[KANdaddy]

Hi folks,

Just wanted to get some constructive critcism here.

http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=264190

Only my second shoot. Photos were shot in RAW with my Nikon D40 + kit lens. Manipulation was a mix of Lighroom, PS 7.0, and Nikon Capture NX 2.0.

[KANdaddy]

no one?

[scollins]

The stormtrooper pic is hilarious!

I think they look pretty good. But I'm a sucker for an E90 M3....

[KANdaddy]

Originally Posted by scollins

The stormtrooper pic is hilarious!

lol. thx

[dosserj]

Beautiful car, obviously, but on to the pix...
It looks like you took them in the mid-day sun which is never favorable. I can see you tried to darken the bright sky in some of your pix, but it really just gave them a gray tint. A quick fix is a graduated neutral density filter which is designed to darken the tops of photos for you and also looks a little more natural.
Do you use any flashes at all? That will help illuminate the side of the car that is cast in shadows. Many of your photos had one side of the car in the harsh sun and the other in shadows. Flashes will help!
My suggestion would be to get a tripod, at least one flash and wait for an overcast day or shoot in morning/evening when the sun isn't right overhead. Many photographers talk about the "magic hour" which is the time the sun creates soft, diffused light as it is setting. Try to find that window of time and as mentioned, use a tripod.
You are on the right track tho! Any picture of an M3 is a winner to me

[lyndon_h]

I'm not the one to be critiquing as I'm a beginner, but I agree with Dosserj about the colors. I think pictures #4 and #7 have the most natural colors.

[KANdaddy]

Originally Posted by dosserj

Beautiful car, obviously, but on to the pix...
It looks like you took them in the mid-day sun which is never favorable. I can see you tried to darken the bright sky in some of your pix, but it really just gave them a gray tint. A quick fix is a graduated neutral density filter which is designed to darken the tops of photos for you and also looks a little more natural.
Do you use any flashes at all? That will help illuminate the side of the car that is cast in shadows. Many of your photos had one side of the car in the harsh sun and the other in shadows. Flashes will help!
My suggestion would be to get a tripod, at least one flash and wait for an overcast day or shoot in morning/evening when the sun isn't right overhead. Many photographers talk about the "magic hour" which is the time the sun creates soft, diffused light as it is setting. Try to find that window of time and as mentioned, use a tripod.
You are on the right track tho! Any picture of an M3 is a winner to me

Originally Posted by lyndon_h

I'm not the one to be critiquing as I'm a beginner, but I agree with Dosserj about the colors. I think pictures #4 and #7 have the most natural colors.

Thanks for the feedback folks. I am heading to SoCal next week to do another shoot. Will def try some of your suggestions. I did use a tripod for all these shots BTW, so not sure where i screwed up there.

[lyndon_h]

Originally Posted by KANdaddy

Thanks for the feedback folks. I am heading to SoCal next week to do another shoot. Will def try some of your suggestions. I did use a tripod for all these shots BTW, so not sure where i screwed up there.

np. I know this is the noob way, but I often put my camera in auto mode for the first couple of pictures to see what my camera thinks the settings should be. Then i put it in manual, then set the settings close to the auto settings then start tweaking.