Practicing Portraits C&C please

[BlueEyes01]

I found a new place to take outdoor photos, a lot of interesting backdrops. I appreciate honest critique.

1.

2.

3.

 

[rufus5150]

As a general rule of thumb, doesn't always work naturally, is that for portraits, large amounts of skin not part of the face will distract from the face. I think the bare arms do that with your subject here. Also, the shirt is very busy.

On #1 and #2, you missed the focus. In #1 it is on the pole behind her and #2 it is on the wheel. #2 is underexposed and could be a bit warmer.

#3 definitely suffers from the harsh-flash look.

Use of the backgrounds for context and the overall composition is nice, especially with #1 and #2, though the choice to have her look into the short side of the frame in #1 instead of toward the leading space is a curious one. Not necessarily bad but not traditional, either. I'm not sure it works (on the flip side, I'm not sure it doesn't, either.)

I might have tried a shot from a different angle with the wagon wheel. It's nice, but does give that 'spokes coming out of her head' look. Also the space above her head could be trimmed a bit without much loss to the image. Not much, maybe leave 2/3rds of what's there.

 

[nikonguy]

i'm glad i read through what rufus said, because i thought my eyes were decieving me.. the girl is out of focus..

what flash did you use for these, built in your external??

 

[BlueEyes01]

I did use the built in flash, I've been wanting to purchase a different flash for my Pentax and thinking about a softbox too although I'm not sure I can afford it all right now. Anyone have any tips about what to do to make the flash softer without spending a lot of $$?

Any other tips would be appreciated too.

 

[rufus5150]

Shoot somewhere where you don't need it.

There are softeners for the on-camera flash ("The Puffer", hell, tissue paper) but they don't do much. You have a small light source right on top of your lens. It's tolerable for fill flash in broad daylight where it won't cast shadows, that's about it.

 

[BlueEyes01]

How do you use the tissue paper to soften? Just tape it directly over the flash?

This was a very cloudy day. I hadnt even planned on taking photos, we were just out exploring locally and found this park & I brought out my buddy (my camera of course) to practice some.

I really do appreciate the feedback!

 

[krister68]

Some good tips on how to use your flash can be found here:
Clues For Improving Your Photography: Effective use of Flash Photography

You definitely need check you focus tho'!

 

[Mgw189]

They have already been said really focus issues I am going to go a step further and say on all three shots. White balance is off for sure in number two. Number three has the most flattering skin tones though.

 

[tsaraleksi]

In the first one the round shape of the design on the shirt is making her look much bigger than she is-- it's really unflattering. Generally solid colors are your best bet for this kind of thing.