Starting to venture into portraits C&C please

[Ub3rdoRK]

Hahaha ok. Well maybe I'll do better on #4 shoot tomorrow. I'm gonna brainstorm and practice all tonight and tomorrow.

 

[Sbuxo]

The saturation and brightness of the plantage in the first few are really overpowering. Take it down a bit. I'm not fond of the softness in #2 and #4. And I don't like any of the ones with the other model, is she supposed to look scared? Also, she is ghostly in #6 and #8, fix that. Lastly, I don't think the angle in #5 is flattering and looks distorted.

 

[AnneRiceBowl]

In the original set of photos of the brunette and to add to what to watch for (developing your attention to detail for portrait photography), always watch for muffin tops when the model sits down and have the model straighten their clothes before you click.

The blonde you photographed does not have the face shape for photographing from above. She also has the same expression in every photo you posted. She is just making her face look even longer by opening her mouth a little.

 

[Sbuxo]

In the original set of photos of the brunette and to add to what to watch for (developing your attention to detail for portrait photography), always watch for muffin tops when the model sits down and have the model straighten their clothes before you click.

The blonde you photographed does not have the face shape for photographing from above. She also has the same expression in every photo you posted. She is just making her face look even longer by opening her mouth a little.

If I could thank you, I would!:thumbup:

 

[AnneRiceBowl]

In the original set of photos of the brunette and to add to what to watch for (developing your attention to detail for portrait photography), always watch for muffin tops when the model sits down and have the model straighten their clothes before you click.

The blonde you photographed does not have the face shape for photographing from above. She also has the same expression in every photo you posted. She is just making her face look even longer by opening her mouth a little.

If I could thank you, I would!:thumbup:

You just did!

 

[Derrel]

I like your first set's model much more than the woman in the second set. In the first set, I thought the soft focus technique you used did not compliment the model's hair, and in one of the photos, her teeth look somewhat yellow in color. The color shift is something I have noticed happens a lot when a Gaussian Blur overlay is used, and then the Multiply filter (or other types) is used on that blurred layer. However the soft focus effect was applied in post-processing, it just wasn't the best technique for the conditions in that set.

The model in the first set, even though she's just a friend if yours, has a lot of eye appeal,and that makes it easier to get pleasing results. The physical attributes of the woman in the second set were not so camera-favorable,and in the color shot of the blonde, the yellow skin tone was very distressing...just awful, to me at least. Anyway, I think AnneRiceBowl's suggestion to watch out for "muffin tops" and other small details in clothing and subject is really good advice. I think moving the camera's position a slight bit can also be a valuable trick. LIke on the shot of the woman lying on the bench and facing the camera outdoors; if the camera had been moved a little bit to the left, or one of her feet raised up in the air, we'd see her body in a different position. It's almost a cliche pose now, buy lying down, feet up in the air, ankles crossed---the out of focus feet and calves in the back give an almost subconscious feeling of 'presence' of the entire person in the photograph. But when the buttons and lower legs, or the feet are not shown, what the viewer sees is only the frontal planes of the scene, with the face,shoulders,hair,arms....the person as person is not shown. What I'm trying to say is moving the camera's position, up down, left, or right, a little bit, can often make the final photo look vastly different, so that's something to be aware of when building a pose and framing it. You need to ask yourself 1- Is the pose solid and complete and natural? and 2-AM I framing it the right way? I.E.--horizontal or vertical? Camera too high or too low?

Anyway...just my thoughts.

 

[Ub3rdoRK]

great insight people....now that you all have pointed the issues out, i can see them and understand it. definetly more planning needs to be involved for location, wardrobe etc... I think i may just stick with some controlled light with my strobes and norman kit and focus on just the fine detail first.

 

[Ub3rdoRK]

and yeah i agree...so from learning to shoot slightly downwards to flatter her double chin...and im not good enough for photoshop to get rid of it...and she said "thats my best angle"...i didnt completely agree so I shot for it anyway. so now i have 2 girls ive pretty much failed on lol...so now i have a lot more info and i will grow! Thanks everyone. and if u guys have any good books or tips you want to share...please let me know!

 

[AnneRiceBowl]

Nothing is ever a FAIL if you've learned something from it. I've shot thousands of people of varying ages over the last two years.

I've learned portrait photography by working at a large portrait studio *coughlifetouchcough*. I've also learned just by studying photography I think looks interesting.

The best way to learn is to just shoot!

 

[Ub3rdoRK]

very true!