Little Miss & Mister......been a while

[rmr21]

Howdy all! Been forever, well just a couple months since I've posted here. Really not doing much with photography right now.....focusing more on being a newly single mother & trying to find a job. Sooooo, these pics are some of the VERY few recent shots I've done.

Hope everyone is doing well! :D

1.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v119/rmr21/sdress2.jpg

2.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v119/rmr21/Sdress-1.jpg

3.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v119/rmr21/bw-1.jpg


4.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v119/rmr21/Redhat-1.jpg

5.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v119/rmr21/redhat.jpg

6.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v119/rmr21/squint.jpg

[00dahc]

Those are the biggest Iris' I've ever seen. Wow.

[10megapixel]

Did you do something to their eyes in Photoshop to make them bigger?

[keniko]

As a total lurker on this board for quite a while now I've seen many of your photo's of your beautiful kids. They are absolutely goreous, don't get me wrong for a second.

However, I have enough balls to say I absolutely hate the way you process your pictures. I wish you would let us see those beautiful babies in a more real light. Do you really not see those horrible, horrible halos in these pictures? And that their eyes are totally insane?! Maybe I haven't been lurking long enough to realize why everyone tip toes around you. I apologize if I have offended, but I am just being honest.

[Kerilynn]

That's a bit harsh & unnecessary!! I love the processing and #2 is gorgeous!!

[tkbslc]

As a total lurker on this board for quite a while now I've seen many of your photo's of your beautiful kids. They are absolutely goreous, don't get me wrong for a second.

However, I have enough balls to say I absolutely hate the way you process your pictures. I wish you would let us see those beautiful babies in a more real light. Do you really not see those horrible, horrible halos in these pictures? And that their eyes are totally insane?! Maybe I haven't been lurking long enough to realize why everyone tip toes around you. I apologize if I have offended, but I am just being honest.

You don't "have enough balls" to post your own work, though, right?

There is a big difference between being a jackass and offering constructive criticism. I bet you can guess which side I think you are on.

[keniko]

No, you guys are right. I was totally harsh, but I know I'm not the only one who thinks it. I've just seen this same processing for over a year and hoped she would grow away from it, because she has the potential, skills, and ability to do so, but for some reason I think she continues down this path because of all the "encouragement" she's receiving, however empty it actually is! BUT I also realize art and beauty are in the eye of the beholder, and to each their own. And however rude, harsh, and unnecessary you might think it is, I just wanted her to know that not 100% of people think its cool to make her gorgeous kids have zombie eyes, only 99.9% of people. :) I don't hate HER I just wish I could see natural pictures because she has such great skill and 'models' and sometimes all it takes is a harsh comment to light a fire under someone to prove their critic wrong or take a little from the critique and become something so much greater.

[briarlow]

Don't dislike but find especially #2 a bit haunting, don't know what it is about them that makes me feel this way. THink I like the last one as it's the most natural.

[scrumpy]

...think the eye's have it :rolleyes:

[Blossom101]

I think these are great. They look like something out of a magazine. The eyes in #2 look a little unreal, but I have no problems with the others. The kids are great little models!

[jeptranport]

I am a huge fan of your photos and assuming you like the "living doll look" you execute it wonderfully.
Is it for everyone???
Maybe not but you have a following of people that do love your work..
For me personally your real talent is capturing the personality of the little people and your compositions are second to none..
I am inspired by your work and it breeds creativity on my end..
My 2

[Swanolck]

I just wanted to add that I love your work and have been wondering where you were. Your children are gorgeous and I enjoy seeing them. Hope everything works out for you with the job hunt.

[10megapixel]

I looked at your other posts and I see now that the big eye effect is kinda your thing. I think the majority of your photo's look great and what you do with the eyes works in some of them and not so much in others. You have beautiful children there to work with btw.

[10megapixel]

As a total lurker on this board for quite a while now I've seen many of your photo's of your beautiful kids. They are absolutely goreous, don't get me wrong for a second.

However, I have enough balls to say I absolutely hate the way you process your pictures. I wish you would let us see those beautiful babies in a more real light. Do you really not see those horrible, horrible halos in these pictures? And that their eyes are totally insane?! Maybe I haven't been lurking long enough to realize why everyone tip toes around you. I apologize if I have offended, but I am just being honest.


