How would you say I could improve my photography?

[yllus]

Anyone feel like taking a peek at my Flickr account and providing some feedback? If you want a specific set to look at, try the Pillow Fight Toronto 2008 set, or these shots taken while at the cottage.

Photography for me is strictly a hobby - something I tend to do at oddball events in the city, or for online journalism - so it's not really anything that needs to be up to professional standards. That said, if there are repeated mistakes that I seem to be making, it'd be great to find out what those are.

Also, I've wondered lately if I should invest in a Strobist kit and delve into portrait photography. Get a kit, set it up at home, practice a bit on friends and see where I can go from there. Has anyone gone this route before? I would be picking up the "Starving Student Wireless Kit (SW1)".

 

[ghostman]

Well, I can't comment much about your photos since you take better shots than I do. You are liberal with the super wide angle on the cottage set where I would have opted for tighter shots on a few photos, but that's a personal preference and based on available equipment.

The Strobist kit is probably a decent deal if those are the components you actually want. I did some looking up of the components on the SW1 kit (or similar ones) at B&H and you'll get about the same price buying each of the items separately:
Gadget Infinity Cactus V2 (eBay from gadgetinfinity seller) - $38
Impact Air Cushioned 8' Lightstand - $34.95
Wescott 43" Soft Silver Compact Umbrella - $20.2
Rosco Cinegel Swatchbook - $0.01
Impact Swivel Bracket - $13.95
Total = ~$107, not including DIY grid kit, 4pk NiMH/charger, bongo ties and gaffer tape

FYI...
The DIY grid kit is Rosco Cinefoil, silver tape and black straws (you can probably get away with using black foam, foil and black straws). The NiMH set you may already have. The bongo ties can be had locally ( http://www.jr.com/bongo-handy-...les/pe/BGO_BONGOTIESB/ ) or replaced with ball bungies ( http://search.ebay.com/ball-bu...QfnuZ0QQfsooZ1QQfsopZ1 ). The gaffer tape you can get locally.

But I wouldn't get the Cactus triggers. I've heard about too many issues with those devices misfiring, breaking, etc. that it doesn't seem like it would be worth the headache. Not to mention the use of batteries that are expensive and not readily available. I'd rather wait and see what RadioPopper Jr. is offering (if they ever come out). If the setup is going to be mainly indoors, consider getting flash triggers instead (they generally don't work with Canon EX flashes, but work fine on most other flashes) and triggering them with another wired flash.

 

[jpeyton]

Get some cheap triggers, flash and diffusers off Dealextreme if you just want to get your feet wet.

Regarding your photos:

1) For your wide angles, it is ESSENTIAL to frame it properly. You want to keep three things in mind: a foreground detail, a background detail, and to fill the frame. Ideally, you want the foreground detail to draw you to/from the background detail. Get as close as possible to the foreground detail. Tips

2) Larger aperture/smaller DOF for your portraits

 

[Flipped Gazelle]

The photos I looked at were very pleasant. Snapshots, basically, and I don't mean that as an insult. Moments in time got frozen, colors nice, exposures good. I wish I could consistently get such nice photos.

 

[virtuamike]

I started out shooting friends and amateur models. Nothing wrong with it. Don't just concentrate on lighting though - learn to work your subjects. Learn how to see them and bring out their qualities.

 

[angry hampster]

Originally posted by: virtuamike
I started out shooting friends and amateur models. Nothing wrong with it. Don't just concentrate on lighting though - learn to work your subjects. Learn how to see them and bring out their qualities.

Agreed. If you screw up lighting, the XT has got a good enough sensor to be able to push or pull a stop if needed with most images.

Also, do you shoot with any prime lenses? I noticed most of your photos are shot with a 2875 and a 1020. Both of these are great glass, but a prime really makes you focus on how you shoot. (at least in my opinion) When I started using primes, I felt much more confident in my abilities as a photog. Having said that, I currently use a mix of primes and zooms..the primes are reserved for people and the zooms for landscapes.

 

[tfinch2]

Do you always stand up when shooting? I have a feeling you do because in a lot of your images you are looking down on your subject. When I first starting shooting, I noticed I did this A LOT.

Once I realized if I moved myself rather than the subject, I could get what I was looking for. For example, going from this:

http://www.pbase.com/travisfinch/image/63791410

to this:

http://www.tfinch.org/pics/monterey/trunk.jpg