Carter N's Photography Advice Thread.

[Carter N]

So I have been thinking about starting one of these on a couple forums I frequent and I don't really see many photographers do this so here we are. I know I am not the best photographer out there but I know from experience that getting as much advice and help as possible, especially when you are starting out, can be a huge help. So basically the idea of this thread is that if you have any questions concerning technique, equipment, editing, etc. or want me to critique a photo all you have to do is post here and ask.

Some of my work just to get a reference point of my abilities... Also other photographers are welcome and encouraged to chime in as well, the more the better.


Shelby [explored] by Carter N, on Flickr


Rollin' through the neighborhood by Carter N, on Flickr


Rabbit in the race shop by Carter N, on Flickr


The Backroad Warrior by Carter N, on Flickr

So yeah, ask away!

[s2k-13]

Beautiful!!!

[Kielan]

I guess I'll start asking questions.

What gear do you use?
Editing program of choice?

(Not a noob but these are very common questions that I know will be asked)

[Carter N]

I guess I'll start asking questions.

What gear do you use?
Editing program of choice?

(Not a noob but these are very common questions that I know will be asked)

Thanks for posting! Gear list is looking pretty skim right now but..

Canon 7D
Canon XT
18-135mm
50mm
Canon 430exII
+ random filters and other equipment like stands, tripods, etc.

as for editing I use Adobe Photoshop CS5 exclusively and use Aperture 3 for file management.

[dav3design]

Maybe you could start by telling us how you light one of your scenes?

[sCrapp]

Maybe you could start by telling us how you light one of your scenes?

what he said...

I'm a beginner, and really want to use lighting like that, but how much should i spend, nd what should i get for similar effect..?

[Oxer]

Light painting.

[Kielan]

Thanks for posting! Gear list is looking pretty skim right now but..

Canon 7D
Canon XT
18-135mm
50mm
Canon 430exII
+ random filters and other equipment like stands, tripods, etc.

as for editing I use Adobe Photoshop CS5 exclusively and use Aperture 3 for file management.

Hopefully this proves to some people you don't need a ridiculously expensive gear to take great shots.

[Carter N]

Maybe you could start by telling us how you light one of your scenes?

what he said...

I'm a beginner, and really want to use lighting like that, but how much should i spend, nd what should i get for similar effect..?

No problem, I will give 3 examples. [Putting small pictures so my posts don't get huge, you can click the photos to see a bigger version]

Single shot, multi-strobe lighting
This type of lighting is quick and with enough practice you can create some really amazing shots this way. The only downside is that a multi-flash set up can get very pricey.


Josh's MX-5 Miata Preview by Carter N, on Flickr

For a this shot there were two strobes used, one to the left of the camera pointed towards the driver's side headlight. The other was to the right of the camera pointed towards the front right wheel. I then took the shot and smoothed out harsh shadows in photoshop.

Multi shot, single strobe lighting
This style of lighting is great. You can have minimal equipment and still create a shot that appears as if you had an entire camera shop at your disposal. The downside to single flash, composite photography is that you need to be decently skilled in photoshop to make these shots work and photoshop alone is pretty expensive if you are purchasing it


Riverside | Explored #123 by Carter N, on Flickr

For a shot like this I am working with one strobe. I place the camera on a tripod (you should always do this when possible) and take multiple frames with the flash in different locations. In this particular shot I took 3 shots, car front, driver's side front, driver's side rear. Then I took one final exposure for the background. I combined those 4 shots into a composite in photoshop and blended all light and shadows.

Light painting [YAY!]

Light painting is by far the cheapest, simplest, all around most awesome way to light a car. Though it is minor, the only problems I have ever had with light painting are that sometimes if you do not move quick enough you can experience ghosting of yourself in the shot. Also you can not control the light and where is goes as easily as strobes; meaning that you if you are in a small space (garage, alley, under a bridge, etc.) you are going to light much more of the scene than if you had strobes which may not be desired.


Shelby [explored] by Carter N, on Flickr

This shot was done by walking around the car with a simple shop light during a 30 second exposure. The only editing done was some minor saturation and contrast work. This is the perfect type of lighting to use if you don't have or aren't comfortable in photoshop

If there is any additional information you might want about any of these techniques feel free to ask, this was just a basic run down of what they are, but of course there are variations of each and a million different ways to use them to create amazing photos.

Light painting.

YES!

Hopefully this proves to some people you don't need a ridiculously expensive gear to take great shots.

This is a great and important point for anyone trying to get into photography. I see countless threads with people saying that they just bought a good entry level camera but they are unhappy with their shots so they want to buy a more expensive camera, which quite frankly is out of their league. I know many great photographers that use less than $1000 worth of equipment on a regular basis and produce images that are much better than my own. That being said most of them are very skilled photoshopers but in this day and age of photography, photoshop is a skill that one needs to stay ahead of the game in a business sense.

I definitely don't mean to imply that you can't produce amazing images without photoshop because I know an equal amount of photographer that do that as well. Like I mentioned in my original post I am just giving advice based on how I shoot, there is always other ways of doing things which may or may not be better.

@sCrapp: I hope the photos above narrowed down exactly what you were looking to achieve. I would say a good place to start would be a single flash and all the necessary equipment to make that work with your camera. Depending on what you shoot with and whether or not you want to go name brand on everything you are looking at $200-500 USD. I know that is a really broad range but it includes the possibility you buy new and brand name, obviously buying used (which is great) and not buying just Canon or Nikon products will keep that price down. I would also definitely advise trying out light painting, it's cheap, easy, and most of all fun!

Thanks everyone for your posts, I hope we can keep this going!

[dav3design]

^^^ Cool now I gotta think up some more questions.

[Carter N]

^^^ Cool now I gotta think up some more questions.

I just checked out your website, quite impressive stuff man!

[dav3design]

I just checked out your website, quite impressive stuff man!

=D

Cheers.

[dav3design]

Oh I got another. Care to share your Post Processing techniques?

[Carter N]

Oh I got another. Care to share your Post Processing techniques?

Do you mean that in the sense of a run down of the steps I take, or what exactly I do to achieve a certain look?

[Kielan]

Do you mean that in the sense of a run down of the steps I take, or what exactly I do to achieve a certain look?

Why not explain both, I know both questions will be asked later on.