You need to work on your posting skills. Try to offer constructive criticism without being a jerk, otherwise it can come back to bite you when your sharing or needing advice ;)

[rmr21]

As a total lurker on this board for quite a while now I've seen many of your photo's of your beautiful kids. They are absolutely goreous, don't get me wrong for a second.

However, I have enough balls to say I absolutely hate the way you process your pictures. I wish you would let us see those beautiful babies in a more real light. Do you really not see those horrible, horrible halos in these pictures? And that their eyes are totally insane?! Maybe I haven't been lurking long enough to realize why everyone tip toes around you. I apologize if I have offended, but I am just being honest.

Well I absolutely hate how rude you are. I understrand not everyone is going to like my style or processing, but guess what.....I don't care, really. You could have offered your opinion in a much more tactful way, but to each his own. :D Funny that just dodging the highlights & sharpening could make my kids eyes look "totally insane".....that's pretty funny, thanks for the laugh.

[rmr21]

Did you do something to their eyes in Photoshop to make them bigger?


No, didn't make them bigger.....they both have huge eyes. I obviously did enhance them, but did not alter the actual eye (shape,size,etc)

[IVOlution]

very very nice and great models!
:)

[Grimlock]

Maybe I haven't been lurking long enough to realize why everyone tip toes around you.

Wow. It's called giving respect where respect is due. And I feel rmr21's photo's are definitely deserving of that.

In any case .. I love the processing and I love these photos. Don't change a thing.

[Rishka78]

I am glad to see you back. Great kids and photography. Everyone has a personal style. I like yours a lot. Very bight, well composed-great for kids! Hope everything will work out for you! Keep posting:D

[LucyD2008]

Beautiful kids! Love #3 the best! She is a little doll and looks like she is very cooperative? :lol:

[dancinmyazoff]

I for one think your photos and processing are wonderful. You can tell from your photos that their eyes (especially your daughter) are gorgeous with or without processing!

[Thru my eyes]

I love your photos and I think your kids are beautiful. They have the most beautiful eyes I think I have ever seen.

[Absolutely Fabulous]

I'm shocked someone could be so rude!!!

Beautiful kids! I'm on the fence with the PP, everyone likes different things but they pics are not bad, I don't get the neg comment! I see stuff here all the time that just plain sucks, but people aren't being rude about it :rolleyes:

I wish you lots of luck, being a single mother can't be easy

[Binga]

I adore these photos. Your children are beautiful and you capture their inner beauty so well. I LOVE the first and third of your daughter.

[Pixerfun]

My daughter and I love your photos. We don't always like all the processing of all of them but overall your work is some we love to follow. I'm a beginner so I can't give any real critique but we do know what we like to look at. You children are both gorgeous and my daughter wishes we could get hand me downs from your little girl! LOL Good luck job hunting and moving forward with everything in your life.

[potn_momma2]

WOW. I am shocked.
That was... well rude is one way to put it.
You're entitled to your opinion, but shame on you for the way you went about it!

Rachel, I love your stuff, your kids are even more beautiful as time goes on. I like the way you process your pictures, always have. And that is my honest 100% opinion.
Sorry to hear about your new situation, hope things are well and take care

[keniko]

Well I absolutely hate how rude you are. I understrand not everyone is going to like my style or processing, but guess what.....I don't care, really. You could have offered your opinion in a much more tactful way, but to each his own. :D Funny that just dodging the highlights & sharpening could make my kids eyes look "totally insane".....that's pretty funny, thanks for the laugh.

You're adorable. And yes, simple dodging and highlights can easily create zombiefied eyes, and you're welcome for a giggle.

Anyway, if were only looking for compliments you should have said so, something like "I can't take criticism in any form so please only compliment me, like bambies mom said 'if you can't say something nice don't say anything at all'" I would have respected your wishes and held back my statement that I do not like your 'processing' at all. I'm seriously the only person in your entire existance that's had the gall to tell you how I feel about it.

I think your kids are gorgeous, you are gorgeous, but I don't like the way they look undead. That's all I said, in an extremely direct way. Are you still thinking about it? I'm just trying to help, 100% of the people I surveyed (because I wondered if it was just me) agreed with me. This forum is just kissing your bum. And really, wouldn't you want honesty? What if they just try to encourage you down this path so that they can prosper and you will be withheld! I'm honest and open, I don't mean to hurt you and I pray that I didn't (but I assume you'll be just fine).

