I have a fairly good DSLR camera and I can’t even come close to this type of quality. What’s the secret? i bought the picture but I would like to take better pictures.
http://fattirephotography.smugmug.com/Winter-Combat-8/Winter-Combat-8/i-gHn3qz2/A
I’m no expert but looking at the other pictures in the gallery it looks to me like there is some heavy processing being done to make the colors pop out like that. I’d be surprised if they came off the camera looking like that.
That said, photography really is an art. Do you know how to use the various functions of your DSLR? Taking a 10 week photography community college course was one of the most interesting things I’ve done.
The resident photo expert here said most likely photo shopped.
That being said, the lens and for something like this a good tripod or mono pod can make a difference too.
What are you using for DSLR & Lens?
It’s not quite HDR, but either extra tonal mapping in Lightroom or a plug-in version to provide the effect.
I commend the photog for the use of fill flash.
Colors - software and mess with contrast, sharpness, etc. Looks like perhaps some HDR. An example of how you can take a natural looking object and turn it into something altered is here and here
Image - since you can see all the spokes with no blur indicates a shorter exposure
Sometimes you get lucky with color. This one popped in person and the colors were captured fairly well.
I feel this picture has great color, but the colors are natural. Wish it were centered
Crappy lens?
What lens are you using? What body? Tripod? Post processing? Lighting? Auxiliary lighting?
So I looked at the motocross pics and I can tell you a couple things. The dude is using a long telephoto lens (probably 300mm) with good glass. You’re looking at several thousand dollars for a lens like that. He’s using a very fast shutter speed. The light looks like it’s early morning or late afternoon. Also the colors have been jacked up on the computer.
I have an olympus and have been using a 40-150 lens f4-5.6 with a Not the best entry level DSLR most pics I take are at 1/500 f5 but I can shoot manually at 1/1000 to capture detail. Some pics are good others not so much. Most of the time I set it to sport and let it do it automatically and hope for the best. Probably not the best option
I need to try more manual settings.
Yes the guy had a very high quality lens but I don’t believe he was using a flash. He was standing very close to the track.
In software, what do you think he is using to enhance the colors. I get get decent detail but everything seems washed out. I need to play with some more software as well.
When I got my first DSLR, I was very disappointed with the shots I was taking with the kit zoom lens. I bought a prime lens and my ability to take nice images went up dramatically.
A prime lens is less flexible, but it takes a lot of the guess work out. I was able to learn how to control different aspects of the camera using that lens. I’ve gone back and can now take better pics with the kit lens, but still nothing compared to the prime lens.
Most DSLRs will have controls in-camera for color saturation & sharpness, might also have settings for dynamic range (HDR or ADR), ability to mimic film types, etc. Before messing with external software, have a good read through the manual to figure out what you can manipulate in the camera, then play around to get as close as you can get. These settings are typically not controlled by the Mode dial (Sports, etc.), they are separate. It’s common to find the default saturation set by the manufacturer on a many/most cameras to be somewhat washed out, particularly for sports. The nice thing is you probably have a fair amount of latitude to change it.
Brian
Peyote
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Better glass with help with the colors as well as over all sharpness. Then you can just bump up the saturation after the fact.
I think the pics in your link were processed too much but I shoot with a pinhole, a Holga and my phone.
It’s all about the lens. My guess is is a dedicated telephoto-somewhere between 400-600mm, probably relatively fast say f4 to f5.6. Some post processing on the in focus rider. So drop a couple grand on a fast prime Tele and you will see close to these results
It’s not that hard folks, especially if you shoot film earlier in your life.
I took a photography class after getting a DSLR and the main point was learning to use the settings where YOU control what the camera does vs. the camera making all the decisions. The more control you have, the more it is YOUR vision being captured and less what the camera thinks is your vision.
I will totally agree with everyone that has mentioned good glass. One trick I’ve done is to just rent lenses (lens rentals.com is a great resource but I’ve found local shops would rent as well). If I’m taking a big trip or going to a primo event and want the best chance at great pics I’ll hire that multi-thousand $$$ lens and pay a couple hundred for the privilege. I have not been sad yet with the money spent on renting since I’m not a professional.
Also in regards to post-processing - didn’t your camera come with some sort of default software? I shoot Canon and they provide Digital Photo Professional - it isn’t amazing but it allows you to make adjustments that help images greatly. I’ve never used Adobe anything, but am an Aperture user and the software has saved MANY images where I screwed up the exposure or didn’t quite get the white balance correct or wanted to pop specific colors. You have to compose the shot well, but once you have good composition then software can help really get what you are after.
Good luck and mainly, just keep shooting - it takes a LOT of practice.
Cheers,
Josh
There is some heavy post-processing in that pic. Lots of people are using Lightroom these days and I have seen similar pics done in lightroom.
That said your camera and lens setup is not great. Any sort of kit lens is going to suck. And entry level SLR’s are just that, entry level. Give better results than a point and shoot, but still not great.
My wife recently got into photog. I bought her a Canon T4i and a kit lens bundle. Those lenses lasted a month or two before she was frustrated with results and wanted an upgrade. So I bought her a 50mm prime lens, also known as the “Nifty Fifty”. Cost $150 and blows the other lenses out of the water. However then the camera was holding her back as it was a crop frame sensor and not the best body to begin with. She was getting better results with a 12 year old Canon 5d that she borrowed. Hence the upgrade a few weeks ago to the Canon 6d. Now with the Canon 6d and the 50mm prime she is getting good shots. However a prime lens is not real versatile, especially for sports. She does portrait primarily so she will likely end up with a 40mm pancake prime, the 50mm, an 80mm prime and the 70-200mm 2.8 “God Lens”. So another $3-4k and she should be good to go.
You think buying bikes is bad, it has nothing on photog equipment.
Oh, forgot to add. Check out photography-on-the.net. Great photog forum. Post your equipment and some of your pics and you will get some good feedback on what to do different.
I shot many years on a semi-pro body (Canon 30d) and didn’t feel like the crop sensor held me back at all. That being said after 6yrs I did recently upgrade to the 6d and have really loved the results. Way back when I did rent the f2.8 70-200 IS for a trip and LOVED the results, just couldn’t justify carrying around over a kilo in glass so opted for the f4 70-200 when I actually went to purchase a zoom.
There are similarities between all hobbies - to some extent your equipment will only hold you back to a point, and then it is the operator. My triathlon results would likely not be drastically different if I upgraded to a P6 vs. my current '05 guru - however if I spent more time training and working on my craft the results impact would be significant. With photography you can get good results from almost any equipment - but the amount you spend on learning/working/training will give you the biggest increase in satisfaction and “keeper” results.
current gear - Canon 6d, 50mm f1.4, 24-105 f4L IS, 70-200 f4L IS, 100mm f2.8 macro, speedlite 430ex II
I commend the photog for the use of fill flash.
I think I saw this guys photo’s on POTN. If so he is using a either the 300 or 400/ 2.8, done remember which one but they are very expensive, 6k and up, plus some of the best glass out there. He also is using a pretty strong strobe with a long throw reflector to the concentrate the light on the subject. Then there is his style of post processing, bringing up the luminosity and saturation for the colors, then running it through a sharpening action.
To be honest, the colors in those pictures are too much of a distraction. You see the colors and not the subject.
To be honest, the colors in those pictures are too much of a distraction. You see the colors and not the subject.
Definitely bright, wouldn’t want all my pictures like this but I think the sharpness is part of the wow factor. I think between the colors and the detail, his photos are amazing.