so i just got a new camera with all these manual features and stuff because i want to learn to take good looking pictures. here's a few from my first try goofing off with the cam. sorry i had to reduce the size of the pics so they didn't take all my bandwidth. any constructive criticism would be great.

A simple way to make some of them look a lot better and more rustic, take the waterhose one for example, would be to download a simple program like paint shop pro 7 and turn the image to black and white, then mess with the brightness and contrast. The contrast between the darks and lights makes for really good photos.

alright, i'll play around with that. thanks

What are the specs on the cam? I presume you got a digital? (If this has been posted in another thread, point me to it.)

It's a Canon a620.

7.1 megapixel, 4x optical

http://consumer.usa.canon.com/ir/controller?act=ModelDetailAct&fcategoryid=145&modelid=12072

For your flowers, try backing away from the subject, set your distance, and maybe zoom in on it. That way the entire flower is in focus and not just parts of it. The blurriness of parts of your flower really detracts from the image.

This is what you need to know about your camera:

Aperture Range: f/2.8 (W) - f/4.1 (T)
Shutter Speed: 15-1/2000 sec.; Slow shutter operates with noise reduction when manually set at 1.3-15 sec.
Sensitivity: AUTO, ISO 50/100/200/400 equivalent
Metering: Evaluative, Center-weighted average, Spot

Photography 101: Know how to get depth of field. With film cameras you just stop down to the smallest f-stop (the larger number, say f22), but with digital cameras it's a bit trickier. http://www.outsight.com/hyperfocal.html can explain it better than I can. Knowing depth of field will help you get those macro shots just right and getting entire landscapes at a low exposure.

But as I'm sure you know, playing with these digi cams is the only way to really know how they work. Anywho, keep posting your stuff. If you're truly serious about photography and taking better shots, resist the temptation of Paintshop and Photoshop for now. Rock out.

thanks for the tips, patrick. i'll keep playing with it and i'll post some more.

I just got this exact same camera. Doesn't the LCD kick ass?

I think they're great, except for the fact that god actually hates the Aggies.

it's unbelievably awesome

thanks, nate

Nice use of aperture, by the way

What he said. And I like the door.

i really like this one, mitch.

canon makes a helluva camera.

yup

i had the a70, all hooked up, spent about 650 bucks on the whole deal with telephoto lens and stuff...then i got bored and sold it

bad decision?

yea, i bought a nikon coolpix 4100 a few months ago, i'm happy with it because it's small and takes great pics, but that canon was one helluva camera with it all hooked up. i used to get some fucking awesome shots at sporting events for the college newspaper.