WOW! If I didn't know you'd taken the shot of the same falls I'm not entirely sure I would have known that they were the same. The second, in my opinion, is 200% better than the first. Nice job! =)

My azalea bushes are starting to bloom and this week 2 of the buds finally opened. Of course I grabbed the camera, but I wasn't happy with the final images, so this particular one I changed over to B/W. I like it quite a bit, but the DOF is off because I was shooting in shutter priority because of the wind. Hubby doesn't like it because of the blurring, but I'm kind of fond of it. Even have it as my desktop background. So...all thoughts welcome! =)

Black & White Azalea

I admit I haven't gone through all of the comments so if I duplicate I'm sorry. Also, these are just my thoughts. I'm not a people photographer so take them for what they are worth! =) hehe

Love #1...this is my absolute **favorite** because it's not a "pose" you see all that often, and his tats offer great intrest.

#2...I like the candidness of this one, but his white shirt is blown out in parts.

#3 is unique too, and I'm guessing it's fairly unique and means something to the clients? Seems odd he's not facing the camera for an engagement shoot, but love the fact you did it in the shade and the flowering tree in the background does great things for the overall feeling of the picture.

#4 I like this one too, but maybe would have positioned them slightly more with the sun coming through the umbrella to really emphasis the silhouette of them behind the umbrella.

#5 I have to admit this is my least favorite. It's not a complimentary pose for either of them and the fact that it is more obviously posed than the others I don't think works as well.

Absolutely adorable shot, but I agree with everyone else he should definitely get that hole fixed up or it could get interesting around the homestead! =)

Another Sony person (and former Illinoisan) here. a230 and a55! =)

I love quotes that provide not only provide sage advice but a smile/laugh to boot. Some favorites...

"If you want to be a better photographer, stand in front of more interesting stuff."
- Jim Richardson

"Best wide-angle lens? Two steps backward. Look for the 'ah-ha'"
- Ernst Haas

"The first 10 000 shots are the worst."
- Helmut Newton

"Luck is the attentive photographer's best teacher."
- John Szarkowski

"A picture is worth a thousand words, but it uses up three thousand times the memory"
– Unknown

Well done! This is beautiful!

Ahhh...yeah wind and people! Always fun things to shoot around. =)

I think maybe part of the contrast issue is as a result of the high ISO in combination with only a -1 and +1 separation. I could be wrong though.

Maybe also part of the color thing to my eye might be the process that Photoshop uses versus other programs like Photomatix to make the HDR image. I've never used Photoshop's HDR processing so I can't be sure.

My mom always told me "practice makes perfect". I always thought she was full of it. I'm finding that photography is just another way for my mother to chant this at me from the heavens. =) hehe

Look forward to your 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 10th tries! =)

I love owls! So I am really jealous, fence or no fence. =) What is he sitting on? A solar garden light? It kind of makes him look like has a peg leg. =)

I love the composition and waterfalls are one of my all time favorite things to photograph, but to my eye the colors don't look right. Also, for a 3 shot image it seems that there should be more contrast.

Just out of curiosity, is there a reason why you shot with the ISO at 500? Based on the image above it looks like there was plenty of light so that you wouldn't have to bump it up that much....

Well in my experience, whether single shot or multi shot, whether a shot works in HDR is mainly dependent on proper exposure of the 1 shot or of the base shot in multi.

Contrast has already been mentioned, but it's something else that is integral to success. The more contrast the better the drama.

The other thing I've noticed personally is my single shot HDRs always work best if I've used a CPL filter while taking the original shot.

In my opinion, it's really not so much about a particular reading the histogram has as much as proper in camera exposure for the HDR software to work with.

Hope this helps! =)

These were cool. Those old buildings definitely look like old mining cabins! Love #4...definitely looks like the general store for the area. Thanks for posting the pic of the story about the town...very interesting!

I love them all but 1 and 2 are my favorites. I'll admit that on #1 the red building and flag pole to the left of the frame kind of bugs my eye. I would try cropping that out so the focus is completely on the church which draws the eye to the sky.

Beautiful shots one and all! Nice work! =)

Wow! I call that the epitome of being pass OUT! =)

Now that is just very cool! I can completely see the fairies...very nice! Is this something you saw when shooting or noticed it when you got the pics downloaded?