Curiosity

[Optikal iLLusion]

Hello all,

I was walking through the park the other day and came across more than one time where I saw one person or a group of people and thought, " That would make a good picture." However, I didnt attempt to take any. I was curious how you who take candid shots of people out and about do it. Are you approaching them and asking permission first? (In my mind that seems like what you should do to avoid any problems.) Or are you just being sneaky?

Also, I did come across a neat bird that I got quite a few pictures of. You'll notice that when zoomed in on it it looks very soft. Is this a MP issue? Or some sort of lens aberration problem? Maybe a lens quality issue? I did shoot it with minimum shutter speed in mind for focal length as it was shot handheld. I'll also took a picture of it with a tripod as well. The picture as a whole looks great IMHO when its not zoomed to this extreme. Here is a link to the SYS for the final picture. Thanks in advance for advice.

[RichardTaylor]

I just take candids.

Re the picture:
What shutter speed, aperture, ISO & were you using?
Is this a tight crop?
What lens were you using?

[Optikal iLLusion]

Originally Posted by RichardTaylor

I just take candids.

Re the picture:
What shutter speed, aperture, ISO & were you using?
Is this a tight crop?
What lens were you using?

Have you ever had anyone see you taking pictures of them and get mad?

The EXIF data for the shot is in the link i posted. Thats just cropped to the head so I could show what i thought was weird. I used my 75-300mm kit lens.

[ArmySoldier777]

The 70-300 isn't a very sharp lens. What you've got there is pretty normal for it. It's not bad at all, just not super sharp. That combined with it being slightly underexposed "technically speaking, not creatively speaking", then it's a little more noticeable. You can usually bump up the sharpening a little more during Raw PP and it'll look better. I wouldn't try to do too much sharpening on a Jpeg though.

As far as candid shots, I haven't had anyone get mad. Occasionally you'll get a weird look lol, like "Why is he taking a picture of me..", but that's about the worst I've gotten.

[mosgood]

I was at a bluff overlooking the ocean last month, & got a few people shots. I was doing my best to be discreet while capturing a mom with her young son, a woman wearing headphones at the edge of the bluff, & a couple holding hands. I didn't ask any of them if I could shoot them, but none of them seemed to mind if they did notice me.

My best advice is to not be too conspicuous or creepy. I was shooting other things too....some sea birds, surfers, & a couple of sailboats. I use a fairly long lens as well so I am not bothering anyone. Nothing up close or personal.

[Optikal iLLusion]

Focal Length300 mm
Shutter Speed1/640 sec.
Aperture5.6
ISO/Film100

Here's the EXIF data for those who haven't viewed my SYS thread.

[Optikal iLLusion]

[snip]

Originally Posted by ArmySoldier777

The 70-300 isn't a very sharp lens. What you've got there is pretty normal for it. It's not bad at all, just not super sharp. That combined with it being slightly underexposed "technically speaking, not creatively speaking", then it's a little more noticeable. You can usually bump up the sharpening a little more during Raw PP and it'll look better. I wouldn't try to do too much sharpening on a Jpeg though.

As far as candid shots, I haven't had anyone get mad. Occasionally you'll get a weird look lol, like "Why is he taking a picture of me..", but that's about the worst I've gotten.

Just to be clear again that is a crop of the head from the shot I posted in the SYS. I edited the RAW image but it converts to JPEG out of LR so I can post it here. I cropped that down after i edited the RAW image. So what youre seeing has been altered a bit.

Originally Posted by mosgood

I was at a bluff overlooking the ocean last month, & got a few people shots. I was doing my best to be discreet while capturing a mom with her young son, a woman wearing headphones at the edge of the bluff, & a couple holding hands. I didn't ask any of them if I could shoot them, but none of them seemed to mind if they did notice me.

My best advice is to not be too conspicuous or creepy. I was shooting other things too....some sea birds, surfers, & a couple of sailboats. I use a fairly long lens as well so I am not bothering anyone. Nothing up close or personal.

Thank you .

[RichardTaylor]

That's sort of pushing it a bit especially with that lens (which isn't noted for its sharpness) wide open and at 300mm (probably would look a bit better at F8). Not a lot of pixels to work with. I do own that lens however it has been replaced.
------------
Re candids:
No. However if I get any indication at all (body language) that they don't want a picture taken I don't do it.
Only once was I asked not to take a photograph and that was in a citizenship ceremony I was asked to cover by the organisers. Didn't take any individual pics of the person but he was in the group shots.

[Optikal iLLusion]

Originally Posted by RichardTaylor

That's sort of pushing it a bit especially with that lens (which isn't noted for its sharpness) wide open and at 300mm (probably would look a bit better at F8). Not a lot of pixels to work with. I do own that lens however it has been replaced.
------------
Re candids:
No. However if I get any indication at all (body language) that they don't want a picture taken I don't do it.
Only once was I asked not to take a photograph and that was in a citizenship ceremony I was asked to cover by the organisers. Didn't take any individual pics of the person but he was in the group shots.

I was leaning more towards lens quality being the issue. What did you replace the lens with? I didnt think to increase the f stop. Ill give that ahot next time.

Thanks for the input on the candid shots.

[RichardTaylor]

I replaced it with two lenses, over time.

(1) Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM
It's my long zoom when I want to travel relatively light, or as a backup when shooting motor sport. It can be a bit short for some wildlife.

(2) Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 L IS USM
My most used lens. The only downside is that it is a bit heavy as a general purpose walk around long zoom. I mostly use it with a monopod.