Greenfreak

Wow. Beautiful, beautiful pics on your site and on the LIF photography thread.

The Egypt pics on that thread are mine.

Can I bother you with some questions? I'd like to improve my pictures and am thinking about a Digital SLR for next year.

What camera do you use?

Is there a book you'd recommend for an amateur?

Thank you!!

Those Egypt pics are incredible. What a place to travel to - not your typical destination! I love seeing travel pics. I'm constantly begging people for them. Right, Laurie and Stephanie?

Do you have more in an album somewhere I could see?

Questions are never any bother. I love sharing what I know. But since I have diarrhea of the mouth, I'll try not to go overboard.

I have a Nikon D70 and it's a few years old but I love it. I got it at Cameta Camera after trying on the Canon 20D which has more megapixels and costs more. I couldn't fit my long fingers comfortably around the D20's grip without digging my nails into the front.

But I will say this, you don't necessarily need a better camera to be a better photographer. I was using a 20 year old film camera for a long time, and it didn't really affect the quality of the photos. Just my wallet.

Any book by Bryan Peterson is great - I have 'Understanding Exposure - How to Shoot Great Photographs with a Film or Digital Camera' and 'Learning to See Creatively - Design, Color and Composition in Photography'.

Besides the basic theories, the best of what I've learned has been by trial and error, and getting unforgiving opinions from other serious photographers. That's why I love digital, it gives me the freedom to take 30 shots of the same thing with different settings.

And if you're looking for a good camera seller, I switched from Cameta Camera to B&H Photo and haven't had a problem yet.

I'm a picture wh0re- love taking them.

I keep all my pics here:

Pics

I will definitely check out that book, thank you! I ventured over to the DP review chat boards and was so overwhelmed with information. I practically heard my brain pop and sizzle.

I peeked into B&H after the NY Times travel show last week and had the same reaction- there is SO MUCH STUFF.

Ohh, a Nikon D70. i know I don't need a souped up camera, but the shutter lag on my current camera irritates me to no end. Mostly when I want to get pictures of my niece, who never sits still. By the time I hit the button all I get is a blurry mess, or I'm too late to catch the funny face she's making.

Thanks for the tips!

Sorry I forgot to answer you again!

Wow, you weren't kidding, you do take a lot of pics! I started going through them, they're pretty good! You should comment them though, I'd love to know what I'm looking at.

The things I concentrated on when choosing a camera was the megapixels (mine is 6, and that's just fine for enlargements), how fast the shutter/flash recovers to take the next shot, and the controls/LCD screen on the back. Any digital SLR is going to give you much of the same features.

I know what you mean about the kids. I take tons of pictures of them and only come out with a few that are good. I have to be a sneak now though, because when they see the camera in my hand, they start posing. I like the candids better, myself.

If I can tell you anything else, just let me know. I'd be glad to help!

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Posted by greenfreak

Do you guys know about the 'rule of thirds'? Because you're doing it in your photos, which is the mark of either someone who's learned more than the average person, or someone who just knows what looks good.

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I learned the 'official' rule of thirds in my master composition book. My own un-official rule of thirds is to make sure only 1/3 of my body width is visible in a picture. The rest of the bod needs to be hidden behind another person or inanimate object. Thus I look all skinnier and sh!t.

That's not exactly the rule of thirds I was talking about but hey, whatever works for you.

Kat, you should look at her albums, they are really good. I'm only halfway done and I'm gettng the itch to travel to exotic locations.

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Posted by superkat

I learned the 'official' rule of thirds in my master composition book. My own un-official rule of thirds is to make sure only 1/3 of my body width is visible in a picture. The rest of the bod needs to be hidden behind another person or inanimate object. Thus I look all skinnier and sh!t.

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BWAHAHAAAAAA!!!!!

Ah, the benefits of being behind the camera- no one sees my chub!

I Googled the rule of 3rds- interesting concept!

Must go get the Peterson books....

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Posted by greenfreak



That's not exactly the rule of thirds I was talking about but hey, whatever works for you.

Kat, you should look at her albums, they are really good. I'm only halfway done and I'm gettng the itch to travel to exotic locations.

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Where can I find these lovely albums? I need inspiration for my own awesome Canon SLR camera.