Discussion
1) Interesting idea from a fine art point of view, but for me the subject is a bit flat (Lacking in contrast)
2) Lack of thought IMHO - No consideration for the background which could add so much. I looks like you were both sitting there and you took am impromptu picture of your partner
3) Almost had all the elements of a good picture but was badly lit and exposed. Here I would have exposed for the sky to get an intense blue and made the high up palm darken out. I would them have used a three off camera flashes to light up both the trees in the background and the subject. I would say you need two flash lights on the lady. One to front light the subject from the left of the camera as you look at the subject and one from behind and to the right from a raise position to give the effect of natural back lighting. The pose could also be improved on.
4) The high lights are a bit flat and could do with brightening up.
I hope that helps
Regards
Snapper
2) Lack of thought IMHO - No consideration for the background which could add so much. I looks like you were both sitting there and you took am impromptu picture of your partner
3) Almost had all the elements of a good picture but was badly lit and exposed. Here I would have exposed for the sky to get an intense blue and made the high up palm darken out. I would them have used a three off camera flashes to light up both the trees in the background and the subject. I would say you need two flash lights on the lady. One to front light the subject from the left of the camera as you look at the subject and one from behind and to the right from a raise position to give the effect of natural back lighting. The pose could also be improved on.
4) The high lights are a bit flat and could do with brightening up.
I hope that helps
Regards
Snapper
Hi Snapper thanks for the input its much apreciated.
Gutted with your comments about picture 2 though, I understand what your saying and I thought it was ok, iirc I shot that in apature priority to blur out the background thinking it would make a good picture and tbh I still do. I understand its not as good as I first thought though and im not taking your criticism badly.
Picture 3 is the one I was expecting most criticism with tbh, its the one with the most problems I thought. Im not taking off camera flash on holiday I dont think but will do it for future shots that are similar. How would you take that picture without off camera flash? metre for the sky still?
Gutted with your comments about picture 2 though, I understand what your saying and I thought it was ok, iirc I shot that in apature priority to blur out the background thinking it would make a good picture and tbh I still do. I understand its not as good as I first thought though and im not taking your criticism badly.
Picture 3 is the one I was expecting most criticism with tbh, its the one with the most problems I thought. Im not taking off camera flash on holiday I dont think but will do it for future shots that are similar. How would you take that picture without off camera flash? metre for the sky still?
LeeThePeople said:
Excellent, how did you do those?
Snaper what do you think to the changes to number 1? thats the effect I was after, if id of got it would the picture still be a miss?
Both in Photoshop - first one, selected figure with Magnetic Lasso Tool, feathered, select inverse, gaussian blur and slight darken with levels (Control+L)Snaper what do you think to the changes to number 1? thats the effect I was after, if id of got it would the picture still be a miss?
Second one - Enhance, Adjust lighting, Shadows/Highlight, pull the shadows up and highlights down.
Literally takes less than 2 minutes!
Hi Lee
Glad you took the comments in the right way
For Picture 1: The lighting on the subject is spot on, but I would use a longer lens to blur the background totally. You would still get the affect of where it is through the colours. You also have a post sticking out of the subjects head. The perspective from using a longer lens would have removed it.
For Picture 2: Civic Man had done a stunning job for you but from what I said would have enriched all the colours 10 fold. Without a flash set up it is never going to be easy. But people holding a big white sheet from the hotel bedroom would have helped to throw a lot of light back into the subject. the rest would have to be done in Photoshop post processing. I always try and do as must in the picture taking stage because to sit in front of the computer messing about in layers for hours bores me to death.
Glad you took the comments in the right way
For Picture 1: The lighting on the subject is spot on, but I would use a longer lens to blur the background totally. You would still get the affect of where it is through the colours. You also have a post sticking out of the subjects head. The perspective from using a longer lens would have removed it.
For Picture 2: Civic Man had done a stunning job for you but from what I said would have enriched all the colours 10 fold. Without a flash set up it is never going to be easy. But people holding a big white sheet from the hotel bedroom would have helped to throw a lot of light back into the subject. the rest would have to be done in Photoshop post processing. I always try and do as must in the picture taking stage because to sit in front of the computer messing about in layers for hours bores me to death.
Lee, my thoughts:
1. Good idea; black and white suits it well. I'm not quite sure on the expression on her face: her pose suggests anguish but the expression looks more like sleepyness to me; difficult one to get right. Also, I think the soft-focus look you were trying to achieve has come out more out-of-focus.
2. The light is very good in this photo which is often the most important and hardest part to get right. Like the others have said the background is a bit naff though. Ideally you would find a better background to make use of the subject and light; the other alternative is to use a lens with a wider aperture to make the background more blurred, or to use a lens with a longer focal length so that you capture a narrower section of the background. Personally I don't like the style of Photoshop blurring that CivicMan has done because it looks too 'fake' to me.
3. Excellent idea, very creative composition. Unfortunately, because of the massive range of brightness in the scene, it's always going to require a bit of work to get it looking right. No doubt Snapper's suggestion would work best but obviously requires a lot of equipment and setting up time. Another way might be to use a tripod and take multiple exposures of the scene and merge them afterwards. The result would be a bit like CivicMan's edit, but having multiple exposures gives you more flexibility. It probably still wouldn't look as good as using flashes though.
4. A little bit underexposed. Would probably have been a much nicer photo if you'd had a nice blue sky with some fluffy clouds; the grey sky makes it feel a bit flat.
Hope this is some help, but I wouldn't get too hung up on other people's opinions. It can be useful for asking 'how do I get a shot looking this this?' but like all art, it's so subjective that ultimately it only worth trying to satisfy yourself.
1. Good idea; black and white suits it well. I'm not quite sure on the expression on her face: her pose suggests anguish but the expression looks more like sleepyness to me; difficult one to get right. Also, I think the soft-focus look you were trying to achieve has come out more out-of-focus.
2. The light is very good in this photo which is often the most important and hardest part to get right. Like the others have said the background is a bit naff though. Ideally you would find a better background to make use of the subject and light; the other alternative is to use a lens with a wider aperture to make the background more blurred, or to use a lens with a longer focal length so that you capture a narrower section of the background. Personally I don't like the style of Photoshop blurring that CivicMan has done because it looks too 'fake' to me.
3. Excellent idea, very creative composition. Unfortunately, because of the massive range of brightness in the scene, it's always going to require a bit of work to get it looking right. No doubt Snapper's suggestion would work best but obviously requires a lot of equipment and setting up time. Another way might be to use a tripod and take multiple exposures of the scene and merge them afterwards. The result would be a bit like CivicMan's edit, but having multiple exposures gives you more flexibility. It probably still wouldn't look as good as using flashes though.
4. A little bit underexposed. Would probably have been a much nicer photo if you'd had a nice blue sky with some fluffy clouds; the grey sky makes it feel a bit flat.
Hope this is some help, but I wouldn't get too hung up on other people's opinions. It can be useful for asking 'how do I get a shot looking this this?' but like all art, it's so subjective that ultimately it only worth trying to satisfy yourself.
Edited by SamHH on Monday 18th May 10:18
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