Just see that you can continue your art as you please, because its yours, not mine. I'm just painfully honest, some people appreciate it, some don't.

Since I've obviously got zero tact, how would you propose such a statement?

[Tigran]

I totally disagree with keniko. I absolutely love the way rmr21 processes her pictures -- especially how the eyes are sharp and shine, they really pop. There are so many pictures on this board of models with beautiful eyes that just seem flat, not rmr21's and that's one of the things I love about her photos. How many photographers do you think there are in the world? If everyone had the same style, things would get boring real fast.

These are all great photos.

[Tigran]

Since I've obviously got zero tact, how would you propose such a statement?

How about saying nothing at all -- maybe Bambi's mother had it right.

[kimber3131]

WOW! I LOVE these! Totally my style of photography. What program do you use to edit some of your pics?

[rmr21]

Thanks everyone for taking the time to comment on my pics! I really appreciate it. :) I can definitely take a little constructive critisim. Something like, hey...maybe you should try scaling back a bit on the eyes a bit, rather than I HATE your processing. ;) Just sayin....

[LauraSB]

I think your kids are gorgeous, you are gorgeous, but I don't like the way they look undead. That's all I said, in an extremely direct way. Are you still thinking about it? I'm just trying to help, 100% of the people I surveyed (because I wondered if it was just me) agreed with me. This forum is just kissing your bum. And really, wouldn't you want honesty? What if they just try to encourage you down this path so that they can prosper and you will be withheld! I'm honest and open, I don't mean to hurt you and I pray that I didn't (but I assume you'll be just fine).



Do these others, this 100% you surveyed have the balls to agree with you publicly? I mean are they willing to back you and say yeah he/she asked me and I agreed? Or are you the spokes person? I agree that criticism of all types should be welcome by the OP but criticism and being a straight dick do differ in severe ways. Why don't you go take a class in tact since you say you have none. Maybe more kids will come out to play with you and mommy and daddy won't have to tie a steak around your neck so even the neighborhood stray will play with you.

[LauraSB]

Oh and OP I really love the eyes. I love the "zombie" eyes or whatever. I don't think they look like zombie eyes. At least not in the zombie movies I watch. I love the colors and think your children pose very well. This is the only work I've seen of yours so I can't compare to your past work. If all of our styles were the same we'd be very boring. I absolutely love the bright and high saturated colors and the high key black and whites but most don't.

[potn_momma2]

What on earth would we gain from kissing her bum exactly??

[kimber3131]

hey rmr...i sent you a message on here but not sure if you got it. If you don't mind me asking what editing program do you use? Or anyone have any suggestions?

[digidiva]

Well, at the risk of "tip-toeing" around the OP, and as I'm sure many here know, I love the processing she uses and the results it brings. It makes a refreshing change from the same old same old that's so often seen. It's good to see you back rmr21.

kenico....you really need to demand back any money you paid for those social skills lessons; although the frontal labotomy was, it would seem, a COMPLETE success.

[sctbiggs]

As to the eyes...

In the first one the whites are too white. In the second one, maybe a little too much dodging. (the zombie eye comment applies to this one) The eyes on the rest of them look good though.

His skin color is off in the last one. And the halo around him from post processing work hurts the overall image.

Overall, they are good. A faster shutter speed could help with some of the motion blur I see on a couple of them.

Ohhh... and you have some beautiful kids!

[CheetaPita]

whoa i popped in to look around and all this drama! I think its obvious that we all think rmr has gorgeous kids (really gorgeous) and although i completely disagree with how Keniko said it...i think he has some valid points. You have an eye for photography for sure...you have great models...and it looks like youre getting some great shots too - but your processing is really not helping. It doesnt look realistic (too much dodging/burning of the eyes) and your skintones are very off in some...in fact in the last one your son has gray skin on my screen. I also think maybe you missed the focus on some of these (or perhaps its motion blur) and then oversharpened to try to compensate.I realize everyone has a style but im not sure if that's what this is. I think everyone has a journey they go through when they take up photography ....we all go through lots of different types of shooting and processing before we settle in to our own style. Im not saying any of this to try and hurt you but rather to try to help you on YOUR journey. I definitely also overdid eyes at one point when i was learning. I wish someone would have knocked me upside the head and told me what i was doing wrong. Would you be willing to share a sooc shot? Id love to see one and then maybe play with it to see if i could help you process it in a more realistic way. If not , i completely understand :)

