A Pile of Portraits...Comments & Constructive Criticism welcome!

[KatiaGPhoto]

Just thought I would share some of my recent work and hopefully get some feedback. Any and all feedback is welcome, though I'm not looking for tips on any one element of my photos. Anything goes!

A recent maternity shoot:


07-25-2012 063wm by katiagphoto, on Flickr


07-25-2012 009 bw wm by katiagphoto, on Flickr

And a "for fun" shoot I did with my friends little girl. GOD she is just a darling, I can't get enough of her sweet dolly face!


05-30-2012 088 wm by katiagphoto, on Flickr


05-30-2012 074 wm by katiagphoto, on Flickr

There are plenty more where these came from. Thanks for looking!

 

[rokvi]

Your title and explanation are a little contradictory. For what its worth, I love #3 besides the compositional flaws. #4 Is good too, besides it needing a little more contrast.

 

[gsgary]

If you dont want c+c dont bother posting , as for feed back backgrounds in the first are very distracting they are just run of the mill that i see every day on here from others that have just bought a new camera

 

[tirediron]

OP: Could you please clarify by editing your post whether you do (as your title explicitly indicates) or you do not (as your post states) want critique. TPF does not have a specific critique forum, rather all of the galleries are for critique. The assumption made here is that generally photographers want to improve, and that by peer review, they will gain insight into ways to improve.

That said, if you specifically do not want critique and simply want to showcase your work, that's fine, but you will need to clarify this in your post to avoid confusion.

If I may however, there are a number of areas where these images could be improved, and I would suggest that it would be beneficial to hear what others may have to say about them.

 

[tirediron]

If you dont want c+c dont bother posting , as for feed back backgrounds in the first are very distracting they are just run of the mill that i see every day on here from others that have just bought a new camera

Gary, if someone wants to post their images simply for others to see, there's nothing wrong with that. I've asked the OP to clarify what she wants.

 

[tirediron]

And, to a fellow BCer... where abouts in the province?

 

[gsgary]

Gary, if someone wants to post their images simply for others to see, there's nothing wrong with that. I've asked the OP to clarify what she wants.

I think it quite clear op thinks they are to good for c+c

 

[tirediron]

Gary, if someone wants to post their images simply for others to see, there's nothing wrong with that. I've asked the OP to clarify what she wants.

I think it quite clear op thinks they are to good for c+c

Mmmmmmmmmmm

 

[KatiaGPhoto]

OP: Could you please clarify by editing your post whether you do (as your title explicitly indicates) or you do not (as your post states) want critique. TPF does not have a specific critique forum, rather all of the galleries are for critique. The assumption made here is that generally photographers want to improve, and that by peer review, they will gain insight into ways to improve.

That said, if you specifically do not want critique and simply want to showcase your work, that's fine, but you will need to clarify this in your post to avoid confusion.

If I may however, there are a number of areas where these images could be improved, and I would suggest that it would be beneficial to hear what others may have to say about them.

TO CLARIFY: In the title when I said "comments and critique welcome" I meant I will not get upset if somebody provides critique. Generally when you are asking for critique you ask for feedback on a specific element of the photo, such as lighting, composition, post-processing, etc. And while I don't have any specific elements I want feedback on, I am open to any feedback anybody is willing to provide. Hope that's a bit more clear!

Gary, if someone wants to post their images simply for others to see, there's nothing wrong with that. I've asked the OP to clarify what she wants.

I think it quite clear op thinks they are to good for c+c

I find that to be an incredibly rude assumption!

 

[mrstravis]

OP as a simple suggestion, it would be wise not to piss these guys off. While I do not post much bc I have little time to play with my camera, you can learn a lot from the pros on here, but only if you play nice.

 

[KatiaGPhoto]

I am playing nice...They asked me to clarify. I clarified.

I feel it was pretty rude for someone to make assumptions and say to a fairly new member that I "think my photos are too good for critique," when that is not the case at all.

 

[KatiaGPhoto]

And, to a fellow BCer... where abouts in the province?

Near Vancouver, actually!

 

[MLeeK]

It's not even noon yet and the drama has begun. *SIGH* BUT!!! I didn't start it this time! That alone calls for a party!
:smileys:

OP-They are nice images!
#1 She's greeny/yellow. This is a situation where a touch of fill flash would have helped to keep that grass and trees from reflecting on your subject. The focus and exposure look gret. The subject looks like she's tipping backwards. This pose is pretty standard for maternity, but more of an up close to the belly. Otherwise it kind of loses it's power.
#2Is cropped in too close. It won't print to any standard size without having some encroachment on the top of her head or belly. THe conversion looks nice. I always cringe when newbies post black and whites because they are usually VERY grayscale. That conversion stuff is hard! You've gotten it very nicely to include black, white and everything in between and in the appropriate places. I wish she weren't dead center. The exposure looks great, focus is clean and clear.
#3 I wish you had gotten UP a little bit or crushed the grass down a bit. That grass is a real detraction. I like your use of DOF with that gorgeous rich brown tree in your background to make your subject pop out beautifully. Focus and exposure are beautiful.
#4 The grass feels a little better here. Much better angle on it. I am not a fan of this particular conversion, although it's got the right tones in it. I wish the tree weren't so bright and matched the feeling of the tree in the color image. That would have really set your subject off. Use of the luminance and color sliders would have allowed you to shift your blacks to the tree more. Focus and exposure are beautiful on that one also.

The biggest thing I notice in all of them is dead center. The baby ones work pretty OK, but I think they could have been MORE should you have used some more creative composition. The maternity ones lose a good bit of impact and interest in the dead center composition. Cropping closer to show the belly and hands might really help a lot there.
They're great images!

 

[amolitor]

I like them pretty well. The last one is the weakest of the lot. The flatness of the light makes it hard to get any visual drama in b&w, and the dress appears quite overexposed. Since the light is flat, there's no way to get anything but pale greys and whites with the baby, and the grass. The entire image is compressed, mostly, into the middle of the tonal scale except for the dress and the shadow upper left.

I am normally a fan of the middle tones, but this is usually because newbies tend to leave them out by crushing the contrast lever. This is the opposite, too much middle tone and not enough darks (in the interesting areas) and that's pretty much all about the light. You could maybe improve it with some curves adjustment.

 

[tirediron]

And, to a fellow BCer... where abouts in the province?

Near Vancouver, actually!

Just across the water...