Topic: Photography (Read 16073 times)

chris · « **on:** January 01, 2010 »

To cut a long story short I've been getting more and more interested in photography over the past few months and Ive finally taken the plunge and bought myself a pretty decent dslr. So I'm wondering if anyone else on here shares my passion and would care to pass on a few tips, maybe start some dissusions we could critique each others pics perhaps even meet up and get some shots... Just a thought let me know what you guys think.

Belfastman1958 · « **Reply #1 on:** January 02, 2010 »

Hi Chris.

I do a bit of photography also. But only in a purely amateur way. Like taking scenery shots, mostly either sunrises/sunsets or sea shots.

Wouldn't mind chatting about it sometime.

Alan.

pablo · « **Reply #2 on:** January 02, 2010 »

learn photoshop!

thats the most important thing to know about dslr photography.

also,try shooting from un-natural positions like a few inches off the ground and always put the viewers attention on the subject.

i did the NYI photography course years ago and thouroughly recommend it.it isnt very technically orientated but rather easily understood and a practical way to improve your shots.

what camera did you get ?

ulsterwalker · « **Reply #3 on:** January 02, 2010 »

I don't know if I would say learning P-shop is the most important aspect of photography, far from it really.
I would say learning about aperture, shutter speeds, iso and composition would be far more significant, not that I really know that much about these things... yet. If your photo looks terrible at the beginning, photoshop isn't going to magically make it better, you can't polish a turd

I picked up a DSLR last year (Olympus e420), but I'm still getting to grips with it really, I think my photo's are starting to get better, but I still have miles to go. Just got a tripod for Chrimbo so will be seeing how that helps me in the future, planning on taking some long exposures with it very soon.

I would recommend you have a look at the talk photography forums, and the tutorial sections, plenty of advice there, which even I can understand.
ALWAYS shoot in RAW, it won't pull off miracles, but can save you if you have over or underexposed shots. You can also use a single RAW file to create an HDR image, which again can save you if the conditions weren't too great.
Take loads of photo's, as many using aperture or shutter modes so you get used to which ones work best. Doing a 365, trying to take a decent photo every day, isn't a bad way of achieving this.
Photoshop can help make adjustments, just like any other image editing software, but its preferable to get the photo correct at the time, instead of sitting in front of your computer later on, especially if you have loads of photo's to correct!

pablo · « **Reply #4 on:** January 02, 2010 »

polish a turd? ive never tried that myself

but i can safely say it would be the best looking turd youd ever seen with a bit of tweaking on photoshop,and yes,you could make it look shiney too

as regards my earlier post ,take it with a pinch of salt.

photography can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be,and you can spend years learning the technical aspects of aperture,shutter speed and iso etc.and you would do well to do that.
the beauty of digital photography is that you can see straight away what youve captured and either keep it or delete it and you can take literally hundreds of pictures on a large sizes memory card.which leads to another secret of good photography...take loads of pics,you,ll end up with a good one eventually.

you can know all there is to know about the technical stuff,but that dosent guarantee great shots. its an art form and some will like your shots while others wont.

probably the best thing to do is just start shooting.buy some magazines like amateur photographer etc and pick up tips from the pros.

as for shooting in RAW mode? yes if you know how to use it properly but if you dont then just use the cameras fine settings to start with or you,ll just get confused with all the jargon and complicated stuff.

oh yeah,beware smart arses who try to make it sound difficult.

chris · « **Reply #5 on:** January 02, 2010 »

I got a Nikon d3000. I can see both your angles on the photo shop thing, You can get some interesting effects and tweak the odd dodgy photo. I was thinking of enroling for a night class down at belfast tech, see if that helps at all. I'm gonna have to get out and about tho and actually take a picture of something maybe a church flood light at night, the main problem I seem to have at the min is all my photos are pretty much glorified holiday snaps if you know what I mean. while they may be half decent shots their just oics of my faimly or friends and not overly arty or intreseting to anyone outside my circle! I've joined a 365 group on flicker which is quite interesting, just to see what other people can produce especially if they have the same camera as you.

Belfastman1958 · « **Reply #6 on:** January 02, 2010 »

Chris.....

There are also loads of user websites that are of a great help for tips and tricks. Here is one that I use quite a bit.....

http://digital-photography-school.com/

But, the best thing to do...is get out and do it. Learn how to operate the shutter speed and go out and play about taking the same shot at different speeds. maybe another time learn about aperture settings and take the same shots again with different settings. That way you can see how it all comes together.

