Overcoming the Limits of my Camera

[LGM]

Okay. My camera is a Nikon Coolpix 995. It's four years old. It only shoots 3.2MP. The CCD is quite small compared to todays standards, and the lens is less than appealing in low-light situations... But on the other hand, its color reproduction is astounding. For the past two months I've been teaching myself to overcome the weaknesses and embrace the strengths.

I took the following pictures last night. Would you say I have made some progress? (There was only one flourescent bulb giving off light.)












or


Anyone have tips on lighting, quirky posing, or other things that could be helpful in my quest to overcome my camera's weaknesses, please feel free to comment.

Comment, anyway. I always enjoy feedback. It helps alot.

[MarVelo]

I don't quite know what you want, they seem really great and well lit.

[LGM]

I just need someone overly picky to point things to my attention so I too can learn to be anal and notice them at photo time.

Also, I was wondering if anyone had general photoshop tips for editing photos.. Like curing "motion blur" or just odd blur from a sucky lens.

[Andail]

I thijnk they are very good, actually!

#1 Has a bad background (lots of skewed lines which draw attention)
#2 Is excellent, save from a slightly too high contrast
#3 Great shot with great colours. The composition is a bit tight; there should be more air in front of her.

The last shot has excellent colours and composition, not much to complain on there
The shots with the kids holding guns are a bit geeky and not very interesting Apart from that, good job!.

[JeebusSez]

I have a Canon F-1 camera from the 80's; Hell, it's not even digital, it's film. On a really good day, I can produce a pretty damn good picture. The point is (as cliched as it may be), it doesn't matter how old your equipment is, it's how you use it. Having a digital camera is just a pretty big advantage over the older film ones: you can click 800 pictures and delete the ones you don't want on the fly, while with a film one you don't see the results until easily a week to a month (or in the instance of one of my rolls, a year and a half) later.

With lighting, it looks like you have a pretty decent idea of what you're going for. Backlighting can produce dramatic silhouettes; nearby lighting from close angles can create heavy shadow, while from a distance can create very soft shadows. Depending on your style you can add a lot of really bright lights for a very flat, very blown out look, or several softer lights and diffusing lights to create a more portraited picture with a sense of depth.

In terms of composition, you might want to look real quick over the rule of thirds. You also could Google photography tips; amateur photography is a huge market, and there is a plethora of tips tricks and tutorials for the budding photographer.

Motion blur or odd blurs can add a lot of interesting element to a picture, especially in long-exposure/low light situations. Use a tripod and play around with a large static focus in the background while doing something in the foreground.

The one thing that has helped me most in my photography, though, is to take a camera everywhere and just keep taking pictures. It's a hell of a lot cheaper on a Digital camera. If you feel embarassed traipsing around just randomly taking pictures, take a friend - especially one who likes to take pictures as well. The practice is invaluable and will really help develop skill at seeing what makes a good picture and what doesn't. It's tough to give detailed critique with posed shots in semi-portrait style photography; on the fly photography will really give you a feel for what direction you want to take.

[LGM]

Oh believe me... My camera goes everywhere. I drive people nuts when I keep holding them up to take pictures.

Thanks for all the tips. I agree with pretty much everything you said. But actually, all I do is take shots on the fly. These may look like portraits but they were quickly posed and shot. No lighting setup or anything. It was just a flourescent light hanging in the garage. I have never shot in what you would call a "controlled environment." Though I would like to, because that would probably produce pictures with less flaws.

Thanks a million, guys.