Not as easy as it seems.

iant

iant

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Ian T
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I class myself as a fairly technical bloke. I pride myself on being able to read a tech manual once and remember it, almost word for word. I am new to photography, especially dSLR's but am learing the technical side of it fairly easily, even with the steep learning curve involved. I am finally playing with more advanced settings, and even understanding how and why I am doing it. Great.

Then I come to use the camera in anger, and thats where I fall down. I just dont have an artisitc bone in me. Most of you guys and gals seem to have an uncanny ability to see something beautiful, or a shot in everyday things, or pick out something in the vast panorama that would look good as an image.

Yesterday, I took to the hills, armed with my SLR, a bag full of new lenses the size of an army Bergen, and my Manfrotto 5 ton engine hoist, oops, sorry tripod, just to make me look as if I knew what I was doing. I even took the wife, so the plebs could all admire this highly professional photographer and his trusty assistant. In reality, it was a disaster. Every time I tired to change lens, the bag either tried to strangle me or tip all my kit out into the snow. The camera felt like a block of ice in my hands, my aim was wandering about all over the place and I was creating an advanced form of blur by my now trembling hands.

I hadnt the faintest idea what to shoot, how to look at things and see a shot, how to look at the "smaller" picture in a vast landscape. What I eventually came home with was hundreds of images of, well, nothing, just landscapes that whilst beautiful and spectacular to the nekkkid eye, looked more like a happy snappers day out, bland, uninteresting and well, frankly....crap.

Is this something you learn, a sense that develops, or do you really need some artisitc tendencies to see these thing. Help me, Im lost.
 
Well, all I can suggest is posting a few photos...the one you have so far looks nice!

It's hard to offer advice without knowing where any actual problem may lie :)
 
A bit of both - some of it you learn - some you either have it or you don't. A bag full of gear does not make a photographer as you've discovered. Maybe you have too much gear? Simplify things - take one camera - one lens - and learn to see - use your eyes. It takes pratice too - sometimes takes years!
 
I'm the same as the OP not much in the way of being artistic but the more i read on here in mags etc it gives me more idea's. If i come back with one good picture im fairly happy. Something else ive picked up as well is to try and not set out with the intent of taking pictures but just take my camera everywhere with me (well almost). If you go out with the sole intent of producing some stunning piece of artwork its a lot to live up to.
 
Euan said:
If you go out with the sole intent of producing some stunning piece of artwork its a lot to live up to.
Click to expand...

That's what I have to do every time I go out on a job (well almost!). ;)
 
Some people have a natural eye for composition- others have to work at it like most things in life. Just because you have a whole raft of lenses doesn't mean you have to cart them all around with you - on a day like you describe I'd probably decide what sort of shots I'm likely to be taking and pack one or two lenses - tops. If I'm short of a lens in the event, then tough - it's not disastrous, there's always another approach to the shot.

Carting a heavy load of gear around can really spoil the enjoyment of the day and continually swapping and changing lenses can become a real chore and lead to indecision.

Don't expect to get a card full of masterpieces, landscape is difficult and very dependent on the light, which is why a lot of the best shots are taken early morning and late evening when the quality of the light is better, with the rising or setting sun throwing long shadows which add instant interest and appeal to a scene.

Don't get despondent, look at the work of others and try to emulate what you like in a shot - there's nothing wrong with being inspired by, and learning from the work of others.

Take your time - Rome in a day and all that. ;)
 
I agree with AWP. The art of photography is not having a lot of gear it is being able to see and photograph an interesting image. Practise looking for images whilst out and about and use a single camera and lens (around 50mm); a good tip is to keep looking back for an image you may have missed.

Start taking more equipment when you have mastered taking a good image. When editting your images use selective cropping; sometimes a mediocre photograph can be improved tremendously.

Finally follow a few basic and simple rules.
1. Crop tight to concentrate your eye on the main subject.
2. Panoramic views rarely work without a foreground subject which ideally should be on the right of the picture.
3. Look at the little things such as the lichen on a rock or the bark of a tree; these are attractive and easy to photograph.
4. Single flowers look better than the whole plant. People and animals don't always need to show the whole body, we all know what the rest looks like once we have the head. Childern and animals should be shot at there level so get down to it lol.
5. The greatest rule of all is that rules are made to be broken.

