Kim - C&C welcome

Did a shoot with a long-time friend of mine a couple weeks ago. She was a lot of fun to work with, and we'll be getting together again. She was happy with these.

1.

everything seems kinda flat.. no contrast.. nothing really special
reminds me of my moms portraits she has from late 80s early 90s..
dunno..

what has always puzzled me is that a presence of a white wrinkly sheet behind a model. Seriously, it is so much better to shoot in the kitchen or the living room for that matter. I mean - you have to either blow out the BG or just simply put it on your bed and get a good nights sleep

second shot is lit better but i'd go with longer lens and fist supporting her head doesnt look good to me

Always photograph into the side of a hand on a woman. Much more feminine.. Chin is up too high on the last one, bring it down and her nose wouldn't look so big. There is just no substitute for really beautiful flattering lighting. Bring your light source closer and use a reflector for fill. Keep refining and working. We all started somewhere. If you are going to use the sheet/muslin, try steaming it first. Wrinkles are next to impossible to correct for in post. Above all, don't get discouraged. It's all part of the process.

Thanks for the tips. That's what I need to hear to get better. Personally I think these are a LOT better than my first shoot in November (I've only done 4 so far). Fortunately I have a lot of friends who will put up with me practicing. I tried doing self portraits for practice, but that didn't work as well.

Digitalphotocandy - discouraged? Yep. Been there - a lot. Muttering a lot of "Why can't I get these lights right?" type of comments. But give up? Heck no. I'll keep shooting.