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Author Topic: Please critque my pictures - thank you  (Read 21699 times)

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« Reply #50 on: April 23, 2015, 08:43 »
-10
It's amazing how much time people have to write lengthy answers to a troll. Must be making a lot of $$ and not have to get much work done.


« Reply #51 on: April 23, 2015, 11:30 »
+3
Thanks guys all the great answers. You made so many comments that I can hardly reply to everyone of you, sorry if that happens.

No Free Lunch

« Reply #52 on: April 23, 2015, 11:45 »
+8
It's amazing how much time people have to write lengthy answers to a troll. Must be making a lot of $$ and not have to get much work done.

What is it with the 'Troll' thing? A newbie comes on line and now they are all trolls? I guess I am troll also since I am not a pro like you  :-[


« Last Edit: April 23, 2015, 12:02 by No Free Lunch »

« Reply #53 on: April 23, 2015, 13:10 »
+1
http://www.2shared.com/file/V9E3tMaK/kldeni.html

Watch out!
Bitdefender blocked this page
This page is blocked by Bitdefender Antimalware filter.


I see now why you don't want download it. You think it is a virus. Well I just uploaded my pictures to 2shared yesterday, and after your complaint I redownloaded it from the site. My AVG Internet Security didn't find anything. And I am sure as hell, didn't upload any virus into it, I can barely program in C.

But I understand, that you don't trust a newcomer, so I try to upload the pictures. However free picture uploading sites all say that they retain the copyright if I use them. So that's a nono. I guess I have to make multiple posts here because of the 4 attachment limit.

Is that okay?


it's got nothing to do with "not trusting a newcomer", but you might want to make your work *accessible* not only for this but for all other situations as well in order to achieve *any* rate of success out there. This goes for photo galleries as well as writing and/or pitching your work (any work) to editors (photo editors or otherwise). If people who are even willing to help you out here and take a look at your pic are greeted with 404s or virus warnings or anything like that, then this is not the right way to do it.

You need to get a grip of these things anyway or I would advise very strongly against going down that road.

« Reply #54 on: April 23, 2015, 14:04 »
0
Its a quick mock up but it gives you an idea of where to take it. Skies with clouds are ten times better. If you loose color because of

shooting into the sun, or on a overcast day, you can always try black and white. You can also use photoshop to create some interesting

compositions.


Thanks a lot. I thought that cutting and reversing parts of a picture, and then copying it to make a new picture is a bad editing

technique, and avoided it, because I thought that they would reject such outright. However the one you did looks better than the original

picture.

I just don't know how to retouch these kind of discontinuity lines to make them disappear, so the picture will look seamless.

Indeed for the first look the pictures are way better with clouds, but is this a legitimate tactic in the eyes of rewievers?

On the black and white town picture, did you add just clouds or edited the contrast too?

I don't really understand the editing in the first picture, is it just some cuts? I mean is it better because the subject flag is more

emphasisesd?

My 100% honest truth critique...

Which is almost exactly the same as my opinion.
With the greatest respect, you are not at present "a photographer". 
You are technically way off. You need to study lighting, and/or use of natural light, understand aperture and depth of field. Composition.

Post processing. The list is endless. Then you start on stock. What might sell (there is no definite there) seeing trends, finding niche

subjects.
And shoot, shoot, shoot. . .
You are very quickly going to find the limitations of your equipment. The shots you have put up here are full of noise, purple fringing

and Chromatic aberration.
Again, good luck with this. I honestly think that you need to go away and learn about the basics of good photography before joining the

race that this business is. Plenty of books and online tutorials are available. 


I looked up DoF and instantly realized that I missed critical knowledge of photography, I never thought that DoF or something that I

imagined regarding focus, since I didn't know the term, could be changed. They said the size of the DoF can be changed, and the DoF behind

and infront of the focus could be different (I still have to grasp how is this possible).

I have to find out how to change this  on my camera.

Reading about aperture, I made a personal discovery (I know this comes naturally for you, but for me it was an "Heureka moment"). So on

aperture depends if I restrict the image to collinated light only or for light from every angle. I presume that light sources (trees,

etc.) which light comes in an angle will look blurred, wheras light sources which light comes collinated will look sharp.

I don't exactly understand, but hyphotetize that with small aperture, but long exposition more parts of the picture will become sharp

(larger DoF, landscape), wheras large aperture and short exposition produces images where only some parts of the image are sharp (smaller

DoF, portraits).

