Had a shoot last week for a local lady that does makeup and she wanted some shots of a friend she did makeup for this is my favorite what do you guys think ye or nay?
Some info on the image and shooting conditions:
This was shot after sunset a little later than I anticipated I wanted some sunlight but they arrived a little late I was using one Elinchrom 600RX with the Elinchrom Deep Octa with only the inner diffuser attached to the box
Very nice lighting, make-up, and post processing! But her clothing, jewelry, and background are all way too busy for me. Of course, you had no control over what she was wearing. I just think her being right up against the plants adds to the busyness.
Yep thats the look they were going for I believe she mentioned Gypsy theme then she said she wanted her friend within the sunflowers etc. etc. so I just did my best to control the lighting and camera settings I also wished for a little more background separation but they loved the images so its all good
Yep thats the look they were going for I believe she mentioned Gypsy theme then she said she wanted her friend within the sunflowers etc. etc. so I just did my best to control the lighting and camera settings I also wished for a little more background separation but they loved the images so its all good
That's right! If they loved the images, it's all very good. And you did a great job controlling the lighting. She must have been gotten a workout from wearing all that jewelry!
I'd like to see a different frame. I think she looks a little surprised or stunned here, and for a makeup shot, I'd like to see her face straight on. Also, the half-a-hand is a bad crop. I agree about busyness.
I really love the punch/vibrancy of the colors. It isn't to busy IMO. you did a really nice job post processing her skin(or the make up artist did). great job.
I agree with Tim's comments. The only other thing I notice is the cropping through the hand/elbow. It's a 'wide' pose so hard to crop to standard ratios without some compromises.
I like it...nice and sharp with good lighting. She does look a bit suprised but I bet she just has naturally large eyes. mmm the flowers probably would have made a better out of focus background but hey...give the clients what they want!
The image really works for me. All the busyness makes her smooth face stand out. Your lighting shows that face very well. As for the surprised look - it may draw just the subtle emotional reaction an advertiser wants. This strikes me as an excellent case of breaking rules to go beyond the ordinary.
Incidently, my first reaction was 'wow, too much processing on the face" then I read that it was to show the makeup work and I realized it was probably her PRE processing instead of your POST processing.
Overall the pose and lighting are flattering, especially the flattering downward angle. But the face got turned away from the key light, broad lighting it and creating that dark shadow on the side and tip of the nose and making the two sides of the face look different sizes and shapes. While still quite flattering as is, its worth noting for future reference that with the same pose short lighting and a bit of fill from the direction of the camera would make the face look more symmetrical and the shadows, particularly near the tip of the nose, lighter and less distracting.
In terms of overall presentation the crop seems arbitrary and awkward, cutting off the hand on the right and elbow on the left and the color contrast and busy detail of plants in the background are a distraction. I understand the intentional busy, colorful gypsy look, but I think it would have worked better with a wider crop on a plain background. A bit of selective blurring around the subject to knock the sharp edges off the background and less important details on the dress would help contrast and pull attention towards the sharper face area.
