Pic for CC

aido182

Finally, after a lot of lurking and the occasional random photo thread submission, I have finally decided to grow a pair and put something up for CC....

Too dark? If so, is it possible to rescue it using PP?...





Is it just me or is this next one OOF?

AnimalRights

Hi...
#1 as you said is a tad too dark but overall I find all 3 very soft, ie not sharp...in some pics you can get away with this and even certain portraits but the type you went for they should def be sharper.
They also lack any sparkle/clarity to the eyes, the compisitions themselves are fairly good, nice and natural.
I see from ur exifs u used spot metering, for 2 people poses I would've used either Pattern or Centreweightedaverage.
The clarity/sharpness on the eyes are better in this portrait...which is still not up to the mark but an improvement on your CC shots.
http://pix.ie/adrianhughes/1535332

http://pix.ie/adrianhughes/1581691/exif
btw I also noticed from your exifs that my name comes up as the artist on some of the pictures!!
Did I sell you this 40D?

If you live in Dublin I'd be willing to explain and help you achieve better portrairts, could be done over a pint, would be handy and easy enough to do methinks.
J

aido182

Hi Janer,

Thanks for the critique. I dont live in Dublin but I might make it my business to get there and take you up on that offer. And yes, I bought the 40D from you. Still gettin to grips with it but love it. I handnt even noticed the artists name on the exif :rolleyes:. I'll have to work out how to change that.

Thanks again for the feedback, now just to get back to practicing....

AnimalRights

It's a cliche but praccy does make perfick!

I still praccy day in and day out....it's very rewarding when you see the improvement and it makes you want to praccy more!

AnCatDubh

I think the poses in #1 and #2 are very 'cheesy' - perhaps encourage your subjects to be a bit more natural. This can be difficult but as their photographer it is your job to bring out natural expressions or nicely posed. I'm guessing that they are known to you and so I think it can be even more difficult.

The pose in #3 is more formal but imho the best of the bunch when considering the pose and the exposure but technically a weaker image due to the overall softness. #2 also looks a little soft?

I think there are better shots on your pix.ie stream from the same shoot? I wonder as to your choice to post here ?

re: the darkness of #1 - yes a little underexposed to my eyes. you could probably pull it back a bit and brighten the midtones. Your blacks appear good and your highlights are good. If you have the image in Raw then lightroom or whatever processing you are using should work quite nicely.

Lighting is way better in #3 so its a pity the sharpness isn't there. That said I had heard I believe that ladies/women/girls prefer a softer look in their portraits - I tested this recently on my own daughter and she selected the image which i added a little blur. Even if seeking out a soft look, you need to pay attention to the eyes which should be sharp. In fact focus on the eyes. Once you've that in order anything else you can work on.

I think you have the right idea and are very close.

From where i'm standing, the pointers to consider next time out;

• Sharpness
• Exposing the mid-tones (which also means that you will need to be careful on the effect of adjusting your lighting or aperture on highlights - which look quite good)
• Work on the poses

Hope that helps.

chisel

3rd on is the best I think - yes all 3 are probably a bit dark.

Sharpness - too soft in all 3. If you look at the last one, her right eye is the dominant point, and it is soft, whereas her left eye is sharper. That is why you note that you're not sure how OOF it looks . You need always to focus on the eyes, and its not a bad idea to take 2 pics, each one focussed on a different eye. Spot focus on the eye, recompose, shoot. Also, you are better to shoot sharp and then add blur afterwards to smooth things out.

Lighting: Also in the last one, the lightsource is a bit harsh, with too many hard shadows, closer to a big window with indirect sunlight works better. I think you need to think about using a better lightsource. In the first pic, the subjects are more strongly lit from behind that in front. Thats better by the 3rd one though. However, the harsher light isn't flattering to your subjects - every blemish on the skin will show up as little shadows. Likewise, teeth etc will be hard to make look good in that kind of light. The catchlights in the eyes of the 3rd one are good though. The hair light in all 3 is good too.

Suggestion: reshoot with more attention to focus on eyes, and use a big reflector.

magicbastarder

i wouldn't worry too much about the sharpness - it's the sort of thing it's easy enough to get right next time, and i don't like excessively sharp portraits anyway.

i reckon the first would look grand in b&w, if you boosted the light on the faces a bit.

aido182

Hi all,

Thanks for taking the time for the feedback. All advice will be taken on board and I'll get to practicing. Hopefully I'll post more in the future and become less of a lurker. :rolleyes: