Beginners Outing(Part 19)-Double Helix Bridge and MBS on the 31 July(Photos thread)

[daredevil123]

Thanks for the outing...

This is my homework... C&C welcome...

Winkoo88,

your shooting has improved bro, since that first time we met at marina barrage. Keep it up bro. And I see you are teaching others already. That's very commendable.

Anyway share with you my shots there that same morning.

DD#1

DD#2

 

[jeanthemean]

Really really mean shots...Jeanthemean! Especially the #8...waves definitely hit the shore, just avoid reflections. #9 is cool and #10 is full of cloud character...maybe a lil' darker shadows would pronounce the effect further. Best pics of the outing so far...:thumbsup:

Haha neetsdeindie, I'm glad you enjoyed the pictures! Yes the reflections are unavoidable cause I didn't have a polarizer with me.

On a side note, your candid people shots are good. Caught the moments I didn't managed to! Good on you bro!

 

[jeanthemean]

Great colours, contrast and refections daredevil123!

I dare say your set, together with iszan and winkoo88, are my favourites!

Have alot to pick up from you guys!

 

[winkoo88]

Winkoo88,

your shooting has improved bro, since that first time we met at marina barrage. Keep it up bro. And I see you are teaching others already. That's very commendable.

DD123, hi bro saw u that day too and thanks for sharing with me the good location to take picture.

Bro, don mistaken me, I didn teach them at all, I just SHARE some of the very very basic photography concept only. I think someone have to kick start the whole outing, so I reach out first. (TEACHING??... I still not to that standard yet, still got alot to learn from the seniors...) - I hope others can also sharing some of their knowledge to the "newbies", but looking at their photos, feel that they are not newbies anymore.

** I will go down to DHB again, to make my 3rd attempt. I just cant get the very very sharp picture like what you are getting. (Pls PM me what is the setting and any PP you do to get this sharp picture)

 

[SHLEW]

Hi Neets, you really used up your whole "roll of film". Nobody escape your eyes. You even got a portrait of me wondering where to go!!!

Hi Jeanthemean (are you #2 or #4 in front row?),
Your shots are all beautiful. I like #10 best. You applied the one third rule well. The sky with the clouds look great. I feel the overall picture could be better if you do a slow shutter and make the water "cottony" and darken the buildings a bit. If you can crop #11 such that the edges of the thorns is exactly at the corner of the diagonal with the clear blue sky, I believe it would be a great original geometrical composition. Above my humble preferences and opinion.

Cheers everyone.
LEW

 

[Numnumball]

Winkoo88,

your shooting has improved bro, since that first time we met at marina barrage. Keep it up bro. And I see you are teaching others already. That's very commendable.

Anyway share with you my shots there that same morning.

DD#1

DD#2

Swee bro... Love the lighting n dramatic details in #2

 

[Numnumball]

DD123, hi bro saw u that day too and thanks for sharing with me the good location to take picture.

Bro, don mistaken me, I didn teach them at all, I just SHARE some of the very very basic photography concept only. I think someone have to kick start the whole outing, so I reach out first. (TEACHING??... I still not to that standard yet, still got alot to learn from the seniors...) - I hope others can also sharing some of their knowledge to the "newbies", but looking at their photos, feel that they are not newbies anymore.

** I will go down to DHB again, to make my 3rd attempt. I just cant get the very very sharp picture like what you are getting. (Pls PM me what is the setting and any PP you do to get this sharp picture)

Hi winko88, good to see u are improving after u joined my 1st outing... Nice pics overall... Keep up the gd work ya

 

[daredevil123]

DD123, hi bro saw u that day too and thanks for sharing with me the good location to take picture.

Bro, don mistaken me, I didn teach them at all, I just SHARE some of the very very basic photography concept only. I think someone have to kick start the whole outing, so I reach out first. (TEACHING??... I still not to that standard yet, still got alot to learn from the seniors...) - I hope others can also sharing some of their knowledge to the "newbies", but looking at their photos, feel that they are not newbies anymore.

** I will go down to DHB again, to make my 3rd attempt. I just cant get the very very sharp picture like what you are getting. (Pls PM me what is the setting and any PP you do to get this sharp picture)

No problem

DD#1 there is not much PP. Just some slight adjustments in curves and noise removal. This one I shot totally level, with a spirit level as a guide, so there is no perspective distortion in the picture. Settings also straight forward. Base ISO, Aperture priority, F13. I used -2/3 EV to keep the spotlights from blowing. I used hyperfocusing in this one. Focused to 2m, so everything from 1m to infinity is sharp and in focus.

