I've always wanted to buy an Oliphant backdrop but couldn't justify the price. I wish I had the time to paint on myself, but alas, I do not. So I stumbled upon these painted backdrops on Ebay which were so cheap, so I decided to try them out. I'm so happy to do studio work again, I've been doing so much outdoor phtography, I didn't realize how much I missed it. My daughter and I borrowed some dresses from my friend's shop and she obliged me with some pics.
The second, the posing creates a square of her upper body rather than generating curves. She is also turned a bit away... a wise photographer once told me that profiles tend to be best when you can see the far eyelashes, although not the far eye.
Same issue with the profile here, plus the wrist break looks a bit strong and affected here. This arm posing works better in the first, it just feels a bit less natural here.
The fourth, the offset of the photo backdrop bugs me a bit. Also, the near arm posing around her waist doesn't work as well for me. Would like it better if she was maybe holding a bit of dress with that arm dropped.
Overall, this kind of classic posing is tremendously difficult to do well and few even bother these days. Its an admirable set of images overall, with the first being the clear best. Excellent lighting throughout.
very nice set. i like the backdrop you chose. Interesting to see studio shots from you; you are one of my favorite outdoor portrait photographers on this site.
side comment: i dont know if its just my monitor/eyes, but there appears to be a horizontal line/crease in the backdrop right around her shoulder line that i find distracting.
I don't do portraits but deeply admire those that do do a great job doing them.............
A big compliment to you for your work here and openness for critique. You have a naturally beautiful daughter, a classy and elegant and rich look to her.
I absolutely love the first image, the dress is a knockout, the lighting is superb and the delicate sheer at the bottom of the dress lays nicely on the floor.
#3 has somewhat of an uphill look to me.
My simple addition for help on the poses with these dresses is to make sure all of the bottom of the dress is included and use it to add to the comp by detailed positioning of it, much like how wonderful #1 looks with all of the dress included.
Glad to hear you are having fun, that usually equals creativity
I hope to see more of your work in the studio..............
Karl
Your work is excellent, however for me, the backdrop ruins these. The back drop you chose is a nice one, but these backdrops are used by prom photographers, etc. They really do not lend themselves well to original work or to "art." They can make any excellent photo look "cheesey" or mass produced. It is hard to be original when the background is actually a photo of someone else's "art."
stevez32 wrote:
I like the 1st the best and the 4th not as much (background shadow too prominent for my eye I think)
Thanks Steve, I just used a single light due to space issues.
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JcarPhoto wrote:
very nice set. i like the backdrop you chose. Interesting to see studio shots from you; you are one of my favorite outdoor portrait photographers on this site.
side comment: i dont know if its just my monitor/eyes, but there appears to be a horizontal line/crease in the backdrop right around her shoulder line that i find distracting.
Thanks Jcar, yes there is a line that kind of goes across. It didn't really bother me before, but now that you mentioned it, it kind of does, lol
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alcphoto wrote:
Love it!
What backdrop is it on ebay?
The seller name is: photorus
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Karl Witt wrote:
I don't do portraits but deeply admire those that do do a great job doing them.............
A big compliment to you for your work here and openness for critique. You have a naturally beautiful daughter, a classy and elegant and rich look to her.
I absolutely love the first image, the dress is a knockout, the lighting is superb and the delicate sheer at the bottom of the dress lays nicely on the floor.
#3 has somewhat of an uphill look to me.
My simple addition for help on the poses with these dresses is to make sure all of the bottom of the dress is included and use it to add to the comp by detailed positioning of it, much like how wonderful #1 looks with all of the dress included.
Glad to hear you are having fun, that usually equals creativity
I hope to see more of your work in the studio..............
Karl...Show more →
Thanks Karl! I appreciate it alot.
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elliotkramer wrote:
Your work is excellent, however for me, the backdrop ruins these. The back drop you chose is a nice one, but these backdrops are used by prom photographers, etc. They really do not lend themselves well to original work or to "art." They can make any excellent photo look "cheesey" or mass produced. It is hard to be original when the background is actually a photo of someone else's "art."
Just my two cents.
Thanks Elliot, I know, I wish I could just splurge on a classier Oliphant canvas, but my main purpose was to see how my images would look with one light and a canvas backdrop. Now that you mentioned it, it does look pretty cheesy. Funny how you think your work is ok until someone gives a different perspective.
Ian Boys wrote:
I think it's good work and doesn't look cheesy because the colours match nicely to the rest of the image (subject, floor, clothes etc).
My only nit would be to pull the model (daughter) out from the back drop a little more just to put it a tad more out of focus. Otherwise I think that backdrop and the images are a real winner.
Jeremy Reitman wrote:
My only nit would be to pull the model (daughter) out from the back drop a little more just to put it a tad more out of focus. Otherwise I think that backdrop and the images are a real winner.
Thanks Jeremy, believe it or not, my brother was sitting on the couch to the right watching the tv which was on the other side. I just took a deep breath and did the shoot, anyways, i just wanted to see how it looked. Next time, I definitely will.
