Last week I shot 3 time US highland dance champion Breagh MacKinnon aboard the Bluenose II in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia (Breagh is originally from Nova Scotia). Breagh is wearing a Champion's series romper by Veronica MacIsaac Apparel
Sep 29, 2017 at 11:27 PM
Andre Labonte Offline • • • • • • Upload & Sell: Off
I like it, too, but also wonder if she had been a bit brighter she might not have been sail-colored. Numfar, it's just armchair photographer grousing/sour grapes so please don't be insulted by any criticism. It's an excellent job.
Great pose, beautiful dancer, terrific outfit. While I find her very well captured, I find the setting very distracting. I imagine her against a black background.
I think if she came forward about 2-3 feet it would help separate her from the background. Or shoot it at f2-4 to separate the subject more. Otherwise great shot.
Yup. That's her. And what you're seeing is pretty much the standard for all top level highland dancers (there is one tall/lean body type but by and large, huge calf and thigh muscles are the norm.)
Thanks for the feedback. And for sure, in a pure portrait, that would be the way to go.
Here, however, the iconic setting of the Bluenose II and Lunenburg harbour are both a major part of the story, which is why I didn't isolate the model but set her (and the garment) among the background. A moderate DoP was chosen so she's sharp, and the detail elements are softer, but still definable, as an effort to focus the eye.
The setting sun turned most pale things (skin, white hulls of boats, beige sails) a similar orange, which isn't great for showing off the model's skin tone, but worked well setting off the garment. As this was a part of the Champions Series (a series of dresses made for highland dance champions) that was another compromise I was okay with.
My priorities in this shot were, in order, 1) Garment, 2) setting, 3) dance position 4) model.
