River/Landscape photos

[Linus]

These are three of my favorite shots. I am very new to photography and have been experimenting with some of the basic principles of photography with my camera (shutter speed, aperture, the rule of thirds/ect, histogram) Until recently, I did not have a tripod or much of a stabling mechanism and discovered how challenging taking a sharp/focused picture can be...

[rpcrowe]

Linus...
Welcome to Cambridge in Colour. I would suggest that you peruse the sticky on how to post images which is located above.
There are also some wonderful tutorials on this site that range from the very basics to some advanced shooting and post processing techniques.
You mentioned, "Until recently, I did not have a tripod or much of a stabling mechanism and discovered how challenging taking a sharp/focused picture can be... "
In actuality, shooting a landscape in the daytime should not be that challenging regarding achieving a sharp/focused picture.
If you hand-hold using a shutter speed that is approximately the reciprocal of your focal length x crop factor (as an example for a 50mm lens on a Canon 1.5x crop DSLR, the minimum shutter speed would be 1/50 second x 1.5 or 1/75 second) and if you select an aperture (f/stop) in the area of f/8 to f/11 you should generally have no trouble getting a sharp/focused picture. The shots which include significant foreground, might be better at f/11 or so while general shots would work quite well at f/8. Adjust your ISO to allow that shutter speed and aperture combination.
The above technique would require shooting in the AV (aperture priority) mode. Most cameras, even basic P&S cameras are capable of shooting in the AV mode.
Using a tripod is a wonderful way to shoot but, it is not entirely required unless you are shooting in a lower light level.

Again, welcome and keep posting...

[Linus]

Thank you for the helpful feedback and encouragement. I'm gonna try this again...[IMG] GEDSC DIGITAL CAMERA by Linus254, on Flickr[/IMG]

[Geoff F]

For me, Linus, this is a rather plain plant against a distracting background so you aren't making the most of the opportunities here.

I would consider cropping to remove the right side leaf and possibly a little bit from the left side. Maybe a fraction from the top as well if necessary.

This will end up as a different size ratio so you need to decide what fits best. Maybe 3 x 2 or 5 x 4 ratio?

I'm just holding pieces of card against my screen but it does seem to give a lot more impact to the foreground plant.

[Linus]

Great! I will tinker with it some and see how it shakes out. Thank you for the feedback.

[FrankMi]

Hi Linus, glad to have you posting at CiC.

In all three images, you may want to ask yourself "What is the subject?" and "Does the remainder of the composition complement or conflict with the subject?"

If the remainder of the composition is too prominent or too busy it can take the eye away from the subject and detract from the enjoyment of the image. If that is the case it may be worth while exploring different shooting angles.

[damien]

Linus i love the shot, now im not sure what level of photgraphy your at but i feel alot of people seem to think that were all pros on here, at the end of the day if your happy with this shot then that should all matter, but as i said i love it !!

[MrB]

Linus i love the shot, now im not sure what level of photography your at but i feel alot of people seem to think that were all pros on here, at the end of the day if your happy with this shot then that should all matter, but as i said i love it !!

Damien, there seems to be an unfair sentiment here. The secondary title at the top of the page is "A Learning Community for Photographers", and I think most people who join this site do so to learn how to make progress. Many, I would guess the majority, are amateur photographers, and some of us have only limited experience. I feel sure this is also known to those who comment on images posted by others, and in my experience here their replies are posted with the intention of being helpful. In this thread, the comments from Richard, Geoff and Frank are not only relevant to the images posted by Linus (who appreciated them), but also relevant and instructive generally, adding to the fund of knowledge that can help us all to think about how we might improve our photography.

Philip