First Bridals C&C Please

[jmphotosa]

This is my first bridal and first attempt with off camera flash and first pictures posted to POTN. Please do not hold back on comments.

1.
http://jmphotosa.zenfolio.com/img/v8/p905953673-5.jpg

2.
http://jmphotosa.zenfolio.com/img/v11/p632233733-5.jpg

3.
http://jmphotosa.zenfolio.com/img/v7/p724265653-5.jpg

4.
http://jmphotosa.zenfolio.com/img/v2/p926814802-5.jpg

5.
http://jmphotosa.zenfolio.com/img/v9/p1028109676-4.jpg

6.
http://jmphotosa.zenfolio.com/img/v10/p665518101-5.jpg

7.
http://jmphotosa.zenfolio.com/img/v9/p55967249-4.jpg

8.
http://jmphotosa.zenfolio.com/img/v7/p250416431-5.jpg

[sctbiggs]

great... i wish 5 and 7 would have been shot with a smaller depth of field.

[jmphotosa]

I know. I wanted to have some detail in the background, but I go too much. I should have bracketed the shot for dof.

Thanks for the comment.

[alyssa_armstrong]

I think the lighting in 2 is gorgeous. Beautiful bride!

[snyderman]

Beautiful setting and a very pretty bride and dress. Like the richness of #2. Well done. One thing I would have liked to see was a darker, more muted BG in just about all pics to put more emphasis on the bride. Looks like a late afternoon shoot? #8 appears to have the best balance of flash to BG exposure. Moving her away from the lush foilage and using more DOF would have really made her pop from the BG.

Just a matter of taste. Biggest question is how happy was the bride to be with the images? If she's happy, you did a great job!

dave

[jmphotosa]

Alyssa - thanks, and I'm sure the bride would thank you too.

Dave - Thank you for the recommendations.
Yes, it was a late afternoon shoot. The lighting was just getting nice when we wrapped up (2 hours later).
The bride was very happy. She hired us for her wedding after she got the images.
The location was awesome, it was the grounds for a local art museum (only costs $20 to use the grounds). There were about 8 other photographers and clients there.

[auroraskye]

I think you did a great job for your first bridal session. My main comments are #1 needs a little more fill (she seems a bit underexposed), #2 looks a little flashy, I can see a shadow along side her and she's got pinlights in her eyes, and #3 also needs more fill, but it's got nice backlighting. Also with #3, she looks a bit oily, I think it needs a little more retouching. But overall, nice job, your color looks good and for the most part the light looks good too. It's no surprise she was happy with these, she looks gorgeous.

[dche5390]

#5 and 7 suffer from PnS syndrome where the DoF is too great. Framing superb in these two, just not very interesting. But hey, if the client loves it, who am I to say otherwise?

#4 is my favourite. Perhaps I've got a foot fetish.

[Yaamon]

You got some nice shots John.

Im a bit surprised that the photos are at f2.8 and your dof was so large.

You must have been shooting at the wide angle end of the tamron lens.

You should have shot more on the longer or mid range end of the tamron if that is what you used. I would then move back to frame the subject so you get a better bokeh.

A nice lens to consider for portraits and reasonable priced is the canon 85mm F1.8.

[Bobasaur]

I like 3, her eyes really POP! Should have shot a few with your 50 1.8

[k-style]

like everyone else said, a shallower DOF would have been much nicer....

[jmphotosa]

-All

Thanks for taking the time to critique the images.

This was definitely a learning experience. I learned more during the shoot and then after reviewing the photos than I have from all of the books I have been reading. Your input helps a lot.

Yes, I was using the tamron for those two infamous shots, and it was at the wider angle. I chalk it up to inexperience...I did not understand the effect that the wider angle would have on the picture, so instead of backing up, I just adjusted the lens.

I did shoot quite a few early on with the 50mm, but switched to the Tamron in the tight quarters of the porch area and then never switched back. Another learning point.

As I get more work (hopefully work = money) I plan to expand my lens selection next.

Thanks again,
John