Hello!

MagicalMomentsbyAmanda · May 31, 2017

My name is Amanda and I am from Arkansas. I am aspiring to be a professional photographer. I am learning and dedicated. I am looking forward from learning everything I can. I have attached a recent photo of my son for an example of my work. I know the fence is showing so this is not something I would use in a portfolio but how is the image other than that. CC is welcomed and appreciated!

Designer · May 31, 2017

MagicalMomentsbyAmanda said:
..but how is the image other than that. CC is welcomed and appreciated!

A lot of your model appears to be slightly out of focus. I think it would be beneficial to show his eyes somehow. Not necessarily looking at the camera, but just so we see his eyes. A rather drastic crop of his head sometimes works, but use very sparingly.

MagicalMomentsbyAmanda · May 31, 2017

Thank you for the input!

terri · May 31, 2017

Hi Amanda, and welcome to TPF!

As far as this shot goes, I quite like the pose of your son and his focus on the dandelion. I will take a different viewpoint from Designer and say that, for this particular shot, not seeing his eyes seems quite natural, given what he is doing. You already mentioned the fence in the background - again, it's a casual backyard shot, so that's fine for this setting. But if you were shooting for clients, you'd want to scout out an area and be careful not to include distractions like this.

The real issue with this image is that you missed the focus here. Unfortunately, the sharpest point in the frame is at the top of your son's tee shirt, not right on his eyes. Closed or not, the eyes are everything in portraiture, especially in close crop like this (which I like here).

Keep practicing - a little fine tuning and this shot could be a real winner! He's a cute little boy.

Please keep posting your work - be sure to check out our Galleries section, where you'll get more views and feedback. Enjoy the forum!