Are you one of the.........................

[spl]

Re: Are you one of the.........................

I pretty much agree with what nearly everyone has said here but thought I would chip in with the question over cropping to get panoramic shots rather than stitching. Cropping is my preference although I suppose that could be just laziness as stitching is quite a difficult and time consuming technical skill.

I particularly agree with Ron's comments about digital cropping practice improving in-camera compositional skills and of course added to this is the fact that it doesn't cost money to try out many different compositions in-camera as well which is what I find myself doing with digital nowadays. This then gives you even more options when it comes to composing on screen.

[jojo]

Re: Are you one of the.........................

were in danger of forgetting how to compose properly , use your eyes look around the frame BEFORE pressing that shutter , is the image how you'd like to see it printed ? if not change it before you commit .
Some people are born with a natural eye for composition , some are not , but trying to get everything in place first must be right thing to do .
By all means improve the image if it needs small tweeks , but please don't just shoot and hope you can fix bad composition on the computer .
You will , but you won't learn anything .

B..

I couldn't agree more with bigbob's summary (although I don't always subscribe to it unfortunately!)

"Victory belongs to the most persevering" - Napoleon Bonaparte

jo

[lumix]

Re: Are you one of the.........................

Most viewfinders give between 91-95% of the picture (high end DSLR's are the exception) .
So although i rarely crop in the computer every now and again some element creeps in that needs a crop , like Stephen if i need to crop in computer i try to leave the aspect ratio the same , i find dragging a corner is the best way to achieve this .
NO!! i don't think cropping in computer is the best thing to do , with all the auto this and auto that in camera's noadays , were in danger of forgetting how to compose properly , use your eyes look around the frame BEFORE pressing that shutter , is the image how you'd like to see it printed ? if not change it before you commit .
Some people are born with a natural eye for composition , some are not , but trying to get everything in place first must be right thing to do .
By all means improve the image if it needs small tweeks , but please don't just shoot and hope you can fix bad composition on the computer .
You will , but you won't learn anything .

B..

I agree with a lot of what you are saying here Bob, but just how important is the aspect ratio? Are we tied to 20 x 16, 10 x 8, & 5 x 7 sizes. I believe we should aim to show just what we want, no more or no less, in which case the camera image should be trimmed to suit. The cameras aspect ratio is fixed for most of us so we have to change that by using the editing power of a computer. Most experienced amateurs should be able to get very close to the correct composition in camera. Those that are still new to the art can hone their skills by practicing on computer.

[lourensb]

Re: Are you one of the.........................

Hi, Ok, I'm one of the Guily one's That Take the Photo, and then On the PC, Decide what to do with the Pic. Maybe this is because I have done no course, or training Yet.

However, I do now, relises that I do try and compose in the Camera, But leave some room For Cropping.

And As I learn from you guys, I think Differently about a Shot the Next time.

So Yeah, I think any one here, That started as me.. Just a Hobiest, with no Back Ground, Or Courses... We do point and Shoot... And then Develop the foto digitaly.

I however, thrive to more and more learn, how to corectly compose in the Camera...

Tnx

[devilgas]

Re: Are you one of the.........................

Thanks for your input Dave. I'd agree with the above. However part of the skill of a good photographer is the natural ability to 'see' or 'visualise' an image and take that shot using the camera. If one has to find that image within the captured frame, and then crop to show it....... well is this the same skill, or just the benefit of hindsight? Always assuming of course that its not simply a case of not being able to get near enough with camera that necessitates cropping

i'd have said it's more a developed ability. i think very few people can just pick up a camera and compose shots 'correctly' from the outset. finding out what works and what doesn't compositionally is easier done with post process cropping and, given the 'tog understands / learns what works and why, uses that process to improve their skill then i really see nothing wrong with it.
i was never formally trained in photogrpahy but through peer feedback on this and other sites soon learned a lot more about composition and subject selection. this was backed up by fiddling with existing shots on the computer to see how xyz worked better than abc. i then took that knowledge and applied it to my photography. the key though is that the person understands why they've had to crop rather than just continually doing it blindly, hoping to make a purse from a sow's ear.

