trying the whole "portriature" deal

[raechael]

my mommy in the kichen, cooking thanksgiving dinner. she did not appreciate the photo

Brennan, downtown on top of a building. sunlight!

comments and critique me, PLEASE!

 

[LaFoto]

If ever anyone dared to make public a photo of mine like that one of your mom, I'd come personally to throttle that someone, that thing is for sure! Why do you do this??? This is as far away from any kind of "portraiture" as can be! To my mind, it combines every element of a mere snapshot as a photo can carry, save the fact that you worked with window light only and did not allow for the in-camera flash to open up and work...

The other has some more potential, though according to what I take for "portraiture" it is a "blooper", too. Nice try, but it didn't work out.
And on his sleeve I can see dust specs that must be sitting on your sensor (and I have an eye for those because my sensor is once again FULL of them ).

 

[raechael]

If ever anyone dared to make public a photo of mine like that one of your mom, I'd come personally to throttle that someone, that thing is for sure! Why do you do this??? This is as far away from any kind of "portraiture" as can be! To my mind, it combines every element of a mere snapshot as a photo can carry, save the fact that you worked with window light only and did not allow for the in-camera flash to open up and work...

The other has some more potential, though according to what I take for "portraiture" it is a "blooper", too. Nice try, but it didn't work out.
And on his sleeve I can see dust specs that must be sitting on your sensor (and I have an eye for those because my sensor is once again FULL of them ).

how about a little critique please, instead of just slamming? i'm a new photographer and could use a bit of encouragement. it's more of a documental photo, i realize, but nonetheless it is a portrait-style one.

 

[ypperin]

I think the prob with #1 is multiple:

Lighting, facial expression are 2. Typically for these types of shots I try to ensure that their facial expression is representative of the norm, not mid blink, chewing. The yellow light in the back is distracting, and the color is cold everywhere else.....almost giving it a disjointed look. Good candid shot are hard to get. I would recommend taking multiple shots in the hopes of getting a more natual look.

I like #2 and only wish the angle were a bit different so his neck didn't look so long.

 

[elemental]

how about a little critique please, instead of just slamming? i'm a new photographer and could use a bit of encouragement. it's more of a documental photo, i realize, but nonetheless it is a portrait-style one.

While I think Corinna's comments may have come off as harsh, I think they constitute a critique rather than a "slam." Some users of this forum come off as consistently nasty, but she certainly isn't one of them.

Think about what the first image "says," or the impression that it would make on a stranger viewing it. The image does not compliment its subject at all, and if she's your mother and didn't appreciate it, I think she might be right to question your choice to post it here. It sounds a little abrasive, but I follow her reasoning and agree. As for a technical critique: I think that the composition could be stronger, with the subject to the right of the frame looking to the right (in general, it adds more interest to include more of the frame in the direction that the subject is looking). The background is also distracting. The lit room in the background (with an entirely different light temperature) and the relatively deep depth of field are distracting and do not do much to isolate your subject. If you intended the image to appear more photojournalistic in style, think about the possible narratives that the image lends itself to. None that I can think of is flattering.

As for the second, it is heavily overexposed and the lighting is wreaking havoc with your detail.

I think each of these represents an interesting idea, but I think more practice will help you realize each one more competently.

 

[LaFoto]

I was harsh, I know I was.
I had spent all day giving replies, kind replies, explanatory replies, to all the many, many newbies that come to TPF every day, and here was another one posting a photo of a person who had already let her know beforehand that she didn't approve of that photo, and I really went like "What cheek to be overriding the photographed person's wishes and still make the www see her mother like this?" It truely angered me. Where's the "documentary" aspect in making public a photo of a person who is mid-chew, mid-blink, looks towards the frame of the pic, is not in focus (but the fridge behind is), the photo leans to one side, and the majority of it is the utility room in the background?

And I really thought by myself how pretentious and conceited a teenage daughter must be who does this to her mother? Even going so far as to calling this "portraiture"! How utterly immodest and brazen.

And now that I'm coming back to this thread, all the emotions do come back up again. I can't help myself. You all know I never get worked up over something, but this first photo does this to me. More so, as the OP states in her introductory sentence that her mother did not approve of the photo, or "did not appreciate it".

No wonder she didn't!
And now she can be seen like this all over the entire world...

 

[Flash Harry]

Pretty much snapshot style but the response is akin to that received by many famous togs on equally famous photographs, so you must be doing something right. Don't let crit get you down, slow down the shoot style, think of what you wish to portray and keep practising.

Dianne Arbus's stuff springs to mind. H

 

[eyeye]

even documentary ports should be somewhat flattering. The camera picks up so much more imperfections then people see. you must be kind. To me #1 looks like a toss out snapshot on a disposable camera. #2 looks like "wow, isn't that artsy" shot when in reality there is just no connection. But still #2 is much better then #1

 

[basic jammer]

#1 it would'v given a more "cooking" feel if you'd actually had captured her while stiring a pot or chopping onions or something with the kitchen background and not wot you've done. not cool. anyway, tis the thought that counts.

#2 maybe, jus maybe, it's too bright? i dont like it at all. call it personal preference but that pic is too bright and there isn't one thing in the background. to me, portraiture is about the subject standing out boldly and crisply around the blury background or foreground(though im stil practising this one).