And... we have further progression.

[astroNikon]

my eyes went right to whatever that was off the guitar sticking up in the sky.
maybe get the sky/clouds a bit darker

the kid photo was cute but it looks like from the top of this head to under his eyes is in focus. His nose down to his chin is out of focus. Maybe that should be in focus too to add an infocus smile ?

but take it with a grain of salt .. i'm just a newbie

I will review a bit more later, but I don't see that. What I see is a DoF from the grass right in front of them, leading all the way to the grass behind them. Everything within that DoF is going to be in focus. His entire face looks focused to me. and I'm viewing at a 2560 x 1440 resolution as well (27" iMac).

I was talking about the small kid picture, not the couple/guitar picture.

I am expecting new glasses any day as mine are currently woefully inaccurate so you had me check a 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th review it again until I realized there was no grass and there was no "them" after rereading your post. LOL

 

[cbarnard7]

Again with the trash arguments...I didn't see this posted in the "pro" forum, and the guy was basically saying thank you for everyone's' help in guiding him on his path to become a better photographer.

If anybody is smart enough to realize that photography is incredibly subjective, then they'll realize that if the client is happy with the work, then it's PERFECT. You can post a picture and have 10 people look at it with 10 different suggestions...

If I went to someone who was a "pro" (professional meaning making a profit off of their work- not dependent on quality) and said, snap me a realllly blurry picture with my head cut off and put it in black and white, then that's what I'd like to see. Give me a crisp, clear photo with my full body in frame and I'm not paying for it.

In other words, give your criticisms and move on.

 

[astroNikon]

Or maybe you do, possibly? Walmart is worth Billions... how much are you worth again? They are about as defined professional as it gets.

I rest my case.

Luckily walmart billions are not based on their photography studios.
I've had some friends work there. Let's just say I was amazed as they never touched a camera much before that. But it was apparently all cookie cutter.

anyways .. I still like your photos.

 

[ronlane]

mumbling to self..."Where is my Stanley steel tape measure? Oh...here it is!!!"

"Charlie, aim that stream this way, to be measured!!! Atta' boy Charlie, you are in the lead! 72 inches! Wow! Pretty good distance! No prostate trouble on your end, eh, Charlie!"

Oh, and what the heck *is* that thing on the end of the guitar...I know I have seen those things before...I assume they are used to restrict/modify overall string length and resulting tones? somethin' like that? Whatever that thing is, it REALLY distracts from the shot.

I think the shadows need to be lightened. The image is not in the right key. It's discordant.

That thing on the end of the guitar is a capo. It's kind of like fully auto mode on your camera. It allows a person to play a lot of songs in any key while only knowing a couple of chords in which to do it in.

 

[Murray Bloom]

I thought a capo went across the strings.

 

[ronlane]

I thought a capo went across the strings.

You are correct, but where do you put it when you aren't using it? This is where he put his.

 

[PhotoWrangler]

You are correct, but where do you put it when you aren't using it? This is where he put his.

I always put my capo on my heado.

 

[The_Traveler]

Best wishes to the OP for getting his start and working at it.

The kind of just plain by-choice nasty comments that appear here, seemingly in an attempt to throw water on the OP's day, really put a damper on my enthusiasm for working here.

If people can't recognize the right time and the wrong time and the best way to be critical, they ought to take a deep breath and be themselves in the target's place before they spout off. Being a pro doesn't give the right to behave like less of a person.

Everyone has an opinion, like everyone has an @$$hole, but just like @$$holes, they ought to be examined carefully before they are displayed for everyone to see.

 

[AaronLLockhart]

Best wishes to the OP for getting his start and working at it.

The kind of just plain by-choice nasty comments that appear here, seemingly in an attempt to throw water on the OP's day, really put a damper on my enthusiasm for working here.

If people can't recognize the right time and the wrong time and the best way to be critical, they ought to take a deep breath and be themselves in the target's place before they spout off. Being a pro doesn't give the right to behave like less of a person.

Everyone has an opinion, like everyone has an @$$hole, but just like @$$holes, they ought to be examined carefully before they are displayed for everyone to see.

