Experimenting & Need Help!

[beachgirl444]

Hi, took some pictures this afternoon but I don't think the lighting is right ~ any suggestions? Thank you!

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5

[Dave Humphries]

Hi 'Beachgirl' aka Krissy,

Welcome to the CiC forums from me.

You passed the first test; all your photos are nicely uploaded to TinyPic at the biggest size they take

You may find this thread helpful;
How to Get Effective Feedback for your Posted Images (I have numbered them for you now)

Could you do me a favour please?
Could you Edit your Profile and put your first name in the Real Name field and where you are (roughly) in the Location field? - and give us a clue which beach, eh - thanks

I hope I don't 'overload' you and I certainly don't want to discourage you - but you did post 5 pictures
I am going to ask some pointed questions below - these are only to make you think, not to be nasty, so please bear that in mind.

Hi, took some pictures this afternoon but I don't think the lighting is right ~ any suggestions?

I have to ask what you thought you might get and what you wanted?
I do agree the lighting, in most, is the problem.

I note from the EXIF data that you are shooting with a Canon PowerShot A650 IS and I'll assume the subject in all cases is the clouds (later I read your welcome post which confirms this).

Clouds are usually backlit - and are fuzzy, distant subjects - all in all, quite tricky to shoot and having a camera which doesn't allow direct manual control or shoot RAW, doesn't help.

#1: EXIF = Auto exposure, 1/400 sec, f/4, ISO 80 at 7.4mm (the widest for your lens)
It shows a bit of flare on the right - is the lens clean? (might just be because no lens hood)
If the clouds are the subject in #1, why is the tree there?
Exposure isn't too bad

#2: EXIF = Auto exposure, 1/1000 sec, f/4, ISO 80 at 7.4mm
Slightly over exposed.

#3: EXIF = Auto exposure, 1/1250 sec, f/4, ISO 400 at 14.8mm
Over exposed, too many blown bits, lost some colour.
The gaps in the clouds don't form a good composition with the power line, I'd say pan left, but then we'd have even more blown sky in shot. That said, power lines, poles and pylons are not very photogenic.

#4: EXIF = Auto exposure, 1/160 sec, f/4.8, ISO 80 at 44.4mm
Correct exposure.
I would consider a crop to exclude the bright bit at the top.

#5: EXIF = Auto exposure, 1/800 sec, f/4.5, ISO 400 at 36.8mm
With a bit less exposure and some Local Contrast Enhancement (LCE), this could be quite nice. Note (in lower left corner) how the front lit cloud, behind the ridge, but in front of the other cloud bank, looks good?

My personal view is that unless a certain cloud has a definite 'character' structure, or a recognisable shape (of something else), or interacts with the landscape or sun in some way, or contains a regular pattern that makes it an "abstract", then 'clouds in the sky' shots can often lack a purpose or subject - the eye/brain doesn't know what to focus attention on, soon loses interest and moves on. For me, this applies to #1 to #3, I'm afraid.
#5 has the most potential and is my pick, in fact if I were out, I'd say it would be the only view I'd consider shooting.

In summary, you can shoot clouds with your camera, here's a check-list to help avoid some issues;
Is the lens is spotless?
If the sun is shining on the lens, can you shield that by standing with camera in a shadow, or with your hand?
After a shot, review it and assess from histogram whether it has over exposed in any areas - if it has, adjust the Exposure Compensation (more negative) and shoot again quickly, before the clouds move too far.

Please ask about any words I have used that you're not sure of - the only daft question are the ones you don't ask us.

Hope that helps,

[beachgirl444]

Hi 'Beachgirl' aka Krissy,

Welcome to the CiC forums from me.

You passed the first test; all your photos are nicely uploaded to TinyPic at the biggest size they take

You may find this thread helpful;
How to Get Effective Feedback for your Posted Images (I have numbered them for you now)

Could you do me a favour please?
Could you Edit your Profile and put your first name in the Real Name field and where you are (roughly) in the Location field? - and give us a clue which beach, eh - thanks

I hope I don't 'overload' you and I certainly don't want to discourage you - but you did post 5 pictures
I am going to ask some pointed questions below - these are only to make you think, not to be nasty, so please bear that in mind.



I have to ask what you thought you might get and what you wanted?
I do agree the lighting, in most, is the problem.

