Beginner seeking help- "beloved guitar"

[MLeite]

Hello everybody,
This is my first post on DPS and also my first "public" picture. This is a photo of my beloved guitar (my girlfriend refused to pose...). I would like to know what do you think about the composition and about the sepia tone (added using Aperture3). Overall, what do you suggest do to make it better?
Thanks in advance,
MLeite
EXIF Info:
Nikon D90 + Micro-Nikkor 55mm f/2.8
Focal Length (35mm): 82mm
Shutter Speed: 1/125
Aperture: f/4
ISO 2000
0ev
Flash did not fire
Manual exposure
Auto Focus

[brun0sa]

Hi,

I'm not an expert, but here is my opinion:

The shot is good. I like the sepia style.
The focus point of the photo, makes you look at that little point. I would change that point to the other end. This is an option, of course. Perhaps that is what you have in mind.

But here is a thing that don't make much sense to me: the ISO and exposure time. This is a home made photo, you can use a much lower ISO and a bigger exposure time.

How I helped.
Cheers

[SusanH1970]

I like it! Your use of diagonal lines and shallow DOF work well. Nice work.

[MLeite]

Originally Posted by brun0sa

Hi,

I'm not an expert, but here is my opinion:

The shot is good. I like the sepia style.
The focus point of the photo, makes you look at that little point. I would change that point to the other end. This is an option, of course. Perhaps that is what you have in mind.

But here is a thing that don't make much sense to me: the ISO and exposure time. This is a home made photo, you can use a much lower ISO and a bigger exposure time.

How I helped.
Cheers

I did not pay attention to the ISO (beginner...) and exposure, but it makes perfect sense. Will try with different settings and different focal points! thanks for your suggestions and feedback.

[JessicaO]

I like the picture! I do agree with MLeite's suggestion to lower the ISO-- you'll have a less noisy/pixelly image that way. Try for an exposure time of 1/60 sec or faster. This photo would be nice as a series of photos each focusing on different parts of the guitar. Just my own imagination!

What guitar is this, btw? I enjoy playing acoustic guitar

[MLeite]

Originally Posted by JessicaO

I like the picture! I do agree with MLeite's suggestion to lower the ISO-- you'll have a less noisy/pixelly image that way. Try for an exposure time of 1/60 sec or faster. This photo would be nice as a series of photos each focusing on different parts of the guitar. Just my own imagination!

What guitar is this, btw? I enjoy playing acoustic guitar

Hi Jessica, thanks for your comment. I really like your idea of representing the guitar on different angles. I might do just that!!
This is a handmade guitar from Brazil, the maker is Samuel Carvalho. It has an amazing projection and sound... I spent a great time choosing the woods and every detail of it, thus the title.
About the ISO, I'm really a beginner, so I did not pay attention to the ISO/Exposition time. Will work with different ISO and exposure times. Again, thanks for the feedback! And keep playing!!
MLeite

[JessicaO]

Please post those pics if/when you take them! I love looking at pictures of guitars, and a handmade Brazilian guitar would be fantastic to see.

[greenroompt]

first off, great shot! very well composed and pleasing to the eye. ISO - pointed out already, but with those settings, you could be at ISO 125, f4 and 1/8th of a sec, but would need a tripod. the trick then would be to make sure that you do not press the trigger from the camera, instead use a remote switch. this will avoid any camera shake, however little, that will occur when pressing the button. no matter how sturdy the tripod is, there will be some no matter what. another way would be to set the shooting mode to timer. even 2 sec timer will allow for zero camera shake, and one sharp photo!

ISO 125 will be much nicer than 2000.

remember the sunny 16 rule: on a sunny day iso 100 @f16 would require a shutter speed of 100. double the iso or fstop to get and you will need to decrease your shutter by 1/2. so for example, sunny day ISO 200 @ f16 will be 1/200th shutter speed.

practice playing with different apertures, and you will see the correlation. meter the scene first, then play with the variations. on a really cloudy day you might be at iso 400 @ f16 to be at 1/100th. our cameras will meter for us, but we can control where we want a specific setting for the desired effect. (ie. shallow depth of field you would want a smaller number fstop, and get as close to your subject using the longest focal length.)

so much to learn! but the journey is fun. contact me HERE with any specific questions.

[MLeite]

Originally Posted by greenroompt

first off, great shot! very well composed and pleasing to the eye. ISO - pointed out already, but with those settings, you could be at ISO 125, f4 and 1/8th of a sec, but would need a tripod. the trick then would be to make sure that you do not press the trigger from the camera, instead use a remote switch. this will avoid any camera shake, however little, that will occur when pressing the button. no matter how sturdy the tripod is, there will be some no matter what. another way would be to set the shooting mode to timer. even 2 sec timer will allow for zero camera shake, and one sharp photo!

ISO 125 will be much nicer than 2000.

remember the sunny 16 rule: on a sunny day iso 100 @f16 would require a shutter speed of 100. double the iso or fstop to get and you will need to decrease your shutter by 1/2. so for example, sunny day ISO 200 @ f16 will be 1/200th shutter speed.

practice playing with different apertures, and you will see the correlation. meter the scene first, then play with the variations. on a really cloudy day you might be at iso 400 @ f16 to be at 1/100th. our cameras will meter for us, but we can control where we want a specific setting for the desired effect. (ie. shallow depth of field you would want a smaller number fstop, and get as close to your subject using the longest focal length.)

so much to learn! but the journey is fun. contact me HERE with any specific questions.

Thanks a lot for your comments! I just tried again with a lower ISO and was very happy with the results, especially the cleaner image when zooming in using the computer. It was a little more difficult to keep the camera steady without a tripod. Well, 2 lessons learned: importance of ISO AND importance of a tripod.