Feedback please?

[mynameisnicholas]

I have always had a great appreciation for photography and just a few years ago I invested in a camera of my own. I never knew exactly how much I loved it until I got out and started exploring my city through the lens of my camera. I am not looking to make a career out of it but it would be nice to eventually share/sell prints to people that might appreciate it. I have never had my work critiqued by anybody outside of family and friends and would certainly appreciate any general feedback. Most of my shots are at night because its the best time for me to get out and explore . The shots of jewelry in my album were my best attempt at product photography for a family members website (which I was absolutely not paid for) but I did enjoy.

I guess my ultimate goal in sharing this is to get an unbiased opinion on whether I’m headed in the right direction or not. I hope you enjoy!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mynameisnicholas/

[SEC]

Sarcasm Alert!

You totally flunked the fauxtog test. Nothing I saw even remotely resembled true fauxtography. Where are the unnaturally posed newborns, babies on railroad tracks in velvet chairs and washed-out children with glassy eyes? I also subtract points for everything being in focus or appropriate use of creative focus. The sailor kiss shot should definitely be close up, in an insignificant grass field or a graffiti-laden alleyway. There was a total lack of tackiness.

Honestly, though, I only glanced quickly, but they appear to be lovely shots. Yeah, you could tweak your technical settings, but — couldn’t we all?  Tiny, little tweaks (i.e. horizon on San Diego Sunset, overprocessing/tone work, etc.) Very difficult to tell if the distortion is intentional on a couple of other shots.

You may not be at a pro level, but you are far from faux.

[Notaphotographer]

I judge the criteria of being a fauxtog different from most here. You are not one. In relationship to your photos you have skill and a good eye from what I can see. My only thing would be to straighten the horizon on a couple of shots. It really bugs me on shots of water not to have a compeletly level horizon. All the water is going to run out :). Even your product shots show skill. I like them. They are not easy to do well.. I really like the sailor kissing the girl shot.  Best in your port IMO.. I would keep at and try to sell some. I also see you are using a T1i.. You are proof that you do not need a 3k camera to take some great shots.

[MBChamberlain]

All in all, you’re off to a great start. There are a few things that you should work on and half a dozen shots that detract from your portfolio. For example, I disagree with notaphotographer. I think the picture of the kissing couple is the worst in the bunch, it’s out of focus AND has motion blur, the angle and fisheye is disconcerting and the HDR makes it seriously over-processed.

By way of moving forward, a couple of things to remember, fish-eyes work best when the warp is visible and used for effect. A lot of your shots it doesn’t add, it just bends the trees, walls, etc. in uncomfortable ways. Hard rock works great, depot works OK and hallway makes me feel like I’m in a bad horror film.

There are 3 rules to HDR, nothing that moves, always use a tripod, and always bracket with either the flash or shutter speed, never ISO or aperture. Things that move include water, oceans, stars, clouds, the sun, the moon, trees in the wind, traffic, etc, etc, etc. All your shots must be identical in every way but exposure.

It looks like you’ve invested in some good glass at the very least. And in answer to your question, you are DEFINITELY on the right track. The reality is that none of your shots are good enough to be salable as artwork, but I see a lot of meticulousness and attention to detail in your work. You have a lot of real raw talent there especially with landscapes, and with 2 or 3 more years of practice and learning and tone down the HDR a bit, I think you’ll be great at it. What I would suggest is practice with your digital, then, when you’re ready to move up, buy a 4×5 rail camera. The type of work you are doing will work best if you shoot it on chrome, you won’t need to HDR them that way, and you will absolutely love what a tilt/shift lens can do for architectural photography, particularly in  perspective control and the Scheimpflug principle.

[Notaphotographer]

@MBCChamberlain.. Art is very subjective. I would never tell someone’s photos are not good enough to sell as art. It is amazing what people call art and buy. To me there is a difference between producing images for yourself and trying to sell them versus calling yourself a photographer for hire. Would any of his images work for me and the publications I work for. Probably not. However he expressed interest as selling and creating them for art work.  Personally I think most of Warhol’s stuff is crap but people pay big bucks for it.   If he had asked about shooting for hire I would put him in another category.

[Notaphotographer]

My point on art.. look at the photo that sold for over 4 million dollars.

http://www.businessinsider.com/christies-contemporary-art-auction-leonardo-dicaprio-2011-11?op=1

[mynameisnicholas]

Thank you all for the feedback! I really appreciate it. I definitely went through a phase in the very beginning where I was obsessed with HDR and thought everything looked better through my fisheye. I have since cleaned up my portfolio and got rid of a lot of junk. I’m really looking forward to getting back out there I with all of your advice in mind!

 

Thanks!

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