[Patrick]

Re: Are you one of the.........................

Can't think how I missed this thread one of the most interesting in months.

I tend to think like Stephen, crop in camera and if I do crop at all in the computer stick to the camera ratio, unless I have pre-visualized a different presentation. As with everyone I don't get it right 100% of the time, so occasionally post exposure crops are necessary.
To learn the art it takes some self discipline, but will eventually become second nature and the thought processes instant.
No one has mentioned quality in this debate, cropping in computer will effect the finished product. Obviously if a file size is cropped its reduced, yes it can be resizes by interpolation but that can never be quite the same as the original full file. I have been accused of making quality my God, I don't take offense at this, in fact I'm flattered. I do work very hard to get the best possible quality out of my files, and cropping in camera gives the photographer as much information as is possible for a given exposure, thus helping towards high quality output. All this this perhaps doesn't bother those that only view images on screen, a small file can look just as good as a very large file viewed this way, but for prints, large prints in particular then file size equals quality with little room for maneuver.

In my opinion anyone planning on only showing images on screen and not printing should save their money and NOT by a DSLR, but a compact or bridge camera. The viewer will not see any difference, which is why many can crop without seeing a drop in quality.

One or two replies indicate that they experiment with the cropping of images in the computer to make better compositions. Fine, but why not do those same experiments when exposing the picture in the first place, and move in closer, move further out lower down higher up. If you have a good subject you could fill a couple of cards easy with numerous variations.

Patrick

[Ian]

Re: Are you one of the.........................

Can't think how I missed this thread one of the most interesting in months.

I tend to think like Stephen, crop in camera and if I do crop at all in the computer stick to the camera ratio, unless I have pre-visualized a different presentation. As with everyone I don't get it right 100% of the time, so occasionally post exposure crops are necessary.
To learn the art it takes some self discipline, but will eventually become second nature and the thought processes instant.
No one has mentioned quality in this debate, cropping in computer will effect the finished product. Obviously if a file size is cropped its reduced, yes it can be resizes by interpolation but that can never be quite the same as the original full file. I have been accused of making quality my God, I don't take offense at this, in fact I'm flattered. I do work very hard to get the best possible quality out of my files, and cropping in camera gives the photographer as much information as is possible for a given exposure, thus helping towards high quality output. All this this perhaps doesn't bother those that only view images on screen, a small file can look just as good as a very large file viewed this way, but for prints, large prints in particular then file size equals quality with little room for maneuver.

In my opinion anyone planning on only showing images on screen and not printing should save their money and NOT by a DSLR, but a compact or bridge camera. The viewer will not see any difference, which is why many can crop without seeing a drop in quality.

One or two replies indicate that they experiment with the cropping of images in the computer to make better compositions. Fine, but why not do those same experiments when exposing the picture in the first place, and move in closer, move further out lower down higher up. If you have a good subject you could fill a couple of cards easy with numerous variations.

Patrick

Hi Patrick, I would respectfully debate your opinion on whether a photographer focused solely on Web publication should or should not use a DSLR. Image quality is just one aspect of owning a DSLR. The versatility and handling of a DSLR using interchangeable lenses is very different from a bridge camera. It affects the way you take pictures and the kind of photography you do.

Ian

[Patrick]

Re: Are you one of the.........................

Hi Patrick, I would respectfully debate your opinion on whether a photographer focused solely on Web publication should or should not use a DSLR. Image quality is just one aspect of owning a DSLR. The versatility and handling of a DSLR using interchangeable lenses is very different from a bridge camera. It affects the way you take pictures and the kind of photography you do.

Ian

Hi Ian

This could be a whole new debate, I shall give it some thought and start a new thread.

Patrick