| Author | Thread |
|
|
07/24/2005 09:26:00 PM · #1 |
Anyone want to give me some comments on this photo I took of my niece. Sorry I can't post photos yet, please follow link.
Thanks
My Niece |
|
|
|
07/24/2005 09:36:17 PM · #2 |
|
|
|
07/24/2005 09:36:20 PM · #3 |
I like it. I think she has a great smile. I think the focus on her eyes could have been a little sharper, but maybe you were going for the soft focus. I hope you get some better critiques.
~Roni |
|
|
|
07/24/2005 09:37:17 PM · #4 |
Aloha ... first the disclaimer :) My opinion is worth what you are paying for it and please understand my style may not be what you are looking to achieve so when in question go with your own feelings ...
I thought her eyes were very nice ... I felt the picture was either slightly overexposed or if you have played with levels and things like that then maybe just a bit too bright. The hot spot on her hat to me is an indication the light wasn't balanced or a bit harsh. If you shot under natural light well then we have to work with what we get. If this was under artifical light you might want to bounce it up a bit. You did get the lights in the eyes so that was good but, if it had been a bit darker I bet her eyes would have really come out more ... |
|
|
|
07/24/2005 09:51:55 PM · #5 |
It was out doors but I tried to use my on camera flash for fill for her face, thus blowing out the hat. No, I did not play with levels. I did retouch other stuff, but not the hat. I was wondering if anything could be done with it. I will post the original so you can see what I did. Her skin tone is very uneven and hard to work with.
P.S. I never intentionally go for the "soft look" but people tell me I get it all the time,wonder if it is my camera, lens or something?
Original photo |
|
|
|
07/24/2005 10:30:21 PM · #6 |
| Anybody else please, someone please give me an opinion on the before and after so I'll know how bad my photoshop really sucks, I've never had any comments on my photoshop attempts and would like to know how it appears to others. |
|
|
|
07/24/2005 11:39:12 PM · #7 |
hmm yeah i see what you mean about the flash blowing the hat into overexposure. try getting like a white board or something like that to reflect light back into her face. you can buy professional reflectors and stuff like that, but all you need is like that three-sided white presentation board stuff that you can get at staples or walmart. you put that underneath her face and reflect light back up into the shadowed areas. it also works to diffuse light. that's what i would do instead of using a flash that could come out too harsh
|
|
|
|
07/25/2005 12:26:42 AM · #8 |
| Thanks for the good advice, I have been meaning to get me one of those, plus a few other pieces of equipment when I get the money. Actually, this photo was a spur of the moment thing. She knew I was hanging out at the creek and came down to say hi. I wasn't expecting to take her photo. Other than the hat, can you tell that I retouched it in photoshop, I mean is it obvious? |
|
|
|
07/25/2005 12:31:24 AM · #9 |
You did a good job of evening out the coloration on her skin. Part of what makes the shot look a touch soft is that in evening out the color, you also removed most of the texture. If she had more pronounced eye makeup it would not be as noticeable, as the sharpness there would help to balance out the smooth skin. If you wanted to bring back the skin texture while keeping the coloration you might try playing with the blending modes between your modified picture and the original image.
Adjusting the levels, sharpening, etc. could punch up this image quite a bit, but I think that the biggest improvement would be to focus on making your niece look comfortable in front of the camera. Perhaps something as simple as having her look directly at the camera would be enough to make this feel more natural. As it is, your model looks like she's going through the motions just so the camera will go away.
Aside from the technical refinements already suggested (lighting, focus) I can't really identify anything else that needs improvement. You might find people more willing to offer feedback if you clarify what type of input you're looking for. Simply asking for "comments" leaves the reader with a much larger task than if you ask for their thoughts on the composition, lighting or editing.
|
|
|
|
07/25/2005 01:31:46 AM · #10 |
| Thanks metoecus, I will try your suggestions in the morning. Funny that you mentioned her" wish the camera would go away" look. She was actually wishing her mom (my sister) would go away and quit telling her how to look, lol. I'm all new to the photoshop thing, levels, sharpening and all, I need lots of practise. I didn't specify what kind of comments, cause I was hoping to get a few from all sides and wanted to see if someone would pickup on the photoshop repair attempt without me pointing it out to critique. I know it's obvious to many of the photographers on here, but our customers aren't always eagle-eyed photoshop experts, so I was attempting to see what the "average joe" might notice too. Thanks again, you were lots of help. I appreciate you taking time to reply. |
|
Home -
Challenges -
Community -
League -
Photos -
Cameras -
Lenses -
Learn -
Help -
Terms of Use -
Privacy -
Top ^
DPChallenge, and website content and design, Copyright © 2001-2025 Challenging Technologies, LLC.
All digital photo copyrights belong to the photographers and may not be used without permission.
Current Server Time: 08/21/2025 01:19:11 PM EDT.