I think the main reason i wanted to chime in with this is because you have such potential! I also dont know if everyone is just kissing your ass.....i think its just incredibly hard to look at your kids and not stop to say how gorgeous they are :)

[dwarfcow]

i like the dramatic contrast in the images, i would have done a few different color corrections, and perhaps a little less vignetting, the last one seems to have a little too much lightening going on around the hair.

My wife and i were trying to see what we would have done differently on your 2nd picture, and it seemed like your beautiful little girl looked, a little sad and... off. She played with just the picture on here and did her own stylizing on it. (removed most of the vignette, corrected the skin tone, lessened some of the catch lighting in her eyes, and put a little warming to the image. When we were done it almost looks like shes smiling, but we didn't even touch her face!

ok ok, so we made her not quite as sad, made us feel better.

http://i785.photobucket.com/albums/yy138/dwarfcoww/sadhappy.gif

here's the un-smiled image (it would have been much better with a SOOC image but its just a sketch idea more than anything)

http://i785.photobucket.com/albums/yy138/dwarfcoww/Sdress-1a.jpg

[potn_momma2]

Wow! Very much love the way you did this.
And love the signature! Made me laugh.

i like the dramatic contrast in the images, i would have done a few different color corrections, and perhaps a little less vignetting, the last one seems to have a little too much lightening going on around the hair.

My wife and i were trying to see what we would have done differently on your 2nd picture, and it seemed like your beautiful little girl looked, a little sad and... off. She played with just the picture on here and did her own stylizing on it. (removed most of the vignette, corrected the skin tone, lessened some of the catch lighting in her eyes, and put a little warming to the image. When we were done it almost looks like shes smiling, but we didn't even touch her face!

ok ok, so we made her not quite as sad, made us feel better.

http://i785.photobucket.com/albums/yy138/dwarfcoww/sadhappy.gif

here's the un-smiled image (it would have been much better with a SOOC image but its just a sketch idea more than anything)

http://i785.photobucket.com/albums/yy138/dwarfcoww/Sdress-1a.jpg

[burntpixel]

Images to me portray two things.
First, rmr was at the controls during processing. This is her style, nothing new, if you have been here (lurking or posting) you know this is her style. Some like it some don't. Some like HDR, some don't. Some like selective color, some don't. Some like Dave Hill style, some do not. It's her personal style like it or not.

Secondly, the images portray a certain darkness and sadness. IMO they are supposed too. The op clearly stated these children will soon be living in a divided home. Our society has become numb to divorce. Over the course of time a healing process will occur. Somewhere throughout this process, these photos will serve as time gone by, healing, what once was.

Prayers to you and your family through this difficult time.

[skydiver_8]

Love these...don't change a thing.You've captured the essence of living dolls.

[Grimlock]

I appreciate what Dwarf did and get the point, but I'm not sold. The liquefied smile on the face is horrid and totally invalidates the real emotions in the original image, IMO. Kids don't always have to have a smile on their faces. In fact some of the most powerful and famous photos of children aren't wearing smiles.

As Matt said ... This is rmr's style. And quite honestly, I find it rare to even find this quality anymore. In a world of people trying to be someone else, we can certainly appreciate one's that are being themselves. Right?

And for the record ... I'm not sure the OP was even looking for C+C. This is a sharing forum.
/not trying to p.o. anyone ... just sayin'.

[ann-mom]

someone needs a lesson in how to put things tactfully. Nice work and yes the kids have a reason to be sad at this time in their life.

[rmr21]

i like the dramatic contrast in the images, i would have done a few different color corrections, and perhaps a little less vignetting, the last one seems to have a little too much lightening going on around the hair.

