I finally picked up a camera worthy of displaying photos that I take and here are few I took in my backyard today while I was messing with. Thanks to Tony for a great camera that is well taken care of!

First take so be gentle!! need to learn somethings still!

 

o snap pool party lol j/p nice pic for a new onwer

 

Bring the Boobies and we shall!

horsehoes and washers are the back...working on putting in a Volleyball court next!

 

lol nice how about u get the boobies w.e and ill bring the drinks

 

Nice Chris

 

nice swimming pool

 

Wow Chris, I think you are gonna become my new best friend. Sorry Tony your gonna have to be second. lol j/k

 

LOL!! here are some I took tonight of the car with the sun setting!!!

 

lookin good Chris, i'm glad you picked up T's camera...it's already getting some good use!

and +1 on the pool man - that needs to be utilized to the fullest!!

 

No problem big dawg.. Glad you could put it to good use.. We'll get together soon to go over things..

LOVE the 2nd shot in the first post..

Awesome sky in the car shots.. I see you already taking advantage.. I'm suprised you didn't find someplace to shoot to really utilize that sky.. It was PERFECT to set the mood for your color.

Looks like you're using the onboard flash on the camera.. If you're really into using flash, then you might want to look into getting an external Canon 430 EX II flash.. VERY inexpensive, but can make a HUGE difference in your shots, and you can control the amount and direction of the light. Then we can go over the aspects of flash photography.

I have one of those (430), and a 550 EX flash as well. With my 7D I can control the flashes remotely off the camera, I'll show you when we shoot your ride.


I see a variety of things you're shooting already, but what do you think you'll be interested in shooting most? Cars? Landscapes? People? a little of all?

Here are some lenses that you would be wise to invest in, as good glass is VERY important to getting your expected results out of the camera.. You will eventually grow past the abilities of the camera body, but the lenses will follow you from camera to camera, so I'd invest in quality glass up front, rather than getting economy lenses, and then having to offload them later. These are 3rd party lenses so they're less expensive than the Canon name brand, but are just as comparable on image quality.

Here's the ones I'd recommend:
1. Tamron 28-75mm f2.8 - great for portraiture, and candids, perfect walk around lens (this stays on my camera 90% of the time when I'm not shooting cars

2. Tamron 17-50mm f2.8 - Excellent car shooting lens as well as landscape and walk around lens.. As you can see there's overlap w/ the 28-75 because 25-50mm is the most used focal length for just general purpose photography for the most part.. This lens will replace the 18-55 kit lens you currently have. The F2.8 aperture will allow you to shoot in lower light without having to increase the ISO and introduce noise in your images.

3. Tokina 12-24mm F4 - if you plan on shooting landscapes, then this lens would be perfect, it's in the Ultra Wide Angle category, so it will allow you get vast distances and very sharp objects. This could also be used for car shoots as well up close and getting some nice angled shots that would emphasize the fronts or rears of cars.

4. Canon 75-300mm F4-5.6 (IS) - This would be the lens you'd use to shoot from far away when you can't get close to the action.. Great lens for sporting events and candids (you don't have to be close, so people don't know you're shooting them).. This lens would get you right on the field even if you're a good distance away. I commonly use this lens when shooting the boy's little league games. The Image Stabilization (IS) would allow you to hand hold the lens at slower shutter speeds than normal without introducing camera shake.

Lens maintenance:
I'd definitely advise you to get UV filters for your lenses. This will protect the front element (glass) from getting scratches as well as increase the saturation of your colors as well because it blocks the invisible UV rays that decrease the contrast in your images.

Extras
I've already touched on the Canon 430EX II external flash, and since I know you'll be shooting the car, a circular polarizing filter (CPL) would be an excellent choice as well. That helps you control the reflections coming off of the car and also helps the saturation of color as well.

Hope this helps.. Can't wait to go shooting w/ you man.. Especially since you live so close.. I know there's some excellent spots up north we can go.

 

Wow sweet ride and very sweet back yard, I would love to get into photography keep up the good work. Also great info Twall's

 

can i live in your backyard? It doesnt seem to end, i can hardly spot the fence!

 

That's no fence, that's just the barrier for the horse to jump over when they do equestrian training.. HA!!!

 

haha T nice....! I am working on putting in a Volleyball court next or nice putting green.