up stuff that they really like/inspire them or am I just being a pretentious prick?

I'll tell you what...i struggle with this same feels every time i upload photos too.

I just got to the point where i although use flickr to upload everything and became more selective for other sites like 500px and facbeook.

Need to break that though. I'm not exactly creating a portfolio, more or less just getting feedback and opening my workflow.

[dakensta]

My bestest evar shot of Saturn, lol.
Tamron SP 70-300, EOS 700D. f8, ISO 100, 1/6th, mirror lockup, IR remote.




I say lol, but I'm quite happy with this shot.

[KRANE]

Misc, I'm a beginner photographer and I only have maybe 1-2 shots on my flickr. Does anyone else only really put up stuff that they really like/inspire them or am I just being a pretentious prick?

LOL, if you are you're in good company. However I wouldn't call it pretentious. A better word would be selective, and there's certainly nothing wrong with that.

[Final_Rep]

Here's some of my heavily post-processed stuff for you bras