My worst photographs ... Is it me or this location? How would you compose?

Bokeh is often misunderstood and frequently misused but if we've now got to the point where it means exactly what we want it to mean we are, I'm afraid, through the looking glass. Happily dreamy, creamy, swirly and the other seven dwarves of imaging don't mean much either, a bit like "3D like", rendering and drawing all used of various lenses at various times.

Firmly tongue in cheek.

Midwest said:

Maybe some people find interest in these bird photos but frankly I've seen a million of them already.

Always a good idea to capture a frontal view instead of a keester view.

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Well, you have to understand I'm a birder first. Some of my photos are for ID purposes. Those you're referring to specifically were such. I generally do not display butt shots either. For example that first on a sidewalk was taken in a most boring fashion in attempt to determine 1st or 2nd winter plumage, as I remember. I took the shot and several others of various juvy Laughing Gulls to upload to my bird forum for help in identifying the age. The second two above were to show contrast of what an adult looks like in comparison to a juvenile. A photograph for ID purposes is entirely different kettle of tea than a shot for photographic reasons.

Also, since taking that shot, I've become more knowledgeable in the identification of various juvy gulls and their winter plumage. The laughing gull is still a favorite, and here in Florida we get a lot of first and second year birds.

I showed them here because the discussion was "exposure" and getting the white part white. I didn't figure they'd catch a pejorative comment. :-|

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Cheers, Craig
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I reserve the right to make mistakes in reasoning and logic as well as to change my mind anytime I wish. I also ask forbearance with respect to my typos. Please take a look at my gallery here at DPR.

bizmord said:

bizmord said:

My issue is with the location. On one side I have parked cars and on the other a blue railing that doesn't end. Over it there is water. In person, that place looks great but when I try taking photos, there are lots of issues.

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A good photographer knows when to put the camera down, and when to shoot. If the location doesn't present any good composition, don't shoot there.

But I do suspect there is good composition to be found, you're just not finding it for whatever reason.

Have you tried shooting at golden hour, when the shadows are long? Maybe the fence could cast some nice shadows you could use in your composition.

I have a feeling the OP understands, at least rudimentarily, basic composition. Enough to get a reasonable photo at least, and enough to appreciate a good photo from a bad photo. And enough to build his photo skills over time.

But, it is one thing to understand composition, another to actually make it happen in front of the lens, especially when there is clutter and a difficult environment. It is this 'making it happen' that I think is the issue in this case, rather than having no clue to begin with.

I think it isn't happening for the OP because he is too involved with the subject. He needs to step back, think composition first, and involve the subject second. That is the point I'm trying to make. If he does it the other way around, the composition will always be left to chance.

I'm refraining from saying 'use shallow DoF' or 'Fill the frame with the subject' because these are techniques that simply remove the composition difficulty. Although that isn't bad advice for a beginner forum. My advice is not to remove the problem, but work the shots more - in my view, it is ultimately more satisfying.

a_c_skinner said:

Bokeh is often misunderstood and frequently misused but if we've now got to the point where it means exactly what we want it to mean we are, I'm afraid, through the looking glass. Happily dreamy, creamy, swirly and the other seven dwarves of imaging don't mean much either, a bit like "3D like", rendering and drawing all used of various lenses at various times.

Firmly tongue in cheek.

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Nice to know. I had thought it was a hunk of tobacky between your cheek and gums... ;-)

Get closer! You're shooting too far away. Get as close as you can without scaring the birds off, and shoot wider! Get them just as your daughters smiles, while they're flying away (leave space in the upper part of the frame, so that they fill the sky).