I think the reason for that usage is that on a person you don't want to concentrate on unimportant details, because humans look at the

face, probably most on the eyes, but you want to see the whole landscape not just trees or statues.

Am I right?

Well I think I have to make at least tens of pictures with different settings about the same subject, that means I have to spend hours

photographing only one glass of milk, or a church, which is really slow work, sigh. I really have try hard, not to loose interest, as I

have did with many thing in the past, I have to do this.

I just read, that digital cameras are more sensitive of chromatic aberration and purple fringing (I didn't know what that was until now).

Despite interested in science it never occured to me, that since different colors have different wavelenghts, the camera will capture the

differently. I deduced that purple fringing occurs on the edges, because it is everywhere, but more visible where light differs greatly.

I have to use filters for digital cameras, but my camera don't have a socket, so bad luck.

I think that a bigger problem than your lack of technical skill (which definitely is a problem) is that you appear not to know that what

you're looking at is not good - not good composition or lighting and generally without any clear subject. Without that basic eye for

design and story telling you will have a hard time with illustration, 3D modeling, photography or anything visual.

You certainly have some determination to your credit. Sometimes people know their images aren't any good - not even nice snapshots - but

they don't know how to make them better. That can be fixed by learning technical skills.

If you honestly thought these were pleasing images (forget even being good stock) then you need to wait to learn techniques until you have

some notion of light, shadow, composition and telling a story visually.

Sorry if this sounds harsh, but I don't think it helps to sugar coat things.

And if you knew these images were awful, what made you think they might work as stock? Do some searches on Shutterstock or Stocksy and

look at the images there. That's your competition.

Good luck


I honestlythough my images are good. I thought that you only have to shoot something unusual, or something that only rarely happens and

you need the perfect time to capture it (thinking of this a passing train is not that unusual). These pictures were important for me

because I knew their story, I knew my emotions, the situation, and somehow this made me think that they were good shoots. While others

only see the product, basically I am biased towards my work, I have to be more objective.

I am thinking about nieches and themes for me, because I realized now that landscape, buildings or insects are too broad themes. It's hard

to narrow it down that much, in the past I thought that only produces boring images (the same theme all the time).

Dunno, probably sewers? Or flames? Someone suggested local monuments, I have check it out if shutterstock has pictures what were made

here.

Yep it does. But only 350, filled with monuments, sport events and festivals, and a few nature photos, but I can see the gaps there.

Compositionally, I see some potential in a few, but as mentioned earlier, technically they are not good. Take, for instance, the image of

the house sitting in the trees with the lake and mountains in the background. There is no detail at all in the shadows where the house is.

Those trees should be green instead of almost black. And with the closeup of the spider that is yellow and black...the highlights have

been blown out on a good portion of the spider. Not sure if you used a tripod, but on macro shots, you must, or you will get blur.

I notice on some them there are harsh shadows, meaning there wasn't enough light and/or your flash didn't fire. Lighting will be a big

challenge.

There are articles online about people who shoot with point-and-shoot cameras such as yours, and they get beautiful, stock-worthy results.

Maybe you could search for some tips on how to get more out of what you have to work with.

I really like the mood of the image of the sunset in the marshes. You got some lens flare from shooting into the sun and there are other

technical issues, but if the technical issues were fixed, I can see how it might be used commercially. As well as with a few others you

posted.

I would suggest doing a lot of research to learn what makes a good image, and then do a lot of shooting. We ALL started out where you did,

and some of us have some beginner shots still in our portfolios, especially those of us who started 10 or more years ago in microstock.


Thanks for thee feedback. Is lensflare bad? I thought that it was nice. I read somewhere that shooting into the sun damages the

photreceptors, so now I try to avoid it.

By the way I have travel to that marsh, and that takes a day, so I have to invest more time at thing closer to me.

http://www.2shared.com/file/V9E3tMaK/kldeni.html

Watch out!
Bitdefender blocked this page
This page is blocked by Bitdefender Antimalware filter.


I see now why you don't want download it. You think it is a virus. Well I just uploaded my pictures to 2shared yesterday, and after your

complaint I redownloaded it from the site. My AVG Internet Security didn't find anything. And I am sure as hell, didn't upload any virus

into it, I can barely program in C.

But I understand, that you don't trust a newcomer, so I try to upload the pictures. However free picture uploading sites all say that they

retain the copyright if I use them. So that's a nono. I guess I have to make multiple posts here because of the 4 attachment limit.

