First time DSLR!

Hi everyone,

Here are some shots of my first day shooting with a DSLR camera. I was using a Canon Ixus before.

I safed up some money and now bought a DSLR + housing!

Very very confusing underwater haha... but maybe you like some of the shots.

Hope to get some constructive critic.

Thank you guys

http://www.flickr.com/photos/moritznautilu...57629187068088/

What can I say: they are all rather good for a first time out. Very good, in fact! The skeleton shrimp is a really hard shot, and I'm impressed.

If there is a learning point for me, it would be to pay even more attention to the negative space. You seem to have reduced the depth of field and focussed precisely on the front of the subject, but you can also try being careful about the framing of the subject and, sometimes, exposing for a blue-water background.

I found the contrast a bit overwhelming for my taste: the images are very bold but look over-saturated to me. Some people like that effect, but I don't (usually). Black backgrounds sometimes don't set off the colour of the subject: red and orange against blue can be more interesting.

Tim

*UPDATE

Hi Tim,

thanks a lot for your advice. I´ll try to be more careful with the saturation and the choose of backgrounds.

What exactly do you mean with "pay even more attention to the negative space" ?

I have added some new shots (cardinal fish with eggs, Nudi, popcorn S.) to my Flickr set.

cheers,

Moritz

What exactly do you mean with "pay even more attention to the negative space" ?

Triplefin

Compare your linked image, with lots of black space, to this one:

What do you think?

A small area of black background or negative space is a good contrast, but too much is distracting; the shape and arrangement of the negative space can also help, or work against, the image:

The negative space works better if it is uniform and doesn't have any distracting detail (bits of coral, plankton and stuff), although a repeatingpattern also works well. This...

... doesn't work as well as this, to my eye (even if the lizardfish is itself better framed and exposed):

That's the sort of thing I'm thinking of.

Lastly, there's always a blue background:

Thanks for your extra images, my favourite is this one:

Eggs

I think that's a really strong image.

Tim

Hi Tim,

thanks again for your helpful advices. Very nice pictures you took. And now i understand what you mean

I went shooting yesterday and tried to focus on the foreground/background composition.

Now the neg. space makes max. 50% of the image!

What do you think about the new shots?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/moritznautilu...57629588089931/ or see below:

cheers,

Moritz

Your first two images there are really cool. What's the border around the little blue fish - it looks like a variety of kelp?

Hi,

It is the mantle tissue of a giant clam

Wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_clam

cheers

Hi everyone,

 

Here are some shots of my first day shooting with a DSLR camera. I was using a Canon Ixus before.

I safed up some money and now bought a DSLR + housing!

Very very confusing underwater haha... but maybe you like some of the shots.

Hope to get some constructive critic.

Thank you guys

 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/moritznautilu...57629187068088/

First of all I enjoyed watching your pics, one question, the skeleton shrimp shot, was that with the 60mm only? Or did you use a diopter or teleconverter? Either way, really nice capture. I think the only thing I can add is something that has already been stated, try to be careful with the amount of saturation, of course this is something very subjective. Keep up the good work, might see you underwater one day if you drop by Tulamben

Morten Hansen

Hi Morten,

All shots are taken with a 60mm lens. No diopters or TC.

Thanks for your advice, i will work on the colors. And be a bit more careful with the saturation setting!

cheers

Hi Tim,

 

thanks again for your helpful advices. Very nice pictures you took. And now i understand what you mean

 

I went shooting yesterday and tried to focus on the foreground/background composition.

 

Now the neg. space makes max. 50% of the image!

 

What do you think about the new shots?

 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/moritznautilu...57629588089931/ or see below:

 

 

 

 

 

 

cheers,

 

Moritz

The top one is very nice. How did you take it?

These images are quite stunning!

What makes them great images is that you have close-up, centered shots of unusual sea creatures, well lit, and in focus.

Yes, the colors are a little oversaturated and maybe the contrast is punched a bit too high here or there but these are mainly post-production issues...or could be appropriately solved in postproduction (Photoshop, Lightroom etc.)

My suggestion for improvement, however, is that they are what they are: close up pictures of fish, shrimp etc. that are centered in the frame.

If you look at most of your photos - both horizontal and vertical - you center the subject as much as possible.

So your end result is documenting extraordinary creatures using ordinary composition.

Now that you have these shots, I would experiment with off-framing the creatures, and getting parts and pieces of them instead a center framed fish up close.

I have no doubt that as you continue to take underwater photographs you will improve in this regard as you will get bored yourself, of taking the same sort of composition when you are underwater.

Keep it up and definitely post more here! You're well on your way to making some really impressive images.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/moritznautilu...ali/6837597362/

this one is more unusual in composition...it's my favorite by far, and it makes you think because the exterior almost looks like the jaw of a Carcharodon Megalodon (obviously not to scale) or a shark jaw...

Moritz, I looked at your new shots post#5 : for me, they look all great, with the pinch of salt that adds the personal touch onto them... slightly different from what is the norm, either with the use of negative space, high contrast, great background pattern or fiddling with the focus.

I appreciate them all. Cannot say something else than keep on posting!