Thread: Coming Out Party - Lurker Group#2

El ... it is SO AWESOME to have you as part of this board!!! You have so beautifully illustrated using each of these distances.

In #1, we are so very well connected to your adorable DS and I am drawn right to his eyes.

In #2 you have used the bed to create a wonderfully intimate shot where I feel like I'm right there with him.

and in #3 I feel like I am watching from across the room - like he might not even know I'm there.

Each of these is beautifully done and our connection with your DS never falters. Personally, I struggle with maintaining that connection when my subject does not fill my frame. But you have used the environment so well here that it too becomes part of the subject.

Of the 3, my favorite is #1. I just love up close shots like this and feel very involved with your little one. Your focus and exposure look pretty good. You might have bumped the ss up just a tad so that he hand was frozen more, but honestly, that's not a show stopper for me. I feel like the movement in the hand is part of the mood you created and I am not sure I would change it.

TFS!

GiGi

Originally Posted by acarbo99

Howdy Sara!!!

I'm so glad you decided to try this "fill the frame" challenge too! And I'm tickled that you decided now was a good time to jump to manual as well. I know it's tricky and it may take a while before you feel truly comfortable, but the more you do it, the easier it will get. I promise!

So let's get into some CC ....

1. Suzanne has already mentioned that he's pretty centered. And usually, we try to shy away from that. But your shot here shows that, when you "fill the frame" with your subject like this that other composition rules like lining up prominent features on the 1/3 lines you can break other rules. Your little guy and his adorable eyes are the focus of the shot. I really love how you have used the truck to provide a clean white background. With a little tweaking in your post processing this could be a very successful "high key" image. I also think you did a nice job of using directional light here and think this image would be a good candidate for converting to black and white (like the rule of thirds, we'll be visiting conversions a bit later).

2. I love this moment you caught here. your boy playing w/ his car next to the big car is a super cute idea. Looks to me like focus fell mainly on his hand and the truck. And there's nothing wrong with that, but I find myself wishing his face was in better focus. This can be done in two ways - you could either set your focal point on his face specifically or you can close down your aperture so that you have a deeper field of depth. You have your aperture set to f/5.0. You might try closing that down to f/8.0. It looks to me like you got down nice and low - on his level - for this shot and that is the perfect angle, imho. I almost suggested a portrait crop rather than landscape, but really, I like how you have used the car behind him to set the tone of the photo and you might lose that in a portrait crop. I think the one thing I would try is to move him further to the left in the frame. And if that is not possible, then you might try a portrait crop.

3. I think, more than anyone else so far (myself included) you really used this distance well. And this shows that while there are some really great rules/suggestions for compositions, there are ALWAYS exceptions! You have used the truck behind your son so well in each of these shots - though in each shot, you have used it differently. Great job! Focus is off in this one. It seems to me that the focus fell on the truck (on the running boards) and not on your DS. Like in #2, I would really like to see your DS more to the left in the frame. And again, if that is not possible (due to space limitations, etc) then you might think about trying a portrait crop at this distance.

These settings look pretty good for outside. Was it cloudy out? Normally when you are outside, especially on bright sunny days, you won't need an ISO that high. In fact, when outside, I usually sick to either an ISO of 100 or 200. But if it's cloudy, you might need the higher ISO like you have here. To lessen the impact of the background, the easiest fix is to open your aperture more. You have all of these shots at f/5.0. If you could open up to 3.0 or more (2.8 perhaps) then the background would be nicely blurred and would help your son to stand out more from his surroundings. Another way to achieve this would be move him further away from the background - in this case further from the truck.

Candids, especially in and around the home, are hard to get w/out the clutter of background "stuff." For me, I find this when I go out to shoot pictures at my son's soccer games. All of the parents have to sit on particular sides and I am limited where I can go to catch the action, so there is almost always something cluttering the shot (other parents, trash cans, etc). I try to really fill the frame with my son when that is the case so that there just isn't room for competing elements. Opening up your aperture will also help since that will blur everything else.

As for using these same settings inside, I think you would have to make a few adjustments. First, you would need to raise your ISO a good bit. You were at ISO 400 outside, so I would suggest bumping up to 600 or better inside. You'll also have to open your aperture a good deal more inside. I would say probably f/3.2 or more.

If you want a "suggestion" for where to place your settings, put your camera in auto and take a shot and then look to see where it set the camera. In time, you will have a better feel for where to start.

Also, we are going to cover understanding your light meter soon - once everyone is back on a dSLR - so hang in there for now and know we'll be coming back to it soon.

Thanks for sharing1 I really love how you used the environment to set the tone of these photos! And I really look forward to what you show next!

