Critique my harvest photo tutorial

[Kevin Lawler]

I wrote this for another regional forum a few years ago. After I read Jerry's tutorial in TBM I started implementing them in my picture taking. For instance, I make sure the antlers don't get lost in my clothes and stuff and I use a flash when in the shadows even in bright sunlight.

I'm interested in other hints you can provide that I have not thought of.

 http://home.earthlink.net/~kevin_lawler/harvest.htm

[paleFace]

Kevin, not bad at all.  the thing i liked the most was the fact that you showed not only what you should do but gave some examples of what not to do.  what program do you use to tone your images?  there are some good tricks that you can use in PS to help out when you get a bad photo.

Rob
 http://burnhamphotography.com/

[Kevin Lawler]

I just use Adobe Photo Deluxe that came with my camera. I think I should add a paragraph about grooming photos for the net. 72dpi and 640x480 is all that is needed for viewing on a forum.

[paleFace]

if you can swing it at some point upgrade to PS2.  what you can do with that program is awesome.  shoot me an email and i'll send you a few examples.

Rob

[Guru]

Kevin, You did a good job bud,I like it. I've been carrying a camera with me since I started bowhunting in '78.I've learned a lot over the years.Those Ultra Pods are great,I bet I've had the same one for 20yrs.

I like to tuck the legs and get the body as upright as possible to give a good deep profile.I usually prop something behind the body so it stays while taking self timers.Wipe as much blood as possible,I don't mind showing the hole of my shot as long as it's not too messy.I think it's best to get behind the animal a little(arms length) to really show the size.As long as it's not too close to the camera,you won't end up with one of those freakish looking Chuck Adams pix.

I also like to get some of my equipment that was part of the hunt in the pix.....Maybe my blind and decoys after a good turkey hunt...or my climbing treestand leaning against a tree in the backround....I certainly don't want these to overpower the pic,but sometimes they look good.

Take a lot of pix,I mean a lot,cause only a few will be REAL GOOD. Film is cheap,and now with digital,you can see a pic immediatly to see what you have...now there's no excuse for not ending up with good photo's..


I take a lot of time with my trophy photo's,and my friends say that it shows.A lot of them say that after seeing mine,they've learned to take more time and effort into making theirs better.

Good photo's have been a pet peeve of mine for a long time.....

[Numitokayo]

Kevin - do yoou take a tripod out with ya, I've been thinking of doing that because i always have a hard time getting the right height on a picture or do you have any other recommendations.  Awesome work.  

Daniel

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The most valuable gift is a good example

[Guru]

Daniel,I'm sure kevin will be along soon...

I always carry one of those little "ultra pods" with my little camera.It only weighs a couple oz.,about 4" long,I've had it for 20yrs.You can set it on it's 3 little legs,or strap it to a tree with the attached velcro strap.Click on the link in Kevin's tutorial.

I don't hunt with out it!!

[Iron/Mtn]

Dan;one of the things that I have carried for years is a little device that has three legs maybe 4 inches longand a ball head, it also has a velcro strap that allows you to attach it to a small sapling or tree branch, works great and weighs only a few ouncesand takes up less room in your fanny pack then a  small knife, has a brand name which I will try to find out later if you want, probably cost less then 10 bucks.

A friend also gave me a little teflon block that has three legs with threads that will allow an arrow to screw into them and make a tripod for field use with a small camera never use it as I like to take the shots with the bow in the picture and never liked the idea of an image with more then half the arrows gone, personal guirk I guess.

One thing with these and other methods is you need to have a timer on the camera, not much of a problem now with most cameras but years ago you needed to search around for the compacts(film) that this feature. Take Care John

[Iron/Mtn]

Kevin/Curt sorry about the follow up did not notice the mention of the ultra pod in your respective posts, great little devices and have even used mine with a heavy body camera on a few occassions. Mines has to be 25 years old at least, prior to that always had to depend on someone else to get a shot and they never cared to put in the time and effort for a decent one,can't tell you how many cut off,bad flare,out of focus shots I used to get developed prior to the digital cameras, always took a least afull roll to hopefully get one good image that I could enlarge, now I can review and delete and leave everything set up to re-shoot if needed.

  Also you both have  real nice field shots thanks for sharring. John.

[Kevin Lawler]

Here's a link to the ultrpod website. You might be able to find them at a camera shop. I seldom take a camera with me since I'm usually within a mile of the house or truck. You can search the net for miniature tripods but the ultrapod is great because it can be strapped to a tree.  http://www.pedcopods.com/products.htm

Here's a picture of it.
 

[Kevin Lawler]

Originally posted by Iron/Mtn:
  Also you both have  real nice field shots thanks for sharring. John.

Thanks, but I still need to take it up a notch. There is still something distinctively different about my shots and Curt's. I hope to have more practice time next year if you know what I mean.

[Guru]

Thanks Kevin.....I always tell people to just put a little extra time and effort into setting up the pix,and it will be well worth it in the long run.

Good stuff here bud    

[varmint]

A few tips I learned while hunting with an outfitter are:

Keep a set of Taxidermy eye lenses to stick in the deer to get rid of that dead or "glazed" look.

Cut the tongue out,no chance of it getting in the picture.

Take LOTS of photos to have a better chance of having some nice ones.Use different angles....

Don't hold the antlers if you want them to look larger.........keep your hands off 'em,hold from the back of the neck.

Always make sure you have a nice background,in a natural setting.