Photographers... help me!
 

All,

I got a Canon EOS Rebel XSi for Christmas last year from my parents because I wanted to get into car photography. This is the camera I am using now: Newegg.com - Canon EOS Rebel XSi Black 12.20 MP 3.0" 230K LCD Digital SLR Camera w/EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens

Although the pictures I take are the highest quality I have ever taken when compared to other cameras, it still is not quite the quality I want.

I don't know if I need to upgrade my lens, or purchase some editing software.

Here is a picture I have taken with my current setup:

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b3...LBBQ/Mine1.jpg

The above picture looks a little grainy to me. It still looks decent, but the colors and details of the environment don't seem to really stick out.

Here is the quality of picture I wish to take:

http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/d...C_0056copy.jpg
(Thanks AA!)

Now this picture is what I wish to take. I love how the surrounding environment as well as the car come alive with color and detail.

Anyways, I was hoping some experienced photographers could assist me in getting the results I desire.

there can be a lot of factors that make the Infiniti picture 'pop'.

1) editing, changing exposure levels, contrast rations, effects after the picture
2) HDR - high dynamic range - HDR photo's in my opinion are the best type of photo's, but i highly doubt the picture above is an HDR picture, possible tho.
3) using manual settings on the camera. using a larger f-stop, longer exposure...

it's not the lense you're using. well, not completely, haha. if you're using the 18-55 lens that came with the camera, i'd def invest in a new lens, not just to get a better picture like the 1 above, that wont solve the problem instantly, but a better lens will help you overall with shooting.

Get used to post-production. Your XSi came with a disc of software called EOS Digital Solutions. It includes a photo editing software that will help you make your pictures pop more, after-the-fact. The G37 photo looks as if the photographer played with a host of things (Levels, contrast, exposure, and certainly saturation).

A second option is to get used to Picture Styles on the camera. You can set up a custom style with increased sharpness, contrast and saturation levels all in-camera. The best thing for anyone new to the DSLR world to do is read the instruction manual. When I got into DSLR photography, I read the manual of my XTi front to back.

But the greatest tip of all: Just keep shooting.

I don't recall seeing anything called EOS Digital Solutions. I do have EOS Digital Photo Professional installed.

As Twisted pointed out, you'll have to learn to post process your images. I didn't do much here, just some subtle adjustments, but you can see it makes the image pop a little more. Check out photography-on-the.net, it's a forum for canon shooters.

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b3...LBBQ/Mine1.jpg
http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/7488/370zn.jpg

That definitely looks better!

Thank you for the website as well.

are we talking about practice?!?! that's it my friend... practice.

I would PM DigitalMan,he know what he's doing. Lots of experience!

http://www.the370z.com/members-370z-...d-gallery.html

Grainy is usually caused by low light. Try a tripod and use a longer exposure time, which you can do by useing a lower number f-stop.This of course is in low light shoots.

Ugg...if I brought my friends in here who take photos for a living (and edit them of course), they'd have a field day on some of these :-/

I'd aim a LOT higher than that Infinity shot - that thing is not nearly as attractive as you think, its way over edited and grainy. Oh yeah, and as someone already said - talk to DigitalMan - that guy does some good shots.

Aim for quality like this, please:
http://img385.imageshack.us/img385/8523/shoe2.jpg
http://img246.imageshack.us/img246/8954/shoe3.jpg
http://www.luckyphotography.net/photos/ry-2.jpg


This is a perfect example of an "overdone" HDR:
http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...7/Untitled.jpg

I'll try to find some of these guys shots of cars - they are very good at what they do, its just that they tend to limit the "free" shoots they do now, simply because it IS a business, you know :)

^ Thanks BoBo! I could use a tripod. That might be a good first step.

Would you care to ask your friends what Software they use to edit their pictures?

A polarizer, will help your photography. It can help(in some cases ,not all) saturate colors, remove reflection-with a black car you should really have one(if you don't already).
It's not the lens your using , there is no problem with that! Actually your photo isn't bad! A tripod would help,"but very little in that photo". I can not see any "camera hand shake". Check your pixel setting.
polrizer

A tripod is an absolute must, no questions asked. A quality lens, comes right after that. Once you have the proper tools, then you need to work on framing your pictures properly. Unwanted distractions that break up the photo need to go (IE, light poles, stop signs, stuff like that), along with crazy angles that people think make a photo interesting, but in the end, all it does is make peoples head tilt and just become uncomfortable lol. No insult intended, but your first photo was one of those :-/. *edit* Actually, on second thought, your picture isn't TOO bad...but I try to avoid the tilt thing period. Thats just me, I guess.

I'm fairly sure most use Photoshop, but I will try to find out for sure. In the end its not so much the software, so much as knowing what to do with it. Simply adjusting brightness and contrast, and using the sharpen/soften tools, is not really adjusting a photo properly. Look how much detail was lost in your photos after the editing? You don't even see your grill anymore, its so dark! Making a black look more "black" isn't always the right way to go :). So you'll ask next, "well, what do you do then?" Obviously, I cant answer this sadly :(. I'll see if I can find a place to refer you to for those answers, though...

Keep in mind, I don't have the skills myself - I just learned a lot from these people who are very, very good at what they do.

Yeah, I understand what you are saying. I'm a novice at most, but I hope to pick it up soon.

