Need lens advice

[havoc315]

I totally agree. One of the areas with the greatest benefit of shooting RAW is in white balance. If you shoot in RAW you can go back and readjust completely.

I used to think shooting RAW was only for the pros. Then I realized the pros know how to get it right in the camera and don't NEED to shoot RAW! That's when I learned to love shooting RAW.

Yup... RAW is for us mid level people who have enough knowledge to want to perfect photos... But not enough skill to always get it right reliably in the camera! Lol.

But also, for high ISO, you can usually do better noise reduction of raw, then the camera does in jpeg.

 

[threecrazykids]

Post full size pics. I can probably fix them. Post processing can work wonders. In the future, shooting RAW gives you even more post production latitude.

For the love...how did you know that I wasn't shooting in RAW? I typically ALWAYS shoot in RAW, but I was messing with the settings and by golly, I was shooting in JPEG unknowingly.

Do blue tones typically indicate JPEG?

URGH...that was a simple fix if that's what's causing it.

I haven't posted pics before...it's asking for a URL to post the pics. Does that mean I have to upload to an online place first before I can post them here?

I have several that are blue, but I am kind of hesitant to post them if I don't have permission of the other girls parents who may be captured in the pics.

 

[mom2rtk]

The blue tones indicate a white balance issue.

But I bet Havoc can work some wonders even with the JPEG.

 

[mom2rtk]

Yup... RAW is for us mid level people who have enough knowledge to want to perfect photos... But not enough skill to always get it right reliably in the camera! Lol.

Yep, that's me!

For a long time I wanted to be good enough to shoot in RAW instead of Jpeg. Now I want to be good enough to shoot in Jpeg again instead of RAW!

 

[havoc315]

For the love...how did you know that I wasn't shooting in RAW? I typically ALWAYS shoot in RAW, but I was messing with the settings and by golly, I was shooting in JPEG unknowingly.

Do blue tones typically indicate JPEG?

URGH...that was a simple fix if that's what's causing it.

I haven't posted pics before...it's asking for a URL to post the pics. Does that mean I have to upload to an online place first before I can post them here?

I have several that are blue, but I am kind of hesitant to post them if I don't have permission of the other girls parents who may be captured in the pics.

You can fix WB even with jpeg. Just easier with RAW. What do you usually use to process your RAW?
Just play with the WB in Lightroom, you should be able to improve it dramatically. Can also further improve noise-- I recommend topaz Denoise.

Best way to post a full resolution pic is to upload it to flickr and then post the link.

 

[havoc315]

Yep, that's me!

For a long time I wanted to be good enough to shoot in RAW instead of Jpeg. Now I want to be good enough to shoot in Jpeg again instead of RAW!

When I'm out with my camera, I want to just shoot. I lose too much time playing with settings as it is. I do try to get it close in camera with RAW. But I don't want to worry excessively about nailing the WB, etcetera. Guess I'm lazy.
Also my camera AF is heavily biased towards the center. So my action shots don't obey the rule of thirds-- I recompose my cropping anyway.

I'd rather shoot fairly quickly, and then invest more time at the comfort of my computer desk, to get it right. Instead of fiddling forever while taking the picture, and missing the shot.

In the Sony thread, I posted a bunch of pictures I took today of a big flock of vultures that invaded the neighborhood. The WB was constantly changing. I was shooting from a distance, was really shooting at silhouettes. A lot of the shots were backlit.
I just took a few dozen shots, played in lightroom. Didn't get great shots, but I was surprised at the half decent quality I did pull out. (Cheated in one shot with a fake sky, lol)

 

[mom2rtk]

When I'm out with my camera, I want to just shoot. I lose too much time playing with settings as it is. I do try to get it close in camera with RAW. But I don't want to worry excessively about nailing the WB, etcetera. Guess I'm lazy.
Also my camera AF is heavily biased towards the center. So my action shots don't obey the rule of thirds-- I recompose my cropping anyway.

