In a slump

suntzusuntzu Registered Users Posts: 31 Big grins
edited January 8, 2006 in Technique
I really love photography but it seems like I'm the only one who seems to think that mine are getting better.

For example, just a few hours ago I took some pictures of our Vietnamese New Years prep/practice. I felt that this "session" was better than a lot of my other times. Probably because I didn't repeat my usual stupid mistakes like forgetting to set the ISO higher, mis-focusing, etc...

But when I took the pictures of people, they would come over and take a look at the picture and act disappointed that it didn't come out well. So as an experiment, I gave one of the girls my camera and told her to take pictures. I noticed that no one sounded disappointed. I then reviewed the images and found they were either washed out by the flash or shot too far away from the subject.

Could it be that people see an SLR and assume you're suppose to get awesome pictures automatically? Or is it because the pictures look too foreign to them (because they're closer than what people take them at)? Could it be because I do this for fun and I'm not a professional? Or maybe it's because I don't use the flash unless I have to (that seems to freak them out for some reason).

I don't know. It's confusing and frustrating. I guess you can consider this my rant but do you find that non-camera people just don't get why you're excited over a certain picture?

I've included one of the pictures I took. It's been color edited so ignore that. I think my compositions are getting better.

Comments

  • rjpatrjpat Registered Users Posts: 248 Major grins
    edited January 8, 2006
    The composition seems pretty good to me, exceptttttttt, cutting his head off is a little distracting.Also, if you could have moved over some so that the handrail was not in the shot, I think that would also have helped. BTW, I liked the desat on the color, seems to work with this photo. With that out of the way, I do like this picture.

    Ron
    Ron

    We never know how something we say, do, or think today, will effect the lives of millions tomorrow....BJ Palmer
  • TopRowTopRow Registered Users Posts: 46 Big grins
    edited January 8, 2006
    suntzu wrote:
    I guess you can consider this my rant but do you find that non-camera people just don't get why you're excited over a certain picture?
    People need to emotionally connect to a picture to get excited about it. They don't really care about the details like getting the exposure right, backgrounds, etc. That said, this is a nice pic, but the focus is a little soft, and I agree with Ron's comments about the photo.

    A suggestion, you might find that you'll get more comments on your photos if you post in the "People" forum. Those sections are full of folks posting and seeking comments from their photos--this technique forum seems to be more focused on technical details.
    Roger
    toprowphotography.com
  • suntzusuntzu Registered Users Posts: 31 Big grins
    edited January 8, 2006
    Thanks for the comments! I think you're right TopRow. I think when people want you to take their picture at an event like this, they'll "pose" for the camera in that generic "line up side-by-side" position which isn't anything to get excited about. Do you guys think it's weird to ask people to move their heads or body a certain way when they spontaneously ask for a photo?

    I think my problem is that I'm too anxious to take a picture and I don't step back and ask myself why I'm taking it.

    I have a few pictures of them when they're not concentrating on the camera and acting naturally. Those seem to be my better shots.
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