Reply To: So, am I doing Ok for a beginner?

[fstopper89]

First off, after reading Brownie’s initial critique, I didn’t really think he sounded arrogant at all, just honest. He gave reasons why he didn’t like some if the images.

Anyways, here is my critique.

You seem to know how to focus your camera and equipment pretty well. Most of the images have very sharp focus where they should be focused.

Yes, many seem to be a bit over-saturated. Yes you’ve said it was a personal preference, but it’s good to have an understanding on how to create more of a “clean edit” with normal saturation and then go ahead and do an edit you feel is more creative, such as higher saturation, textures, vintage styles, etc.

I really like this shot, though I feel the tree is a bit too centered in the image. Maybe composing it more where the tree was to the left would have been better, though that may cause the sun to be too centered. Play around with your own position when taking the photo and you can get both object off-center. http://www.flickr.com/photos/94214228@N05/8595419255/in/photostream

I like many of these butterfly shots. Focus is nice, colors and exposure seem good. They don’t seem over-saturated. This is one of my favorites. Though I’m not typically a fan of the 1×1 ratio, it works in this image. http://www.flickr.com/photos/94214228@N05/8593577329/in/photostream

Nice use of lines, angles, and pattern. Exposed well. http://www.flickr.com/photos/94214228@N05/8594592066/in/photostream

Cute dog, but the composition isn’t pleasing at all. His paw is cut off, the crop is too close by his back legs, and there are distracting elements in the background. It’s a fairly nice snapshot, but not very artistic. http://www.flickr.com/photos/94214228@N05/8577553390/in/photostream

Neat reflection. This would have looked better in a horizontal crop, not 1×1. Also the over-saturation just ruins this image. The contrast of the bright blue and the rusty red isn’t as pleasing. Think of opposites on the color wheel. Red contrasts best with green. I think that’s why the colors don’t work well together for me. With some editing, this could be improved. http://www.flickr.com/photos/94214228@N05/8577554122/in/photostream

I like the composition of this bird shot, though his tail is a little bit cut off, and there is a little too much negative space on the top. I would have slightly increased exposure as well. He’s just a weeeee bit out of focus. Not a bad shot, but not a great shot. http://www.flickr.com/photos/94214228@N05/8576440899/in/photostream

This bird shot has much nicer focus. I can understand getting crisp shots of wildlife can be difficult. http://www.flickr.com/photos/94214228@N05/8577537540/in/photostream

Love this shot. Nice job not overexposing, it looks like it was in a bright environment. Maybe crop a little so the butterfly is more on the left side. http://www.flickr.com/photos/94214228@N05/8576435281/in/photostream

As far as Instagram, you have some creative shots and some weird shots. If I were you, I would create a separate album of Instagram shots on Flickr. IG is more for fun, less for quality.

Those fake shallow depth-of-field shots do nothing; you should always be controlling that using your aperture and focal length.

Your flower shots are mostly average. I have plenty of average flower shots as well, just because I like them… but they’re not going to win any awards. Others were right that you can’t usually make a flower more beautiful. Nothing wrong with having them in your portfolio, but it might benefit you to only post your best flower photos as you have many similar ones.

You are definitely a hobbyist and maybe not totally a beginner. You seem to have a decent understanding of your equipment and willingness to learn. But part of that is taking critique, harsh or not, and not seeing it as calling your work crap.