Home is where the heart is
by P-A-U-L

Comment by Jutilda:
Oh I just love that thatched roof!!!

Bubbles
by P-A-U-L

Comment by P-A-U-L:

Originally posted by mike_311: i feel the choice of processing inst right for this image. the oversauration enhances parts of the image which should be left as background and pulls the focus away from your subject. i'd prefer to see a more subdued color set, while still slightly pushing the reds (but not much) to drive the focus to the girl. when you post process you have the ability to control where my eye goes and right now it goes right to the hill and stays there.

Thanks Mike - I totally agree and was not happy with the processing though it was better than some of my other Topaz preset attempts:) And you are spot on about the lack of focus of attention. I recall attempting to add a vignette to try and focus more on the subject but it looked terrible and my arsenal of post processing tricks is quite minimal:)

Bubbles
by P-A-U-L

Comment by P-A-U-L:

Originally posted by bsluijk: If I may add: I recognize what has been said and agree. Great bubbles, lovely scene, great expression on her face. Lovely shot. The "window to her smile" is very a nice touch, but I DO miss seeing her eyes ... As to the overall composition: I like the hill to the right, not to keen on the boat in the background (would probably have cloned that away) and I would be curious to see the effect of a little lower viewpoint. And I hope I would have straightened the horizon. But criticism is easy - first I would have to make a picture as nice as this one ;-)

Thanks bsluijk - feedback much appreciated. I agree that seeing her eyes would have been a nice addition especially as she has fantastic blue eyes. I think this shot was the best of a bad bunch. Here are a few others. Note these have no processing apart from cropping.







Good point about the horizon - I always forget this one and it makes such a difference.

Bubbles
by P-A-U-L

Comment by P-A-U-L:

Originally posted by jagar: Actually I like the bubble on her face, it's like a window to her smile.

What a superb description. If you don't mind I am going to rename the image:)

Bubbles
by P-A-U-L

Comment by Mike:
i feel the choice of processing inst right for this image. the oversauration enhances parts of the image which should be left as background and pulls the focus away from your subject. i'd prefer to see a more subdued color set, while still slightly pushing the reds (but not much) to drive the focus to the girl.

when you post process you have the ability to control where my eye goes and right now it goes right to the hill and stays there.

Bubbles
by P-A-U-L

Comment by bsluijk:
If I may add: I recognize what has been said and agree. Great bubbles, lovely scene, great expression on her face. Lovely shot. The "window to her smile" is very a nice touch, but I DO miss seeing her eyes ...
As to the overall composition: I like the hill to the right, not to keen on the boat in the background (would probably have cloned that away) and I would be curious to see the effect of a little lower viewpoint. And I hope I would have straightened the horizon.
But criticism is easy - first I would have to make a picture as nice as this one ;-)

Bubbles
by P-A-U-L

Comment by jagar:
Actually I like the bubble on her face, it's like a window to her smile.

Bubbles
by P-A-U-L

Comment by P-A-U-L:
Thanks Guys for the much appreciated feedback. Yeah the bubble over the face doesn't do it any favours. It was tricky as I was blowing the bubbles and taking the photos at the same time - lots of fun though:)

Bubbles
by P-A-U-L

Comment by bassbone:
John hits several great points about the light and DOF (f9 may have been a bit too small an aperture).

For me, there is a lot to like about the image, the bubbles carrying our eyes around the scene, the brightness of the jacket, the gorgeous beach scene, but I think what does not quite work (and this is a matter of less than 1 second) is that the girls face and eyes are covered by the bubble. Had we seen her eyes, this would be something extra special.

Bubbles
by P-A-U-L

Comment by jagar:
Yes, there is something not quite right, the girls posture and the bubbles are spot on. The composition is also ok, I think the light was maybe a bit harsh and the depth of field could have been shallower. Sometimes it's just difficult to say what it is that doesn't work.