Opinions please on which edit

Just looking at the temp & tint, color, shadows & contrast mainly; not a composition, candid vs portrait critque.

Which is more appealing?

Thank you.

My opinion only but I like #1 better. I feel the mid-tone/skin-tone has a bit more range to it. Plus there seems to be more difference in color range between the blue of his shirt to the green of the grass as compared to #2.

Shot #2 seems to lose the mid-tone while the darks are darker such as the area to the right side of his head (as we are looking at it) and the lighter areas are brighter (such as the grass).

Gart

I prefer #2. The colors look slightly more subdued and the shadows look slightly lifted on his face. I tend to prefer less contrast in portraits, so i may be partial. I also think #2 draws my attention to his face more so than #1.

I like #1, (or the one without the tree growing out of his shoulder.) ; )

#2 for me. Highlights seem less hot/harsh. Color and contrast are much better in #1, though.

Looks like a tie so far. I'll break it and choose #1. I like the saturated colors and extra contrast in this photo.

Thanks everyone!

About #1, what can I do to keep the poppy colors but tone down the hot spots on his face. I use Lightroom 99% of the time - if you can tell me in those terms that would be great! Would a brush be enough or is there another/better way?

daystar wrote in post #18151544
Thanks everyone!

About #1, what can I do to keep the poppy colors but tone down the hot spots on his face. I use Lightroom 99% of the time - if you can tell me in those terms that would be great! Would a brush be enough or is there another/better way?

Should be easy enough to just play around with pulling the Highlights slider down a bit (not too far or you'll flatten that uot too much) and the Lights/Highlights sliders on the Tone Curve panel to sort that out. The nice thing about Lightroom is that it's non-destructive, so you can do anything you want there and still be able to revert back to the base file if you want.

Snydremark wrote in post #18151551
Should be easy enough to just play around with pulling the Highlights slider down a bit (not too far or you'll flatten that uot too much) and the Lights/Highlights sliders on the Tone Curve panel to sort that out.

Going to go try that now.

Adjusted a few sliders on #1. Any better?

Now it just looks like #2. Try local adjustment on the face only, although I don't see the need.

rrblint wrote in post #18151569
Now it just looks like #2. Try local adjustment on the face only, although I don't see the need.

yeah, it did loose a little "pop" when I did that...I think the local is the better choice. Thanks!

daystar wrote in post #18151581
yeah, it did loose a little "pop" when I did that...I think the local is the better choice. Thanks!

local's probably better; you could always add a little back with a contrast adjustment, as well. There are a ton of ways to work with those, best to try several out and see what works best for the results you want to see.