My wife and i were trying to see what we would have done differently on your 2nd picture, and it seemed like your beautiful little girl looked, a little sad and... off. She played with just the picture on here and did her own stylizing on it. (removed most of the vignette, corrected the skin tone, lessened some of the catch lighting in her eyes, and put a little warming to the image. When we were done it almost looks like shes smiling, but we didn't even touch her face!

ok ok, so we made her not quite as sad, made us feel better.

here's the un-smiled image (it would have been much better with a SOOC image but its just a sketch idea more than anything)



Wow, that is rather bold of you....messing with my daughters face like that & actually thinking I might like it? You were wrong. You made her look like something out of a freakshow. Sorry if I'm coming across as harsh, but when you change my childs entire face & make her look like a totally different person.....well I find that a bit disrespectful to say the least. If you would have just presented the 2nd version where you did not alter her face my response would be far different, but I am at the momment quite upset.

[rmr21]

Images to me portray two things.
First, rmr was at the controls during processing. This is her style, nothing new, if you have been here (lurking or posting) you know this is her style. Some like it some don't. Some like HDR, some don't. Some like selective color, some don't. Some like Dave Hill style, some do not. It's her personal style like it or not.

Secondly, the images portray a certain darkness and sadness. IMO they are supposed too. The op clearly stated these children will soon be living in a divided home. Our society has become numb to divorce. Over the course of time a healing process will occur. Somewhere throughout this process, these photos will serve as time gone by, healing, what once was.

Prayers to you and your family through this difficult time.

Thank you, on all accounts.

I would respond to more of the posts (and I do thank you all for commenting) but at the momment I am a bit flustered by the fact that someone took it upon themselves to perform a little virtual plastic surgery on my child. :(

[10megapixel]

Wow, that is rather bold of you....messing with my daughters face like that & actually thinking I might like it? You were wrong. You made her look like something out of a freakshow. Sorry if I'm coming across as harsh, but when you change my childs entire face & make her look like a totally different person.....well I find that a bit disrespectful to say the least. If you would have just presented the 2nd version where you did not alter her face my response would be far different, but I am at the momment quite upset.

I suggest turning "Imaging editing OK" to off if it upsets you that much. I don't think the edit made your daughter look like a "Freakshow" and I'm surprised you actually even said that...looked like the same beautiful little girl with a smile to me :rolleyes:.

[rmr21]

I suggest turning "Imaging editing OK" to off if it upsets you that much. I don't think the edit made your daughter look like a "Freakshow" and I'm surprised you actually even said that...looked like the same beautiful little girl with a smile to me :rolleyes:.


No, I don't mind editing at all....in fact the 2nd edit was quite nice. I just don't feel it appropriate to completely change a person......any persons facial features. That is not even CLOSE to what she looks like smiling & I do think it looks really strange. I was just taken aback when I saw what had been created....something that looked absolutely nothing like my child.

[AprilArchambeau]

I wanted to pm you but its full :(

[Maureen Souza]

Wow, that is rather bold of you....messing with my daughters face like that & actually thinking I might like it? You were wrong. You made her look like something out of a freakshow. Sorry if I'm coming across as harsh, but when you change my childs entire face & make her look like a totally different person.....well I find that a bit disrespectful to say the least. If you would have just presented the 2nd version where you did not alter her face my response would be far different, but I am at the momment quite upset.
You can turn the Image editing OK sign off. I don't think he had anything but the best intentions on giving you something else to think about.

Now, I am getting tired of the drama in this thread. First of all, I don't think anyone here tried to be rude or out of line. Maybe things weren't said as pretty as you'd like, but there were actual statements that no rudeness was intended.

Personally, I think your children are beautiful but the eyes never look realistic to me....way too much dodging and sharpening. I find it distracting from the rest of their cute faces and attire.

So, take what you want into your PP and leave the rest. Everyone is a critic and everyone has their own personal preferences. Let's leave it at that.

[rmr21]

Okay, I just want to take a sec & apologize if *I* have offended, upset, or insulted anyone. I hate that my posting pics & the way I have chosen to respond to some comments has caused any drama. I'm sorry.....I really don't like causing trouble. :( I'm going to stop posting so it doesn't happen again. I wish you all well. :)

[Maureen Souza]

No need to do anything dramatic. Learn from the thread, appreciate your fans and let the rest go. Don't let a couple of opinions keep you from enjoying your time here. It's not worth it.

