 Daniel Diaz |
Is this picture any good?? I noticed a light pole in the background that distracts from the picture, any other suggestions or critiques??
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Daniel Diaz |
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Rick Richardson |
Daniel, Take this from an amateur like yourself OK? But I'm still going to be brutally honest as I would want you to be of my photos. Here it goes: 1) soft image overall 2) unattractive background 3) uneven lighting- Ryan overexposed - Angela spot on. (yes-he is lighter-PS time) 4) Are you sure they were in the mood for a portrait? or was this a snapshot? Because: 4a) Her hands are not relaxed. 4b) He is thinking of you, the photographer and staring into your lens -not focused on her. For example he might be tilting his head in her direction. 4c) They seem a bit fatigued or uncomfortable. Was this at the END of the wedding party? 5) too much space above the heads 6) Could you have done a closer crop due to busy background- perhaps head shots only? 7)Middle of the day, right? (the light -so flat-wheres the pop?) Could deal with this by converting to BW. 8) above all, this is what stands out to me the most. Angela is sitting SO much lower than Ryan and he is slouching. Her eyes should be at about at his nose. Would this couple be open to spending an hour or so 'modeling'for you? Have them dress up and practice some creative shots. One way to deal with their height difference is to have him carry her in both arms. Keep Learning! Rick.
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Connie J. Bagot |
In addition to cloning out the pole I would select all the background and blur it somewhat so that your subjects stand out a bit more from the background (although with your nice tight framing it's not bad the way it is). Especially if you leave the tree in the background you need to rotate the photo slightly so that it is vertical (actually, I'd rotate so that the lightpole is vertical and then clone it out---that way you know your photo is straight!). For me there is a little too much contrast or maybe just brightness----some body parts almost look shiny, pretty easy to change if you so choose. The colors are great and your sharpness and focus are super. And I like the pose and the feeling one gets from the couple---and that is probably the most important thing.
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Connie J. Bagot |
WEll, Rick posted his response while I was typing mine----lol, sounds like he knows a great deal more about it than I do.
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Daniel Diaz |
Thanks Rick and Connie, I appreciate you taking the time to help me learn how to improve my photo skills. I am going to take your suggestions and work on this and see what kind of result I can get. Thank-you!
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Daniel Diaz |
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Kerry L. Walker |
Composition is much better. All it needed was a little cropping.
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Daniel Diaz |
Thank-you Kerry, I also tweaked the lighting on their faces, It wasn't as easy as I thought it would be.
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Connie J. Bagot |
I like the background and the crop better. But I think to change the lighting properly on their faces you have to go back to the original photo (my apologies if you did that).
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Kerry L. Walker |
I would like to give a few more suggestions if you don't mind. Use a tripod. This will allow you to set up your camera and move as you see fit in order to pose them. Have them sit together and relax while you are doing this. Onece you are ready, you will get them into much less comfortable position. Have them both sit up straight. They won't be comfortable but it will make a good picture. Don't let him slouch. While I agree they should be closer to eye level on a head and shoulders shot, this is not feasible with a 3/4 view. Try a few different poses. Have them both look at the camera. Have her look at the camera and him look at her. Have them look at each other. It is OK for him to lean in toward her but have him lean from the waist - no slouching. Shoot at the largest aperature available so as to get the background out of focus. Try different things and see which you like best.
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Daniel Diaz |
Thanks Kerry, I actually did use a tripod but I was just moving around the place taking pictures of different people there. I never really asked anyone for specific poses as I did not want to bother anyone, however next time I'll definatly heed your advice and take several types of poses. Thankyou for your advice.
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Kerry L. Walker |
Believe me, they will be happy to pose for you, especially if you give them copies of the photos. Most people love to have their pictures taken. Keep shooting. You are doing well.
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BetterPhoto Member |
stick to flowers and take a course
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Daniel Diaz |
Thanks No Name, maybe you could give me some lessons...oh yeah I forgot you're not a real person, in fact I don't even think you know WHO you are!!!
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Kerry L. Walker |
Daniel, a course might be a good idea. We could all take a course in stress management to learn how to deal with hemorrhoids.