I note from the EXIF data that you are shooting with a Canon PowerShot A650 IS and I'll assume the subject in all cases is the clouds (later I read your welcome post which confirms this).

Clouds are usually backlit - and are fuzzy, distant subjects - all in all, quite tricky to shoot and having a camera which doesn't allow direct manual control or shoot RAW, doesn't help.

#1: EXIF = Auto exposure, 1/400 sec, f/4, ISO 80 at 7.4mm (the widest for your lens)
It shows a bit of flare on the right - is the lens clean? (might just be because no lens hood)
If the clouds are the subject in #1, why is the tree there?
Exposure isn't too bad

#2: EXIF = Auto exposure, 1/1000 sec, f/4, ISO 80 at 7.4mm
Slightly over exposed.

#3: EXIF = Auto exposure, 1/1250 sec, f/4, ISO 400 at 14.8mm
Over exposed, too many blown bits, lost some colour.
The gaps in the clouds don't form a good composition with the power line, I'd say pan left, but then we'd have even more blown sky in shot. That said, power lines, poles and pylons are not very photogenic.

#4: EXIF = Auto exposure, 1/160 sec, f/4.8, ISO 80 at 44.4mm
Correct exposure.
I would consider a crop to exclude the bright bit at the top.

#5: EXIF = Auto exposure, 1/800 sec, f/4.5, ISO 400 at 36.8mm
With a bit less exposure and some Local Contrast Enhancement (LCE), this could be quite nice. Note (in lower left corner) how the front lit cloud, behind the ridge, but in front of the other cloud bank, looks good?

My personal view is that unless a certain cloud has a definite 'character' structure, or a recognisable shape (of something else), or interacts with the landscape or sun in some way, or contains a regular pattern that makes it an "abstract", then 'clouds in the sky' shots can often lack a purpose or subject - the eye/brain doesn't know what to focus attention on, soon loses interest and moves on. For me, this applies to #1 to #3, I'm afraid.
#5 has the most potential and is my pick, in fact if I were out, I'd say it would be the only view I'd consider shooting.

In summary, you can shoot clouds with your camera, here's a check-list to help avoid some issues;
Is the lens is spotless?
If the sun is shining on the lens, can you shield that by standing with camera in a shadow, or with your hand?
After a shot, review it and assess from histogram whether it has over exposed in any areas - if it has, adjust the Exposure Compensation (more negative) and shoot again quickly, before the clouds move too far.

Please ask about any words I have used that you're not sure of - the only daft question are the ones you don't ask us.

Hope that helps,

[beachgirl444]

Hi Dave,

Thank you for the feedback. I'm just starting to use my new camera and it'll probably take a while to figure it all out ~ especially the lighting! I took a basic camera operating class last week, but there's still so much I need to learn about this camera to get optimal results. I feel a little intimidated with it right now!

I love clouds and luckily where I live we get some spectacular cloud formations ~ usually in the summer and fall months. My goal is to familiarize myself with my camera by summer, so I can hopefully get some great shots! I also want to experiement with landscapes and nature itself. We live close to Lake Tahoe and I can't wait to take some pictures there too!

Thank again for your helpful hints, I really appreciate it! I wanted to ask, how do I clean my lens? I've noticed in some of my pictures, there is a small dark spot and not sure what that is?

~Krissy

[Dave Humphries]

I wanted to ask, how do I clean my lens? I've noticed in some of my pictures, there is a small dark spot and not sure what that is?

Hi Krissy,

I think I'd have to see an example.
Dark spots are usually 'dust bunnies' on DSLR sensors, but that shouldn't apply to your camera as it is sealed at manufacture. Can you post an example somewhere, perhaps a new thread is best.

I use a lens pen device (quite cheap from Amazon or similar, more expensive if you go to a shop).
Specifically, I use the disk end of an LP-1, but that might be a bit big for your PowerShot.

This shows the different sizes available;


By the way, I would never rub the brush or disk on my hand or fingers like the demo lady does
That just puts the gunk we are trying to clean off onto the brush or pad - you wouldn't wash up the plates after a meal with your tooth brush then immediately clean your teeth, would you? Yeuk!

Cheers,

[Gospelflier]

Thanks for the info. I have a lens pen and now I know how to use it