Heck, I get so little response to my photos in the Kids forum that I do most of my posting elsewhere ;)

[mollylev]

Oh my goodness. Those are phenomenal pictures. I love the black & white photo of that gorgeous little girl with those eyes... Oh kids are just the best subject to photograph...

[christyjo2]

As a total lurker on this board for quite a while now I've seen many of your photo's of your beautiful kids. They are absolutely goreous, don't get me wrong for a second.

However, I have enough balls to say I absolutely hate the way you process your pictures. I wish you would let us see those beautiful babies in a more real light. Do you really not see those horrible, horrible halos in these pictures? And that their eyes are totally insane?! Maybe I haven't been lurking long enough to realize why everyone tip toes around you. I apologize if I have offended, but I am just being honest.

Brutally honest yes...some people took it offensively ...yes...however, i do notice the halo's, and the overprocessing in most of the photos. It has always looked to me like the photos have been way oversharpened with unsharp mask and not very appealing. However, if that is your processing style then that is what you like. I know i have some processing styles that other people do not like but honestly i do not give a crap what someone else likes because more than likely im not going to like all of their stuff either. So...to each their own.

[Point-n-shoot-n]

Okay, I just want to take a sec & apologize if *I* have offended, upset, or insulted anyone. I hate that my posting pics & the way I have chosen to respond to some comments has caused any drama. I'm sorry.....I really don't like causing trouble. :( I'm going to stop posting so it doesn't happen again. I wish you all well. :)

Don't let a few negative or upsetting events drive you away from this forum and the people who admire and follow your work. Everybody has their own opinions and views on photography and nobody is completely right or wrong. I have been a fan of your child photography since I joined this forum over a year ago. Personally I always thought that you had done some enlarging of the eyes in your childrens pics but I loved the way they looked! Finding out that they really are that large doesn't change anything about my opinions of your photos.....I still love your work but now I know that your kids really are some of the most beautiful that I have ever seen. Just remember that you can't please all of the people all of the time. If you re-read the posts in this thread you will see that there are a lot more positives than negatives. I value our posters as I learn from the diversity of styles contained in their pictures. Please don't go!

[emagni]

#4 and #5 are awesome! Thanks for sharing :-)

[Apeman]

For what it's worth, I ve been lurking on these forums for months (and have just started to post :) - yay me) but your pics always stand out to me (and my wife who constantly naggs me for pics of our kids just like you do them lol) I love the way you process and haven't been able to come close myself - although I keep trying.

I absloutely love #'s 1 and 2

[amwolf2]

what does IMO mean?? thanks

great pics!

[dwarfcow]

what does IMO mean?? thanks

great pics!

In My Opinion

[CassidyBrendan]

I love the backgrounds used and the clarity of the photos, but I too was shocked at the haunting feeling in 1,2 and 3 because of the eyes and sad expression. Maybe post some unprocessed photos with the same background and daylight and nice sharp photos with Image editing on so we can learn different techniques to alter them in Photoshop.

[azpix]

i dig #1 & 5.

[k-style]

As a total lurker on this board for quite a while now I've seen many of your photo's of your beautiful kids. They are absolutely goreous, don't get me wrong for a second.

However, I have enough balls to say I absolutely hate the way you process your pictures. I wish you would let us see those beautiful babies in a more real light. Do you really not see those horrible, horrible halos in these pictures? And that their eyes are totally insane?! Maybe I haven't been lurking long enough to realize why everyone tip toes around you. I apologize if I have offended, but I am just being honest.


I dont think you were harsh at all and i completely agree with you, the PP is horrible and completely takes away from such beautiful kids, as a person that loves photographing kids these two little ones would be a dream to shoot....they are flawless and they actually pose....its like they are trained models.....with that being said, i wish the OP would tone down the obnoxious post processing, just be subtle with it.

EDIT
Just went back and read a couple of pages and i must say some of you are completely blind, how can you love halos around a subject??...product of the abuse of the dodging/burning tool?...bottomline, subjects are great, composition-wise the OP did a very good job, PP its way overdone, this is not about personal preference or opinion, its very very obvious and since this is a forum for both negative and positive criticism, i think we are entitled to help each other, if I was the OP i would be thanking Keniko for his harsh honesty, simply because out of all the replies ive read on this thread his have been the ONLY constructive ones. From the OP's reactions to keniko's posts i can tell she just posts expecting to get the usual...."OH EM GEE WHAT A GREAT SHOT MATE" responses...learn to accept all sorts of criticism before posting your work.

btw Keniko did not survey me...lol

[rewindphotography]

i like them. to each there own.

