photo shoot done here are the results

[fokker]

Sorry, these get a check minus from me. The technical issues have already been addressed, but I just wanted to know if you actually really think the photos look good? Because, to be blunt, they don't - so it might pay for you to spend a bit of time looking (closely) at photographs that you want to emulate and learning about how to get the same kind of look.

 

[bazooka]

try moving the light further away so to help cut down on harsh shadows and also bring it slightly above your subjects head.. kinda at a 45degree angle from their face..

this helps create a more natural looking light.. as well as a more flattering light.. which helps remove shadows which can be distracting and also bring attention to something thats wasnt very noticable in the first place.

:raisedbrow:

Moving the light away creates harsher shadows because it's a smaller light source. Move it closer to soften it. Unless you're talking about falloff, in which case you'd be correct.

 

[GeneralBenson]

I'm not trying to be mean here, but the lighting is flat out atrocious. Hard light from the side looks terrible on all but the most perfect faces, and even then it's tough to pull off. Hard light from the side, and low, is ever worse. This is what I like to call Halloween lighting. If were were trying to make someone scary or like a ghoul, I would light from below like this. The direction of the light should just about never ever ever come from below like that. Light should almost always be coming in on a downward angle. The light is also just very very hard, which is very unforgiving on those of us with less than perfect skin. For a portrait like this you want to have the light as soft as possible. A safe angle to start with is 20-35 degrees to one side and 20-45 degrees of a downward angle.

Make sure to focus on the eyes, as well. Eyes should almost always be the sharpest part of a portrait, unless there is something else of extreme significance that is actually the main event in the portrait.