Yay Christmas!

jsedlak

My shots of the tree this year are failing horribly...

So I took this! I thought it was cool, almost as if the frame was floating there because of all the light different (types) sources.



I can't seem to figure out a way to get a good shot of the swirls in the background either.

jstpeter

I bet the problem regarding th swirls is too much light. Try directing a light source. Cut off any misc lights and use directional lighting to light your wall. Why are your Christmas tree shots not working? Post one up tell us what you did and I am sure there are plenty of people willing to help you out. If you want PM me and I can take a look.

jsedlak

jstpeter wrote:

I bet the problem regarding th swirls is too much light. Try directing a light source. Cut off any misc lights and use directional lighting to light your wall. Why are your Christmas tree shots not working? Post one up tell us what you did and I am sure there are plenty of people willing to help you out. If you want PM me and I can take a look.

Ok, maybe not failing miserably. I just haven't found the settings I want to use. I am trying to balance the tone between too orange and correct and can't seem to find a composition that I like. I am sure I will find something, it just didn't happen my first time shooting it. Anyways, here is a shot of the tree.

And yes, I need to fix the star. Blegh. It looks correct from other angles.

jstpeter

Are there other lights in the room turned on? and are you shooting in full auto mode?

If there are lights try turning these off and let the light of the tree be your light source. Use a tripod and presto som gorgeous tree shots with the lights from the tree glimering. If in full auto mode, you are smarter then your camera. Use manual settings.

If there are not lights on then your exposure is to long and it is letting way to much light in the camera. Shorten the exposure so less light reaches the camera.

As for the orange tint this is your white balance. Try switching the WB mode or you can play with the manual white balance settings.

As for compostion. For a good tree shot you do not need the whole tree. In your example getting the whole tree in your frame is throwing the composition out of whack. Becasue you are capturing other distracting elements in your shot by getting the whole tree. Try zooming in on an ornament or getting the top with the star or the bottom covered with presents. Here is a tree shot of mine from last year. all light was from the tree and fire. ( even without the child this would be a nice Chritmas tree scene) Settings were:

1/30
ISO 800
f2.8
28mm

jsedlak

Thanks for the suggestions! I am shooting in either aperature priority or full manual and using manual white balance and flash. I will try some without the flash tonight. Generally though having no secondary lighting ruined the photo because the tree lights simply do not give off that much.

I just posted the above photo so you knew what I was dealing with in terms of tree size, etc. I wouldn't consider it anything more than a snapshot. Stats for the above:
1/4s
ISO 1600
f/4.0
24mm

As for the composition, I am certainly going to try close up shots but for now I am trying to get a large part of the tree in the picture.