[LucyD2008]

Wow I can't believe how rude some people are!!! To say someone's work is "horrible" in my opinion shows that you have no class. Perhaps you don't like the processing but your "critique" is downright hurtful. There are ways to word the negative criticisms without being so harsh.

[k-style]

Cmon guys, you are way too sensitive as far as critique goes, harsh or not still good critique, I don't understand why we must walk on eggshells... People have been harsh to me in the past too!, it's part ofthe learning curve...eerything about the OPs pictures is very well done, which in fact says she has a great eye and knows what she's doing, the problem is the post processing...I would really encourage the OP to post her originals so that we can take a crack at it, to express our critique better maybe.
If saying the OPs PP is "horrible" was such a bad thing I apologize, your processing is not good at all and needs to be toned down...is that better?

[dfs1340@verizon.net]

Your pictures are great, especially like #4.

[agresbach]

i'm newer to this board and i know its been said here already but amazing job on these! gorgeous kids you have too!
every photographer is going to have their own style and you seem to do this style very very well so congrats on that! not everyone is going to like it but what good would it be if everyone did the same exact thing, right?
i'm sure you have more natural looking shots of them for your own as well but this is a cool effect given to them i think.
our daughter also has big eyes (not quite this big) so any work you do on them to enhance can look like you did more than you actually did i think. just the fact that they are big makes them stand out on their own!
i look forward to seeing more of your work!

[Point-n-shoot-n]

i look forward to seeing more of your work!

Hopefully she will return someday so we can see more! Many more positive than negative responses from my POV.

[dwarfcow]

Hopefully she will return someday so we can see more! Many more positive than negative responses from my POV.
i wouldn't use positive vs negative, i would lump them in praise vs. critique.

[potn_momma2]

Lol dwarfcow, I just have to say that has got to be the funniest signature I have ever seen!

I think this topic has gotten waaaay too dramatic for me! Let's all just agree to disagree... or agree... whatever you want!

[thebishopp]

I'm with Kstyle and Keniko. While I think the composition and subjects of the photos are great, I am not thrilled by the processing on the eyes. I don't think the eyes were altered to be larger (and I believe this is supported by the OP's statement that she didn't enlarge the eyes) but there seems to be excessive sharpening and dodge/burn being used (which the OP did state she did).

If these photos were of adults and posted in the portraits or g&n section they would be ripped apart for the over processed eyes.

Perhaps it's because they are kid photos people are not doing that, though the eye processing seems to be very similiar to the those pageant doll photos that so many people posted (on several threads on that subject) that they hated and yet in this case so many people seem to like it. Odd.

Oh and as far as being rude... I don't agree that the criticism was rude.

Having been on the receiving end of some of Korrektor's critiques (which I might add usually, USUALLY - not all the time lol, is spot on) I thought it was rather tame, in fact Keniko even apologized if it was comming off harsh and didn't fall into personal attacks that some on this thread resorted to. I have to commend Keniko for not stepping down to the level of some of the personal attack that resulted from his/her critique.

[k-style]

I'm with Kstyle and Keniko. While I think the composition and subjects of the photos are great, I am not thrilled by the processing on the eyes. I don't think the eyes were altered to be larger (and I believe this is supported by the OP's statement that she didn't enlarge the eyes) but there seems to be excessive sharpening and dodge/burn being used (which the OP did state she did).

If these photos were of adults and posted in the portraits or g&n section they would be ripped apart for the over processed eyes.

Perhaps it's because they are kid photos people are not doing that, though the eye processing seems to be very similiar to the those pageant doll photos that so many people posted (on several threads on that subject) that they hated and yet in this case so many people seem to like it. Odd.

Oh and as far as being rude... I don't agree that the criticism was rude.

Having been on the receiving end of some of Korrektor's critiques (which I might add usually, USUALLY - not all the time lol, is spot on) I thought it was rather tame, in fact Keniko even apologized if it was comming off harsh and didn't fall into personal attacks that some on this thread resorted to. I have to commend Keniko for not stepping down to the level of some of the personal attack that resulted from his/her critique.

