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Archive 2014 · Senior Pictures - C&C Welcome

  
 
lharvest
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Senior Pictures - C&C Welcome


As many have said before, a friend of ours was interested in some Senior pictures and I said I would be more than happy to take some. I've always had an interest in portrait photography, but never had enough confidence to do anything beyond the occasional picture of my kids or niece. Below are some pictures from the session that I would love to get some feedback on. Areas that I know I need improvement in are posing and composition (obviously two important concepts in portrait photography). Any suggestions would be helpful as my own kids will be seniors soon and I'd love to capture that time for them - and me!

1.


2.


3.


4.


5.


Thanks for looking!

Edited on Jun 01, 2014 at 09:18 AM · View previous versions



May 31, 2014 at 07:33 PM
Steady Hand
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Senior Pictures - C&C Welcome


Howdy.

Everything I write here on FM is intended to help. Everything I write is in a truly friendly spirit and tone of voice.

Unfortunately, you can't hear my voice on this forum, and written comments can be easily misunderstood for tone and intent. That is why I prefer to speak with people on a phone call when giving them advice and giving critical opinions (critique) of their images. Otherwise, what is intended to help someone can be taken wrongly, and that defeats the purpose of the communication. And, because I want to avoid flaming and trolls, I tend to refrain from writing some things here that could be instrumental in helping someone improve, but may be taken out of context or misused by others. So, I limit my written comments here...though I am sure some will disagree on that last point.
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1. She is pretty. that always helps a photo.

2. She has a nice smile. That always helps a photo.

3. In image one, her face and neck area appears to have an "orange" tint/color cast.

4. There are several things in the poses that could be improved. But, I don't have time to write them all down. I am a slow typist.



May 31, 2014 at 07:47 PM
russdenney01
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Senior Pictures - C&C Welcome


A good start. I like #1 the best. I like the way your rim lit her with the sun.

A few suggestions:

1) It looks like you used some sort of gold reflector in a few of the shots. In my opinion, it warms her up too much. I would trying using a soft silver or white reflector next time for a more natural look.

2) Posing your subject in front of trees/branches is tricky as it can give the perception they have a branch(es) coming out of their head. I used to do the same thing. Sometimes it may be hard to avoid, but I would try to place your subject so that the backdrop behind them doesn't feature branches angling out. Soft items like grass or thick bushes may be better as they gently blur out of focus and don't distract from your subject.

3) Don't be afraid to get in close. All of your shots are from a distance...get some shots in tight...those are usually the ones the parents go for. Try shooting in tight with different angles...have your subject looking up, down, etc...

It a long road...I still struggle with posing so I can relate.




May 31, 2014 at 07:49 PM
Jim Rickards
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Senior Pictures - C&C Welcome


Post them larger. A larger pic has more impact, and we can see the imperfections better (kidding)

Nice smiles in each photo. Good work avoiding the 'branches growing out of heads' problem.

I agree with russdenney01 on the compositions. The model could be larger in the frame in most of these.

Maybe try different apertures when you have some nice flowers (#4 & #5). You might like having them less blurred.



May 31, 2014 at 11:47 PM
lharvest
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Senior Pictures - C&C Welcome


Thanks to all who have looked and especially to those who have commented.

I posted larger version of the photos, so the imperfections should be more obvious.

A gold reflector was used in many of these pictures. The white (and silver) reflectors seemed too cold when I looked at them in the viewfinder, but I seems like the gold might have been too warm.

I'll also work on getting closer. I did take some that were closer, but I seem to favor the full body shot.

The suggestion to close up the aperture a bit to allow the flowers in the background to be in focus is a good one. I certainly tried to get the creamy bokeh on the shots, but sometimes that can be short-sighted (literally) when items of interest are in the background.

Any other suggestions or comments still welcome.

Thanks again.



Jun 01, 2014 at 09:27 AM
VilleK
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Senior Pictures - C&C Welcome


The backgrounds look good to me and I think it is nice to show some oof surroundings in addition to the model. Posing is also quite nice. The first one might be a bit stiff but others look good.

I strongly recommend that you do not use gold reflector as a fill because it rises the color temperature of the shadows and it looks weird more often than not. White and silver reflectors keep the color temperature of the light unchanged and that is why I prefer them.

In addition to other things that have been said, I think the smiles here look a bit forced because she does not smile with her eyes. You have probably asked her to smile or she thinks she needs to give you a pretty smile.

Instead of asking her to smile, I suggest you talk a lot during the session and tell some jokes. You should also ask her to goof around in front of the camera. Doing this usually results to some genuine laughs and smiles, and you need to be ready to capture them

Thanks for posting!



Jun 01, 2014 at 01:59 PM
lharvest
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Senior Pictures - C&C Welcome


Good advice. Thanks!


Jun 02, 2014 at 05:16 PM
David90
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Senior Pictures - C&C Welcome


I think those are some very good pictures. I really like the Second picture and the last one. What lens did you use for these pictures? I personally like portrait photography but I just do it for fun.


Jun 03, 2014 at 06:53 PM
rongwam
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Senior Pictures - C&C Welcome


A good set of outdoor portraits. Besides the use of gold reflector and "forced" smile as mentioned above, a few suggestions:
1. Pic#2: Do not hide hands between legs!
2. Pic#3: Usually do not crop at the joint. It looks like you cropped her at the hip joint.
3. Pic#4: Consider to crop the right side of the photo to position her off the center.
4. Pic#5: Ask her to rotate her body slightly either to the left or right instead of facing directly at you.

Just my humble opinions. Hope it helps.



Jun 03, 2014 at 07:22 PM
lharvest
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Senior Pictures - C&C Welcome


David90 wrote:
I think those are some very good pictures. I really like the Second picture and the last one. What lens did you use for these pictures? I personally like portrait photography but I just do it for fun.


Thanks for the compliment. I used my 70-200 f/2.8L IS II to take these pictures. I just got my hands on an 85L f/1.2 and I'm excited to go out and take some more portraits. My kids are going to get tired of posing for me.



Jun 03, 2014 at 07:48 PM
lharvest
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Senior Pictures - C&C Welcome


rongwam wrote:
A good set of outdoor portraits. Besides the use of gold reflector and "forced" smile as mentioned above, a few suggestions:
1. Pic#2: Do not hide hands between legs!
2. Pic#3: Usually do not crop at the joint. It looks like you cropped her at the hip joint.
3. Pic#4: Consider to crop the right side of the photo to position her off the center.
4. Pic#5: Ask her to rotate her body slightly either to the left or right instead of facing directly at you.

Just my humble opinions. Hope it helps.


More good advice. I really didn't give her much instruction and that is something on which I need to improve. My son is going to be going into his senior year this fall, so I intend to get a lot of practice. By the time my daughter becomes a senior, I may actually have learned a few things.



Jun 03, 2014 at 07:57 PM
Bewithabob
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Senior Pictures - C&C Welcome


Nice images.


Jun 03, 2014 at 09:54 PM
ctm050969
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · Senior Pictures - C&C Welcome


Lots of great suggestions. A great start.


Jun 04, 2014 at 10:31 PM





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