Reply To: Critique needed!

[EyeDocPhotog]

You have some nice shots in your portfolio, An-Mari, which shows you’ve got potential! 🙂

I don’t usually leave image-by-image critique as CC does, but straight away I’d say 3 things:

1. Good glass will go miles further than an expensive body. I shoot with my 50D pretty often even though I also have a 1Dx – but I wish I knew back then that LENSES are really an investment whereas BODIES lose value 2ndary to booming technology. Every year the industry pumps out newer sensors with more MP and higher ISO, etc. But my L24-105 is still there, 6 years later, waiting for the shot.

2. Shoot in RAW. In jpeg mode, you’re effectively letting your camera tell you what to keep and what to throw away. A RAW image, on the other hand, gives YOU full control over what you keep. For example, one shot in your portfolio screams for increasing exposure, vibrancy, contrast, and a subtle adjustment of the tone curve – but alas, forget it if all you’ve got is a jpeg.

3. Know your camera inside and out. Take shots with deliberate changes to every setting you can. Look at the pictures blind (without the EXIF data) and really try to see where the photo went wrong. Some will be obvious, some may surprise you.