VERY WELL PUT.

I dont think I would have ever learned half of what i know without some harsh real critique, it brings you down to earth and opens your eyes to the mistakes you are making that you probably are not aware of. I have an example, when i first began shooting, i had the real badddd habit of under exposing images on purpose thru PP and on top of that adding vignetting, i was torched for it a little, but thats what it took for me to understand it wasnt the right way to go about it, since then i realized how important it is for an image to be well exposed....you have to learn to take in criticism, im quite dissapointed that the OP never came back.:rolleyes:

[thebishopp]

Wow, that is rather bold of you....messing with my daughters face like that & actually thinking I might like it? You were wrong. You made her look like something out of a freakshow. Sorry if I'm coming across as harsh, but when you change my childs entire face & make her look like a totally different person.....well I find that a bit disrespectful to say the least. If you would have just presented the 2nd version where you did not alter her face my response would be far different, but I am at the momment quite upset.

Wow, I must of missed this, if I had caught it the first time around I would have been a bit more stern with the OP.

Now this post is just as if not more rude than Kenikos but somehow it's ok for her to post in this tone? I really do not like hypocrites... it's not as if dwarf did some kind of freaky edit (like I did in THIS (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=836751) post heh heh).

Also, IMO, if anything, the OP's eye processing made the kids look like a freakshow and not dwarfs edit. But then again it is all subjective and a matter of opinion - some people like those doll like pageant photos, I am not one of them.

[k-style]

this post got sooo out of hand...lmao.

[kevindar]

I have followed Op's work from the time she started posting, and we are friends on flickr. I am very sorry to hear that you are going through some tough time, and wish you the best of luck. Your children are beautiful. As for the processing, I actually think it is her style. some like it, some dont. I would say that 3 and 6 are the ones that show some problems with processing (halos, trying to salvage a non sharp image). I have always liked her composition and general capture. As for Keniko, I do believe that you may have had the right intentions, but I dont think the wording was not the best, and it did not improve much in the subsequent posts. In the time I have seen her post, I think she is progressing more towards a natural look, and I recall making a comment to her that I love how her photoshop is not as heavy handed as it used to be, and she agreed. I think most of her posts over the last 6 months, as well as her posts on flickr have been very good. I understand the processing of the eyes is still not every ones cup of tea, and I can say I dont choose to process the same way when I post. However, I find her composition and capturing of the mood very good, and I enjoy her posts.

[Christopher Steven b]

I really dig #3 and #4. Solid work.

Also--much respect to Keniko with whom I mostly agree.

[thebishopp]

this post got sooo out of hand...lmao.

Yes it did though I don't think it was Kenikos post that did it, nor dwarf's edit.

We all have to learn to take criticism, especially when we post in a public forum.

I for one take a deep breath before posting here LOL, and have no problem with harsh (which I do NOT think was the case in this thread) criticism as long as there is something in the critique that is helpful (meaning it isn't something like "that sucks" which does nothing to help me if it doesn't specify "WHY" something sucks).

[keniko]

WHY WON'T THIS THREAD JUST DIE?! I was really hoping it would just fall into the lost threads and we could all move on.

For those of you who wanted to make me feel like a douche, you succeeded. For those of you who are in agreement or somewhat defending me, while I appreciate it, it doesn't make me feel any better. I feel like it's my fault that rmr21 hasn't posted since and to top it all of this thread was kind of to announce her new 'singlemommyhood' which totally sucks and I want to go sit in a hole. I completely realize now that she is a very sensitive person (I had no idea I could make an impact on her via the internet) and I can also guarantee she pretty much locked in 'only postive commenting on her posts' for the future. No one will want to feel like they honestly hurt someone by critiquing their work.

I hope she is just really, really busy or has way better things to do than worry about a silly online forum. I don't even know you rmr21, but I'm worried about you and your beautiful kids. I hope you are well.

[Maureen Souza]

I think this thread has outdone itself.

keniko, do not blame yourself for anything. When we post pictures here, we need to take both praise and criticism and take from it what we feel benefits us. I know rmr21 has been on the forum but has chosen not to post. That is her decision.

Now, I am going to close this thread and we can all move on.