Rep added :tup:

As per what someone else was saying earlier, having photo editing software is a must for photography. Here's an example before/after of a photo that I touched up of my car that a friend took.

Before:
http://i41.tinypic.com/2e1rczr.jpg

After:
http://i41.tinypic.com/2nbvqxs.jpg

I don't consider myself an expert photographer by any means, but you can see the nice effects you can create by having a little know-how with tools like Photoshop.

Check your ISO Speed, you may be set on Automatic, or 400,800 or 1600! You need to be set at 100(or the lowest number 64,80, I don't know what the lowest number is on your camera)this will take out the grain!

Keep ur ISO low, especially when shooting still cars. Use adequate lighting and keep the sun behind you as much as possible. When in doubt, use a tripod and make sure you focus right where you need to. When shooting with my XT, I feel that I have to shoot a little under the middle of the exposure bar, otherwise they look too washed out and bright. And shoot, shoot, shoot! Getting used to your camera will take time, do not let your DSLR discourage you in any way.

I'm by no means a great photographer, but I just keep it as a hobby so I'm not always bored. My first few photoshoots were not good at all - its a whole different ballgame. Dont RELY on post editing software, but use it to compliment your photos. You still need a good shot to make a great picture. This is with no flash lighting, and very very few touchups with Photoshop:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3345/...2d6f29fc2e.jpg

And I highly recommend you join =http://www.photography-on-the.net
They have many pointers on there, and the professionals provide great advise.

Best of luck with your new camera!

I'm certainly glad I started this thread. There is a lot of helpful advice here.

I set my camera to automatic because quite frankly, I suck.

I think I really need a tripod to be honest. That will allow me to set my ISO speed lower correct?

Boost_Lee, that picture is phenomenal. That is essentially the quality I want to be able to shoot. What version of Photoshop are you using?

Yup. Or at least, it wont be so blurry...

Automatic ISO is a good way to ruin photos unknowingly heh.

Dad, and Boost_Lee

Rep. added.

Thank you. Don't forget too look into/for a polarizer filter(I think the thread size is 58 for the lens you have). I'm sure you'll like the results in your photos with one.

I have made a note :tup:

Photoshop CS3 and a bit of practice editing photos.

Thanks! and thank you for the compliment. I used photoshop CS3, but just a tad to richen up and adjust levels.

Honestly, that is the best photoshoot that I have done of my Accord to date. Picture was taken this Feb. and I got my rebel XT in December of 07!

Just get familiarized with your camera; get good shot composure using the no flash mode. Then test your ur aperature and shutter speed modes and play around to see what they do respectively. Once ur comfortable, test your full manual, and it will take a while to get it to your liking.

The polarizer is great if you shoot a lot during the daytime. To get used to your camera, try shooting in the dusk hours. I would also test it out on different cars, some colors are harder to shoot than others. I find that black is hard for me...

Keep us updated, please!

Here... someone made an attempt at it and it's fine for "pop" but lost all the grill etc., in the process. Learning CS3 and what it can do is the real secret behind most any (remarkable) finished pic.

Here's 5 minutes of CS3 on this image...



http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3397/...f8c23a01_o.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3376/...7f1349d8_o.jpg


As a professional photographer I can tell you that you can learn techniques in many different places. Youtube has useful stuff, you just gotta be selective. If I were you and I wanted to progress with a BASIC understanding of just what Photoshop can do, I would start by signing up at Lynda.com and going from there.

Good luck!

Michael

^--- Hey look at that - his front grill exists again :)

http://www.teamworkphoto.com/images/...ightroom-2.jpg

http://i41.tinypic.com/2e57ic0.jpg

if you want to dig into photography while keeping the interface simple, get ahold of Photoshop Lightroom 2. Its only about 100$ and is an amazing tool for photography. I used only Lightroom to edit all the below images; which were taken with a Rebel XTi (the model previous to the XSi), but used a nice zoom lens (70-300mm IS USM).

http://img7.imageshack.us/img7/6550/mg8982.jpg

http://img7.imageshack.us/img7/3845/mg9236.jpg

http://img7.imageshack.us/img7/1098/mg9350.jpg

more:
http://img7.imageshack.us/img7/6696/mg8936.jpg
http://img7.imageshack.us/img7/9468/mg8972.jpg
http://img7.imageshack.us/img7/9950/mg8946.jpg
http://img7.imageshack.us/img7/446/mg9122.jpg
http://img7.imageshack.us/img7/4325/mg9150.jpg
http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/3853/mg9275.jpg
http://img7.imageshack.us/img7/3787/mg9301.jpg
(shot at D1GP in Anahiem)

Pretty much all of the editing done here was with the contrast, saturation, recovery, blacks, and fill light tools.

Good post processing is made much easier with good pictures though. Learn your basics for f/stops and exposure settings. I generally shoot in apreture-priority, shutter-priority, or full manual, but you can always use the auto settings as kind of a guide for roundabout numbers on what the camera thinks is best for a given situation. A really low number f/stop will give you a smaller depth of field and make backgrounds much more blurry and the subject pop out more. A slower shutter speed can introduce implied motion if the subject is stationary and the background has motion blur. There are tons of tricks and tips available. If you don't want to look online, Scott Kelby has a fantastic book series which is well worth looking into.

beautiful pics above, I will be looking into lightroom as well