any better?

when we first got out Canon D300 I posted some pics that I thought were decent

you guys quickly corrected me

we have been working on improving, but still can't take pics that show just how good this camera is

we have enrolled in 2 classes in th next couple of months that are D300 specific

really looking forward to that!

here are our recent attempts.....what do yall think
......they have not been modified in any after the fact enhancement progam

I think that very few people will ever be able to use the D300 to its true potential. The rule is to keep shooting and learning.

You have chosen a difficult subject to photo. Insects can be very cool but you are going to have to burn a lot of shots to get that one. In any case, I like the idea (a flying dragonfly), but I think the shots are a little cluttered and a bit overexposed. These would be more effective if you could isolate the subject a lot more so that the blades of grass in the background were barely if not completely unidentifiable as individual blades. To do that I would try and get the shot where the dragonfly has some more distance between it and the grass background and then shoot it with something like a 300mm at F2.8 or F4 (those btw are pretty pricey (you can get one at B&H for $4500) .

Here is a frog I got the otherday


Good luck and keep shooting/posting


Later

Bakes

thanks Bakes
good advice

we are still learning, but also still trying

Canon D300? Don't believe that camera exists. Canon 300D or Nikon D300.... about a $1200 difference

Your photos are lacking basic photography skills. Your subject is dead smack in the middle. Almost always a photographic no no. The subject gets lost in a busy background. All DSLRs basically operate the same. You should look more into a photography class instead of a "D300" class. You need to learn how f stops and shutter speeds and ISO settings affect photographs. As well as learn about composition and lighting. If the class you signed up for does that, great, then you are on your way.

If you look at Bakes photo, it appears to be in the middle of the picture. But it isn't. Your eyes immediately go to the frogs eyes. But the eyes aren't in the middle. They are in the upper third of the photo. He used the "rule of thirds" here. That background also doesn't distract from the photo. It is fairly bland and nothing stands out from it causing you to focus away from the frog. The background serves it purpose of complimenting the frog. And of course, as usual, the exposure and focus is spot on.

(Message edited by bigdad on May 09, 2008)

bigdad, you are right about the brand
it is a Nikon

and thanks for the comments
probably the most helpful comments that I've gotten in awhile

I have been looking for a cheat sheet camera settings.......what setting affects what.....

I guess I need to make my own

thanks

photography-on-the.net and fredmiranda.com

2 very good sources of information. That is where I learned the most whenever I started out.

thanks Andrew
I will check it out

Don't worry about the cheat sheets. Just get a couple of good books and start trying to do what they recommend. I recommend "Understanding Exposure" as a pretty good starting point.

Also, ban yourself from taking shots in anything expect A,S or M mode. Learn how there are at least 6-7 "correct" exposures (actually there are a lot more) for each shot but only you can decide which one reflects what you were trying to convey. By forcing yourself to make the decision for each shot you will learn quickly how aperture, shutter speed and ISO affect things. Having it on Program mode slows down the learning curve IMHO.

If you don't already have it yet, get lightroom or Aperture as your initial image processing software. They are relatively inexpensive ($200 and $300) and you are going to need them if you are going to do anything more than a few snapshots here and there.

Anyways, just keep taking pics

Later

Bakes

Understanding Exposure is a great book. But Composition is key. Just spend a lot of time on photography websites looking at photos. Learn the basics of composition.

It also looks like you took those photos at high noon. How do I know? The light is flat and harsh. The shadows go straight down and don't give the photos a sense of motion.

I hope you don't mind but I did an edit on your photo. I moved the dragonfly using the "rule of thirds" philosophy. See how the dragonfly now becomes the central focus of the photo.

Flying objects like bugs and birds are tough. There is no way the dragonfly in that first shot would be in focus given that BG unless the cam's center AF point had the bug locked. Tracking an insect against a BG like that is near impossible even with the CP most of the time. The key is to get close enough that the subject has good detail. You're right on the border with those 2 shots, a little closer and you could crop both of those, get good framing and still have good detail in the subject.

thanks for all of the input guys

don't mind at all bigdad....looks alot better

thanks