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New Camera, New Pics


Rustlestiltskin

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:cool:Well a couple weeks ago I went out and got my Fiance an early bday present, a Nikon D60 w/ 2 lenses and half dozen filters, accessories, etc..

 

Well when she's not using it I like to try and learn some photography by taking some shots with it. Mind you, only other camera I had before this was some $100 digi cam so i'm not a jedi photo taker like most of you. Just a newb w/ a decent cam learning how to shoot.

 

Well without further talking here are a couple pics I took lately. comment on them and give me tips/pointers as to how to get better pics. And just to let you know, we dont have a tripod yet for this but will be getting one soon.

 

Pics

 

1) some little creek that ran by the dam

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj288/Dubs740/DSC_0208.jpg

2) Bunz (shitzhu/llapso apso mix) taking the spotlight w/ the dam in the background

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj288/Dubs740/DSC_0210.jpg

3) A quick dirty shot of my car(shoulda washed it today since it was awesome but work kicked my ass)

This pic does not do justice for how nice the car looks in person. I just suck at pic taking

EDIT:The sig pic was an old pic that the guy had when he had coils on it

It is at stock height now and I do need to drop it though

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj288/Dubs740/DSC_0212.jpg

4)Closeup of bunz

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj288/Dubs740/DSC_0217.jpg

5) Official pose shot of bunz

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj288/Dubs740/DSC_0220.jpg

6)Final full body shot of Mr. Bunz himself

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj288/Dubs740/DSC_0222.jpg

 

All of these were without any filters

 

Hope you enjoy, i'll be taking more pictures daily so I can keep getting better at taking shots and also my fiance will be teaching me since she's an awesome picture taker

:cool:

Edited by Rustlestiltskin
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Yes you do, an old co-worker of mine had one exactly like yours. His front lip scrapped all the time because he drove it like a normal car. That lip was fucked in about a week or two :nono:

 

Yea, I'm really careful bout driving my car since it has the lower front valence on it. I'm def. gonna be extra careful when I get coils on it hopefully in a lil while

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Congrats man! If this is yours and hers first go at a DSLR you're doing great. Ping me anytime with Q's. Happy to help.

 

Here's my quick input on the pics:

 

1. Running Water

Technically, done well. Will be much better when you use a tripod of course. Key you nailed is to keep water in motion. Subject wise, you'll have a blast with waterfalls and dams.

 

2. Dog pic....nice. Either zoomed in well or with shallow depth of field (DOF). Either way, it works because that's what makes a DSLR so nice....the image "pops"

Technically, I can point you towards a number of good sites for composition, etc...very good reads. Try and compose shots so the subject isn't dead center. Rule of thirds is a good basic technique. Lastly, keep an eye on the horizon. You can fix the perspective here but when shooting architecture, just keep an eye on the lines and make them straight.

 

3. VW wise.....makes me want new wheels :)

 

4. Close ups look good. Keep the shutter speed up there and read up on using the cameras stock flash in a Fill Flash mode.

 

Enjoy man! We still have to get the cars together out on the country roads to play ;)

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Pics look good. its a fun hobby.

 

Most people recommend a UV filter on always, and a circular polarizer is great for anything with lots of reflection, i.e. glossy cars, water. For the stuff I shoot, I keep the circ pol on almost all the time. Just don't stack the glass. As far as the tripod I like manfrotto legs and heads. Affordable yet very good quality.

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I also just picked up a D50 with a 50mm 1.8D Nikor lens. I mainly take portraits of the family. Just some food for thought if you have decent lenses, why put filters or "cheap glass" in front of expensive glass? Kinda defeats the purpose of the lenses IMO.
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Pic I took of my rug rat in the living room with low light and no flash with the before stated equipment. She loves some Oreos. I am a amateur but seem to get some quality shots every now and then that I surprise myself with. It's definitely the equipment and not me.

 

http://gallery.me.com/bbotte/100107/GabrielleOreo5/web.jpg?ver=12358521650001

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I also just picked up a D50 with a 50mm 1.8D Nikor lens. I mainly take portraits of the family. Just some food for thought if you have decent lenses, why put filters or "cheap glass" in front of expensive glass? Kinda defeats the purpose of the lenses IMO.

 

depends.....there are some filters that are good to use, polarizing, graduated neutral density, neutral density....those features are hard to reproduce in Post Processing. Especially without a tripod and mutlitiple exposures.

 

UV Filters aren't needed with most digitals as sensors are way less sensitive to it than film. You can post process out any haze easily. The exception is for less quality lenses, especially zooms that tend to purple fringe. There a nice quality UV can help....but then so can post processing. Use a lens hood as noted below and to cut down / eliminate flare.

 

quality wise, if they are good filters, then you'll be fine. I have several $100+ filters that I'm fine putting over a $2,000 lens. just stay away from the real cheap ones.

 

best investment and one that should be used at all times indoors or out is a lens hood. mine have all kinds of marks on them. never so much as tapped my lens on a wall or what not. just make sure you have clearance when using a flash.

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depends.....there are some filters that are good to use, polarizing, graduated neutral density, neutral density....those features are hard to reproduce in Post Processing. Especially without a tripod and mutlitiple exposures.

 

 

I would agree if you are using a polarizing filter on water, but for the blue sky benifit just tweaking the images in "RAW" format is so easy to attain that.

 

Since I am a noob "graduated neutral density, neutral density" this is Chinese to me. :)

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I would agree if you are using a polarizing filter on water, but for the blue sky benifit just tweaking the images in "RAW" format is so easy to attain that.

 

yes/no....you can't pull quite the same depth of blue out as evenly. they also make cutting glare of cars, glass and even oil from skin or suntan lotion much easier.

 

cheaper lenses typically lack contrast. that can be brought back using a polarizer. you can always fudge contrast in PP'ing but it's just that..fudging. better to have the data from the get go. just make sure you add in +1 to +2 exposure value when using one. it will vary depending on how you have the filter positioned for the shot.

 

ND filters....very helpful. Not sure, but I think one of the drawbacks to the entry level Nikon cams is exposure bracketing...not sure if you have it or not as I don't shoot with one. A good ND filter would help in situations that would normally benefit from shots that you would bracket without a tripod handy.

 

Good shot of your daughter. No worries on the exposure. Even the web image cleaned up very nicely. Just lift the shadows, adjust the WB and add a touch of glow. No one would know there wasn't a window or a soft box right there.

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