My daughter in the woods

Kolia · Jul 7, 2012

We went for a little walk in the woods near our house. One of the few time my daughter isn't grabbing me !

I wish the car in the background wasn't there...

Thoughts ? Comments ?

allison_dcp · Jul 8, 2012

Beautiful. Could you photoshop the car out?

Tight Knot · Jul 8, 2012

Any better? Just a quick photoshop.

Kolia · Jul 8, 2012

Well done ! Thanks !

Tight Knot · Jul 8, 2012

Kolia said:
Well done ! Thanks !

You're welcome. Glad you like it.

PinkDoor · Jul 8, 2012

Sorry

even with the car shopped out, I am still not sure what message this shot is giving. Not a fan. If it was one of my kiddos ( I can never get my daughter to leave my side), I would not want to keep or print this one.

e.rose · Jul 8, 2012

Sorry... Doesn't do anything for me either.

It looks slightly underexposed to me, composition is... meh... and... I mean it's the back of your kid's head.

As PinkDoor said, it doesn't tell any sort of story or give any sort of message.

Maybe if you were zoomed out and she were doing something interesting or looking at something interesting to help tell the story of what's going on, but otherwise it just looks like an accidental shot from the hip.

cgipson1 · Jul 8, 2012

I agree with both the lovely ladies above me! It just doesn't have enough "connection" to connect with anyone who doesn't have a personal interest (parental interest) in it.

No eye contact.. which is one way to make a connection.

No real story (that WE can see, anyway). If you had shot it vertically with all of her in the frame.. and she was skipping or running down the trail, it might tell a better story... we might assume she is happy, and having fun. Or that she is running to, or away from something.... etc.

as it is.. nothing there! Sorry!

Tight Knot · Jul 9, 2012

I cannot say that I agree with the above comments. I like the photo. To me it gives me the feeling of a child running free, exploring, looking down at something that seems to catch her interest. As her parent, I would say it is definitely a printable photo of your child. Does it bring a smile to your face? Does it bring gladness to your heart? If so, nice shot. Are there things that could have been done to improve it photographically? Yes, but don't get too caught up in the details on the way to becoming a great photographer. Have fun, explore, enjoy and learn. The rest will come.

allison_dcp · Jul 9, 2012

e.rose said:
Sorry... Doesn't do anything for me either.

It looks slightly underexposed to me, composition is... meh... and... I mean it's the back of your kid's head.

As PinkDoor said, it doesn't tell any sort of story or give any sort of message.

Maybe if you were zoomed out and she were doing something interesting or looking at something interesting to help tell the story of what's going on, but otherwise it just looks like an accidental shot from the hip.

I disagree. I think it is a beautiful photo, even though I may not hang it in my home but if it were my daughter I sure would. I recently took a photo of the back of my sons head (just practicing with my new 35mm and flash) didnt think I'd even like it, but I do. Theres something about a childs hair, I guess b/c It wont be like that but for a short while.
Anyways I like it

manaheim · Jul 9, 2012

I like the colors and the cast of the image, but I understand what the critics are saying... not the best photograph.

HOWEVER... pictures of our kids aren't really always about the best artistic photo. Some of my favorite pictures of my kids are pretty much crap as far as composition and other photographic things are concerned.

Would it be good to have a photo that does both? Yes, and you should always aspire to that, but it doesn't devalue whatever fondness you feel for this particular image.

If it makes you smile, then it's worth her weight in gold. Maybe you won't hang it in a gallery, but it will look wonderful on your nightstand.

Designer · Jul 9, 2012

Kolia said:
I wish the car in the background wasn't there...

Aha! Now we have the teachable moment!

1. The background is more under your control than you realize. Learn to observe it in your viewfinder.
2. The subject can usuaally be directed to turn toward the photographer. Or the phyotographer can move.
3. The photographer can zoom out (or move) to frame the entire body.
4. The photographer can turn the camera to vertical format as the shot sometimes demands.
5. The photographer can take many different shots in an attempt to capture some context.
6. The photographer can take many different shots in an attempt to capture emotion.

e.rose · Jul 9, 2012

allison_dcp said:
I disagree. I think it is a beautiful photo, even though I may not hang it in my home but if it were my daughter I sure would. I recently took a photo of the back of my sons head (just practicing with my new 35mm and flash) didnt think I'd even like it, but I do. Theres something about a childs hair, I guess b/c It wont be like that but for a short while.
Anyways I like it<img src="http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=13294"/>

But there's the key: "If it were my daughter"

I'm not refuting that it has any meaning to the MOTHER of the child... But she asked for thoughts and comments, which I took as another way to ask for C&C... And as a stand alone PHOTO, in general, it doesn't nothing for me.

I'm not the parent of the child and I'm a 26 year old, child-free woman, so I'm looking at it from that perspective. I'm looking at it just as I would any other photo.

If she loves it and want to print it cause it's her kid... Then great. But technically speaking as a photo, in my opinion, there's nothing to it.

I love my cat and I take A MILLION technically incorrect and "boring" pictures of him, that I love, but I also know they're crap photos and none of them will mean anything to anyone without an attachment to him.

Kolia · Jul 9, 2012

Thank you for the excellent, constructive, comments. I appreciate them all.

I agree that, in it self, the shoot doesn't tell an obvious story. I find it interesting that the reactions varies according to the viewers perspective. Parents will see more into the image than future parents do. Part of the whole aesthetic experience I would say.

I gave minimal background story for that purpose. To really get the first impression you might have and compare it to my own assessment.

The thing I'm most proud of, is to have got the shoot in the first place. I saw the light and my daughter and took advantage of the moment. It's shoot with a prime lens so framing options where limited. At 20 months, I have no control over her poses !

Thanks again, I now have even more to keep in mind.

I'm the father by the way.