New camera, NZ sunset.

[blakamin]

Recently new to photog and need a few tips on sunsets.

Besides horizon not being straight, any tips would be appreciated...



Fujifilm S2000HD sitting on a rock and a stone, using self-timer to eliminate any shakes (bought tripod since)
ISO: 100
Exposure: 1/340 sec
Aperture: 4.2
Focal Length: 11.1mm
No post work at all.

There's some others in the folder this links to, if you're bored.

[Laurenbiz]

I'm not sure exactly what you would like us to critique here, but here goes nothing...

-I am not sure if the bow of the ship is supposed to be in the foreground or not. For me, it is somewhat distracting and a little confusing. If this were to be a photo of simply the horizon with the sunlight beaming through, the ship bow makes me wonder why it's there in the photo!

-At 1/340 shutter speed, you shouldn't need to worry about a tripod.

-That is my two cents!

[dave.turley]

Hi,
I like the boat, and the title explains its presence. Like the glow of the sunset on it and the overall sunset it pleasing to my eye. Nice to see an extra element added to a sunset picture.
Dave

[blakamin]

Cheers all!

I got the boat because it was there.. With that island over the road from home, I have about 100 sunset shots in the last month alone

I think it may be a little large though and maybe could have framed it better (about a half - third smaller up the right side)

And I think I need a tripod nearly all the time (i shake like a machine!)

Again, thanks.

[MovingStill]

I don't think you need any tips on sunsets, you've done a beautiful job with this one. Great colours and the exposure is spot on!

I can appreciate what you are trying to achieve with including the boat in the composition, but it doesn't really work here for me. There isn't enough of the boat to really define it as such - it doesn't have context within the frame, rather it feels more of an intrusion.

You are doing well to include some interest in the foreground of the frame, I'd suggest you go back explore this subject more, go take heaps of shots around the boat from different angles. It definitely has potential!

[blackluna]

You,ve done a good work.

for 1/340 s, I agree with others that you don't need tripod for this.
again, for aperture you can lower it until f/11 or f/16 to get deep Depth of Field.

The bow at the right side is distracting. But, if it isn't there, your picture is just flat.
No point of interest unless the color of the sunset.
I'm not saying it's bad. But, try to add another object to support your story.

I think you may increase the exposure +0.5 EV to reduce shadow at foreground.

[Cmoon]

This is great! I am a huge fan of sunset photos and these colors say it all! I would suggest maybe turning towards the bow of this boat to add more of a story. Great shot with no post processing though. Thanks for sharing

[blakamin]

Better? Worse?

From Public Sunsets

[dave.turley]

Hi
There's a huge dollop of black in this one, which I assume is the boat that's nicely suggested by the glow of the sun in the first one.
Dave

[ajm057]

Firstly - nice job - crisp and clear shots. The composition is yours to choose and I appreciate the choice you made. To my eye I like the shot with just the partially lit bow of the boat in it. And like U I am not overly concerned with a horizontal horizon. It is nice - on occassions - to generate an image that is not just another "stock" sunrise or sunset.

I would suggest you take a series of similar shots to see the effect - BUT start earlier - try 15-20 minutes before sunrise and then at 3-5 minute intervals. You should see a dramatic difference. Very early shots should pick-up the very high clouds - in the 5 minutes near to and after sunrise your in the fantastic RED-5 minutes (Andy Rouse's favourate time of day). Given the cloud structure you had I would also look to see if there are any Charlton Heston moments - sun in 15-20 degs above the horizon but behind a cloud with shafts of sunlight radiating from it. Sometimes you get a real surprise.

You will probably need a good tripod and remote release. I have also been experimenting with bracketting these type of shot and generating HDRs just to see if there is a way to improve the image by allowing more detail to be visible in the final image. Again this is a matter of your personal taste.