Tiptoe at Sunset

[marian65]

I was actually trying for a silhouette but didn't quite get it right. So, now my question is, have I framed Tiptoe correctly? I have only been shooting manually for 6 weeks now and sometimes I forget to pay attention to my meter. She was not wanting to sit still for very long and I had to shoot fast. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Nikon D1x, SS 125 F5.6 ISO 400

[karen_s]

I think the framing is pretty good, but you might back off just a tad to give Tiptoe a little breathing room around the edges. He's cropped a little tight on the top and bottom.

As for getting a silhouette, I found by accident while shooting my dog at sunset that if I exposed for the background rather than the subject, I usually ended up with a nice silhouette. I meter the sky behind so it's properly exposed and my subject usually turns black, or black enough to work with in post processing. I'm not sure you could have gotten a silhouette in this spot because much of the back ground behind Tiptoe is pretty dark. I think you would need either a lower vantage point to catch more light in the sky or a different spot.

It also looks a tad soft but not terribly so. If you were shooting with zoom lens, it might be a touch of camera shake. Shorter focal lengths can help in these instances. Basically, the more you zoom in, the faster the shutter needs to snap.

I kinda like the shot as is though, Tiptoe is such a beautiful cat and I LOVE her coloring. I also really like the little rim of back lighting at the edges of her fur. It really helps set her apart from the background.

[marian65]

Karen, thanks so much for your help. Tiptoe is indeed a beautiful cat and a fun subject to shoot. I was using a zoom lens on her and I will definitely try your suggestions on the next pretty sunset we get and see if I have success.

[Qanths]

Great shot I love the shallow depth of field.

H.S.

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