A Christmas Surprise
by StevePax

Comment by HRoxas:
Nice and soft but a little too dark and details are lost at the top. 5

I'm thankful for my wife
by StevePax

Comment by LucidLotus:
Hello from the Critique Club!

I think this has great appeal, I'm not at all surprised it did well, as it was well taken.

Here's why I find it a pleasant image:

Firstly, your model (wife) has a lovely and open face. It has a friendly, natural feel and that tends to draw viewers in. She looks comfortable, happy, you can see the emotional connection.

I like the use of B&W, it really isolates the subject of the image and gives it more punch, particularly because you have done a nice job with this portrait - the background is blurred well making a great foil for the sharper focus on the face.

I do think that it would be worth a try to use one of those soft focus techniques to give that slightly soft look while keeping the sharp focus you have currently. Sounds like a weird contradiction the way I phrased it - hopefully it makes sense to you!

The use of natural light is great, very few shadows and the ones there add rather than detract. On the other hand, I do agree with the comment about the shirt and its over-exposure, I also think this gives a bit of brightness and foil for the slightly darker tones in her skin so its a bit of a wash. I also think that a different background may be better - only because it is in black & white and any punch from colors or textures can be muted, especially if the background is blurred due to the portrait style.

I think this is a well-executed image, it fits the challenge to a tee, and has a nice emotional impact and investment. Very nice.

I'm thankful for my wife
by StevePax

Comment by Imagineer:
... and so you should be! She's got a very friendly, kind face. ;)

The shot is OK with some soft, mellow lighting - a nice, natural portrait.

A Christmas Surprise
by StevePax

Comment by jmsetzler:
This is out of focus.. i think it woudl be stronger with some more light as well.

A Christmas Surprise
by StevePax

Comment by brownt:
I looked at this on my work computer and found it very dark! I could hardly make out any details in the background of this picture. Now that I am looking at it at home I can see much more. However, you could have raised the brightness over the whole image to make the whites stand out better. 7

A Christmas Surprise
by StevePax

Comment by Spork99:
Good idea, it just looks so dark.........

A Christmas Surprise
by StevePax

Comment by wingy:
This needs better lighting. Also, it doesn't seem to be soft focus, moreso it seems to just be out of focus. Work on your setup and technical photography skills with this and it'll come out much better. (and probably get it down with a sharp focus before you mess with soft focus on it)

I'm thankful for my wife
by StevePax

Comment by moodville:
It's a good portrait. Not an expert on portrait shots but from what I can tell it doesnt have any shadows on the face, which is good, the eyes are bright and fairly sharp, the skin tones are good, and the pose looks quite natural. I'm curious why you decided on black and white, though. I know b&w can often even out skin tones, but with her bright smile and eyes and such a happy tone of the shot it seems to be screaming out for warm colors.

A Christmas Surprise
by StevePax

Comment by kaycee:
A little dark on my screen. Maybe a brighter background would have helped?

A Christmas Surprise
by StevePax

Comment by adine:
I'd love to get this present. I like the gold stripes - though could be brought out better with more light, and the soft focus would make them glow apealingly. A spot of light on the top where the bow is would top it off nicely.This really is too dark.