DD#2 I shot from the cement wall to the left of the spot where I shot DD#1. The spot is directly under the Helix bridge. Since the wall is high, and very thick (like a block), I set my center column to horizontal, and opened up the tripod legs to get a very low profile. And since I can't see the LCD or VF, I used Live view on this one. And focused on the based of the legs of the bridge near the center of the frame. Almost same set up in exposure, F13, A mode. But this time due to the brighter morning sky, against the dark bridge, I had to dial in a -1.33 EV. Dynamic range of this picture is just way too much. I had to work with the image quite a bit, bringing the overall exposure down somemore to bring out the details in the sky, and adding fill light to the shadows. Ended up with this "dark" surreal moody look which is excellent. Thank God for RAW.

BTW, sharpness is from the shot itself. If you get your focus right and a very stable setup, the sharpness comes automatically.

Hope this helps!

 

[jeanthemean]

Hi Jeanthemean (are you #2 or #4 in front row?),
Your shots are all beautiful. I like #10 best. You applied the one third rule well. The sky with the clouds look great. I feel the overall picture could be better if you do a slow shutter and make the water "cottony" and darken the buildings a bit. If you can crop #11 such that the edges of the thorns is exactly at the corner of the diagonal with the clear blue sky, I believe it would be a great original geometrical composition. Above my humble preferences and opinion.

Cheers everyone.
LEW

Hello SHLEW, your suggestions are worth considering. I'll do a better cropping for #11 and see how it turns out yeah?

Btw I'm 4th in the front row, lol.
Gonna keep shooting!

 

[neetsdeindie]

DD#1

DD#2

Amazingly and stunningly beautiful pics Sir...rarely I have seen steel and cement turning into such sculpted beauties!!!

May I request the info on settings that you've used while taking these dreamshots?

Just...superb!

 

[ZerocoolAstra]

Amazingly and stunningly beautiful pics Sir...rarely I have seen steel and cement turning into such sculpted beauties!!!

May I request the info on settings that you've used while taking these dreamshots?

Just...superb!

see post #128
not just the settings, but also the 'gong-fu' in doing the post-processing after!
Good composition helps, of course!

 

[daredevil123]

Amazingly and stunningly beautiful pics Sir...rarely I have seen steel and cement turning into such sculpted beauties!!!

May I request the info on settings that you've used while taking these dreamshots?

Just...superb!

Thanks for your kind words. I am still learning and trying to push myself to the next level.

I posted the shot and PP info I did in post #128 here.

Actually an important element of both pictures are the leading lines element. That something will lead your eye into the picture.Especially in DD#1, the helix is a perfect lead in. The highway pic (DD#2) is trickier because it is straight and it is not easy to get a better vantage point while still capturing the yellow sky in the background. The highway sort of lead the viewer out of the right side of the frame. I came to a compromise, to include part of that building on the extreme right of the frame, to sort of give an end point to where the bridge highway is headed.

I hope you also notice that I have a lot going in my head before I line up a shot. I am forcing myself to shoot less views at every shoot. But to take more shots of the same view, but take my time to go into the scene, observing all the elements, think before I shoot, and do minute adjustments as I shoot the same scene over and over. That morning I only shot these 2 scenes and thats it. DD#1 I took 13 exposures, with some slight adjustments to composition, and different times of the morning, with changes in light. The highway scene I captured 4 exposures and after that, I packed up and left.

Hope it helps you.

 

[winkoo88]

Hi winko88, good to see u are improving after u joined my 1st outing... Nice pics overall... Keep up the gd work ya

Thanks bro... Will practise more.

No problem

DD#1 there is not much PP. Just some slight adjustments in curves and noise removal. This one I shot totally level, with a spirit level as a guide, so there is no perspective distortion in the picture. Settings also straight forward. Base ISO, Aperture priority, F13. I used -2/3 EV to keep the spotlights from blowing. I used hyperfocusing in this one. Focused to 2m, so everything from 1m to infinity is sharp and in focus.

DD#2 I shot from the cement wall to the left of the spot where I shot DD#1. The spot is directly under the Helix bridge. Since the wall is high, and very thick (like a block), I set my center column to horizontal, and opened up the tripod legs to get a very low profile. And since I can't see the LCD or VF, I used Live view on this one. And focused on the based of the legs of the bridge near the center of the frame. Almost same set up in exposure, F13, A mode. But this time due to the brighter morning sky, against the dark bridge, I had to dial in a -1.33 EV. Dynamic range of this picture is just way too much. I had to work with the image quite a bit, bringing the overall exposure down somemore to bring out the details in the sky, and adding fill light to the shadows. Ended up with this "dark" surreal moody look which is excellent. Thank God for RAW.

