Family Shoot

[portermeister]

Wow. At first I was just excited because I had some actual comments after a solid four months of nothing on this website. Now it just feels like I'm getting sort of hated on.

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[Trever1t]

not hated, I don't think it's a personal attack, do you? No, it's just the opinions of your forum peers.

Sure it must be a bummer to think you've done a good job but fact is if you listen to the feedback without prejudice you'll be that much better next time

[portermeister]

Not personal I guess, other than those are your pictures and I don't like them....

Sometimes people post comments that are all, this looked funny and here's what you could do to fix it...Those are very helpful.

Sometimes people post comments that say I don't like everything that you did...not so helpful.

There's a difference and I guess I'm just feeling a little beat up about it. Long day.

[cgipson1]

Although I feel like the idea of the photo shoot was possibly missed, I appreciate the critque.

Then explain to us the idea of the shoot.. that we missed?

[kmontrois]

I think the shot is beautiful. There is a clear capture of the bond between mother and child. Age of the child is not relevant, many children breast feed beyond 18-months. It is the capture of the memory that is important. That was done beautifully.

[raider]

stay on facebook and get false praises from your family if you don't want real critiques

[FattyMcJ]

Not personal I guess, other than those are your pictures and I don't like them....

You posted in the "Pro" section.

1) These are not "Pro" quality. Honestly, I hope they didn't pay for these...

2) As a "Pro", you HAVE to be able to take it when someone says, flat out, I don't like it. You're asking other photographers their opinions, you MUST understand that we will be 10x more critical of every detail than the average Joe would be.

3) As a "Pro", you also have to be able to give the client what they want. If this is what the family wanted, then so be it. They're happy and that's all that matters.

If you can't handle the critique, then don't post them. Or post them in the Beginner section, or Facebook, and get lots of uplifting praise...and maybe a few helpful comments, maybe.

I'm not trying to be rude, that's just how it is. Believe me, I've been torn up on this forum before too. But instead of being offended, I listened and learned.

[Destin]

You posted in the "Pro" section.

1) These are not "Pro" quality. Honestly, I hope they didn't pay for these...

2) As a "Pro", you HAVE to be able to take it when someone says, flat out, I don't like it. You're asking other photographers their opinions, you MUST understand that we will be 10x more critical of every detail than the average Joe would be.

3) As a "Pro", you also have to be able to give the client what they want. If this is what the family wanted, then so be it. They're happy and that's all that matters.

If you can't handle the critique, then don't post them. Or post them in the Beginner section, or Facebook, and get lots of uplifting praise...and maybe a few helpful comments, maybe.

I'm not trying to be rude, that's just how it is. Believe me, I've been torn up on this forum before too. But instead of being offended, I listened and learned.

Amen.

[kundalini]

...... after a solid four months of nothing on this website. Now it just feels like I'm getting sort of hated on.

One of the first things I noticed was the posted date. At first I thought someone was having a funny by bringing up an old thread, but then using the finger method...... it's only four months.

Out of the photos posted, only two intrigue me. However, I will comment on a third photo first, #1. ABSOLUTELY nothing wrong with a breast feeding photo, particularly as discrete as you have shown.

#3 - I really like the attempt at this. A very touching moment between father and child. Since this is obviously a crop of the original, I would suggest having another go at it. My thoughts are that Dad's head is much too high in the frame. Also, considering his pose, I would like to see him further left in the frame. If you are familiar with the "Rule of Thirds", have a crack at placing his head on the top left power point. This should crop a bit off the pathway of roots, but some of that could be lost without any detriment. However, I do like the leading line of the rooted trail to your subjects.

#2 - I believe this is the type of family portrait that most couples would like to hang on the wall for others (and themselves) to look at and admire. My thoughts on this are there are a few things to consider next time and it concerns the use of developing lines.

1) Father's and mother's eyes are level. This can be improved upon by having the mother's eye level with father's mouth. If she has a longer torso than dad, have him sit on a booster to create that slight height advantage.

2) Rather than having mother sit flat on her bottom, have her sit on her right hip (or closest to camera). This will make an immediate dynamic change in her posture by having her near shoulder dip and naturally lend itself for her to lean towards the lower (feminie) shoulder. A bonus of this slight change is that it will (again) naturally cause her to be perceived to be leaning towards her partner to emote a bit more affection. As is, she looks to be repelling.

3) The gap from mother to child is much to much, the relationship of heads looks disjointed. This is caused by having the child resting between her legs. Had she sat on her on her right hip (read #2), she could have had the child resting on her far leg. This will automatically raise the child's height toward the mother's face.... i.e., closing the gap.

4) Lastly the leg positions with regard to camera position. Having mom's knee pointing directly into the lens is not offering any slenderizing effect. In fact, it is emphasizing a larger thigh. Again, if she had sat on her right hip (#2), her knee would have dropped and we would be viewing more of thee top of her thigh rather than the underside. This would have a more flattering effect for her whether she has large thighs or not. Now for dad, having his leg coming straight towards the camera is not creating a connecting line for either the viewer or developing a connection with his partner. Having his foot moved closer to mom, bent at the knee, would alleviate this all together.

Take my comments with a grain of salt, it is only an opinion worth less than 2¢. Just a few thoughts as I was looking at your photos.

Thanks for sharing.