A mother (especifically mine)by
alexgarciaComment by espy2: Greetings from the Critique Club!
Ok, lets begin with the lighting. I think the lighting is very good here on how it reflects off the flowers in the bottom left hand and seems to brighten up your mother. I also think the DOF is very very good. Clear and crisp on your mom.
The emotion I get from the photo is one of sadness, and she seems to be in a beautiful surrounding which should display more wonderment or happiness to her facial expressions; however, the expression given is also one that is candid, and with that and the photo not being more contrived, I do like that very much. I can almost see a glint of a smile that was about to happen, as she may have seen something that I to want to see. So in that it almost tells a little untold story, and that is always nice in a photo.
The wall behind her I am not liking the color of. It tends to flatten out the entire right side of the photo. Also, there is something black just above her head. In advanced editing, you could have cloned out that little spot of black. The sky is also very flat in color, and I know how THAT can be. LOL..I don't know HOW many times I go to shoot and find a flat sky. I see you used colors and levels, but when you over contrast, the whites and flat areas are brought out more. Even the slightest bit of contrast can do that to flat areas, so it is something to watch. I understand sometimes there just isn't much that can be done with a flat sky. I don't think it is very distracting in this particular shot, but what I do find distracting from the overall photo is the black just above her head. When something like that draws attention to the eye in the upper quadrant of a photo where you really don't want the eye to go (in this case the sky) it then draws more attention to those areas. So remember if you can do something in advanced editing in the future to avoid that, take that into consideration. If you ever have questions on what can be done or can't be done using the specific editing rules, please don't hesitate to write to Site Council and ask. You can do that in the contact area.
In final, I think your mom is very lovely, and certainly you did VERY well on your first challenge with your 350. Naturally, a photo of your mom in a challenge like "Mother" has met the theme very well. It is always nice as well, in the future, to try and leave a bit more of a story to the photo along with the stats. It intrigues others to read them, and I know I certainly would have enjoyed it.
I think I can speak for many when I say we here at DPC hope to see many more shots from you in the future with your Rebel!
Rose
Photographer found comment helpful.