I've learned that there are people here who express opinion by being picky toward others in circumstance to make themselves feel better. Charlie is one of those people. It's not something new about him, he's always been that way. Perhaps he was picked on too much in grade school. Who knows?

His input is about as valuable as a grain of salt. If he were critical of the work and how to improve it, instead of making personal stabs at complete strangers that would make him eat through a straw if he said the things in person he says to them behind the comfort of his keyboard, then his portrayal to the public and my view of him would probably changed.

However, to me, he's nothing more than a disgruntled photographer that's pissed off for no apparent reason, at no one other than himself.



As for the rest of you, thank you for the constructive feedback on the things that need improvement. I will continue to work on it all!

 

[Tiller]

I'll preface this with saying that I didn't read every response, so I apologize if I happen to repeat anyone.

Capo's are almost always put on the headstock when not in use, especially when you're about to use it. Still, I would have told him to take it off.

I would have told him to take off his shoes, so you could include them in the picture.

Maybe a little bump on the exposure, and a half CTO on the flash to warm it up a bit.

 

[DanOstergren]

I guess your clients don't mind having their feet cut off, huh? I would work on your lighting more.. it needs it! Coon eye on that left eye socket (subjects left)

I really don't see how this statement merits a three page fight. There are all sorts of constructive points that can be taken out of this even if it was said sarcastically.

Trust me, I get butt hurt over critique like this all the time, but if I don't take the time to quit taking the sarcasm personally then I'll never be able to appreciate or sometimes even notice a good critique. Just take the good and don't even give the sarcasm the time of day to get under your skin.

 

[Devinhullphoto]

my eyes went right to whatever that was off the guitar sticking up in the sky. maybe get the sky/clouds a bit darker the kid photo was cute but it looks like from the top of this head to under his eyes is in focus. His nose down to his chin is out of focus. Maybe that should be in focus too to add an infocus smile ? but take it with a grain of salt .. i'm just a newbie

It's a capo!

 

[Devinhullphoto]

Or maybe you do, possibly? Walmart is worth Billions... how much are you worth again? They are about as defined professional as it gets. I rest my case.

To be fair, the studios in places like Walmart, Target, Sears and others are owned by places like Lifetouch. It's just there kinda like when you see a bank in a walmart. It's not owned by walmart, it's just where the business is at.

 

[Devinhullphoto]

mumbling to self..."Where is my Stanley steel tape measure? Oh...here it is!!!" "Charlie, aim that stream this way, to be measured!!! Atta' boy Charlie, you are in the lead! 72 inches! Wow! Pretty good distance! No prostate trouble on your end, eh, Charlie!" Oh, and what the heck *is* that thing on the end of the guitar...I know I have seen those things before...I assume they are used to restrict/modify overall string length and resulting tones? somethin' like that? Whatever that thing is, it REALLY distracts from the shot. I think the shadows need to be lightened. The image is not in the right key. It's discordant.

It's a capo and you are right on its purpose. Ha. Easy to clone out.

 

[AaronLLockhart]

Or maybe you do, possibly? Walmart is worth Billions... how much are you worth again? They are about as defined professional as it gets. I rest my case.

To be fair, the studios in places like Walmart, Target, Sears and others are owned by places like Lifetouch. It's just there kinda like when you see a bank in a walmart. It's not owned by walmart, it's just where the business is at.

Valid point, but I was talking about Wal-Mart as an organization, not the photo centers inside of Wal-Mart.

I could use the same argument about any company who doesn't carry quality products. There are tons of businesses that operate on subpar products and services, and some of them are worth billions and billions of dollars. Therefore, Charlie's idea of what a professional is under definition is extremely skewed.

There is bad work and there is quality work, then there are amateurs and there are professionals. There are bad amateurs and quality amateurs, and there are bad professionals and quality professionals. There are even mediocre professionals, decent professionals, good professionals, great professionals, and even outstanding professionals.

However, that doesn't make the bad ones not professionals. It simply makes them bad professionals.

None the less, they are STILL professionals.