New To This

[chuckette]

Hello I am new to taking photos and new to this site. I want to get more knowledge in photography. I am a beginner with a simple digital camera, nothing fancy. I would like some input on my pictures as a beginner. What is the best camera to use and any other advice for a beginner.

[Frog]

Welcome to our forums.
A simple camera can be a great learning tool, especially for composition.
Two things strike me right away on this photo.
The first is that it is dead center and straight down, which, if you'll pardon me saying so, is a rather boring angle to view. Centering flowers sometimes works but I'd like to see this if you had taken the shot from a lower angle giving some sense of its height or lack thereof.
The second thing is the light. You have taken this in bright sun which washes out color and makes everything look flat. The best time for photos is early morning or late evening when the light is soft. Our subjects aren't always available at that time so one thing I do is stand so that my shadow covers the subject or find something to shade it. Note how the colors are richer in the shaded parts.
Keep learning and another good learning tool is to do critiques yourself. Taught me a lot about what to look for.

[Ridgetop]

Some softer morning or afternoon light and an angle with some more interesting background and you'd be set. Keep on making those shots and you'll get better in a hurry.

[shootme]

Nice try. You might want to use a tripod sometimes too when shooting these. If you don't have one as I didn't when I started, I used a box or chair and the self timer on the camera. The exception to shooting morning and evening (in my opinion) is when there a big clouds rolling for a rain shower in which case can sometimes create very nice lighting effects. The dead center point that Frog mentioned relates to a general "rule of thirds". Google it and you'll get a good understanding. Same would go for a picture with the horizon, generally you'd avoid having the horizon smack in the middle of the photo. Good luck, look forward to seeing more from you. Cheers S

[LeeIs]

hi chuckette,

welcome to pr first of all.

just a few pointers.

try to not center your subject. google, the rule of thirds, and read up on that a bit.

also, try shooting with the sun behind you , that way you won't get as harsh shadow.

your subject here is a little out of focus, also dead center and with harsh shadows. I also was a beginner when i first signed up to this forum and i've learnt a lot since