[hockmasm]

Do you shoot the exact shot you want in camera? cropped and all? or do you shoot looser and crop in Photoshop? whats the preferred method?

[atupdate]

I print very few images in the standard 2x3 aspect ratio. I intentially leave room on the sides of the image so I can crop to 5x7 or 8x10.

[Pablom]

I take the shot I want and will sometimes crop something out of it that I didn't plan on beforehand so using a larger frame would leave me less to work with. plus there is the extra 5% that the K-x gives me so I take that also into account

[Wheatfield]

I compose the picture the way I want it to be in camera and then print what I get without cropping, beyond what is necessary to fit a particular print size.
IE: I crop the ends off for 8x10s.
If I don't know what the final aspect ratio of the print will be, I compose in such a way that I can make any standard print size work, but will almost always be leaving one dimension of the image alone.
I also shoot with prime lenses most of the time, so this can be a bit of a challenge.

[Ira]

I find it impossible to shoot it like the final crop is going to be 95% of the time.

And it's not about skill. It's about priorities.

Who cares whether it was cropped or not?

[hockmasm]

im new to shooting. i have it set to 12m size.

how big is that in relation to 8x10 or whatever to put in perspective?

I guess..does anyone ever print a full size max res shot photo?

[Ira]

im new to shooting. i have it set to 12m size.

how big is that in relation to 8x10 or whatever to put in perspective?

I guess..does anyone ever print a full size max res shot photo?

This gets really complicated, and the size/resolution of your JPEG doesn't have anything to do with cropping.

You can shoot at the lowest JPEG size your camera allows--but you should still set it for best QUALITY--and it will give you a perfect 8 X 10 print.

The highest resolutions are important when you're using the file for actual offset printing with a real printer using a printing press.

[Wheatfield]

I find it impossible to shoot it like the final crop is going to be 95% of the time.

And it's not about skill. It's about priorities.

Who cares whether it was cropped or not?

My habits come from my film camera days, where cropping a 35mm negative would cause a very noticeable loss of quality.

[axl]

It depends on what I'm shooting.
In streets it's very hard to get shot without cropping, especially considering I'm a "prime" guy.
In "studio" or posed shots & landscapes, I try to move around, change lenses as much as I can to minimize cropping.

[hockmasm]

what size pictures should i be shooting? waht setting is normal if im just shooting for myself and probably never print bigger that 11x17

[Ira]

My habits come from my film camera days, where cropping a 35mm negative would cause a very noticeable loss of quality.

Well, you said it--habit. But even with film, you still crop enlargements.

To me, yours is the right way to do it and it's a great habit to NOT depend on cropping based on the following, but I still stink at it:

The best advice I was ever given was to look at the frame in your viewfinder as if it was the final picture, and not to focus your attention on the main subject. This is the biggest mistake people make (including me). And that must be where the expression "not seeing the big picture" comes from.

But from a practical standpoint, with all of the technical aspects of digitally capturing the image, if I have to crop, so be it.

No one knows, and it's the final product that matters.

[Ira]

what size pictures should i be shooting? waht setting is normal if im just shooting for myself and probably never print bigger that 11x17

You can shoot at the smallest size (6 megs on the kx) and still get great prints.

[SpecialK]

I try to frame the image in the camera. On rare occasions I will crop it vertically out of a horizontal shot or otherwise on the computer if it works better in hindsight.

[writeb]

I usually try to fill the frame as much as possible, but it also depends on what lens I'm using that the time. I tend to leave a little more room for Post production when I'm using primes. I have a little bit more control with the framing in zooms, so tend to fill the frame a little bit better.

If I have presence of mind, i'll remember to leave a little room if I know the old lens is subject to vignetting.

[dadipentak]

I've been trying to cut down on my cropping but I still crop most of the time. I'm pretty unapologetic about it but I do really respect people who can compose the final image through the viewfinder. Of course, I can get away with it because I rarely print.

I never do cropping--or any pp--in the camera.