Portrait with kit lens 18-55 mm. C&C pleae.

[raaskohx10]

I have taken this shot with kit lens, Canon 18-55 mm, mounted on 550D body. Your comments and suggestions for improvement are requested.

 

[ralphh]

Pretty good effort - love the texture in the skin, which might be enhanced by a slighly lower brightness but with a little more contast to keep the whites up. Or better still, give it a going over with the burn brush in photoshop.

Not too keen on the white vignette tbh. Also can't help wondering where the background went... not that the white background is bad as such, but I he's got great character and I'd like to see him in the context of his environment, but that's just a personal preference thing perhaps.

 

[Benco]

Maybe a touch oversharpened...perhaps.

 

[runnah]

The tonal range seems stuck in the middle.

Also, not sure why you mentioned kit lens? Are we mean't to temper our expectations or be surprised by the results?

 

[raaskohx10]

Thanks for your comments guys. Pl feel free to edit the pic the way you want and show us your version of editing.

 

[raaskohx10]

The tonal range seems stuck in the middle.

Also, not sure why you mentioned kit lens? Are we mean't to temper our expectations or be surprised by the results?

Kit lenses are generally considered not ideal for portraits and people tend to go for prime lenses e.g. 50 mm f/1.8 etc. I believe we should not underestimate kit lenses and shoot portraits too with it.

 

[Benco]

Thanks for your comments guys. Pl feel free to edit the pic the way you want and show us your version of editing.

Could you post the original?

 

[raaskohx10]

Pretty good effort - love the texture in the skin, which might be enhanced by a slighly lower brightness but with a little more contast to keep the whites up. Or better still, give it a going over with the burn brush in photoshop.

Not too keen on the white vignette tbh. Also can't help wondering where the background went... not that the white background is bad as such, but I he's got great character and I'd like to see him in the context of his environment, but that's just a personal preference thing perhaps.

Here is the original version with the background.

 

[raaskohx10]

Thanks for your comments guys. Pl feel free to edit the pic the way you want and show us your version of editing.

Could you post the original?

Pl see above; I have just posted it.

 

[Benco]

Thanks.

How's this?

 

[raaskohx10]

Thanks.

How's this?

It looks nice. Thanks.

 

[Qveon]

The last B&W is you best in B&W. I'd use the first picture in like textbook literature, Yea like put a paper background on it and yellow the picture and slightly burn around the edges and it would make the photograph look really old. My pic of the pack is still the color picture with just touch more fill in PP.

 

[amolitor]

I like the original. It has a clear vision, as opposed to some standard "Blacks, Whites, And A Full Range Of Tonal Values In Between"

What's nice is that the vision expressed in the original is clear and consistent: It looks like a pencil drawing. It has the tonal range of a pencil drawing, it's rendered on a white background like a piece of paper. It fades out at the edges to suggest the way a pencil drawing simplifies and turns into simple lines and then nothing.

The sharpening is possibly a bit much, but I think it also does a nice job of suggesting a certain texture that comes from a sharp pencil.

I am not in love with the way the hair turned out, it's the only part that just feels.. odd and out of place with the rest of the idea.

 

[Designer]

Original post, please. White vignette and all.

 

[ralphh]

I like the original. It has a clear vision, as opposed to some standard "Blacks, Whites, And A Full Range Of Tonal Values In Between"

What's nice is that the vision expressed in the original is clear and consistent: It looks like a pencil drawing. It has the tonal range of a pencil drawing, it's rendered on a white background like a piece of paper. It fades out at the edges to suggest the way a pencil drawing simplifies and turns into simple lines and then nothing.

The sharpening is possibly a bit much, but I think it also does a nice job of suggesting a certain texture that comes from a sharp pencil.

I am not in love with the way the hair turned out, it's the only part that just feels.. odd and out of place with the rest of the idea.

Damn, now you've said that... if I look back at the original, I really like it.

Goes to show how you look at something is as important as what it is lol