Reply To: Take a peek

[sky.pesce]

I’d say you’re not quite there yet (IMHO)

I actually rather liked a few of your photos; the guitar body ( http://media.cmcdn.net/22962006/780×520.jpeg ),  this night photo ( http://media.cmcdn.net/22010434/780×520.jpeg ) and this image http://media.cmcdn.net/22464826/780×520.jpeg

 

Your music set is meh. This photo http://media.cmcdn.net/22010400/780×520.jpeg is the strongest compositionally, but is a bit soft and grainy.

Now I’m going to go through and just comment a bit on some of your other photos, and give you some tips for the future.

Couple under gazebo on beach (both photos) –  In these photos, fill flash would have helped a bit, to help tame the blown-out background and keep the faces light. You might be able to bring up and color-correct their faces in PS/LR, but fixing it in camera would be ideal. The second image would probably be better if you had stepped a bit to the right, centering the older man between the couple, as well as separating the subjects from the gazebo.

Gazebo on beach- http://media.cmcdn.net/22464799/780×520.jpeg – This image would be interesting if the horizon were straight; right now it just feels really off-balance.

People holding sparklers- This feels like it could be a stock image. It probably could have been framed a little wider, but it’s still pretty well executed.

Guitar neck/headstock – This is probably a bit too dark, as well as a rather uninteresting composition (IMO)

Ring in biscuit – I think your focus is a bit off, or your lens is soft: the ring seems to be out of focus.

2 men playing banjo and guitar –  this probably would be better if you hadn’t tried to get both of them in the same frame

People playing instruments (shot through door) – Framing your subject within doors/windows/architectural elements is a useful technique, but in this image, your subjects are way overexposed. In situations like this, spot metering would have been helpful, as would using a preset exposure (since the lighting in the room seems static), metered from a bit closer.

The next two images on your “Music” page seem to lack a real focus.

Man playing violin http://media.cmcdn.net/22010398/780×1170.jpeg –  I like this composition, but it isn’t well executed, and is way out of focus.

Men outside with “JAZZ” spelled with sparklers- The subjects don’t seem to stand out very much from the background; a higher or lower angle may have been better, or a rim light. In addition, they seem a bit underexposed.

Young man playing upright bass – Whenever a subject is looking out of the frame, you should be careful that they’re looking across the frame and not directly out, since it helps draw the viewer’s eye around the image. In addition, the reflection off the scroll seems to distract from the musician because of its brightness. Obviously, color balance is also an issue in this image, but you should be able to correct it in PS/LR, using a neutral area like the tape on the microphone to set your balance.