Newbie to it all...

[Aqueelah]

Hello, my name is Aqueelah Maxwell and I am a beginner photographer. I have a Sony Alpha a230 which my husband bought me for Christmas last year. I am excited to learn and be a part of this community. I have posted a picture of my nephew that I took at the park of him. I truly look forward to honest and thoughful critique.



Sony DSLR-A230
Focal Length:160.0mm
1/160s
f/5.0
ISO:100
Kit Lens 18-55 SAM
Jaylen | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

[Tito87]

Originally Posted by Aqueelah

Hello, my name is Aqueelah Maxwell and I am a beginner photographer. I have a Sony Alpha a230 which my husband bought me for Christmas last year. I am excited to learn and be a part of this community. I have posted a picture of my nephew that I took at the park of him. I truly look forward to honest and thoughtful critique.



Sony DSLR-A230
Focal Length:160.0mm
1/160s
f/5.0
ISO:100
Kit Lens 18-55 SAM
Jaylen | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

I like your shot. I think it's overexposed and out of focus, but the composition is nice.

[MrJones]

I'm going to be harsh but I know this will help:
1. it's out of focus. the focus is on his shirt while in portraits we usually want the focus to be on the eyes. the human eyes is usually trying to make eye contact with the person in the photo and that's why it's important to get the eyes in focus.
2. I'm guessing he is standing on some type of playground, either include some of it so we'll know what's going on or take the photo without anything sticking out.
3. composition wise it would have been much better if you put him in the right third of the photo.
4. lightning - it was taken at mid day with the sun bright right above him. this kind of harsh strong light usually result in unflattering shadows and you can see them on his face. taking the photo under shade or just before sunset would have been better.
5. ISO - your shutter speed in at 1/160 which is ok for that kind of photo but you can always bump up your ISO a bit and get higher shutter speeds which will help get a sharper image.

[Aqueelah]

WOW! Thank you very much for your insight. I truly appreciate it. These are awesome tips that I seriously will take into consideration and put forth into my photography. I am still getting the hang of taking great shots and learning editing tools. Thank you again for your time and critiques!!

[ProPhtogrphr]

Love the colour combination ...

This kind of shot from a newbie is simply impressive.

[NicolaB]

Hi Aqueelah & welcome

You make up your mind about someone the second you see them, and your nephew looks such a happy, kind boy imo.

Welcome to your first photography lesson

Mr Jones has pointed you in the right direction and to help, see this lesson on DPS.

Also for the right time to take photographs is in the golden hours of the days. Failing that, see this lesson.

Hope this points you in the right direction

Looking forward to seeing more of your shots.