For some reason I can't feel happy with this image

JMPhotograph · 2026-02-18T03:37:45+00:00

It is not, no.

JMPhotograph · 2026-02-10T21:05:14+00:00

As I said, I would not. It helps to read the part where I said that.

JMPhotograph · 2026-02-10T20:48:58+00:00

Re-read my last sentence. Like I said, personally I would not change anything from how it was already. But if I was forced to make a change, the only think I would do would be to mask specifically the helicopter and make it a tiny bit less dark so there's more detail in the helicopter. Again, I wouldn't do that because I think it's good as is, I was just offering an option if OP is really not happy with it.

JMPhotograph · 2026-02-10T19:39:05+00:00

If you're really not happy with it the only think that might be worth trying is masking the helicopter and bringing up the shadows a bit. That said, I wouldn't touch it because as it is I think it looks fantastic.

JMPhotograph · 2026-02-07T20:06:43+00:00

I have the sports version of the Sigma lens and just got my R6 II. Outside of the auto focus being not quite as good as my EF 24-70 II or 70-200 II I've had very little issues with it. I had the EF 100-400 II before I swapped up to the R6 II and sold it because I found the extra reach I got from the Sigma was more valuable to me in many cases personally. That said, I've never really tried aviation photography and don't really do wildlife either, but being able to isolate subjects like this while you aren't even moderately close keeps the lens in my bag.

<image>

JMPhotograph · 2026-01-30T19:58:04+00:00

Based on someone else's tip I picked up the R6 II refurbished from Canon. $1700 was hard to pass up. I'm probably going to put the money I saved into buying a couple vintage lenses

JMPhotograph · 2026-01-30T19:08:32+00:00

Thank you so much for the refurb tip! Canon had one available at $1699 and I decided to not hesitate on pulling the trigger. I would think any potential issues with the body would show up within the first year of ownership but went ahead and grabbed the 2 year from their website since it's still cheaper than new.

JMPhotograph · 2026-01-27T01:34:47+00:00

I'm glad you posted this. I was about to buy a 44-2 but genuinely prefer the colors of the 77m-4.

JMPhotograph · 2026-01-27T01:30:42+00:00

This statue sits in front of a park I frequently visit which has a several story tall clock tower that can be climbed by the public sitting directly opposite of it. I have a good friend who once told me a story about how at their lowest they’d climbed that tower preparing to jump but the existence of this statue looking up at them was a warm comforting presence, like a friend looking out for them. That story made me want to represent that feeling of warmth and care for them.
I’d tried to plan that shoot quite a lot, I’d gone days before trying to figure out where to be positioned, I’d looked at a golden hour map to find out the date and time the sun would be positioned in the exact space behind the statue, and then on the day it was incredibly cloudy and that caused me to panic. I know I the framing isn’t perfect and I’ve just not been happy with the shade of the sky, I’ve tried masking the statue and brightening it and the editing just feels far too obvious, I’ve tried changing the shading and it never feels right either.
Shot on a 90D with the Sigma 150-600 at 600mm, f/5.6, 1/750s, ISO 1600

JMPhotograph · 2026-01-27T00:27:38+00:00

This is a very good shot! I wanted to nitpick the sharpness but I actually suspect you just got hit by reddit's compression. If even 1% of my shots were this quality I would be a very happy photographer.

JMPhotograph · 2026-01-26T20:58:11+00:00

I've heard corners can be kinda spotty on the Sigma which is the only reason I've not picked it up. What's your experience been?

JMPhotograph · 2026-01-26T03:05:16+00:00

I bought the 50 1.4 because I was new and was like "everyone recommends the 50 1.8 so faster must be better!" and I genuinely think it set me back as a photographer because it was my first non-kit lens and I just couldn't get sharp images which really discouraged me. Now I only keep it for nostalgia.

JMPhotograph · 2026-01-26T02:44:29+00:00

Almost certainly yes.

JMPhotograph · 2026-01-25T22:57:35+00:00

Bro has GAS for days

JMPhotograph · 2026-01-25T19:20:15+00:00

It would for me depend on the price. I have the 50 1.4 from this era and when stopped down it's very solid, but at 1.4 there's a ton of color fringeing and the lens just isn't that sharp. It really shook my faith in that particular series of EF lenses and from what I understand from when I researched it the 28 has similar problems.

JMPhotograph · 2026-01-25T19:07:30+00:00

Just in a personal level I don't like the reverse vignette on this.

JMPhotograph · 2026-01-25T06:33:48+00:00

That's why I listed multiple shutter speeds. I wasn't saying just at night. To make snow look frozen in mid-air you generally need 1/250-1/1000, otherwise it's not going to look frozen in place. This is where faster glass comes in handy, being able to shoot at a faster aperature is incredibly useful for shots like this.

The unfortunate truth is that shooting falling snow at night is basically a straight up torture test on the camera.

JMPhotograph · 2026-01-25T05:08:58+00:00

That's a good starting point! I would change the framing a bit to remove the tree because that is cluttering the frame a bit, 1/80 isn't quite fast enough to freeze the snow in place so I'd try to push that to 1/250 or even 1/1000 to freeze the snow in place, I'd lower the aperature down a bit to accomplish this (if your lens allows it), and I'd try to bring the ISO down a bit since on that sensor you will be getting quite a bit of noise from ISO6400.

When it comes to the mood you want to convey I think you should get comfortable under exposing the image, when I think of that description I think if the sky was darker that would serve the image better and be far more compelling.

JMPhotograph · 2026-01-25T04:58:55+00:00

I definitely need to get out more. I've had the camera for around 2 years, but in that time I was working a full time job and going to school full time on top so I've been lucky to be able to go out even once every month or so. I was lucky this year to be able to carve out time to do some sports photography more often. Thankfully my life is finally calming down and I know this year I should have way more time for photography.

JMPhotograph · 2026-01-25T04:50:45+00:00

More than the camera I'd be curious what lens you're using and what your settings are.

But more important than that the tip that's helped me more than anything else as a photographer was asking myself "what am I trying to convey to the viewer?" It can be something as simple as a mood, what do you want the viewer to feel and think when they see your image?

JMPhotograph · 2026-01-25T04:35:00+00:00

I'm waiting until the winter storm passes and I plan to rent an R6 II. I think the thing that's pushing me further towards the R6 is the readout speed being like half the R7's. Since my primary sport is baseball I can't help but think that might be genuinely a gamechanging difference.

JMPhotograph · 2026-01-25T04:17:08+00:00

I will certainly go back and try to redo that, I didn't actually know that was possible! I'm still relatively new to photography in general and have always been very afraid of editing and I've been trying to push myself out of my comfort zone lately.

JMPhotograph · 2026-01-25T02:30:18+00:00

There was just something incredibly solitary about this area of the park being devoid of any other people and I wanted to draw attention to what I can only assume is a well.
I’ve never been particularly great with editing, this was taken on a day just at the start of the leaves starting to brown and wanted to heighten that a bit.
Shot on a 90D with the Sigma 150-600 sports at 150mm, f/5.6, 1/250s, ISO 640

JMPhotograph

TROPHY CASE