Thread: sharing some for cc (nature/zoo pics) **added one more**

We took a trip out of state last weekend to the Tulsa Zoo. We stayed with Randall's dad one night, and that gave me a few photo opportunities! They live near a gorgeous lake and she had some pretty flowers. I had fun shooting wide open with the flowers. It's much easier to get the focus right on flowers! Anyways, here they are! Any tips or any ideas on how to improve is appreciated! If you think I should have changed my settings to something different, let me know! Oh, you can cc my watermark too. If it just plain sucks, say so. QRS is my initials backwards.

1. 1/320, f/5.6, ISO-100
Had to use my lens kit b/c the 50mm wouldn't get a good enough shot.


2. 1/4000, f/1.8, ISO- 100


3. 1/4000, f/1.8, ISO-100


4. 1/80, f/1.8, ISO- 640 (nearing sunset)
Just be honest, does my editing really suck? I like the edit I put, but does it work? BE HONEST!


5. The silhouette of the man and boat, plus the sunset, LOVE this one!
1/100, f/22.0 (is this right? any ideas?), ISO- 200


6. Just an extra of me & Randy. He loves to give sugars. DH took this in auto. Dont' you just love the background?!


7. Forgot this one. This one was taken in my front yard. Is the sun on the rose too much?
1/1600, f/1.8, IS0- 200

Hooray for a cool watermark! can I suggest that you raise "photography" so it's more centered with QRS? You can make the word in its own layer so it's easier to center.

1. I really like this one! I think it's a great capture of the tiger - you're working in a lot of bright sun, yet it works here

2. oh, I hate bees. love all of the yellow here. I think that you should have closed your ap slightly as your focus seems soft. find the "sweet spot" of your lens ... usually when you go all open it's not as sharp as it needs to be.

3. the bokeh is great ... but I'm not liking the composition here

4. I think your PP is very lovely, this is a pretty image. but I'm wishing the flower wasn't so centered. maybe play with the crop in this

5. awesome!! I really love this image, Sadie!

6. this image is what made me immediately reply even though I need to get out of the house before the rain starts. My cousin always calls kisses "sugar" and your comment reminded me of that. So I'm envisioning you with a southern accent saying that. Despite the background, it's a very sweet photo!

I like the watermark, but I agree with Gwen. Move photography so it's centered with the QRS.

1. Love the expression you caught!

2. I think you got pretty good focus on the bee, but I wish the flower were a bit more in focus. I think it would be a sharper image if you had closed the ap just a bit more.

3. Pretty, but I feel like the focal point is a bit too centered. I think it might be neat if you are able to move re crop with a bit more of those white flowers in the background and the focal flower to the left a bit more.

4. Very neat processing...what did you do? It almost looks like you smeared the background. I'd probably lighten it up a bit more. It also looks a bit too centered.

5. GREAT capture of the color of the sunset and then blacking out all the trees and ground!!!

6. Ok, I WISH my DH could get such a nice picture of Ry and I. You look awesome and it is such a sweet moment!

#5 LOVE, LOVE!!! sillohettes and sun flares are the things i want to work on next.
#1 is awesome too. it's liek he's almost smiling at you
Your edit seems ok to me in #4, just add a bit more pop in the colour to make the flower stand out more and i think it would be even better

I like to see simple WMs so perrsonally for me i'm not diggin this one too much. I just find the frame and the font too much. again, that's just me

I'll write more soon but WHOA that sunset pic is AMAZING Sadie!!! I am so jealous!!! How'd you get allllllllll that orangey gold in there???

Originally Posted by coolmama72

Hooray for a cool watermark! can I suggest that you raise "photography" so it's more centered with QRS? You can make the word in its own layer so it's easier to center.


6. this image is what made me immediately reply even though I need to get out of the house before the rain starts. My cousin always calls kisses "sugar" and your comment reminded me of that. So I'm envisioning you with a southern accent saying that. Despite the background, it's a very sweet photo!

Thanks Gwen. I appreciate your advice. I didn't even notice how 'photography' was slightly lower. You can tell how much I pay attention! I had to giggle at your reply on the last pic. I do call them 'sugars'. Randy doesn't understand 'kisses', just 'sugars'! I do have a sharp southern accent, so you are envisioning it correctly! I will work on not centering so many pics. Just I crop them too close in the camera, and I am not sure how to crop them now.

Originally Posted by Jeffininer

I like the watermark, but I agree with Gwen. Move photography so it's centered with the QRS.


4. Very neat processing...what did you do? It almost looks like you smeared the background. I'd probably lighten it up a bit more. It also looks a bit too centered.



6. Ok, I WISH my DH could get such a nice picture of Ry and I. You look awesome and it is such a sweet moment!

Thanks for the comment on the WM. I will try to play some more!

For the processing, I just changed the black and white points. I changed the black to a deep dark purple, and the white to a very light yellow. That's all. Super easy! I will try to play some more though! Thanks!

As for the pic of Randy and I- thank you! I usually don't like pics of myself, but when it comes to a pic WITH my kids, I'll do it!

Originally Posted by Gehana

#5 LOVE, LOVE!!! sillohettes and sun flares are the things i want to work on next.
#1 is awesome too. it's liek he's almost smiling at you
Your edit seems ok to me in #4, just add a bit more pop in the colour to make the flower stand out more and i think it would be even better

I like to see simple WMs so perrsonally for me i'm not diggin this one too much. I just find the frame and the font too much. again, that's just me

Thanks for the comment on the WM. I know it wouldn't be everyone's cup of tea. I am still working on it. I want to add an owl to it and just add the name. I don't want the frame, but that was what I was going to use for now.

Originally Posted by Amy_&_Eva

I'll write more soon but WHOA that sunset pic is AMAZING Sadie!!! I am so jealous!!! How'd you get allllllllll that orangey gold in there???

Thanks Amy! I just upped my reds, magentas, and yellows, and there it was. It didn't look exactly like that, but it looked a lot like that! They have a gorgeous place out there!

I love #2, #4, and #5 the best. #2 is great because you've included so much detail but successfully kept the focus on the flower with the bee. The focus isn't super sharp, but I think it works in this photo. #4 is a lovely composition, and I really like the lavender background. I would like to see the flower "pop" a little more by making it a little brighter. #5, what can I say? It's simply a gorgeous shot!

Did you shoot #2 and #3 in full sunlight? I was just wondering why you shot at such a high shutter speed.

Originally Posted by Quetzal1

I love #2, #4, and #5 the best. #2 is great because you've included so much detail but successfully kept the focus on the flower with the bee. The focus isn't super sharp, but I think it works in this photo. #4 is a lovely composition, and I really like the lavender background. I would like to see the flower "pop" a little more by making it a little brighter. #5, what can I say? It's simply a gorgeous shot!

Did you shoot #2 and #3 in full sunlight? I was just wondering why you shot at such a high shutter speed.

THANKS! They were shot in direct sunlight.

OK I'm back. HEY everyone, that is not a bee in #2, that's a drone fly/flower fly---they have evolved to mimic bees as a method of self defense. So no worries haha!

Sadie, I like your WM, even if it's fancier than most. That's what makes it unique.

I love the tiger, and the bokeh in all your flower pics. The daisy's petal edges aren't in focus though so maybe use a slightly narrower aperture....

That's so cool how you did your edit for #4 because in most vintage actions/edits they use a combination blue blend layer overtop (or under) a yellow blend layer!

Your rose is gorgeous.

Sadie, I think the newest rose has too much sun on the petals. seems blown in spots.