Hope this is of some help to you.

Jenny.
 
Take the time out to look at a photograph and then analyse it - if you like it - why do you like it? If you don't - why not? In short, build up a set of ideas which give you something to work with once you get to that "wow - that looks good" scene.

To give you an example ... look at a sports picture in the newspapers (and I am generalising here so please folks - don't jump on me), does it convey anything to you? Is it one which you would have liked to have taken? Look at the main subject - If it is an action shot, is any of the action part, (ball, raquet, bat, legs, arms), blurred (relatively slow shutter speed) or are they focussed sharp (high shutter speed). The background - blurred out (wide aperture - low 'f' number) or can you see clearly what is in the background (smaller aperture, higher 'f' number).

Start asking yourself "why?" Generally, a sports photographer will use a wide aperture to blur out the background in order to keep the viewer "on" the main subject and not distracted by looking at people in the crowd. Also, a blurred crowd will look better than a blurred stand of empty seats - convey the idea that there WERE people watching.

Looking and working out what looks good and what isn't so good looking is the first step - in my opinion.

Alan
 
haha, this is my problem too :)

I have a photographic memory for technical details and relationships. When I was first interested in photography I managed to take interesting photos at different angles etc. but as I've learnt more about the technical side of things it seems to have hurt the creative side of me.

I think the answer is to just get out there and not think too hard about the technical aspect of things, just let things flow :) The numbers side of things is just a means to an end.

The good photographers I know or have seen working pay very little attention to kit and focus on capturing something that looks good. All this is easier said than done though ;)
 
These are about the only two that look half decent, the rest are even worse. No Photoshopping except to reduce filesize.

Ilam-Church.jpg


1/500 sec at f/6.3 ISO 200 (50mm f/1.8)

Robin9.jpg


1/60 sec at f/5.6 ISO200 300mm ( EF75-300mm f/4-5.6 USM III)
 
well there isn't a lot wrong with #1 compositionally. Yes, it could do with a tweak in ps to straighten the verticals/horizontals on the church, and maybe a bit of colour boost [not your fault, difficult to do in this weather in camera unless you have a polariser or similar] and a sharpen [probably the shrinking that has caused the slight softness] but there is a good shot in there. Nice application of rule of thirds and a good combination of hard and soft landscaping that is pleasing on the eye.

#2 - well it depends what you were trying to achieve. too far away to be a 'bird' shot, but the light is nice and had the robin been looking this way, would have been quite pleasant as a scenery type shot - maybe more patience, wait for the right moment.


All you need is practice and more of an idea of the shots you want. Follow CT's advice about carrying kit, and go out with a particular type of shot in mind and practice those on that occasion. Most of us have to work at our artistic inperpretation, so don't despair, look at other peoples work, see what you like, then aim to emulate.

Good luck, you ARE on your way :thumbs:
 
You do have to work at it. How many shots did you take of that church? How many long shots - how many angles - close ups - detail shots - with different lenses? Or did you just shoot this one shot and walk on? Did you spend two mins there or two hours?
 
I wouldn't be too worried if I were you. I would be worried if you have taken some cr@ppy photos and thought they were brilliant. Just the fact that you 'know' what is pleasing and what is not, that tells me that you do have the eye. To convey that in a picture, well, that's another story. It needs practice and time. First of all try to follow a few simple rules of compisition, like the rule of thirds, leading lines, foreground interest etc etc. Try to think before you take a picture, don't be trigger-happy. When you start practicing these simple rules then it will come natural at a point and you'll see your keeper numbers rising.
My personal advice to work on your composition would be a bit radical. Buy yourself a film SLR that accepts your lenses, and use that for a while. Having only 36 exposures will definitely make you think before you press the shutter. And just take one lens with you, that will give you a hard time with composition but it will teach you to take a step back and think.

Work on it, it needs time and practice but you are getting there.
 
Thanks for all your input.

Seriously, the amount of kit I was carrying was part tongue in cheek, and part was me intending to use different lenses on the same shot, i.e. getting to know what the different lenses would do, both with width, light and clarity. It ended up being quite a fumble handling the stuff as you can imagine, but I really never intended to be always tabbing with that amount of kit.