Is that okay?


it's got nothing to do with "not trusting a newcomer", but you might want to make your work *accessible* not only for this but for all

other situations as well in order to achieve *any* rate of success out there. This goes for photo galleries as well as writing and/or

pitching your work (any work) to editors (photo editors or otherwise). If people who are even willing to help you out here and take a look

at your pic are greeted with 404s or virus warnings or anything like that, then this is not the right way to do it.

You need to get a grip of these things anyway or I would advise very strongly against going down that road.


I didn't planned to use batch files on shutterstock or any site, I was just in a hurry here. The next day I had the time.

ShadySue

  • There is a crack in everything
« Reply #55 on: April 23, 2015, 14:12 »
+5

I looked up DoF and instantly realized that I missed critical knowledge of photography, I never thought that DoF or something that I imagined regarding focus, since I didn't know the term, could be changed. They said the size of the DoF can be changed, and the DoF behind and infront of the focus could be different (I still have to grasp how is this possible).
I have to find out how to change this  on my camera.

Reading about aperture, I made a personal discovery (I know this comes naturally for you, but for me it was an "Heureka moment").

No, really...
Not one of us comes out of the womb knowing this technical stuff.
It has to be learned.
Some people are more naturally gifted compositionally, true; but getting our heads round the technical stuff is work.
« Last Edit: April 23, 2015, 14:44 by ShadySue »

« Reply #56 on: April 23, 2015, 14:16 »
+1

I looked up DoF and instantly realized that I missed critical knowledge of photography, I never thought that DoF or something that I imagined regarding focus, since I didn't know the term, could be changed. They said the size of the DoF can be changed, and the DoF behind and infront of the focus could be different (I still have to grasp how is this possible).
I have to find out how to change this  on my camera.

Reading about aperture, I made a personal discovery (I know this comes naturally for you, but for me it was an "Heureka moment").

No, really...
Not one of us comes out of the womb knowing this techical stuff.
It has to be learned.
Some people are more naturally gifted compositionally, true; but getting our heads round the technical stuff is work.

I know, I just forgot to add now. I meant that when someone becomes skilled sometimes it's harder for them to imagine that other don't know that stuff, what they use everyday.

« Reply #57 on: April 23, 2015, 14:37 »
0
Well it looks as if you've made a start on learning. Good! You won't learn it all in a day though. try to take some time to let it sink in.
Chromatic aberration and purple fringing seem to come more from the lens used than anything else. I don't think the camera you have will output RAW files, but output files at the very best quality you can. You can post process for that, but you're a way off needing to do that.
In fact I wouldn't worry too much about processing at this stage. Semmick Photos edits show what can be done, but at this stage, if I were you I'd concentrate on getting it right in the camera.


Try shooting fully Manual mode, set the metering area to the smallest possible (spot if the camera supports it) set ISO to the lowest value. If you can select the focusing points then just select one.
Take control of the camera in other words. Meter and focus on the subject of your shot.
And look. Actually see what's in the viewfinder.
And again. Good luck.

aly

« Reply #58 on: April 23, 2015, 17:37 »
0
It took me  two years to learn the basic principles of good photography and that was because every day I took images and analysed them .After 4  attempts I was accepted on SS . Keep learning and look at other  peoples work on SS to get an idea of technical standards. You are persistent  so don't let anyone drag you down .I am sure you will make it in the end but it will be a long road. None of the pics critiqued were up to SS standard-for the reasons already stated by others on this forum. I shoot lots of flowers and  they are my second best sellers.I also do many illustrations in abstract as I have developed my own style which are readily accepted. You must find a niche and work on it. Good luck.

« Reply #59 on: April 23, 2015, 18:28 »
0
:D  Hermitlog, you will enjoy photography more and more, with practice, time spend studying the technical aspects of it, and then learning what to do in order to get the results you want.  At that point, you become like a skilled chef, able to whip a few simple ingredients into a delicious dish at any moment with the given tools.  Depth of field is a lot of fun!  When to use shallow, when not to... that's where your creativity comes into play.  Also realizing that you can sometimes only do the best with the given conditions, or the limits of your gear.

« Reply #60 on: April 24, 2015, 01:40 »
0
What do you think about my models? Are my skills comercially viable or not? I know that I boched up the textures a bit. I also made other works, but I don't want to upload videos of complex mechanical machines, because it is more time consuming.

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Semmick Photo

« Reply #61 on: April 24, 2015, 02:17 »
0
I have no idea about 3D renders but the shadows seem off and make the image look dirty.


