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I need to be a better photographer

MitchNC

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When I see photos people post they blow me away.

Several years ago I bought a nice DSLR and learned the basics. Took some classes. I got pretty good.

But flying the Evo there's the added stress of your camera being hundreds of feet in the air, and difficulty seeing the screen.

I went to my friend's homestead and took hundreds of photos. When I got home I was disappointed. Everything was overexposed and I didn't see it on the screen at the time.

I welcome any advice!

Also, I understand that the amazing photos are usually HDR and color graded. That's the next step but I need to start out with good material.

Looks like running on Auto doesn't cut it.
 
Don’t rely on what you see on the screen. Learn how to read the histogram. That will tell you exactly where the exposure is. Also — RAW, RAW, RAW! Always shoot in RAW. There is so much more that you can do in post if you’re working with raw images.
 
" Everything was overexposed and I didn't see it on the screen at the time. "
Basics!
Watch the sun and try and keep the camera pointed away from the sun.
Also time of day is important. Mornings and evenings are the best time to shoot. More saturated colors.
Also shoot on a cloudy day when the sun hides the sun.
Also look into filters for bright days. It makes a lot of difference.

Captain Drone
 
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In addition to the good points above, (I’m a huge polarized filter fan, and stills are always shot in RAW or RAW+JPG) — I’d get a better screen & shade. It’s hard to take good pictures if you can’t see through the viewfinder. It helps you adjust exposure better when you can see highlight and shadow areas. Histograms are helpful too, but won’t help your composition. Tablets with decent screens are not expensive, especially on Craigslist. I’ve been using a used 16gb iPad Air 2 for 2 yrs. brightness on max, and a good sun shield. Colors are accurate, screen bright enough to see what the camera sees. I like bigger screens, I want to SEE as much as possible. Yea, it’s not as portable as a bigger phone, but the Air 2 is the lightest, thinnest 9.7” iPad Apple ever made, about $100. Once I tried a bigger/brighter screen, it’s hard to go back...
 
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This thing has a camera on it? ... I can't take pictures either. I use ND Filters and play with stuff until it looks good. I usually have about 15 minutes of flight time left by the time I've got my settings right. But man , I love flying it.
 
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For a quick fix, try selecting Vivid under Colour settings. It does pop - maybe too much but its quick 'n easy.

Filters will help you get shots you couldn't otherwise get but they cost you something in sharpness.
 
Thanks for the tips! I watched a few refresher videos on histograms. Then I went back to the images I was complaining about and here's what I see:

1547141366248.png

That picture is worth a thousand words. Especially since it's a photo of a red barn with green grass in the background.

Thanks a lot, guys. These tidbits will go a long way.
 

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