Looking for advice....new to photography

[sdunagan]

Im new to the photography world....Im looking for advice on how to improve pictures that im taking such as lighting, exposure and so forth...what can I change to make this a better shot?


Exif
Canon EOS Rebel
Fstops f/6.3
Exposure 1/60 sec
ISO 400
Focal length 41 mm
flash compulsary

[Alex on DPS]

I'm just going to discuss composition.

The tree as a frame is really destroying the image because it takes up so much space. It traps
most of the image to the left and the top even curves to compress the subject down.
The fence in the back is also a problem because it draws the eyes up and that's not where
the subject is.

I would have either done a nice close potrait or distant potrait.

[Naois]

Maybe a tighter crop, removing a good part of the tree, but not all of it, would help.

I'm not sure what you can do about the fence, but maybe opening the aperture would help blur it out a bit?

I would like to see some details in the jacket. It could just be my monitor, since my work monitor isn't calibrated.

[Baydream]

I totally agree with the prior commentary about cropping. One of the basic "rules" when taking a shot is to look at the background. A cluttered background can ruin a good shot. Also, try decreasing depth of field (blurring the background). Try to focus 1/3 of the way into the image to get the best selection of in-focus features. Reducing the aperture (increasing the f-stop number) will create a shallower depth-of-files and background features will appear blurry.
A hot-shoe flash might also increase the "fill light" and bring out more details in the jacket. Don't be afraid to experiment.
Good luck.