Transform

[laydros]

It's kinda over the top. But maybe this is a better reflection of what I was kinda saying in the other thread about brands, etc. I didn't take a single picture I was even a little happy with for 2 months. And that made me take less pictures, which gave me less opportunity to take good ones. It's hard to get over those hurdles sometimes.

http://blog.chasejarvis.com/blog/200...transform.html

[sparkie1263]

Everybody gets in a slump. I take over a hundred images almost everyday and I have not gotten many keepers. I feel like I am in a slump also. I didn't even leave the house with my camera all week. The last images I took last Sunday when we took everybody snowboarding. I wasn't happy with many of them I guess it was the snow and sun that killed me. The point is I am not looking to jump ship because of it. Maybe you need a break. I will be taking my camera with me this Sunday to the city so I hope to get some good images. Anyway good luck with your decision.

Frank

[laydros]

Do you guys/gals feel like most of your images come from finding interesting stuff in everyday life, or more from going on trips, going to good locations, finding specific subjects, etc?

[sparkie1263]

I keep my camera on the seat next to me while I am driving to and from my jobs and doing estimates. If I see something worth shooting I will pull over and take a few shots. If I don't have my camera I will try to remember where I seen something I wanted to shoot and go back. Here is a shot I would not have gotten if I didn't have my camera.

Frank

[Elisha]

i've been on a slump since the snow started falling!
it's very windy where i live so outdoor shots in winter are treacherous. so i have succumbed to indoor shots but i have not had many occasions to shoot much. i'm desperately waiting for spring to shoots the birds and the buds!
i did however take over 2k shots when i was on vacation.
haven't edited most of them other than the ones from the wedding.

i have been in the same dilemma as you have been and i can get a Canon 40D for about $700 CDN used . i've held the 40D and the 50D and they both felt good in my hands.
but i can't justify it at the moment since i would have to sell all my lenses and flash and start over.
i have also found used a700 for about $750-850 CDN which is tempting as well but i will have to wait on this unfortunately since i have other obligations in the next few months!

i've been pleased with the a300 so far and iso 1600 is usable when shot in raw.
but bounce flash makes a whole world of difference as well.
i'll try to find a shot i took in near dark of my cat out in the balcony with bounce flash later and you will be surprised how well it turned out.

[SONYNUT]

sounds like ya need a nude model ;-)

[Peekayoh]

So off you go and take a shedload of pictures and, guess what? you end up with a load of **it pictures.
No thought, no planning = ****.
Ask yourself what you want to achieve today (or tomorrow). Less quantity, more quality. A bit of foresight, a bit of planning and a bit of application get results.
Anything worthwhile requires a bit of work, otherwise everybody could do it and there'd be no point.
MAKE A PLAN!

[DonSchap]

I have to agree with Peter ... but then again, he's got a gun to my head.

Just winging it with a camera is close to a photojournalism/snapshot approach. Whatever happens, happens. Even weddings and events have more flow to them than that.

If you can plan your shot schedule, it just works out better. You usually have the right lens selection with you (which is always a headbanger), filters, and all the ancillary equipment to support the shoot. Chances are, you get better stuff. You even FEEL better about your shots, more confident .. because you feel ready, prepared and a little more in control.

I tell you, before I invested in the f/2.8 lenses .. I felt trapped with f/4 glass. I had the 35-70mm f/4, the 70-210mm f/4-5.6 and the 70-300mm f/4-5.6. Light was for crap and I worried about every shot. It was too tedious, to be honest. I could not concentrate and began to shake more. It got so bad, my friends were using my hands for preparing their martinis. Okay, that's a little over the top ... but when I went to the brighter glass, I did relax. I knew that if I had trouble getting the shot ... EVERYBODY was going to have issues. It just made me feel better, because this is all so competitive.

Remember; He who has the most glass at the end of their life ... spent a whole lot of money. Or something like that.

Anyway, f/2.8 seems to solve a lot of issues. It gives you room to move. And while some f/2.8 glass is whole lot better than others ... if you have an f/4 lens ... you simply cannot see what an f/2.8 does, not matter what the quality. It is a world of difference and a true paradigm shift.

Heck, you can see the difference just looking at the lenses. The magic is in the light ... and f/2.8 collects more. Take it from there!

Best way to inject some energy into your craft is to buy a new and much better lens. Hell, you be taking images of stuff you've already taken ... just to see the difference.

Hmmm, do I smell another SHACK shot?

[seanhoxx]

If I didn't have high school sports I don't know if I would shoot much of anything at all in the winter!! and that ain't right, You guys feel your in a slump head to your local high school, basketball, wrestling, both heading into playoff's, band concerts, plays, etc. almost like having your own studio full of models, well a poorly lit studio and very uncoopertive models! I admit that when I shoot I shoot a ton of shots, and yes a great many of them are crap! but as I consider myself a "newbie' and still learning how to use the features of my camera and lens, and making adjustments quickly and smoothly, I view the volume and the crap ratio as work product. What you need to watch out for is that you don't just get sloppy because yoiu can burn off 100 shots And one of them has to be good, that way your really not learning anything.

[Peekayoh]

But wasn't that part of my point.
If you have a plan and fail to get the end result because of poor technique or it's just a difficult capture, thats OK. You can improve your technique or persevere until you "catch the moment".
That's not the same as "clicking" away at anything that moves.