**First Engagement** C&C please!!

[westerngirl14]

Sunday evening I shot my very first engagement session....I've shot seniors before and kids, but never an E session! So I was excited and nervous!:blushing: It was my cousin and his fiance... They asked me to take their pictures, knowing full well I have limited experience but liked my other work and decided to let me try.
Of course I did it for free... I'm not charging them for something I'm not confident about, and besides I needed the practice! I shot over 300 shots, and ended up with 35-40 that I actually liked.

Here are some of them for C & C. Let me honestly know what you think! I can see many glaring faults myself, but wondered what you all thought! I know I shot with too tight a frame on some of them.

There were shot with my Canon Rebel Xti.

#1

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#2

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#3 The bride to be wanted some pictures with this empty frame...I'd never had experience with that before but we tried a few! tipped too much?

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#4

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#5

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#6

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#7 The light was so bad at this spot at that time of day but I couldn't resist this shot because of the angle, and the light caught in the courthouse windows! I know the sky is washed out BAD!

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#8

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#9

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#10

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[tirediron]

Looks like it went well. Overall, they're a nice set, and to many for which to provide detailed critique. A few general thoughts: Work on your mono conversions; these are too mid-tone rich and need a contrast increase. Try and get the subjects out of the centre, always watch your backgrounds (The playground in #2 is a bit on an image-killer, had you moved just a bit to the right, it would have been MUCH better), and always think, "Do I need fill light?"

Just my $00.02 worth - your mileage may vary.

~John

 

[D-B-J]

Many of them seem soft to me.

 

[westerngirl14]

Looks like it went well. Overall, they're a nice set, and to many for which to provide detailed critique. A few general thoughts: Work on your mono conversions; these are too mid-tone rich and need a contrast increase. Try and get the subjects out of the centre, always watch your backgrounds (The playground in #2 is a bit on an image-killer, had you moved just a bit to the right, it would have been MUCH better), and always think, "Do I need fill light?"

Just my $00.02 worth - your mileage may vary.

~John

Thank you John! So helpful, wonderful advice. I appreciate you taking time to comment! I definitely see what you have pointed out, and will go from here! Thanks again, I always enjoy your posts on the forum!

Many of them seem soft to me.

I see what you mean. I was kind of going for that effect, (obviously in #2 and #7). I tend to like my pictures to be a tad on the soft side and maybe in my editing I went overboard. ?? Thanks for the comment and pointer.

 

[D-B-J]

I think the editing is overboard. I'm not sure why you would want none of your pictures to be sharp?

 

[westerngirl14]

I think the editing is overboard. I'm not sure why you would want none of your pictures to be sharp?

well I do like sharp pictures, don't get me wrong! I think with some of the pictures in this set I was going for a soft, ethereal feel. I do realize I probably went to far, and will re edit and sharpen them up. Thanks!

 

[jmtonkin]

The faces looked underexposed to me. Go with the fill light suggestion/use a reflector.

 

[westerngirl14]

The faces looked underexposed to me. Go with the fill light suggestion/use a reflector.

Thank you for your helpful advice! This has been yet another learning experience for me in my new journey into photography! So thank you.

 

[Robin Usagani]

The processings are all over the place. The empty picture frame is screaming for a really shallow depth of field. Sorry to be harsh but when someone talks about MWC processings, these are IT!

 

[westerngirl14]

The processings are all over the place. The empty picture frame is screaming for a really shallow depth of field. Sorry to be harsh but when someone talks about MWC processings, these are IT!

MWC? Sorry I'm just a newbie in photography... Can you please explain? I realize I am FAR from what I want to be in the photography field, but I can't learn if you don't explain.

 

[Shadowbox]

I was actually wondering what that means too but I think, and please correct me if I am wrong here people, I think it means 'mom with camera'. Essentially he is saying it looks like you're a mom who picked up a camera to take photos of your kids, and someone said you were good at it so then you started taking photos of your family and the processing matches that theory. I don't know if it's true, just that's what I take from his comment.

 

[Robin Usagani]

MWC = mom with a camera. They tend to over saturate, desaturate, excessive vignette, selective coloring, and the list goes on. 2,3, and 7 are really screaming MWC.

 

[Infinite_Day]

#4 is the best in the lot in my opinion. I also agree that most of them are too soft and desaturated. Work on your framing a bit more too - the playground/fence in the background and the placement of the text mess with the last shot and it needs more contrast as well.

 

[KmH]

MWC = mom with a camera. They tend to over saturate, desaturate, excessive vignette, selective coloring, and the list goes on. 2,3, and 7 are really screaming MWC.

From the OP's screen name, I was assuming she is 14 years old.

 

[westerngirl14]

Okay thanks for defining MWC! Made me smile at the definition!...Even though I must say, I am a 17 year old girl, who has just recently got into photography. Most assuredly not a MOM! ..Not that it makes much difference in your opinions of the pictures, I'm sure... and to those who were wondering..The "14" in my username is just a number I use in a lot of my online identities.

I am a beginner, and so I appreciate all the HELPFUL advice people have to give. (Notice the capitalization? It's not fun to get snarky so called "advice" from people who think they just have to down something. I posted this in the beginners section for a reason!)

So thanks to all you helpful posters! I can handle harsh critiques, as long as its helping me grow in photography!