Southwell Classic Car/Bike Show & Waterskiing in Laneham.

[DubFan]

Thanks mate.Next purchase after this one will be a wide angle.I really fancy a fish eye too.
Im slowly getting to grips with Lightroom but since i sold my watercooled pc set up im only using the laptop so i will be getting a decent mouse to plug in and then hook it up to the tv.

A decent mouse is essential (I think). I use my laptop for everything (PC had to go to make space for baby 2) so I have a Logitech wireless laser mouse.
I wouldn't bother with using the TV because a) it's not as high resolution as a computer screen, and b) you'd have to sit about 1metre from it to edit properly which would probably mean sitting on the floor.
I would only resort to using a TV if the laptop screen was terrible and you didn't have space for a decent monitor.

As for your shots: I like the first Escort, angle and colours are good. I also like the blue Ford (even though it's got a dodgy bit of grass, which I didn't spot straight away).

The ones of the water skiier are too far away, you needed to get in close with a zoom to see what the skier is doing. You've caught him in mid air twice, but he's so small there's no drama to it.

And the shot of the power station is rather boring, nothing particularly draws the eye in, and there's no drama.
When there is no movement, you need something to draw the viewer in, either using sight lines (eg a fence or railway going into the distance) or depth of field or light or some singular dramatic object.

This is what I would do with the power station (although I would probably have moved and taken another photo from another angle):


Anyway, that's my thoughts they are your photos.

Oh and definitely get that 50mm asap. When it arrives, leave it on the camera for a couple of weeks and get used to it. Because you can't zoom, you're forced to think more about your composition, your position and angle. Plus you can get lovely depth of field with f1.8 (although I tend to only go as low as f2.8 these days).

[LowlifeDubber]

Thats some sound advice,thanks for the criticism.
I agree about the power station pic.I was looking for a leading line somewhere but where you see that little pond/lake it is actually an old ash slurry pit and its like quicksand(few lives been lost there too) so i just took a couple of pics and carried on with the walk.

Funnily enough i tried editing on the tv last night and your right,it sucks ha ha.Ive got a 17" monitor on the laptop and it has a decent graphics card so i will carry on like i am doing all be it with a better mouse.I do have a gaming mouse left over a Vaerbatim Rapier3 and i can program different functions to different buttons so i will have a crack at that after i finish work tomorrow.

As for the skier i found because i was so far away as i couldnt get any closer if i zoomed in too much i only got the skier and not the boat or vice versa.I was trying to get both in instead of concentrating on one or the other which in hindsight should have been the way to go.

Really looking forward to getting the 50mm as im hoping it will help me improve a lot more.

Thanks again for your advice.

Currently looking through talk photography forum too which seems quite handy for tips etc.Any more yopu can recommend?

Gary

[T_J_G]

Read whatever you can, and watch YouTube vids.

I think once you have a prime lens you focus a lot more on composition.

I find it's better to come away with one wow shot rather than a bunch of average ones. Sometimes I end up with none (like today's effort!)

[LowlifeDubber]

Im doing a lot of reading but no vids so far,although ive been buying a lot of magazines lately and they have free dvd workshops ive been looking at.

Just out of interest,how long does it take you to set up per shot?
90% of my photos will be of cars but im just interested how long it would take the more professional photographers to set the camera up per shot?

[T_J_G]

It depends what I'm shooting. For a car it could be 10 secs to adjust settings and compose. But when I'm using the 10 stop filter it can be about 5 minutes.

[LowlifeDubber]

*Googles 10 stop filter.......

[DubFan]

It will depend on what light you're using. If you're using just natural light during the day, you're not likely to need to set up much (unless you're using a "10 stop" ND filter which enables you to use a larger aperture and get a shallow DoF).
If however you're shooting a car in the evening or indoors and you want to light it up with a flash etc, then that takes time to set up and get right.

Are you talking mainly about taking photos of cars at shows or getting into doing a propper photoshoot of a car?
Stuff at car shows is always going to be a little limited due to time, crowds, setting, etc.
If you're interested in doing photoshoots of a single car, then you have much more control of it.

This shot below will have taken a fair bit to set up with extra lights/flash.

Back Alley Game by Ronaldo.S, on Flickr

This one is good even though the background building could be a local supermarket.

JeremyHRE1 by Mike Burroughs, on Flickr

Oh and for advice, search flickr for some car related groups, and look at the discussions, you'll find info there and post your photos to the groups to see what people think.

[LowlifeDubber]

Love them 2 pictures.
It will mainly be at car shows and meets i take photos i have a big American car show i go to every year at Newark showground coming up in a month so want to hone my skills a bit more for then.If i dont get this 50mm off this guy i think i will buy another one in time for it.

I would like to do photoshoots on my own car and with other local lads too purely to see what it looks like.
Ive started using it for my build thread and have come up with a couple but im still needing to get my composure and location right.





Also got a couple of my mates mk1 Escort.



But ive been trying to get to grips with outdoor wildlife type stuff playing with settings even though i find it incredibly boring.






But again i need vast improvement and i realise this will only come with practice and asking you guys for advice but im really enjoying it and it makes a refreshing change for one of my hobbies to not involve spannering.

Will take a look at the car groups tonight,thanks.

[T_J_G]

To be honest if you want a whole car in shot 50mm may be too long depending on setting.

Maybe try taking your car to a nice location seeing what you can come up with

[DubFan]

Here's a nifty tutorial for how to get a car in motion. It doesn't use an expensive rig or even require the car going at speed.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyLMtY4BDg4

Must have Start kit:
http://www.carphototutorials.com/must_have_base_equipment.html

Here's a good article on what sort of kit you could get after you've bought your first DSLR:
http://www.carphototutorials.com/your_second_shopping_list.html

Tips for an outdoor car shoot:
http://www.carphototutorials.com/10_tips_for_your_first_outdoor_car_shoot.html

Actually there's lots of good articles on that website, I would read all of them, but here's a couple more:

Mistakes to avoid:
http://www.carphototutorials.com/common_mistakes_when_shooting_a_car.html

Shooting an indoor show:
http://www.carphototutorials.com/photographing_an_indoor_car_show_like_a_pro.html

Secrets of a good car photo:
http://www.carphototutorials.com/the_secrets_behind_a_great_car_photo.html

Using Depth of Field:
http://www.carphototutorials.com/dof_depth_of_field.html


This is probably my best car shot, on the street with my 50mm lens, I used f4 but if I'd have gone for a wider aperture like f2.8 then more of the background would be blurred.

Lambo by AlistairBeavis, on Flickr