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Messages - tillencik

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1
Photo Critique / Re: Opinions Wanted
« on: April 15, 2009, 15:33 »

About the images:
White balance isn't correct. Always shoot in RAW because it helps a lot if you need to correct white balance on your computer after shooting. It also helps a bit if you need to correct improper exposure. You should achieve natural look of your subjects, unless you didn't make it look unnatural with purpose. Every unnatural look that isn't with clear purpose looks odd, and won't be accepted by most agencies.
I hope this helps.

I didn't plan on correction the white balance because I thought the lighting would be right.  I know there are sensors to test the balance of the background while shooting.. do many people invest in those?

2
Photo Critique / Re: Opinions Wanted
« on: April 14, 2009, 09:40 »

with this sort of "cup full" attitude you 're in the wrong perspective to gain any help from any of us.
i think you are wasting your time and our time if you post threads asking people for help and then
calling their comments idiotic.  if it's adulation rather than help that you wanted, why not come right out and say it.

finally, if you are find  magnum's comment idiotic, oh believe me, compared to some reviewers like Atilla, magnum's a pussycat.



I want opinions.. good or bad.. about THE PICTURES.  I don't want assumptions being made about my personality, attitude, or motives.

3
Photo Critique / Re: Opinions Wanted
« on: April 14, 2009, 09:17 »
Show some nice family/baby shots.   And how much there is to earn ;)   Theyll see what its all about.   I got the same reaction here  :)   



Tried.. still nothing.  I posted on craiglist looking for families that might be interested in helping and got a great response, but haven't had time to meet up with any of them yet.

4
Photo Critique / Re: Opinions Wanted
« on: April 14, 2009, 09:16 »

Quote
i don't think magnum was being ignorant, but rather being honest. you seem to be in a big hurry to get good without the effort. the old saying still applies, for earning a masters or learning the ropes of any skill, it's 90% perspiration and 10% inspiration. you seem to get it the other way around.

no one here is out to offend you, just being realistic . remember we were there before.
you need to apply yourself more, and stop taking every word we say personally. it isn't about you, it's just means you have to make the effort to work at it. one session does not make you a pro.
paying a "pro" to set up your lights does not make you any better either, only poorer.
i hope you understand what we are all trying to tell you.
o you think i am wearing a mask? ;D

Well it sounded ignorant.  I paid a professional to help me achieve the proper lighting and let me use his equipment.  I know how to control my camera.. maybe not as well as most of you.. but I'm not some idiot who opened the box and immediately scheduled a shoot.  I do my homework.

5
General Stock Discussion / Re: Selling Photos
« on: April 14, 2009, 09:08 »
I would have met the 7/10 requirement for Shutterstock but my model release was missing a bit of info.  I had my model sign a new one, but I still have to wait a month before I resubmit.  I contacted their support and got no answer.. it's pretty dumb to have to wait 30 days just because of a mix up with the release.

6
So are wide angle and telephoto just the same lens?  There isn't two separate lenses for each?  It's just the specs I need to be looking at...

7
What are the advantages of wide angle lenses when shooting outdoors?  I'm leaning towards buying a telephoto lens and using the two until I can afford more.

8
Photo Critique / Re: Opinions Wanted
« on: April 13, 2009, 15:09 »
I take a ton of pictures of family members and pets, which are useless as stock.


Not at all. Family and generation images in a natural environment are sought after in stock. You just have to "direct" your models well, so they look cheering and happy, or inclusive and caring. Just go to any stock site and look for "family" and check the best selling shots for ideas.

Everybody has to start, but you might try some easier subjects before people shots, where you have to divide your attention between your cam and the people. Your cam mastering should be automatic in people's situations. Or you can try all possible settings in the environment when the models are not there yet, then just keep those settings. Look carefully at the histogram and zoom in to 100% on the LCD (if your cam has one) to check for lighting and focus. If not, just halt the shoot, and look at a laptop at 100%, then adjust if necessary.

You also need some basic digital photography tutorials, like cambridgeincolour and Photoshop tutorials. There are many online if you Google for it.

There are a lot of good stuff, how to handle/guide models, and Photoshop tricks on Youtube too.



My family members won't sign model releases because they're paranoid about having their pictures for sale on the internet.  I doubt my dog would object though.