BTW, sharpness is from the shot itself. If you get your focus right and a very stable setup, the sharpness comes automatically.

Hope this helps!

Thank you...

 

[skylover]

Thanks for your kind words. I am still learning and trying to push myself to the next level.

DD#1

Hope it helps you.

DD123 can advice me on how do you see those lines? I mean with all the construction going on. There are so many lines here and there. Isn't it very messy as to which one should be the right one to follow or use as a guide?

Another thing for me I notice was the spotlight but you mention you decrease the EV. Is there other way to reduce the glare other then EV in this case? :think:

 

[ZerocoolAstra]

DD123 can advice me on how do you see those lines? I mean with all the construction going on. There are so many lines here and there. Isn't it very messy as to which one should be the right one to follow or use as a guide?

Another thing for me I notice was the spotlight but you mention you decrease the EV. Is there other way to reduce the glare other then EV in this case? :think:

can use black card technique...

 

[daredevil123]

DD123 can advice me on how do you see those lines? I mean with all the construction going on. There are so many lines here and there. Isn't it very messy as to which one should be the right one to follow or use as a guide?

Another thing for me I notice was the spotlight but you mention you decrease the EV. Is there other way to reduce the glare other then EV in this case? :think:

You have to put yourself in the shoes of the viewer. What would attract your attention at first glance. how will elements in the picture "move" that attention. Any thing can be a line, as long as it has some dominance in the audience's attention. A road, a path, patterns, a bridge, a river, even a string of clouds.

A lot of these things will come to you as you learn to stop and think more before you hit that shutter. Ask yourself:

What do you want the point(s) of interest (POI) to be?
How would elements in a frame help to accentuate that POI?
Are any elements unnecessary (being an extra)?
Are any elements forming a distraction that pulls attention away from your POI?

Hitting the shutter everyone can do. The key to great photos, and art, is to be able to capture exactly what you want the viewer to see. That is the x-factor that separates a snapshot from a piece of photographic work.

As for the spotlights. What I was avoiding, is to blow the spotlights and the lighted areas. By keeping it unblown, I can more leeway to work with the RAW picture and do my adjustments. ZCA mentioned the black card technique. For black card technique to work well, you need to at least have

1. a considerably long exposure.
2. a clear large area where you can use the black card to cover.

Black card users usually will try to drag out the shutter speed, so they have enough time to play with having the black card over the part of lens and another part of the exposure where the full frame is allowed to expose. Clear horizons works the best and when using the black card, you need to shake it so you sort of created a soft edge feel. GND can also achieve the effect but it constantly on, and is dependent on the number of stops the GND blocks out. Black card is up to you, how big a part of the entire exposure time you cover (and shake).

In this case, it will be very hard to use a black card. Simply because the spot you want to balance out (the spot lights) is too small and precise.

BTW, even as I say these, I am no expert. I am not there yet. In fact I am still very very far away from being an expert. I am still striving to get there...

 

[ZerocoolAstra]

very thorough answer...!

sorry if I misled with the "black card technique" answer... I was just being straight to the point, answering the question about "is there another way...."

 

[Smiles88]

a very informative answer. sorry for barging guys.

 

[winkoo88]

DD123 can advice me on how do you see those lines? I mean with all the construction going on. There are so many lines here and there. Isn't it very messy as to which one should be the right one to follow or use as a guide?

Another thing for me I notice was the spotlight but you mention you decrease the EV. Is there other way to reduce the glare other then EV in this case? :think:

Bro skylover, there is alot of information on the webs, magazines, books etc... do read up and learn the techniques. There are alot of things to learn. (Really alot)

After reading, you need to take down notes and apply. You need to keep on practising and practising. Looking at the pictures you take, think of it (like what dd123 say) and then try it again and again, until you can get your great shot.

Seriously have to keep on practising...

 

[skylover]

Bro skylover, there is alot of information on the webs, magazines, books etc... do read up and learn the techniques. There are alot of things to learn. (Really alot)

After reading, you need to take down notes and apply. You need to keep on practising and practising. Looking at the pictures you take, think of it (like what dd123 say) and then try it again and again, until you can get your great shot.

Seriously have to keep on practising...

yes. I will. haha.. juz need some enlightenment here n there. dd123 n I think numbball is more specialised in this area which I think seek advice from them r a better option. I'm actually hoping for ppl to comment on mine den juz a gd nt bad this kind of answer. hmm.. did I miss out anyone? anyway those who haf enlightenment me in someday or another appreciate it ya.