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BetterPhoto Member |
actually hemorrhoid cream works well for bags under the eye. NYIP, Brooks Institute, Hallmark in Boston. Real teacher, with real names - isn't that nice
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Irene Troy |
Hi Daniel, Forget what people who only want to provoke say and listen to those who really want to be helpful. Kerry, Connie and Rick have all made good suggestions about this photo and I have nothing to add that they have not already covered. However, as someone who is fairly new to serious photography and who is still trying to master some of the same things you seem to be trying to master, let me suggest that, if you have the time and money, you consider taking a course here. From viewing your gallery I can see that you have a good eye. That is at least half the battle. I am amazed at how much my photography improves as I take courses here at BP. Brian Peterson’s course on exposure was excellent and truly helped me to understand why many of my shots simply were not what I wanted. I am finishing up Kerry Drager’s class on composition and I have learned a great deal while also having a wonderful time! The classes here are designed with a great deal of flexibility in mind, which helps when you work a “real” job. Viewing your fellow students work and seeing the critiques that the instructor makes helps just as much as having critiques made of your own work. The instructors at BP are “real people” who, when they are not working here, work as professional photographers whose work appears in some fairly impressive places. Sure it would be wonderful to go back in time and major in photography at someplace like RIT, but, that is simply not in the cards for me, at least. Taking courses here is workable for my life, at least right now. Just a thought.
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Debby A. Tabb |
THE FACT THAT YOU WANT THIS IS VERY GOOD-NOW I HAVE TAUGHT POSING FOR YEARS AND HAVE WRITTEN 4 BOOKS ON POSING. MAY I HELP YOU TO IMPROVE THE POSE? *FIRST OFF ASK YOUR SUBJUCT TO SIT UP STRAIGHT, SHE WILL LEAN TOWARDS HIM BUT ONLY SLIGHTLY. *HIS LEFT HAND NEEDS TO SLIP DOWN ,JUST A LITTLE OUT OF VIEW(SIMPLE RULE OF POSING :NO MORE HANDS THEN THERE ARE SUBJECTS) *HIS OTHER(RIGHT) HAND, AROUND HER WAIST. * HER RIGHT HAND BEHIND HIM,AND HER LEFT COMES ACCROSS HIS AND HER HAND RESTS ON HIS ARM OR ELBOW.( I WILL ENCLUDE A COUPLE OF PORTRAITS TO SHOW HOW ARM POSING TIES THE POSE TOGETHER) * HIS HEAD SHOULD TILT TOWARDS HER ,BUT HIS NOSE SHOULD BE TOWARD YOU THIS GIVES YOU FULL EYES. *HER HEad should tilt sightly towards HIM AND HER NOSE TOWARD YOU- AGAIN GIVING YOU FULL EYES **THE BACKROUND IS GREAT NOW. I DO HOPE THIS HELPS, WISHING YOU A LIFETIME OF SMILES, DEBBY TABB
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Debby A. Tabb |
THE FACT THAT YOU WANT THIS IS VERY GOOD-NOW I HAVE TAUGHT POSING FOR YEARS AND HAVE WRITTEN 4 BOOKS ON POSING. MAY I HELP YOU TO IMPROVE THE POSE? *FIRST OFF ASK YOUR SUBJUCT TO SIT UP STRAIGHT, SHE WILL LEAN TOWARDS HIM BUT ONLY SLIGHTLY. *HIS LEFT HAND NEEDS TO SLIP DOWN ,JUST A LITTLE OUT OF VIEW(SIMPLE RULE OF POSING :NO MORE HANDS THEN THERE ARE SUBJECTS) *HIS OTHER(RIGHT) HAND, AROUND HER WAIST. * HER RIGHT HAND BEHIND HIM,AND HER LEFT COMES ACCROSS HIS AND HER HAND RESTS ON HIS ARM OR ELBOW.( I WILL ENCLUDE A COUPLE OF PORTRAITS TO SHOW HOW ARM POSING TIES THE POSE TOGETHER) * HIS HEAD SHOULD TILT TOWARDS HER ,BUT HIS NOSE SHOULD BE TOWARD YOU THIS GIVES YOU FULL EYES. *HER HEad should tilt sightly towards HIM AND HER NOSE TOWARD YOU- AGAIN GIVING YOU FULL EYES **THE BACKROUND IS GREAT NOW. I DO HOPE THIS HELPS, WISHING YOU A LIFETIME OF SMILES, DEBBY TABB
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