Best,
GiGi

Thanks Gigi! I am really very green on my fancy camera. So I am not quite up to speed with changing all the settings especially with a kiddo I am trying to capture. Is there a way- I think there is- to save a few settings so I can alter for shots off that? So I am not constantly playing with the settings? Also a lower # F the more blurry the backround?
Suzanne- I have zero editing skills, so I am not sure I will recover the shots. I need more time in the day to figure editing out! But I appreciate the info and am going to try to play around more this week! cant wait for the next challenge!

I am so sorry. I got my pics taken last week, but we have had awful sickness around here, along with preparing for my dd's 10th bday party. I am going to get them uploaded tonight, as soon as kids are in bed.

But I really love seeing everyone's pics and reading tips and such! This is helping me, for reals!!

Okay, here are mine. I decided to do a few shots of ds (7) doing his homework.


I wish I would have had him facing the other way, so he only had the wall behind him, because even the close-up has distractions. I could have done it even closer, but I wanted his homework, face, and hands all in the shot.





Ugh, you can see so much mess behind him! Such a crazy week last week!

I love seeing everyone's pics.

Suzanne, love the dance photos! So fun! Makes me miss my daughter being so little. I love your dragonfly shot and the first two of the crepe myrtle, so pretty!!

Sara, Tommy is getting so big! I love the first shot with his serious look and beautiful eyes looking right at you! And as everyone else said, cute to see the big truck in the background.

and El, glad to have you with us! Your boys are so cute, and I love all three shots. Your background was great in all three, not much to distract you, I think it just added to the pics.

I still do not have my camera up and running, so if we need to move on to other things, I totally understand, I do not want to hold everyone else back.

Rachel, I love the expression on your DS's face in that last picture. I'd really like to know what he's thinking there.

Ha! At first I was just telling him to do his homework, so I could do mine (taking the photos) and he did well, but then he started to can his expressions a bit. lol

Rachel ...

I do hope the sickies have all left your home and everyone is on the mend. I'm glad you got a chance to join in on this little starter assignment.

Here are my thoughts ...

#1. I like that you included the worksheet as they are an integral part of what you have made the subject of this shot. His look of concentration perfectly sets the mood.

#2. I also like this one a lot. Even with the clutter of the room, it really paints a picture - a slice of life kind of theme and I love it.

#3. Personally, I like this too. I love his reflection in the table and the fun he is starting to have with you. I'd watch the tilt though.

Don't worry about not having your good camera just yet. We are going to play with a few more rules of composition before moving on to the more technical aspects, so it really won't matter what kind of camera you are using. You will hear it on this board a lot, but it's truly not the camera that makes the shot. A "good" camera can make getting the right shot easier, but it is still the mind behind the lens that pulls it off.

So we are going to focus on those kinds of things for now!

Best,
GiGi

GiGi, thanks for the kindness. And I did not even notice the tilt until I posted the photo, and then its like, "where did that come from?" lol

Time for a new assignment!

We're still going to be focusing on composition for now. With that said, please remember to post your settings even though that is not a major part of the assignment. Even if you shoot in full auto for the assignment, by looking at the settings you can get a feel for what you could change in the future. KWIM?

ANYWAY ... on to our assignment.

Last time we worked on filling the frame with the subject. As we learned this can have a pretty big impact, especially with portrait photos. But there are a lot of other composition rules and suggestions.

This time, we'll look at a very often used composition "rule" - the rule of thirds (ROT).

Simply put, the rule of thirds contends that you will get a pleasing composition if you will position a prominent feature of your subject at the intersection of one of the thirds in your photo.

OK. So those are my words and they're not the most elegant. Let's look at what I am really trying to say. To do that, let me show you a photo divided into thirds:



Notice that I tried to line up Logan's left eye where the top third line and left third line intersect. I was off by a little, but still close. I also placed the strings on his viola at the intersection of the bottom third line and the right third line.

This is an example where I tried to use the rule of thirds (ROT) to guide my composition.

Here's another example. A landscape this time.



For this example, I tried to line up the the tree/sky line with the top third line and I tried to position the edge of the pond at the bottom third line.

So ... your assignment (should you chose to accept it) is to practice using the ROT when composing your shots. Try to compose them in camera that way. We can always crop a little here or there if we are off a bit, but as a general rule we try to get things "right" in camera whenever possible. This saves a lot of editing time.

Remember - right now, you do not need to be shooting in manual mode, but if you want to use this assignment to practice that as well, jump on in! And regardless, don't forget to post your settings so we can discuss them as well. Feel free to post one picture at a time or gather up several examples at once. But get out there and start using this popular composition rule and see how you feel about it.

Best,
GiGi