I'd rather shoot fairly quickly, and then invest more time at the comfort of my computer desk, to get it right. Instead of fiddling forever while taking the picture, and missing the shot.

In the Sony thread, I posted a bunch of pictures I took today of a big flock of vultures that invaded the neighborhood. The WB was constantly changing. I was shooting from a distance, was really shooting at silhouettes. A lot of the shots were backlit.
I just took a few dozen shots, played in lightroom. Didn't get great shots, but I was surprised at the half decent quality I did pull out. (Cheated in one shot with a fake sky, lol)

I'm that way when I'm shooting at Disney. I want to make the most of the photographic opportunities with the minimum of time focused on anything other than having fun. So I shoot RAW. I don't travel with a computer, so it takes a TON of cards, but it works for me.

The time I really wished I was confident enough to go back to RAW was when my son was running cross country. Shooting RAW minimized what I could fit in my buffer and I was caught with a busy signal at the finish line more than once. But once I saw what I could do at the computer I just never wanted to give up that ability to adjust at my leisure.

Vultures, huh? I'll have to go take a peek. Geez I live in a boring area.

 

[threecrazykids]

You can fix WB even with jpeg. Just easier with RAW. What do you usually use to process your RAW?
Just play with the WB in Lightroom, you should be able to improve it dramatically. Can also further improve noise-- I recommend topaz Denoise.

Best way to post a full resolution pic is to upload it to flickr and then post the link.

I have Photoshop Elements 11 for post processing and an old version of CS6, but I am just learning how to use it. I actually found a copy of CS6 years ago at a garage sale that was never used and got it for dirt cheap. I think I opened it a few times and it was SO overwhelming I just gave up.

For most of my simple post processing needs I had become so familiar with Picasa I still do the majority of the simple fixes in there. I had used it for a couple years prior to getting Elements, so when I've got simple, quick fixes I still default to that as I am simply more comfortable and familiar with it.

I will look into flickr, thank you!

 

[havoc315]

I'm that way when I'm shooting at Disney. I want to make the most of the photographic opportunities with the minimum of time focused on anything other than having fun. So I shoot RAW. I don't travel with a computer, so it takes a TON of cards, but it works for me.

The time I really wished I was confident enough to go back to RAW was when my son was running cross country. Shooting RAW minimized what I could fit in my buffer and I was caught with a busy signal at the finish line more than once. But once I saw what I could do at the computer I just never wanted to give up that ability to adjust at my leisure.

Vultures, huh? I'll have to go take a peek. Geez I live in a boring area.

It was, "what the hell are those massive birds on the roofs and chimneys?"
Shooting fullframe especially, I didn't have a ton of reach on the lenses. And with horrible angles of light, I just saw big dark shapes. But once I cropped and brightened the shadows, I got all the detail of the ugliest birds I've ever seen, lol.

 

[mom2rtk]

It was, "what the hell are those massive birds on the roofs and chimneys?"
Shooting fullframe especially, I didn't have a ton of reach on the lenses. And with horrible angles of light, I just saw big dark shapes. But once I cropped and brightened the shadows, I got all the detail of the ugliest birds I've ever seen, lol.

I found your shots. Very cool!

 

[photo_chick]

I have Photoshop Elements 11 for post processing and an old version of CS6, but I am just learning how to use it. I actually found a copy of CS6 years ago at a garage sale that was never used and got it for dirt cheap. I think I opened it a few times and it was SO overwhelming I just gave up.

For most of my simple post processing needs I had become so familiar with Picasa I still do the majority of the simple fixes in there. I had used it for a couple years prior to getting Elements, so when I've got simple, quick fixes I still default to that as I am simply more comfortable and familiar with it.

I will look into flickr, thank you!

If you have PSE there are some great tutorials around on how to color correct. You can totally fix that blue shift in a jpeg. It's not as quick and easy as a RAW WB slider, but almost.