Semmick Photo

« Reply #62 on: April 24, 2015, 02:17 »
0
I think LEGO is copyrighted.

« Reply #63 on: April 24, 2015, 02:24 »
0
I think LEGO is copyrighted.

I know, this was just about my modeling skills. I can set up new light sources because these were shoot with diffuse light.

Semmick Photo

« Reply #64 on: April 24, 2015, 02:43 »
+4
You seem to know how to photograph stuff then. You also seem to know more than you let us believe. I am not sure anymore if you are taking the piss or not.  :o

« Reply #65 on: April 24, 2015, 08:52 »
+2
Your 3d modelling skill is good
« Last Edit: July 28, 2015, 04:20 by Kamran »

« Reply #66 on: April 24, 2015, 09:03 »
0
You need to up the tesselation or divisions.  On the pencil, for example, you can see how the sides do not match the end cap.

Shelma1

  • stockcoalition.org
« Reply #67 on: April 24, 2015, 09:28 »
+1
Yes, your 3D renderings are much better than your photos. You should concentrate on that. Photography would probably require investing in better equipment, but it looks like you already have the right software for 3D.

« Reply #68 on: April 24, 2015, 12:57 »
0
You seem to know how to photograph stuff then. You also seem to know more than you let us believe. I am not sure anymore if you are taking the piss or not.  :o

These were no photographs or photoshops, I made them in solidworks from simple objects, the mug was made from a simple cilinder shape, then I rounded it a bit, then made a render (see the attached jpg), the texturing is not UV mapped, because I used only stock textures, I learned this in middle school.

If you don't use engineering programs it will be difficult for you to understand.

I just started photoshop today, and it is confusing as hell, I can't even fill a simple rectangular shape with a color. You see my mind is wired differently I am used to programs like AutoCAD what is designed more logically than photoshop (at least for me).

I can design moderately well if everything is precisely set in stone, I define every mm with clear numbers, each spline, curve or line has their lenght, angle, etc. And they all traced back to a reference point, so if I set a number from 50 mm to 60 mm, the whole object and every other dimension changes accordingly.

Wheras in photoshop or 3Dmax, nothing is set in stone, and you just draw freely, and you have to make unnecessary circles again and again, if you want to something precize. That's why I can't really photoshop pictures too, I would have to unlearn my pedantic habits.

I like to see myself as an artist, but I am probably (in skills at least) closer to the engineer-machanical community.

However I use architectural and engineering programs to produce mostly artistic products, I am kind of hybrid.
« Last Edit: April 30, 2015, 16:04 by Hermitlog »

Semmick Photo

« Reply #69 on: April 24, 2015, 13:04 »
+2
I apologise then, I was wrong.  I am impressed.

« Reply #70 on: April 24, 2015, 13:07 »
0
You need to up the tesselation or divisions.  On the pencil, for example, you can see how the sides do not match the end cap.

Do you mean that the sides of the pencil overlap into the body of the metal cap?

By tessalation do you mean that round surfaces look polygonal (or angular not round)?

« Reply #71 on: April 24, 2015, 13:10 »
0
I apologise then, I was wrong.  I am impressed.

You don't need to, you helped me a loot.

If there are any sites, where I can sell these models or new ones, then I would first do that, only after that start in photography (it would be harder to do that than modeling), however I never found such site. There is no "stock model" site. :(

« Reply #72 on: April 24, 2015, 13:13 »
0
Your 3d modelling skill is good and you can earn decent money with your 3d rendering.  Too jaggy or very low poly model render will mostly reject. I see noise in your rendering, which will also not acceptable by many agencies. Render with highest rendering quality setting of your 3d software. Highlight reflection is also too much in some renders. Render on white background will be great.  Good luck

I can rump up polygon count a bit, but not much.

What do you mean by noise? On the background or the model?

Yeah on second tough, reflections were a bit much, and sometimes produced misshapen images.

« Reply #73 on: April 24, 2015, 22:29 »
0
...


« Last Edit: July 28, 2015, 04:19 by Kamran »

« Reply #74 on: April 24, 2015, 23:53 »
0
You need to up the tesselation or divisions.  On the pencil, for example, you can see how the sides do not match the end cap.

Do you mean that the sides of the pencil overlap into the body of the metal cap?

By tessalation do you mean that round surfaces look polygonal (or angular not round)?

It mean increase poly count of your model so it look smooth and non-jaggy. 3ds max turbosmooth or mesh smooth modifier used for sub dividing surface which result in high poly smooth model.


 

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