Having said that, some of the most fantastic shots I made were with a wee cheapy from Maplins. But prefer the Nikon now.

Look forward to seeing some of your work.

Alan.

Brianlad · « **Reply #7 on:** January 03, 2010 »

Hi Chris

I enjoy taking a few photos myself. I have a canon 350d. The most important thing about photography is taking photographs. Get yourself out with your camera or bring it with you when you go places because you will start looking at things from a photo point of view after a while. Photoshop is a handy tool but getting your shot right as you take it will make you a better photographer. Just think of the Neanderthals who had to use film!!!! They knew what they were doing before the shot was taken.

You can get loads of info from mags like Digital photo etc but they tend to repeat the material after a year or so. I found them useful for giving me ideas to try but all the same info is available online to find for free!

A few tips I found useful at the start was …

-Don’t use the auto setting, you might get nice shots but its more important to know how the shot was made rather than have a camera do it for you. Im sure you can be miles more creative than a cameras auto mode will ever be.

-Play with apature and shutter speed. If the shots turn out crap then just erase them but you can see how different the same photo can look just by changing a few settings.

-Look into the “rule of thirds” to help give you an idea of composition.

-Look at photographs you like and try to see what you like about them, then try taking them yourself or something like them anyway.

-Its already been said but use RAW. You have so much more info captured than when using jpeg.

-My last tip is safe photos in TIFF rather than jpeg if you can afford the extra space on your hard drive.

Brianlad

NeilB · « **Reply #8 on:** January 03, 2010 »

Chris you have the right idea, go and do the course at the tech, i messed about with photography a bit then done a course through work taught me a lot about apertures shutter speeds etc, it was more for low light and moving subjects but the theory is the same. but it opens it up far more for you in terms of understanding how to use the camera to take a good photo.
as for photoshop I have no idea but I have a mate who is graphic designer who swears by it.

I have nikon d90 think it a cracking camera.

chris · « **Reply #9 on:** January 03, 2010 »

Yeah I'm looking forward to it, gonna give them a ring 1st thing in the morning and see what the story is. just need to get out there and start getting some pics, prob head down to the park or something after lunch!

milky85 · « **Reply #10 on:** January 03, 2010 »

I'm into photography.

I currently own a Canon 350D SLR, but hope to upgrade soon.

As for tips, i'd recommend joining the likes of Flickr.com ... it's astonishing how many people out there take breathtaking images, and you can learn so much from them in terms of how they compose images, along with the more technical details.

One thing i would suggest when you get more familiar with your camera, is to stop using the automatic settings, and start using manual. It allows you more creative control. Also, make sure you keep a UV filter on your lens at all times... it won't make any difference to your images, as such but it'll protect it from scratches. Far cheaper to replace a filter than an entire lens! While i'm on the subject of filters... a polariser filter is really useful for shooting outdoors, it helps to give sky a bit of oomph, and can help prevent it looking over-exposed at times too.

As for learning photoshop... yeah it can help, but don't rely on it too much. You can't make a silk purse out of a pig's ear... although i've seen people hell bent on trying.

Get it right in camera... then polish it off in photoshop, that's the way to do it IMO.

chris · « **Reply #11 on:** January 04, 2010 »

Phoned the tech today and unfortunatley the course is full and I cant find another one anywhere! looks like flickr and you tube will be my teachers!

Kirth · « **Reply #12 on:** January 10, 2010 »

Hi Chris,

I am a sports and Press photographer for an agency in Belfast. I use Nikons, and if there is anything I can help you will, jus give me a shout.

Kirth

Heres a few from Donard I took:-

Brianlad · « **Reply #13 on:** January 11, 2010 »

Hi Kirth
Very nice shots of Donard, are they HDR? Did you add a new sky or is that as shot?

Brian

RedLeader · « **Reply #14 on:** January 11, 2010 »

Those are excellent photos. I'm after a DSLR this year too - my compact takes terrible photos. For each shot I want I take 3 so there's a chance one of them wont be blurry.

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chris

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Belfastman1958

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pablo

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ulsterwalker

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pablo

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chris

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Belfastman1958

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Brianlad

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NeilB

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chris

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milky85

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chris

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Kirth

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Brianlad

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