This was my first time, so don't be too vicious. A little vicious is fine though, since I absolutely know I have lots of room to improve upon! I did these as a favor for a friend so she can get some save the date things out.
As an aside, anyone want to shoot a wedding at the Santa Clara mission on 6/13/09?
I really like this set. I am sure that they will be very happy with these. The first 2 are my favorites of this set and maybe could be used side by side for a save the date card? Hope this helps I am sure some of the more experienced folks here can give you better feedback.
I would say the first 5 are very solid. The rest lack a little, posing could be worked on for sure. I like the use of flare and the light looks pretty good. maybe clone the bugs out of the air on 5 and 6. good job, post more.
These are pretty good in my opinion. They have a natural feel, and as MrAdventure said, have good exposure and focus. Lens flare can sometimes work, but these aren't working for me on 5 and 6. Next time, try experimenting with flare, and then use a hood and get some without flares just to have a variation. I also wish he was doing something more with his hand in 5 and 6, instead of just leaving them on the side. I think better posing for 7 and 9 would make the images a lot better. Last but not least, although not necessary, it's nice to see some environment and surrounding shots mixed in with tight crops like the ones you have. That way every shot doesn't feel the same. The last shot you posted is a good example. I think if you throw in a little more variation in your subject and setting, then it would just add that much more to your sets. Just my 2 cents.
Love the first shot (color is good and looks nice and clear with good nice flat lighting that works). The only suggestion would be to not always go for a dead center composition on portrait shots. You can go straight dead center, and it works, but sometimes just moving them off of center a bit gives the shot more character helps it to feel not so snapshot-ish.
3 is cute!
4 would be way cooler without the post stuff. It is a great shot and don't feel that you need to do anything to it to make it better. The reason I am not crazy about the post is that the blacks are so black that you lose any detail in them. Stuff like that may seem cool now, but will end up being dated fast.
5, 6 are nice but do need what Sahid mentioned. The groom seems a bit detached. That will come with more shooting and getting more comfortable with how you shoot and then being able to talk with them (or not talk) and get them to loosen up with you.
7, 8 Have that snapshot feel again. They will like that you added their dog and that is important to do!
Great work and it is hard to believe that this is your first e-session!! Great job!!
Zach, I agree about having too much PP on 4. That was kind of me being lazy because the original version hadn't been cropped or saved for the web.
I think my biggest problem was lack of experience in posing. I wasn't confident in my ability to direct them, so they probably weren't as comfortable as they could have been. That was compounded by it being my first time doing this, so those nerves didn't help me out.
Thanks so much for the feedback guys. I really appreciate the encouragement and critiques. I know how high the standard of work is here, so you don't have to be so nice I have a thick skin.
