Critique these photos?

[hticonderoga]

hey guys, new to the website! i have a sort of style that kind of deviates from what i find on deviant art. i am having a problem with this series, i dont think the photos seem to come alive. It is a portrait series about people after a long event or something they have endured the hours before. Can you give me some advice on how to make these photos something more? any advice would be very helpful, i welcome all criticism, good or bad.

 

[rexbobcat]

I would think about finding some different poses or utilize the environment more. If they're been through something try to convey that in the image so it doesn't need a really specific explanation.

And, I don't mean to offend, but that second girl just looks very high lol

I know what you were going for with her expression but it just seems like it's trying too hard. This is all I can think about when I look at her face:

And I don't say that to be mean. I just found it kind humorous/uncanny....

 

[Trever1t]

Hi and welcome!

I like the models and they seem to fit your concept, tired, worn out, beat. The backgrounds don't though. There's too much color, not enough grunge I guess? I do kinda like them

 

[hticonderoga]

i was thinking of that, but i like minimalist. its a rarity. im just having trouble. i tell them to pose how they want and capture them in between the initial pose and awkwardness. its not so much i am conveying there exaggerated emotion to what they have been through, i am trying to grab the most natural look after an event.

 

[tirediron]

Moving to the People Gallery

 

[Jaemie]

...i dont think the photos seem to come alive. It is a portrait series about people after a long event or something they have endured the hours before.

As portraits of people who have endured a long event, these photos seem to convey well a sense of exhaustion and resignation. I wouldn't want to make the images come alive too much for fear of losing that tired feeling you've captured.

Trever1t makes a good point about the backgrounds being a little too cheery. A grittier scene would probably help. Also, maybe try a very shallow DOF and longer lens to help isolate your subjects and remove them from the surroundings.

 

[Rick58]

I agree with the background except No.1.
Nothing says grit like an old dirt road and dirty pants. I see this guy as having his car break down 5 miles ago, it's 110 degrees and you say "Hey buddy, mind if I take your picture?". Oh yeah, he's tired and annoyed.

 

[The_Traveler]

I think the backgrounds are too bright and too much in focus.
The people are too small in the frame and too bright and unsaturated.
Get closer so that the background will be less obvious even with at 28mm.

You should allow editing, the advice will be better and more useful.

 

[deeky]

To me, none of them really communicate people worn out after a long event. What I got out of them was three people who agreed to stand for a photo, but weren't at all happy about it. Tell the story. Put them in the event or the remnants of the event. Most of the time, their face will tell the story, not their feet. Draw more focus there. In the second two shots, I was most drawn to the backgrounds, trying to figure out if they were taken at the same place or not. May be a little odd, but that's what grabbed me about those two.

You've got a style you are going for, and I respect that. Just for the sake of discussion, I see the two ladies being at a more formal event at a park. If you really want to step away from the norm, show them under a pile of folding chairs, or curled up under a table with all of the tablecloth, decorations, and other remnants showing on top of the table. I can't say I've seen a photo of a girl sticking out from a pile of folding chairs, but you said you are going for the deviant.....

 

[amolitor]

The dude looks ok, the ladies don't quite have the hair or makeup for a "post event" look. The hair and makeup should be more "done" but then subtly effed up, in that particular way it gets after you've been eventing for 4 or 5 hours.

I agree that the backgrounds are off. I'd select something that hinted at the event. Walking slowly away from the church, stepping out through a door (or stopped for a portrait just after having done so).

Being different from the styles on deviant art is a good thing in my book. There's some supremely talented photoshoppers on there, whose skill is dominated only by their incredibly bad taste. It's like an echo chamber of crap.

 

[The_Traveler]

Being different from the styles on deviant art is a good thing in my book. There's some supremely talented photoshoppers on there, whose skill is dominated only by their incredibly bad taste. It's like an echo chamber of crap.

When you belittle others, you say more about yourself than about the others.

The problem with the Internet is that things don't go away.

 

[amolitor]

When you belittle others, you say more about yourself than about the others.

The problem with the Internet is that things don't go away.

I don't think I ever suggested that my remark in that other thread didn't apply to me. Of course it applies to me. Almost every nasty thing I say about other people applies to me. That doesn't mean it's not true!

 

[Designer]

hey guys, new to the website! i have a sort of style that kind of deviates from what i find on deviant art. i am having a problem with this series, i dont think the photos seem to come alive. It is a portrait series about people after a long event or something they have endured the hours before. Can you give me some advice on how to make these photos something more? any advice would be very helpful, i welcome all criticism, good or bad.

I'm wondering why there is no particular context with regard to what it is they were doing. What were they doing?

For instance: If a group of people had been filling sandbags, I would pose them seated on the finished sandbag dyke, and no doubt they would still be dirty and sweaty, and that is where I would take the picture.