Sister & Brother Photo, C&C Please

[ashjamesgav]

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3233/3073745444_38f00ecc14_b.jpg


This is my younger sister and brother. Please tell me what you think! If negative, please be sure to mention how you think I might be able to improve next time.

[ashjamesgav]

Made the photo a little smaller in hopes of some responses! Any takers?

[Robert_Lay]

This photo seems to have been taken in Shade Shade, which is quite different from "Open Shade". Since that topic is one of my favorite soap box topics, I usually throw in a copy of my treatise on the subject.

In this case, I will keep it short and to the point. Open shade will give you better results because it provides better lighting for the subject(s).

Try it - you'll like it.

[ashjamesgav]

This photo seems to have been taken in Shade Shade, which is quite different from "Open Shade". Since that topic is one of my favorite soap box topics, I usually throw in a copy of my treatise on the subject.

In this case, I will keep it short and to the point. Open shade will give you better results because it provides better lighting for the subject(s).

Try it - you'll like it.

I will have to work on that, thanks!

[shannyD]

i agree with the lighting.. but overall im liking it a lot.. just a lot of fun, and emotion, and you can feel like your apart of the moment.. very nice.

[ashjamesgav]

i agree with the lighting.. but overall im liking it a lot.. just a lot of fun, and emotion, and you can feel like your apart of the moment.. very nice.

Thank you! I'm really proud of this one, despite the lighting, I feel like I have learned and I am learning so much from this forum along with a ton of research/tutorials/youtube. I'm always so excited to get feedback, positive or negative, because it always helps me learn and it'll bring me closer to my goal. :D

[shannyD]

thats what this place is about. i have learned to suck up my pride a little bit.. and take harsh criticizm.. i wasnt good at it in the beginning.

now im good with it.

[Skrim17]

Looks like you cropped something out on the left, when doing portraits or candid try to get all limbs in the photo.

[ashjamesgav]

Looks like you cropped something out on the left, when doing portraits or candid try to get all limbs in the photo.

Thank you for the comment. I didn't actually crop anything out of the photo. The other kids were playing around on the side of them, so I went for the semi close-up of the two. I didn't even notice that until you said something, it does look a little weird that her second hand is missing :oops:

[ashjamesgav]

thats what this place is about. i have learned to suck up my pride a little bit.. and take harsh criticizm.. i wasnt good at it in the beginning.

now im good with it.

Haha, yeah I was a little iffy about it at first, and a little defensive... But if you're close-minded, how will you ever learn? :p

[Croasdail]

Hey Ashley, it really depends on what you expect out of the shot. As a family snap shot for memories and the like, its a great shot. If you are looking at this as a portfolio shot, it doesn't come to that level. What could make it better.... first crop again getting the car from the background. Second, where the light is coming through in one spot in the back making the grass uber yellow green, that needs to be fixed. I am assuming the shirt your little brother is wearing is white, not blueish.... if that is the case, you have a tinge of a color balance issue you need to fix. The good of the shot it is shows relationship, which really trumps a lot of the stuff above. The only thing that might have improved that part is if you could get some more eye to eye interaction going on. His eyes being closed softens the impact some.

Overall, as a shot that shows the relationship between the two, it is totally working. Telling the story is the main objective of any shot. Getting the technical stuff right is just removing noise and distraction so the story can come through. You can have a technically correct image with no story. You can also have a flawed image though where the story overpowers the other technical issues. You have a few issues in the shot, but not so much it distracts overly. Clean a few things up and you have a much more powerful image.

Cheers..... keep at it. Looks good.

[ashjamesgav]

Hey Ashley, it really depends on what you expect out of the shot. As a family snap shot for memories and the like, its a great shot. If you are looking at this as a portfolio shot, it doesn't come to that level. What could make it better.... first crop again getting the car from the background. Second, where the light is coming through in one spot in the back making the grass uber yellow green, that needs to be fixed. I am assuming the shirt your little brother is wearing is white, not blueish.... if that is the case, you have a tinge of a color balance issue you need to fix. The good of the shot it is shows relationship, which really trumps a lot of the stuff above. The only thing that might have improved that part is if you could get some more eye to eye interaction going on. His eyes being closed softens the impact some.

Overall, as a shot that shows the relationship between the two, it is totally working. Telling the story is the main objective of any shot. Getting the technical stuff right is just removing noise and distraction so the story can come through. You can have a technically correct image with no story. You can also have a flawed image though where the story overpowers the other technical issues. You have a few issues in the shot, but not so much it distracts overly. Clean a few things up and you have a much more powerful image.

Cheers..... keep at it. Looks good.


Thanks for the advice, I will address all of those problems. Once fixed, do you think that it is portfolio material, or that the lighting has messed that up?

[ashjamesgav]

here's my edit: http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3233/3073745444_38f00ecc14_b.jpg

and here's another taken that day: http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3181/3072862389_94aab41064_b.jpg

i know that it's not very sharp, and her hair looks a little weird at the edges (anyone know why, or how to fix?) but i really like this one, too, mid-laugh.

[ashjamesgav]

I am assuming the shirt your little brother is wearing is white, not blueish.... if that is the case, you have a tinge of a color balance issue you need to fix.

Do you think the white balance is corrected? I still see a little bit of blue, but I didn't want to take it too far. I'm still learning (through trial and error, clearly) to control color balance.