My 13 month old daughter

[tamccain]

I just took this picture and thought it was adorable. Thought I would share. Yes she has a little bit of a dirty face - it makes the image more natural that way.

 

[noob873]

Nothing more than a family snapshot, out of focus, should be in the just for fun section...not even a red eye correction?

 

[tamccain]

noob873, thanks for being SO hypercritical you can't even say something without being rude.

 

[noob873]

Wasn't trying to be rude, just stated the obvious. Sorry you cant take a little bit of CC.

 

[PattiS]

She's adorable! Are you looking for cc?

 

[tamccain]

I don't mind C&C but there is a 'non rude' way of saying things. Typically when people give constructive criticism they balance the negative with some positive, instead of just a "nothing to good here" type of statement.

 

[noob873]

I said what was wrong with it to show you how to improve. Watch the focus, the on camera flash makes it look "flat" so try to avoid using it if possible. Also you cut off part of her hand so watch for cutting off body parts.

 

[Iron Flatline]

noob is right. This is a photography forum, and the number one reason people never comment on shots of people's kids is because they are invariably insulted.

She's cute. Technically, your skin tones are spot on.

Possible improvements include focus, composition, and lighting. Consider having the eyes in focus, it is a human instinct to look at those... and if they're off, the image doesn't work that well. This is especially true if the subject is not looking at the lens. You (or your camera) focused on the earring.

Portraits can work if part of the face is cropped, but if both the chin and forehead are cropped it becomes claustrophobic. Having a quarter hand in the frame doesn't work for me.

Light = photography, so think about how you're lighting your subject. The little flash can be harsh on a gentle child's face (they work better for grown men) so seek out some nice diffused window light.

I make all these technical and compositional critiques without knowing if they were a conscious creative choice, or just a snapshot you like.

Keep posting, you have an exciting learning path ahead of you, with considerable opportunities for improvement. Open-mindedness (and a willingness to forego gentle ego hand-holding) will allow you to benefit from the rough-and-tumble environment of internet forums.

 

[tamccain]

I wasn't really offended by noobs comment, just thought that he could have said it in a way that didn't sound so rude.

Noobs, I apologize if I simply misunderstood your tone - it is easy to do with the written text as there is little to no emotion in the written word.

Iron_Flatline, thanks for your comments and suggestions. I appreciate a post that isn't merely critical but also gives me guidance for taking better pictures.

 

[blondie621]

Cute photo and adorable baby! :blushing:

 

[manaheim]

Really nicely stated, Iron. I can't say I disagree with noob, though.

 

[~Stella~]

I usually try to edit the crust, boogers, and crumbs off my kids because while it may not bother me, it may really gross someone else out. It's definitely harder to take any criticism of your kids' photos than other ones you might take - mostly because we all know our kids are 100% perfect.

The criticism above pretty much covered it - the focus is the deal killer for me, though other improvements could be made. Keep practicing!