Burned car

[drummingpariah]

I'm brand new to photography, but have been carrying my camera around with me recently and taking shots of whatever looks cool. I'm absolutely a neophyte photographer, and am looking for any critiques, suggestions, or recommended reading that comes to mind. I think this shot is the best summary of what I've learned in my week of camera ownership. Open to anything and everything, especially technical suggestions.



Shot manual:
Camera: Nikon D40X
Exposure: 0.01 sec (1/100)
Aperture: f/5.0
Focal Length: 30 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: No Flash

Oh, and just FYI: I'm about as colorblind as possible without having brain damage. I tend not to do much color adjustment, but I did increase the saturation on this. Looking forward to feedback, thanks in advance!

[Lankey]

Hi,
Well this is my first critique here, so i wouldn't take what i say very seriously as your idea of what works is probably better but anyway...

I really like the shot, there is something about the recked engine that draws me in, i think it is all the exposed wiring and perhaps the very yellowy rust.

Some things that could perhaps be improved (again take it with the grain of salt)..
I find the brightness of the sky behind abit distracting
Also you could of moved it to the side alittle so it is alittle less smack bang in the centre, though it certainly does not make the image worse in this case.

Another idea for might have been to get down alittle lower and move abit to the right so that the front bumper starts alittle more torwards the top left to lead the eye in more. That would of also leave you with less flare in the background.

But all in all, i think it is an interesting photograph and you have done very well!

[drummingpariah]

Thanks for the feedback, I was getting worried that nobody had anything to say.

This was shot a bit late, and in the shade so the lighting was difficult to work with. So, I completely agree that the blinding white of the direct sun behind the car is distracting but I wasn't sure how to remove it without spending hours in photoshop. That's my biggest complaint on this.

I would have liked to have gotten more of the building in this shot, which would put the car off to the right, and that probably would have cropped out the sun flare as well.

I got a few from a lower angle, but the engine had been partially melted and drooped down into the engine bay. When I got lower, the engine disappeared into the engine bay. I really wanted to have the engine pulley visible through the front of the car, and couldn't get a good angle any lower than I was.

I think we're on the same page for a lot of these critiques. I'm going to spend the week working on composition, getting the right angle, and framing my photos a bit more effectively. You just rekindled my excitement, thanks!

[Sterling]

I think I might tone down the saturation of the brick wall. The car is the star, not the bricks.

[mike1187]

I think I would like to see a bit more of the right side of the car. Not much, but just enough to show that the entire car is trashed.

[navcom]

I'm hoping this wasn't the picture you sent to the insurance company!!

(couldn't resist!...back to seriousness)...I agree with the comment that you need to see more of the car. A head-on shot kind of leaves the car looking 2-D. Maybe get lower to the ground at a 45 degree angle to the front-right corner of the car (looking straight at the turned tire)?

[APAPHOTO]

Go black and white with a nice vignette