The 1st image i was happy with..

[groovesection]

New to photography (had my camera about 4 weeks)
Figured i would add this picture for C&C.
It was taken 3 weeks ago (2nd October) and is a feature in Norwich.
The shot is from the top of the alley from St Benedicts looking towards St Lawrences Little Steps

Shot with my EOS1100D and kit EF 18-55mm (I now have a sigma 18-125)
27mm FL - f4 - iso100 - 1.3sec exp (tripod mounted) 4.30am GMT
This was the first photo i was happy with, minimal tweaks in Camera Raw (i had only just started using raw and pp software

Comments, criticism, and any advice welcomed

[Coinneachmhor]

I have to say a great start Anton! I like your composition and the colours. You have some nice lines to draw the eye through the image. A couple of points where I think you could improve is to remove the leaves from the top as I find them slightly distracting and also, have a look at this thread (Night Time Photography) where I posted night time photos and got some excellent feedback from DubaiPhil on how to prevent the blown areas in the lights. That said, keep up the good work and I look forward to seeing more of your images.

[Geoff F]

Any mix of bright lights and heavy shadows is going to be difficult to photograph; but this has worked well.

[Mark von Kanel]

Its strange what the eye sees, just like kenny my first thought was " i wish hed swept up first" nice shot Anton, well done.

[Mike Buckley]

I'm especially impressed with the quality of the white balance considering that you're so new to photography.

[Cogito]

.... minimal tweaks in Camera Raw (i had only just started using raw and pp software. .... Comments, criticism, and any advice welcomed

First comment - Shoot Raw. If you feel the need for "better" software to process your images, go for it. There is so much more detail available in a RAW image over a Jpeg that it is worth the cost of an extra flash card to contain the images.
Second comment - well done. A fine image. Unless you are a professional ( and since it's your first camera and one of your first shots... ) you won't shoot 20+ shots of this view. So your shot is going to have some leaves (that could be cropped out) and some gravel (top left on the steps) but so what? Your lighting - the crux of this image - is excellent. Keep going

[Shadowman]

Very nice effort.

[groovesection]

Firstly thanks everyone for your replies and advice. much appreciated.

I should clarify a few things, Firstly i did shoot it raw, the image posted has been tweaked in camera raw and saved as a jpg.
Basically just the white balance and a few other tweaks (pincj of recovery/contrast) and a small crop for composition.

I totally agree about the leaves It would have been better if i had cleaned them up off the floor and better composed without the leaves at the top.that is something i will not forget in future haha.
It was also 4.30am when i shot it and i wanted to get the shot and get home being in the city centre so late

[Dave Humphries]

Hi Anton,

To pick up on something that immediately attracted my eye, the blue highlight on the railings - I'm not sure if they are painted fairly light blue and it only shows properly under the lamp, or whether that blue colour is an artefact of blown specular highlights on a shiny surface.

I raise it because I found with my Canon S100 (fancy P&S), I had to deal with quite a bit of blue coloured blooming around the light sources and metallic reflections in scenes like this and this. Mind you, I cheated and shot mine without a tripod Good on you for doing it properly.

However, it is a VERY good effort, definitely one to be pleased with.

Well done,

[tbob]

Perhaps just to be contrary; I think the scattered leaves add rather than detract from the natural appearance and give a subtle sense of season to the scene. I do agree with the prior comments about the quality of the image.

This is one of those things that once seen begins to obsess. What is the lighter patch in the lower left corner? I am unable to figure out from the lighting it's source.

[Mike Buckley]

I think the scattered leaves add rather than detract from the natural appearance and give a subtle sense of season to the scene.

I agree. I thought I was the only person who felt that way so I didn't mention it.

[groovesection]

Perhaps just to be contrary; I think the scattered leaves add rather than detract from the natural appearance and give a subtle sense of season to the scene. I do agree with the prior comments about the quality of the image.

This is one of those things that once seen begins to obsess. What is the lighter patch in the lower left corner? I am unable to figure out from the lighting it's source.

The black shadow in the bottom left corner is the wall on the right of the image.
behind me and the tripod was a streetlight which threw up the shadow

Thanks everyone for the input, seems the leaves are contentious and obviously subjective. Personally i think i would have cleared them in hindsight.

[groovesection]

Hi Anton,

To pick up on something that immediately attracted my eye, the blue highlight on the railings - I'm not sure if they are painted fairly light blue and it only shows properly under the lamp, or whether that blue colour is an artefact of blown specular highlights on a shiny surface.

I raise it because I found with my Canon S100 (fancy P&S), I had to deal with quite a bit of blue coloured blooming around the light sources and metallic reflections in scenes like this and this. Mind you, I cheated and shot mine without a tripod Good on you for doing it properly.

However, it is a VERY good effort, definitely one to be pleased with.

Well done,

The railings are gloss black paint, it is indeed an artifact over the blown highlights, that is evidently clear on the farthest light
i shot it forcing iso100 in AV mode which was a mistake
I wish i had shot it at iso200 with an f8 aperture that would have probably stopped the blown highlights and had really sharp focus throughout.

Every photo is a learning curve

[Mark von Kanel]

Anton dont be so hard on yourself its a damn good photo (despite the leaves!) id be proud to say its mine.