Sharpening My Skills

[tq-07fan]

If I had an Album cover it would either be two trackless trolleys (trolleybuses) passing each other on Mt Aulburn Ave and one facing the camera on Mt Aberdeen in Cambridge (Boston) Mass with a skull burning in the sky or it would be me on a bench in front of a Bob Evans looking down at my feet with the title "The Hard Way" because it seems like no matter what I do it's been learned the hard way. Well, I've had this digital camera since February 2008 and I am still learning much about what I can do with the it and then what I can do with the pictures using the Picture Project program that came with camera. Before today I really hadn't played around with the Picture Project (somehow abriviating and saying " Before today I really hadn't played around with the PP" sounds wrong). Today after having sent a picture to RP I started playing with Pict Prjct and learned a lot. Now I see why many of my pictures tend to suck after they are compressed. Here are two examples, shot out of a fast moving car on Springboro Pike at Moraine Yard (my dad was driving, it's the only speed he knows). These two have about the most difference between uncorrected and corrected being that they were both grab shots because each digital picture costs so damn little, why not. I auto corrected brightness and color, sharpened using the sharpenning option and then straightned (try doing that with a 2x2 slide) and cropped the image. Two images that would never be posted on the internet are now at least fit to be post as an example. I am most pleased and can now say even more countless hours will be waisted here on the computer.  ;D

Jim

[JCagle]

I'm glad to see you are getting some things figured out. I see you have picked up on leveling out your shots. In time you'll find that you catch yourself leveling even quick shots as best you can in the viewfinder. There are lots of things to get down while shooting, and it can seem like quite a bit at first. Don't get frustrated. Just work on things one at a time. As you learn your camera and it's controls and start getting things down it will become second nature.

We'll be glad to help you along the way.

I would say focus on getting things down with the camera first, because the more things you do as you take the picture the less you have to do later. It is all a checklist that becomes second nature as you get things down. Many of the old heads make it look easy, but lots of planning goes into a well executed shot. That's what separates a photograph from a snapshot.

First off would be to think where your light is coming from. Well lit photos have light coming over your shoulder. The bad thing about rail photography is it can limit half your shots you can take right off the bat.

If you are using a manual exposure mode you have to factor in do I have the right exposure

Then you have to set the field of view and what will be in the photo.

Is everything in focus if you aren't in auto focus mode.

Then you finally get to release the shutter.