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Some tips for photog'ing your bikes....

12K views 144 replies 24 participants last post by  tuan3742 
#1 ·
I see all these pictures of your guys bikes and I know we're not all seeing how great they really look. So I thought I'd try and offer up some basic pointers.

Composition - Get away from the bike. Don't be so close that parts of the bike are cropped out. Get far enough away so that there's some back ground.

Keep the bike either in the far left or far right of the frame. You can get away with having the bike smack in the middle of the frame but it's harder to pull off.

Lighting - Pay attention to what the sun is doing. Don't shoot in the middle of the day because the sun is harsh and unflattering. Best times to shoot are during sunrise and sunset. The light is softer then. For most situations, have the sun at your back or slightly off to the side.

having the sun facing you can work, but it's harder to pull off.

Subject - The wrong angle can make your bike go from sexy to meh. The best I can suggest for this one is find pictures of bikes you like and try to replicate them. Take your phone, your P&S or whatever, frame your bike and just walk around looking at the various angles.

For editing, I use paint.net which is free. You can do little things like adjust the contrast and saturation to really make your pics pop.

It might seem complicated and I apologize if that comes off as condescending, but it's not with a little practice.

I can set up my bike and snap off 50 pics in about 10 minutes. Out of that 50 I might have 10 that I actually like.

Anyway, hope this is helpful to someone!
 
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#52 ·
I'm looking forward to a day out with the camera. My trips out have usually been to the airport..

Aircraft - a set on Flickr

I just need to find the right location. I'd like to find a good spot at Jodrell Bank. I pass it daily on the way to work.

 
#58 ·
It wasn't my pic but I plan on getting some with it as a backdrop
 
#59 ·
Great advice man. I must of dropped too many shitty pictures lol. I use to have a decent camera but it came up missing. Now I just take advantage of my Iphone. lol How long have you been cussing all these amateur pictures?
 
#66 ·
This under a shade tree, If I don't crop out the harsh sun then it ruins the whole shot.
I don't even know what an HDR feature is??

I do agree with all your points in post #1, However in overcast conditions I cant seem to get the colors to pop.

Evening sunlight seems to be the best.



This was inside with the flash on...
 
#70 ·
This under a shade tree, If I don't crop out the harsh sun then it ruins the whole shot.
I don't even know what an HDR feature is??

I do agree with all your points in post #1, However in overcast conditions I cant seem to get the colors to pop.

Evening sunlight seems to be the best.



When shooting in overcast I like to over expose then I go back later and highlight the subject and darken the sky.

HDR just means high dynamic range.... You can do it manually by bracketing your photos and stitching them together or in my case my camera will do it.
 
#71 ·
Canon T3 or a Nikon d3100 are about the same. They have all the advanced controls the bigger cameras have but they usually come with cheaper lenses and are "noisy" when you turn up the sensitivity.
 
#78 ·
Ive got a Canon power shot A1000 with Image stabilizer.
with 10 megs.
 
#81 ·
Pawn shops might be a good place for a good camera???
 
#87 ·
No other entry level DSLR's offer, continuous AF, Image Stabilization, Live view, 12 or even 10fps, and not to mention neat features like HDR, panorama, color selective shooting, focus peaking etc...

The biggest thing that separates a Sony from others though is the Live View.

With a canon or nikon, in manual mode, you somewhat have to guess the exposure and WB.

With a Sony you see all that stuff in real time.
 
#88 ·
Any DSLR is going to give you continuous AF, Image Stabilization and live view. Yes, Sony has an advantage with its live view and FPS but their IQ goes to shit at higher ISO. Lens selection is also trash. I'd spend the 450 on the new T3 or find a used T2/3i and but the $99 50 f/1.8 lens and get better low light and image quality. My $.02
 
#99 ·
Ahh for once a nerd out that I have no idea whats going on
 
#102 ·
I'm happy with my Canon SD1400 IS
For the mount of times I dropped it and it still takes good photos I'm cool with it
 
#108 ·
Killed two birds with one stone. Just visited Kitt's Motorcycles and he's the man for all my future servicing needs now and the added bonus is a nice canal side ride to his workshop. Pulled over for a few shots.





 
#112 ·
Now that light is almost perfect, My guess is morning, but could be late in the day. ...???
 
#110 ·
Ok.. I didn't like the exhaust anyway but Pabs at Kitt's is a great guy and will now do all my servicing. Makes an awesome cup of tea too
 
#111 ·
Forgot to say. The Nikon 1 fits nicely under the seat :)
 
#118 · (Edited)
I never replied. Why those places? Your neck of the woods?

Edit: Just check.. seems so. Our Collier's base is in Crickhowell but I never go there. We were supposed to do a promotional run from Llandernog (the creamery) to Cardiff (we are a sponsor of the Millennium Centre) earlier in the year but snow killed that off. I have offered to do it on the bike.
 
#119 ·
I live about half hour from the border so it works out well for me. Only really been to wales, rode down to Dorset once but didnt find the good roads, waste of fuel that was although i did gget 180 miles out of 12litres of fuel!! Haha.

I tried googling colliers.. What is it?
 
#122 ·
We sell cheese and dairy and manage retail brands. Collier's is one of our own flagship brands. We do Guaraná Antarctica too (Brazilian 'energy' drink) and I've tried my hardest to get a full race livery done :)



 
#124 ·
Pfft... who needs Monster ;)

Guarana need to get busy since they no longer sponsor Philipe Massa. I'm faster than him anyway.
 
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