Auto Expo

[candideye]

I'm not proud of these pics, but they did teach me a few things. One, I need a faster lens (the 28-90mm f/4-5.6 I was using just didn't cut it in the low-light situation). Two, I still have a lot to learn about using a camera. And three, after all this time, I'm still a chicken-shit when it comes to just aiming and firing. Most of these shots were taken with the camera at stomach level, usually with the girl facing the other way. Pathetic, I know. :embarasse

So one of the first girls I see is up on a display for the new Chevy Cobalt (the replacement for the Cavalier). I snap this quick pic of her before she notices me and comes over to ask if I'd like to see a brochure. (Click the little :car: for smaller versions of the pics, if available.)
http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6469.thumb.jpg (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6469.jpg) :car: (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6469.sized.jpg)
Now, to be quite honest with you, I couldn't give a damn about the Chevy Cobalt, but she was so cute I humored her and said, "Yeah, I'd like a brochure." So she kneels down to take down my address (apparently she didn't have any brochures on her.) While she was taking down my info, I snapped this pic. (Yeah, my aim sucks.)
http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6470.thumb.jpg (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6470.jpg) :car: (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6470.sized.jpg)
After she gets my information, I get up enough courage to ask her if I could take her picture in front of the car. She said, "Normally I say no, but since you're so nice, OK" So she gets up, walks over to the car, and poses real nice for me. In my nervousness, I forget one of the golden rules of photography. Anyone care to guess what it was?
http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6471.thumb.jpg (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6471.jpg)
If you look at the EXIF info of that pic, you'll notice I was shooting with an exposure time of 1/30 seconds and a focal length of 52mm. Bad Candideye! Bad! The focal length should never be greater than the inverse of the shutter speed! The result? A blurry picture. *sigh*

This would prove to be a bad omen for the night, as I continually zoomed my 28-90mm lens past 30mm even though the shutter speed stayed at a constant 1/30 seconds. And unfortunately it resulted in a blurry shot of who I thought was the cutest girl at the show.
http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6540.thumb.jpg (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6540.jpg) :car: (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6540.sized.jpg)
Her ass looked amazing in those jeans. I must've took 15 pics of it, shooting with the camera in my hand at stomach level. Unfortunately, my aim was abysmal, and I got a lot of shots of the ceiling or the top of her head, and not a single shot of that sweet ass. I was pretty pissed. However, I went back the next day and I think I saw her again. I didn't get a good shot of her face this time, so I'm not sure if it was the same girl. What do you think?
http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6685.thumb.jpg (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6685.jpg)
Regardless, I was able to get some shots of her backside this time.
http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6651.thumb.jpg (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6651.jpg) :car: (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6651.sized.jpg) http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6682.thumb.jpg (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6682.jpg) :car: (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6682.sized.jpg) http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6683.thumb.jpg (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6683.jpg) :car: (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6683.sized.jpg) http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6684.thumb.jpg (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6684.jpg) :car: (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6684.sized.jpg)

This next girl was my kind of girl. Hot, stacked, and showing it! These pics rank as a 10 on the "man I wish that shot turned out better" scale.
http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6562.thumb.jpg (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6562.jpg) http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6563.thumb.jpg (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6563.jpg)

This girl saw me put the camera to my eye to take her picture, and immediately turned left and high-tailed it outta there. Dammit.
http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6576.thumb.jpg (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6576.jpg) :car: (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6576.sized.jpg)

I thought this was going to be a great pic of some great cleavage. But no. Some stupid woman walked right in my way as I snapped the pic. She stopped to apologize, but I said not to worry about it. Grrr.
http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6475.thumb.jpg (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6475.jpg) :car: (http://www.candideye.com/albums/autoexpo2005/IMG_6475.sized.jpg)

I'll post a bunch more pics in another post later on. Oh, and I've ordered me a faster lens. The 50mm f/1.8. :)

[Gramps]

Nice work man...and that.. those chicks were all hottie's...
What Do you shoot with...PM me...Me I just auto focus and blow...
I've tried some stuff with shutter speed and such...sometimes great..
and sometimes I have no idea what happened...but a sweet chick
captured ..... is a sweet chick captured...Nice going...If I was a HOT
BABE...I'd let you shoot me...I mean, like I'd never turn and run!...LOL :tongue:
And hey, you got the cleeeee-vage shot...skin looks like melted
butter....smooth :tongue:

[Thunder Pixx]

i like the sencond girl, the one reading the brochure and looking suprised. pics came out fine as far as i am concerned. i suck at indoor pics cuz i am chicken shit too. i tried at a car show last year, and the pics were pathetic. yours are very good in comparison...... :)

[Rob_Ant]

"I'm not proud of these pics, but they did teach me a few things."


==Man, you put effort into it, be proud. you got some nice pics here, I like the girl
in pink. I think you got her both days, the nose looks similar.


"One, I need a faster lens"


===Yes, you do. but hey like you said, the 50 1.8 is in the way.


"Two, I still have a lot to learn about using a camera."


==Ask DP for advice, he has all the answers... (if not he'll make them up).
Try going full Manual.

"And three, after all this time, I'm still a chicken-shit when it comes to just aiming and firing. Most of these shots were taken with the camera at stomach level, usually with the girl facing the other way. Pathetic, I know."


===Ok, now this is bad. There is nothing wrong with taking the camera to eye level and taking a pic of a girl.
If you don't aim then your camera will focus on something you don't want, capture feet, half bodies, heads, or roof of buildings.

[deliriouspixel]

HAH Hah CE that's a great post! Love how you tear yourself down knowing what the
problems are. As far as the technical, you wait and see, that 50/1.8 will get you some
great indoor shots.

As for the shooting style, you just need to bust out and become purposeful. Once that
happens its hard to see why you found it a barrier.

[archman]

Hey, I think you're being a little too rough on yourself, CE. You know what your mistakes were, and really, they're not bad. You definitely got postable material.

And besides...in about a month and a half, you'll be back in your more familiar, comfortable stomping grounds!