obi-wan-yj

Very colorful and well-framed, but I think you went overboard on the sharpening. All of your high-contrast edges have that telltale halo around them. I'd rather see a slightly softer image with natural-looking edges.

Tiffany, thanks for your input. I never even noticed the catch light in my right eye (camera left), but you're right. The work light at camera left was there to provide some highlights on the dark side of the face. I probably should have moved it farther rearward so that it didn't reflect in the eyes. The camera was elevated to about chin level, which seemed reasonable for a head-and-shoulders shot. I've now got some remote flash triggers on order, so a soft box & light stand will soon follow.

 

Ramon, thanks for your input. I agree that it would be better with the camera pointed a shade farther left. Unfortunately, my son wasn't exactly standing still (nor were the rest of my family, who were right on my heels), and I was trying to maximize the amount of empty sidewalk in the shot. As I recall, there was something else located just off frame to the left. This was the best composition of about a dozen shots I took as we were walking out of the zoo. I do wish I could have gotten him closer to the right corner and included his entire shadow, but it just wasn't happening that day.

Here's my setup, shot by another brother with his P&S camera:

 

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3481/4032321258_ba37e12e50.jpg

 

Heading home after a long, fun day at the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha.

The smaller uploaded size just doesn't do justice to the detail in the

sidewalk. I had to clone out a couple reflections spots from the UV

filter which I forgot to remove. Any suggestions for improvement?

My mom wanted B&W portraits of all her boys. After the formals, I letmy hair down (so to speak) and started playing.

This was my first experiment with a home brew studio flash setup(described in image details). I set everything up, and my brotherpulled the trigger for me. The focus was set manually, and it appearsI backed up a few inches while posing, because the hair on my shoulderis sharper than my face. Other than that, what do you think? I'mtrying to learn a lot about flash usage and portraiture, so anysuggestions along that vein would be greatly appreciated.

I experimented some with darkening the quilt before I posted this photo, but the result looked unnatural. Maybe I wasn't doing it quite right.

My kids love to build forts in the living room using every availablechair and blanket. My 7-year-old daughter decided to spend the nightin hers recently. It makes for a very cozy bed.

This shot was lit with my hot shoe flash attached via a remote cordand laid near her feet pointing away from her head. The StofenOmni-bounce diffuser lit up the quilt in the frame, which in turnreflected back to her face. I still had to brighten her face just abit in post.

Any suggestions for improvement? I'm starting to think I should haveangled the camera up just a bit, since the quilt is more interestingthan the dark floor.

Thanks for the comments. The lighting is natural. The patio was fully shaded by a large maple tree in our yard. At the time I took this shot (about 10am), the sun would have been directly to the right of the frame (the crack runs north-south). If you look carefully, you can see a few shadows on some of the chalk. I see what you mean about adding a bit more directional light, though, especially to add a little more depth to the chalk themselves. However, I wanted to avoid modifying anything about the scene. Everything you see is as I found it.

As for the sense of scale, I guess you don't have young kids. I'm so used to seeing sidewalk chalk at most of the homes I visit that I forget not everybody is familiar with it. Each stick is about an inch (2.5cm) in diameter.

My two younger kids love to decorate our patio with their artwork. This time it was my 2-year-old letting the creative juices flow.

What do you think of this one? I didn't reposition anything, but theposition of the crack and the outlying chalk pieces within the framewas intensional. I tweaked the contrast a bit. How could I haveimproved this shot?

I hope "still life" is an appropriate category. I wasn't sure whereto put this.

Michael Tait, former lead singer for DC Talk, is now the new front manfor the Newsboys. He's a good singer, but I prefer the sound of PeterFurler. This was taken when they played the Nebraska State Fair on 2Sept 2009.

I shot this with a manual focus Yashica ML 75-150mm f/4 lens which Ibought at a pawn shop in a batch with several other lenses for $11. It's a decent performer for the price. Focus was a little tough inthe highly variable concert lighting, so this didn't come out quiteperfect. What would you change to improve the shot?

Thanks for your kind words. The State Fair results are in, and this photo didn't make the cut. However, I did win 11 ribbons for the 21 photos I submitted, include first place in one class for this photo:

http://photo.net/photodb/photo?photo_id=9186831

Thanks for your kind words. The State Fair results are in, and this photo didn't make the cut. However, I did win 8 ribbons for the 21 photos I submitted, include first place in one class for this photo:

http://photo.net/photodb/photo?photo_id=9186831

The State Fair results are in, and this photo didn't make the cut. However, I did win 8 ribbons for the 21 photos I submitted, include first place in one class for this photo:

http://photo.net/photodb/photo?photo_id=9186831

Thanks for your kind words. The State Fair results are in, and this photo didn't make the cut. A similar shot in color did win third place in its class:

http://photo.net/photodb/photo?photo_id=9650859

However, I did win 8 ribbons for the 21 photos I submitted, include first place in one class for this photo:

http://photo.net/photodb/photo?photo_id=9186831

Thanks for your kind words. The State Fair results are in, and this photo didn't make the cut. However, I did win 8 ribbons for the 21 photos I submitted, include first place in one class for this photo:

http://photo.net/photodb/photo?photo_id=9186831

This shot was submitted to the 2009 Nebraska State Fair photography competition, where it received honorable mention in the "Posed Portraits (black & white)" class.

This shot, with a different crop that enhanced the web on which he was hanging, was submitted to the 2009 Nebraska State Fair photography competition, where it won second place in the "Other Living Creatures (color)" class.

This shot, with the lower shadows cleaned up, was submitted to the 2009 Nebraska State Fair photography competition, where it won first place in the "Domestic Growing Flowers, Multiple Blossoms (color)" class. I'm kinda excited. I won 8 ribbons from the 21 photos I submitted, and my daughter won 3rd place in the "youth, 10 & under" class.

This shot was submitted to the 2009 Nebraska State Fair photography competition, where it won third place in the "Mechanical / Vehicles / Transportation (color)" class.

 

The results from the 2009 Nebraska State Fair photography competition are in. This shot won third place in the "Celebrate the Nebraska State Fair (color)" class.

 

Jody, I agree, the focus point is too far backward. It appears to be on the teeth, which leaves even the eyes a little softer than I'd like. Dark surroundings and my disdain for on-camera flash required a high ISO and wide aperture, so I didn't get the uniform sharpness that I wanted. I don't remember, but it's quite possible that I even shot this one blind with the camera held down at arms length to get this camera angle. That would account for the curious focus point.

This shot is definitely what's known as "the decisive moment." You did a great job capturing the man just in the gap before he passes in front of the row of women on the step.

 

Very nice. I love the tonal range you used. It's such a majestic scene with the clouds and the steep rocks. You framed it very well.

I like the way you've framed this one. Well done.