9
Photo Critique / Re: Opinions Wanted
« on: April 13, 2009, 15:06 »
The basics is all about photography.   How the camera works. wich lenses to use. aperture/shutterspeed.  composition etc etc

You seems pretty eager to get a portfolio up and running at Istock.  Id cool down a bit and get it right first, and save some temper and acceptance rate if I were you.   I know, Im also the eager type ;)

Good luck


I read the manual, Scott Kelby's The Digital Photography Book, and Michal Henron's Digital Stock Photography: How to Shoot and Sell.  I didn't just jump in, and 7/10 of my photos that were initially submitted to istock and shutterstock would have been accepted if I downloaded a better model release.  Just here for some opinions on how to improve.

10
Photo Critique / Re: Opinions Wanted
« on: April 13, 2009, 13:44 »
I take a ton of pictures of family members and pets, which are useless as stock.  What do you mean by basic photography?  I can try and take pictures of meaningful objects, but I'd still have to get some kind of background and lighting.


11
I own the kit lens that came with my Canon Rebel XS, and I was wondering which type of lens I should add if I plan on doing some outdoor photography.  I want to go to a local national park, and I'm split between buying a telephoto lens and a wide angle lens.  I don't have a ton of money, so I'm only going to buy one new lens this summer.  Any suggestions?

12
General Stock Discussion / Selling Photos
« on: April 13, 2009, 13:29 »
I just had my first shoot with a model and I've got about 40 images to upload.  I've tried a couple websites but haven't had a purchase yet.. although my images are only visible on one site so far.  I just ordered a book called the '2009 Photographer's Market', which is supposed to give tons of contact information for different places that buy photos.  Has anybody checked this book out?

13
Photo Critique / Re: Opinions Wanted
« on: April 13, 2009, 13:18 »
You paid a man to set up the lighting?  And you have barely learn to control your camera.?? You dont sound so interested??  If I got my hand on a studio setup. Id try different settings and positions til my fingers bled.   wheres your learning curve?

Why so ignorant?

I just got my camera two weeks ago and I've never done serious photography before.  I read through the manual a couple times and I got most of it, but I didn't see the benefit of shooting RAW pictures.

I rented a studio because I don't have any room in my apartment and I don't have $50,000 to spend on equipment.  Lighting is very complicated so I needed some help.  He helped me with the lights and our test pictures looked good, but I don't think he turned on the same lights when my model arrived.

I also work full time and I'm working on a Masters degree, so I don't have all the time in the world go learn every technical detail.. but I'm trying.

14
Photo Critique / Re: Opinions Wanted
« on: April 13, 2009, 10:55 »
There's no way for me to select the model and change the background without making it look like crap.  Each time I try in photoshop it looks terrible.

tillencik, You can pretty much do anything in Photoshop if you spend a little time and know what you're doing, however it helps to have the information there in the first place, on this shot all I've done to your image is adjust the colour balance and played with the levels, took about 15 seconds, one side of her face is overexposed which means it's never going to be perfect, but if you were prepared to spend some time on it you could get a reasonable result.

Next time just set your background lights one stop more, and move the light on the right side of her face further back (or lower the power) and the reflector on her left closer. Look up portrait lighting using the 'butterfly' or 'rembrandt' techniques on Google, shadows are a good thing they add definition.

I was able to make the picture look the same as you did using the automatic functions in Photoshop, but istockphoto still rejected some of them.

I paid an 'expert' who owns a studio to help me set up the lights, and I guess I wasted my money.  I only shot in JPGs, but now that you guys have mentioned it I learned to adjust my camera to shoot both JPG and Raw pictures.  I took around 200 shots, so I don't feel like spending an hour on each of them.. especially when my first batch of 12 pictures has yet to be viewed by anyone on fotolia.

Thanks for the help!

15
Photo Critique / Re: Opinions Wanted
« on: April 12, 2009, 16:45 »
The background was a pure white wall and the white balance was set for strobe lights, which I was using.  That's what the 'expert' who owned the studio told me to do since it was my first shoot.

There's no way for me to select the model and change the background without making it look like crap.  Each time I try in photoshop it looks terrible.

16
Photo Critique / Opinions Wanted
« on: April 11, 2009, 18:13 »
Let me know what you guys think of these photos, good or bad.  Any potential for stock?








17
General Photography Discussion / Best Color Backdrop?
« on: April 11, 2009, 15:05 »
I recently rented a studio for a photo shoot because I wanted a pure white background, which requires professional lighting.  I'm upset because the background game out beige, and isolating the model in Photoshop is very difficult, especially with the hair.  I know there is a method of isolating an object my using the contrast, but the difference isn't significant enough for that to work.

My question is.. if I were to buy a green background, would that make it easier to isolate the object and place it on a pure white background?

Thanks!

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