What do you think?

[charlie]

Had a little bit of time during the bowl games today Mike, let me know what you think. These were taken with my 50mm lens, I think I like it.
The flame just wouldn't turn around!!!!!!!

[CSeaSee]

Just beautiful! I especially like the third one!

[Poseidon]

Very nice Charlie, nice fish BUTT!

The orange shoulder tang is nice, but it looks like you just missed being razor sharp. Your first is very sharp though. Fish aren't particulary helpful when you are trying to get them to pose, are they?

[charlie]

If it weren't for fish butts............................................
I see what you mean on the tang Mike. What could I have done, faster shutter speed??? I didn't use a tripod for any of these, maybe that would have helped.
I also found the spot healing brush in CS2 today, wow, what a novel concept. The original on the tang got cleaned up, but I didn't get to the save for web pic. If you look in my gallery, you'll see what I mean.
Thanx

[Poseidon]

Nope, a faster shutter speed would have actually hurt you here. (The faster shutter would have meant you used a wider aperture, and a larger aperture = less depth of field)

The photo is technically in focus, it is just focused on the hammer coral. This is where the viewer decides WHAT the focus of the image is, and thereby determines what SHOULD be in focus.

In this image, IF the orange shoulder were not there, and the composition was a bit different, the viewer would determine that the subject must be the Hammer Coral, and then they would "decide" that the hammer coral should be in focus. However in your image, the tang is what draws the eye of the viewer, so therefore, IT should be in focus, which it is not quite there. SO in essence, in this image, the tang is actually distracting the viewer from what the focus of the image is, the Hammer Coral. (Clear as mud right?)

The only thing you could have done differently is to have focused on the Tang, instead of the coral. I'll bet dollars to doughnuts that you used Autofocus, and the camera picked the focal point for you. In cases like this, you get what the camera gives you. However, you can always select just one focal point, say the top middle, and then follow the tang around until he swims just above the hammer coral again, then take the shot.

I find for fish pictures, the AI Servo focus is the best to use, it is focus tracking, where as "one shot" does just that, focuses for what it expects to be a static one shot.

Please don't take my hair splitting critique to be negative, I am truly trying to help.

[charlie]

OK you get the dollars, I did use the Autofocus.
I don't mind the hair splitting Mike, that is why I put them up here. I must have missed something, like the AI servo focus, I'll have to do some reading up I guess. is that what that book was for. At least I wasn't in the program mode, I have been trying.
Since about all I have left in the 300 is fish, I guess I should just sit down in there and take fishy pics one day, it is just finding the darn time....
Thanx, and never get the feeling that you are nit picking, that is why we are here, gotta learn sometime!!!

[zhenya]

Great shots, Charlie!

I agree with Mike on the tang shot and what usually helps me with focusing on what I want is to select just a center focusing point on the grid. I then focus on the fish ( usually the eye ) and half press the button ( that locks the focus point), I can then frame the shot as I want while holding the button and if I'm please with what I see I press the button fully to take the shot. Having said that, using speedlight really helps, too, and helped me on numerous occasions when taking fish pictures. I think Mike would agree that taking fish pictures usually better in shutter priority mode ( by the way, I don't think 300D has AI servo.They added this feature to 350D).

[Poseidon]

I think Mike would agree that taking fish pictures usually better in shutter priority mode ( by the way, I don't think 300D has AI servo.They added this feature to 350D).

Yes, I do!

But young Grasshopper, the 300D DOES have AI focus, however it is only accessible in the "sports" mode. (It also locks your ISO to 400, I think....)

;)

[zhenya]

Yes, I do!

But young Grasshopper, the 300D DOES have AI focus, however it is only accessible in the "sports" mode. (It also locks your ISO to 400, I think....)

;)

Yes, master, I missed that somehow...

[Poseidon]

Are you getting this Charlie?!

[charlie]

Are you getting this Charlie?!

With all this talk about grasshoppers, I am about ready to go fishing, I will check this out this weekend and give it a try for sure, gotta go figure out something for din-din right now.

[weez1959]

I know this is old stuff but you guys are funny!