Normally too, I would have done some PS or Lightroom work on them, but I wanted to put them up as is, with your responses giving me an insight as to what needs doing in PS.

Another aspect is not simply knowing what different appertures and time values are for, but deciding which to use and when. I did actually join a club hoping to learn some of this from those that know, but found it to be more a case of you show me yours and Ill show you mine. Im thinking more about some sort of night school/college course for the tech aspect of it, maybe even OU.

If anyone knows of a good club in the East Midlands that does more than weekly slide shows, I would be grateful :)
 
No1 is far from a snap, and has a lot of merit showing thought and promise, so you've nothing to worry about there.

No2 is technically fine - you were just limited by the length of your tool. :D
 
I echo the sentiments of Alzibiff and CT

Look through the galleries here and on Flickr etc. Look closely at what makes you gasp, try to understand why and try to do something similar.

Wider aperture, less in focus (your robin shot). Narrower aperture, more in focus (eg; the church landscape).

When you see something you want to photograph take several with different settings and with the subject in different parts of the frame.

Experiment. The duds can be erased unlike the old days when you had to wait until the prints were developed before finding out they were crap. ;)
 
Boynielaad said:
Experiment. The duds can be erased unlike the old days when you had to wait until the prints were developed before finding out they were crap. ;)
Click to expand...

That is one of the big benefits of digital - it's cheap to run - you can afford to make mistakes - shoot lots - and sort them out afterwards - you still need to think about each shot but keep clicking - the more you 'work' a subject the better it gets - well sometimes! :)
 
I find going out with a "target" in mind helps. Photo Comps on forums such as this are a great help. Pick a topic and have a think about what you could do with it.

Also, I've learnt more from the poor photos I've taken than from the good ones. Manys a time I've got home, loaded up my images and thought "damn, I should have shot that from over there with this in view", then next time you are in a similar situation you think a little differently and get a good image from it.

Try not to get overwhelmed with kit, learn from your mistakes and go out on a shoot with a purpose in mind.
 
iant said:
If anyone knows of a good club in the East Midlands that does more than weekly slide shows, I would be grateful :)
Click to expand...

Wherabouts in the East Mids are you?

I tried the clubs but slide shows and talks really don't interest me so instead I go out with a mate and do photography. Next significant 'Meet' is at Mallory park on the 18th to have a go at motorsport type shots - although I usually have a few hours out round Nottingham area each weekend.
 
If I may jump in here.

Other than a huge load of wonderful pointers given by many here, I will add that since you've grasped the logic of photography, do the following: -

a) Know that this is something to be acquired over time, nothing you can rush; and by time I mean years, not days / weeks / months.

b) Test your knowledge on one camera kit. Find which lens you can carry reasonably well, and put that on your camera. Tell yourself, this is all that I will carry as I walk about, for the next 3 months. This will teach you how to compose, think, see, adjust and reduce your fiddling with other stuff which you may think would give you a better shot. Spend 3 months, using that one lens every day (yes, use it every day). Use it in doors, outdoors, in rain sun, sleet; use it at night, in the day. Just that one lens. This will also allow you to learn how to adjust your camera's settings while on the move.

c) As for your range of lenses. If you decide you want to see what you and they can yield. Do not carry them out with you. While doing (b) you will find spots / locations that you can sit and shoot from. Find one that is ideal for you to spend a whole day. Now, get yourself a nice hot water flask, a couple of sandwiches, and go to that location and spend the whole day shooting. By not having to lug the bad as you walk, you reduce your frustration. By having a nice warm place to sit, you increase your enjoyment. Use one lens, and use it extensively. Pack it away, then use the next, and so on.

d) Keep in mind, this takes a lot of time, and I know some who've been learning for decades. Do not rush things.


Sorry for the long post .. but these are the steps that I've used to push my kids into this hobby. Initially they didn't like it. They wanted to play with the various lenses etc., but I wouldn't allow them. As a matter of fact, I had them use manual focus for the first 3 months. This teaches them about focusing, composition and not depending on the camera to get things right for them. Of course, there were a lot of grumpy moments .. but now, a year later, their results are something they love to show-off.
 
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