It’s hard when you enjoy being in front of the camera as much as you enjoy being behind it.
I can’t always deliver cool, on site images when I don’t have anyone to hold the camera for me. Most of the time, I’m inside my house, or on the porch, with a trigger and a tripod, snapping away.
But Monday, I found myself in a photo-worthy environment wearing a camera-ready outfit, with a sister willing to help take photos. Skip below for full outfit details. Naturally, I had to shoot. I am still very much a noob when it comes to shooting in manual. I told you last week that I am learning, but it’s going to be pretty bad before it gets better. Nevertheless, I could not miss this opportunity to try my best – Afterall, I need to learn and I also need photos for my blog.
I made some mistakes, that’s pretty clear (because the photos aren’t,) but I’m still learning the exposure triangle – it’s going to continue to confuse the crap out of me for a while. I consulted my photographer friend, post-edits, to see what I could have done better. (FYI – I was using a 50mm f/1.8G lens. Aperture: F/6 || SS: 1/125 || ISO:1600) She gave me some great insights and helped me figure out where I went wrong. Here are the mistakes I made:
Aperture was too high. I thought f/6 would allow a lot of light in since the sun was setting quickly, but I was told f/2.8-f/4 would have been better. Knowing what aperture to use is what I struggle with the most. For the record, the smaller the f/stop number is, the more light you let in.
When you capture a moving subject, you cannot stand still. My sister tried her best, but she was a little stiff. I probably should have adjusted my shutter speed so I could capture more movement with minimal blur.
ISO was turned up too high. I knew 1600 was excessive, but I was struggling with lighting since we were in-between two buildings. Being the noob that I am, I just decided to up the numbers. That explains why my photos are noisy looking. 600-800 would have been better.
I look forward to improving my photography skill set. I hope six months from now, I can look back and laugh at how bad these pictures are. Nothing pleases me more than seeing myself improve. For now, I am happy with my first attempt shooting in manual. These photos could have been so much worse, but they also could be so much better.
Don’t miss out on learning opportunities. What are you learning right now?
Jeans: ASOS (similar here) // Top: H&M // Shoes: Donald J Pliner // Bag: Mango (similar here)
