My first photo for feedback

sodapop

i bought a Canon xti and have been learning on my own and reading a lot of magazines and books. Here is a shot I got of the Grand Tetons in August. I would love some feedback. I have a few more of the "you took that?!" shots.

let me have your honest thoughts...

schmoo

Hi sodapop welcome to Dgrin!

Gorgeous mountains. We see a lot of photos of the Tetons but usually at sunrise or sunset. It's nice to see that there's just as much color in the middle of the day too, even if the light is a little flat.

This is really great especially if you're as fresh at photography as you say. I hope that you find more new things here and that we're able to help you grow!

Keep shooting and showing

leaforte

Welcome! Nice shot! Composition is colorful~

Dwayne Oakes

Not that bad for a rookie.

Here some tips that are an easy fix and can make a huge impact on your
photos.

-the photo is tilting to the left, be aware of horizon lines, a tripod can help
with this, frame the horizon so it is straight

-before you take any photo look for stray things in the frame, see the
brown branch in the front, it's a stray, move forward or zoom over it

-if you can try not to centre the horizon line in the photo, put it up a 1/3
on the frame or 1/3 lower in the frame but not close to the centre like
you have but this rule is often broken on photos with water reflections

-also the front of the photo is out of focus or it was a windy day
it is like the xti focused on the mountains, you should look up and read
how to use aperture priority and set the lens at f/11 or f/16 to
get more of the photo in focus (depth of field) this will also lower your
shutter speeds which is a trade off so a tripod is a must and a calm day

-and last insted of taking the photo standing up at eye level, lower
your camera close to the ground were the flowers are this will add a
lot of depth to your photos

Hope this helps

http://dwayneoakes.zenfolio.com

Take care Dwayne Oakes

sodapop

Thanks for the input-here's another
IAbove photo: It was a windy day and I saw the error of the bowing brown grasses right away. I was bending over to get closer to the ground and knew that the better shot was from that angle, but my ground shots are put off while I nurse a couple recent knee surgeries.

I have read about apeture and I have a good shot from Alaska that was my first "aha, I can do this!"

I am a true rookie. No photo classes at all, just self taught and still looking for more guidance.

This one was in the Kenai Fjords and taken with a Canon A65. A bit fuzzy but a good shot.

hawkeye978

The subject matter on this is great. The seals and eagle make for a very interesting shot.

This is a hard shot because of the bright sky tending to make the shot very bright. I almost missed the eagle on top of the buoy because of the brightness of the sky drawing your eye away. Technically it has a few issues between tilted horizon and focus, but the picture content is great. It has opportunities for post processing that you may want to investigate that could help bring out details. Selective darkening of the sky would help draw attention to the eagle along with curve adjustment to increase contrast.

Nice shot and welcome.

Dwayne Oakes

sodapop wrote:

IAbove photo: It was a windy day and I saw the error of the bowing brown grasses right away. I was bending over to get closer to the ground and knew that the better shot was from that angle, but my ground shots are put off while I nurse a couple recent knee surgeries.

I have read about apeture and I have a good shot from Alaska that was my first "aha, I can do this!"

I am a true rookie. No photo classes at all, just self taught and still looking for more guidance.

This one was in the Kenai Fjords and taken with a Canon A65. A bit fuzzy but a good shot.

I hear you about the knee thing alot of us can't bend down so another
trick to get around this is still shoot standing up at eye level
but turn your camera in the vertical position and point your camera
more to the forground that will add depth to your photos to, you
are doing great and can only improve from here.

http://dwayneoakes.zenfolio.com

Take care Dwayne Oakes

jeffmeyers

Good beginning work, Sodapop. Just keep shooting and asking advice. I can't say that my initial images were as good as yours. Keep those horizons level! :smack

Hikin' Mike

Dwayne Oakes wrote:

I hear you about the knee thing alot of us can bend down so another
trick to get around this is still shoot standing up at eye level
but turn your camera in the vertical position and point your camera
more to the forground that will add depth to your photos to, you
are doing great and can only improve from here.

http://dwayneoakes.zenfolio.com

Take care Dwayne Oakes

My knees have been removed (long story)...so I can't bend my legs at all. I use a chair/tripod for my landscape shots.

Good advise here and welcome to D-Grin!

Dwayne Oakes

Hikin' Mike wrote:

My knees have been removed (long story)...so I can't bend my legs at all. I use a chair/tripod for my landscape shots.

Good advise here and welcome to D-Grin!

Sorry I made a typo in my post, it should have said "alot of people CAN'T
bend down" my self included, I fixed the typo.

http://dwayneoakes.zenfolio.com

Take care Dwayne Oakes

Hikin' Mike

Dwayne Oakes wrote:

Sorry I made a typo in my post, it should have said "alot of people CAN'T
bend down" my self included, I fixed the typo.

http://dwayneoakes.zenfolio.com

Take care Dwayne Oakes

!! I figured it was a typo!

Tee Why

Overall, it's a nice colorful image.
I wish the flowers in the foreground were a little bit sharper though.
Looks like a nice start definitely.