Into the distance

[Peach]

This picture was taken on Saturday night. There's limited light in my apartment (stupid burnt out light bulbs) and the whole night Zoe (the dog) was playing 'camera shy'; wherein she'd move just as I was about to press the shutter. This is one of the few ones I like. It wasn't until uploading that I realized I had left the ISO on 1600! Way too high! This was taken, I believe, in either Manual or portrait. I can't remember exactly; I was fiddling. I try to shoot in Manual but I was fiddling around last night. Anywho - aside from adjusting the ISO and working on the light issue - is there anything .. maybe.. composition-y that I could do better in this? Or how can a shot like this be improved? Maybe sharper>? I should have used the zoom lens maybe and sat farther back?

Anyways.. sorry for the long post.. I'm trying hard, really I am. Any help is appreciated.


EXIF data:
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Model: NIKON D40X
Shutter Speed: 10/130 second
F Number: F/4.5
Focal Length: 34 mm
ISO Speed: 1600

[wulf]

Actually, I think this one is great. Typical advice for portraits is to get the eyes in focus but, since dogs have such a great sense of smell, getting the nose sharp works just as well in this case. Yes, it is grainy and has a colour cast but it all comes together - it would have been a great shot for the "breaking the rules" assignment we did a few months ago.

Wulf

[clockdoc]

I like it the way it is. Is there any more of the head in the original shot? If so you may want to try showing a bit more of the head. Nice sharpness on the nose that leads me right up to the eye. The direction she is facing keeps me in the frame as well.

[Peach]

Wow. I'm stunned. I thought this one was kinda wonky but hey - thanks! Talk about a confidence booster!

clockdoc - unfortunately this is almost straight from the camera; I just resized adjusted the color a bit (still not quite right). She's got some awesome big ears though, that haven't changed in size since she was a puppy. She just kind of grew into them.

This is another shot from that night, one I quite like, where you can see her ears.

Thanks for the comments guys on the above picture. I think I'm going to get it developed and framed.

[jiminyClickit]

Peach,

You found a secret; often the subject and framing can outweigh any "wonkiness" from the technical side of things. The expression and gaze space left open make this an interesting work. 'When' is often more important than 'how,' though both must be considered. Comes with practice.

[Peach]

Thank you so much Jiminy. I guess the over all feeling of the photo does outweigh the wonkiness of it. It's by far one of my favorite pictures of Zoe.

Does the picture work better as a black and white though?



Does it take some of the wonkiness from the original?

[wulf]

I like the colour, which fits perfectly with with the bluriness round the edges. I think you lose something by going monochrome (particularly the yellowish line that seems to lead from the eyes to the far side of the frame).

Wulf

[jiminyClickit]

Peach,

Someday I'll learn to appreciate black-and-white more. For now, I am thrown by the extra-intense whiteout in the center. Perhaps a middle ground: less yellow tinge, more eye detail and color? Or on the b/w, lighten Zoe and reduce the whiteout, so she really is featured in her "best light."

[Peach]

Thanks both of you I'll try your suggestions and see what I get

[Robin Sarac]

Just as an aside, you should look to see if the D40x has Auto ISO (mine is a D80).

I just started using it and I love it. I set my ISO to 100, the minimum shutter speed at 1/15 (love that VR Nikon!), and maximum ISO to 1600. If proper exposure requires going slower than the minimum shutter speed you set, the ISO is bumped up to the next setting until the minimum shuuter speed can be used...up to the maximum ISO you set.

I do have to disable it now and again for creative shots, long exposures (e.g. night), when I want to use th eH settings. But for the most part, it frees me from having to worry about ISO...and prevents leaving it at a high ISO from the last shot.

I love the photo. Have you tried it with a slightly cooler white balance setting?