Scenery

[Nikki2291]

These are some of my landscape pictures, I was wondering what everyone thought of them and what I could do better....Thanks in advance :D.

Salmon Hole Dam
http://nikki2291.myphotoalbum.com/view_photo.php?set_albumName=album01&id=cimg4666

The forest
http://nikki2291.myphotoalbum.com/view_photo.php?set_albumName=album01&id=cimg4476

Salmon Hole Dam (lake)
http://nikki2291.myphotoalbum.com/view_photo.php?set_albumName=album01&id=cimg4673_1

[tirediron]

C&C per req:

(Dam) A nice image - a couple of thoughts. (1) Horizons should always be horizontal and trees normally vertical. This image has a slant to the left. While the lower part of the dam is nicely exposed with good contrast, the upper part is over-bright, and the sky is blown. Looking at this, I would suggest using a combination of a circular-polarizer and a 1 stop graduated ND filter. This would have reduced the dynamic range between the shadows and highlights and save some detail in the sky.

(Forest) Another nice image, but with highlight issues. Remember that in digital work, you should generally expose for the highlights and deal with the shadows in post. There are a couple of ways you could have dealt with this. One would simply be to spot meter the highlights, and base your exposure on that. You could also use the daylight exposure rule (For bright sunlight Shutterspeed = 1/ISO @ f16) or you could have bracketed the image and produced an HDR merge. That aside, good composition, using the surround trees to frame the open area.

(Lake) Very nice! Excellent composition; the lake takes the eye right through the image. Another case where a grad ND would have made an accpetable sky even better, but that's minor. I seem some pixelation - is that over-processing or just compression by your hosting site?

Overall, some nice work with minor nitpicks. I hope I've give you some useful information with which to work.

Just my $00.02 worth - your milage may vary.

~John

[Nikki2291]

C&C per req:

(Dam) A nice image - a couple of thoughts. (1) Horizons should always be horizontal and trees normally vertical. This image has a slant to the left. While the lower part of the dam is nicely exposed with good contrast, the upper part is over-bright, and the sky is blown. Looking at this, I would suggest using a combination of a circular-polarizer and a 1 stop graduated ND filter. This would have reduced the dynamic range between the shadows and highlights and save some detail in the sky.

(Forest) Another nice image, but with highlight issues. Remember that in digital work, you should generally expose for the highlights and deal with the shadows in post. There are a couple of ways you could have dealt with this. One would simply be to spot meter the highlights, and base your exposure on that. You could also use the daylight exposure rule (For bright sunlight Shutterspeed = 1/ISO @ f16) or you could have bracketed the image and produced an HDR merge. That aside, good composition, using the surround trees to frame the open area.

(Lake) Very nice! Excellent composition; the lake takes the eye right through the image. Another case where a grad ND would have made an accpetable sky even better, but that's minor. I seem some pixelation - is that over-processing or just compression by your hosting site?

Overall, some nice work with minor nitpicks. I hope I've give you some useful information with which to work.

Just my $00.02 worth - your milage may vary.

~John


Thank-you very much for the advice and the comments. With all the photography "lingo" :p you might have to explain things a bit more because I am new to all this, the only thing I understand is ISO...lol. When I get my SLR tomorrow I can work on all of your suggestions...:D With the lake picture, I think thats probably from processing because I fixed up the saturation a bit...a little to much most likely. I was experimenting though.