Beautiful autumn colours

[FlyingKiwiGirl]

Ok, here goes.

This wasn't a thought about shot, I happened to be visiting a Farmers Market and sneaked in behind some stalls to see if I could capture some of the autumn colour that I could see through the stands. I was pleased with the shot, I like that the pergola adds a point of interest although I would have liked it more on an angle. I like that the stream comes in from the bottom right and curves away although the green "duck weed" covers most of the water. I love the colour. I don't like that the middle clump of grass is more or less centre. I don't think it's a classic shot but I think it's a little bit special I'm still having issues with knowing what settings to set my camera on when out and about, I'm trialing different things and not always understanding why (hence the exposure bias -0.7)

Any suggestions on how I could have improved the shot please?



Exif data-
Camera Sony DSLR-A350
Exposure 0.004 sec (1/250)
Aperture f/8.0
Focal Length 18 mm
ISO Speed 400
Exposure Bias -0.7 EV

[FlyingKiwiGirl]

Could somebody please explain focal length, is that where the focus has been set, I'm learning fast but I don't think I've picked up on focal length yet. I notice it's 18mm above, isn't that very short for this shot?

[RichardTaylor]

@ FlyingKiwiGirl

The focal length, in a lot of cases, doesn't really matter. It all depend on your subject distance, your subject size, and what your are trying to achieve.

One of the few times it may matter is when you shoot portraits. If you shoot too close and fill the frame you can have disturbing perspective, like big noses, of peoples faces. .

This tute, on this site is an intro..
Lenses #1 - Introduction to DSLR lenses.

[Krusty79]

You do have some nice colors there, but the shot is very busy and I don't know where you wanted to direct the viewer's eye. I'm not sure what the subject is. Normally, you would want to viewer to follow the path of the water, but it is so covered with leaves, it's hard to follow the flow.

Also, the focus seems soft throughout the image. At f/8, I would think the majority of the shot should be in focus.

[navcom]

In layman's terms and the easiest way to remember it...focal length is how far you are "zoomed in". The larger the number, the closer you get to something and the narrower your field of view. The smaller the number, the farther you get away from something and the wider your field of view.

Your eyes see something around 35-50mm. 18mm like that in your shot is considered "wide angle". Wide angle lenses are the most popular for landscape shots.

Krusty gave a good analysis of your composition. I'd just add that I know you already know it wasn't planned so the fact that it kind of looks like a snapshot isn't surprising. Best advice is to find a main subject and eliminate everything that competes with that subject...in other words, plan the shot.

Nice colors though...and a fine documentation shot of fall colors...and there is nothing wrong with that! Hope that helps!

[FlyingKiwiGirl]

So it's a snapshot then I knew that though, but I did think it had a little bit more appeal. Thanks very much for your comments, they are much appreciated and I hear what you all say.

Krusty, so why would it be "soft" at f/8 and would it need a smaller aperture to sharpen things up?

[Bruce A]

I don't understand why the majority of the shot would be in focus at f/8. That about mid range and with that you'd get a mid range DOF. I would think around f/16 would sharpen much more of the scene and any smaller may well get everything in focus but could also be less than tack sharp depending on lenses. I like the colours also. Don't see much of those autumn colours in trees in Queensland.

[Krusty79]

Originally Posted by FlyingKiwiGirl

So it's a snapshot then I knew that though, but I did think it had a little bit more appeal. Thanks very much for your comments, they are much appreciated and I hear what you all say.

Krusty, so why would it be "soft" at f/8 and would it need a smaller aperture to sharpen things up?

I will say you have some great colors there and I can see why you wanted to shoot this scene. I have learned not to expect warm and fuzzy comments when you submit your image for a critique , not that I'm trying to sound negative.

I wasn't sure why it would be soft at f/8 because most lenses are sharpest at/near that aperture. Plus, you shot at 1/250, which should eliminate most movement. Did you use a tripod, or was it windy? You might have to start using a tripod and either a self timer or remote shutter release to eliminate any vibration. I know some of my shots look blurry because of the wind, but I usually shoot at much longer shutter speeds. You could have used a smaller aperture for greater DOF, but I'm not sure if that is related to the softness issue.

According to the online DOF calculator, for a Sony A350, shot at f/8, with an 18mm focal length and an estimated 10 feet distance from the subject, the near limit of acceptable sharpness is 4 ft all the way to infinity, so I don't think f/8 is the problem. Maybe someone with more experience can answer that. Or did I error in estimating the 10 feet of distance to your subject?

Online Depth of Field Calculator