Yoga girl. Initial thoughts please

I like the one with the clouds. The lighting on the skin looks a tad warm to me though.

The clouds work for me but the contrast is too strong. If you back off a bit more of her will surface.

The original with water strikes me better, but the first thing that strikes me is the lack of 'connection' with her due to her mostly facing away from the camera. It looks more like the shot was taken from a hiding spot, behind a tree, in the park.

It also looks like she's really struggling with the pose; something where she looks more at ease would likely inspire a little more confidence.

THanks all.

I certainly was not hiding! ha! I was using 135mm from an elevated position in relation to her


So a little more food for thought, the pose is called 'airplane' and the viewing should be at that angle.

So with the title of the pose as such I shall leave the clouds.

I do think I want to go back and shoot it again, with tighter fitting clothes, although I like the color and texture.

However, she is looking awkward on the pose, I needed her to be standing on her left leg not right

Here is my final edit of it tonight, this is what I shall work from!

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OP - the original image looks great. I'd only suggest things you have already stated. Tighter clothes, as the wrinkles are really cluttering up the image. The use of a better pose, and personally, I'd like to see more of the subjects face, more contact with the camera and the market-intended group would be good IMO.

Less clarity on the clouds. The hard outlines are distracting from the subject.

I think the first one, but cool down the sky/clouds. Too warm.

I like the original. Yoga is all about serenity and harmony with nature and one's self. Clouds speak perfectly to that. So does low contrast. Many suggestions have been made from a technical perspective. However, you must consider the client's goals as paramount.

When I first saw this, it looked like some strange woman had clambered onto our gable end and looked rather surreal. However, your explanation of the pose adds context to the image and it makes sense. I would ditch the contrast as the obvious and dominating creases in the edit makes me wonder if the lady owns a steam iron which dilutes what was an original attention grabbing image.

It really is a boring pose and the clouds don't make it any better. By making it into a B&W (I know it wasn't you) it turned into a boring shot in B&W. A lot of people think B&W makes it instant art and it doesn't. Any more poses from this series to choose from? anything that will connect your audience to your picture?

Ok. So here are my thoughts

This is the pose that she wants, so I am going to go with it, however I would love to shoot it again with her and for her to pose on her left leg, therefore she can have her chest and face tilted more towards me, it will also allow for smoother lines.

I have reduced the contrast in the clouds significantly and also cooled her face down. For this image, I have reduced the contrast in her clothing too.

She likes this clothing, and I like the coloring. I am going to re-shot with someone else with different, tighter clothing to see the difference.

Thanks for all the input!

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the line between the brick ground and the sky is really odd... she's either standing on a brick roof or she found the edge of the world.

Chippy569 wrote in post #11469738
the line between the brick ground and the sky is really odd... she's either standing on a brick roof or she found the edge of the world.

It is even more odd in the water background. I get the sense that she is about to be washed away by a wall of water. (And one comment like that can ruin the image for many folks )

The sky BG seems too cluttered to me. Too many little clouds.

stillinamerica wrote in post #11469243
Ok. So here are my thoughts

This is the pose that she wants, so I am going to go with it, however I would love to shoot it again with her and for her to pose on her left leg, therefore she can have her chest and face tilted more towards me, it will also allow for smoother lines.

I have reduced the contrast in the clouds significantly and also cooled her face down. For this image, I have reduced the contrast in her clothing too.

She likes this clothing, and I like the coloring. I am going to re-shot with someone else with different, tighter clothing to see the difference.

Thanks for all the input!

i like this edit a lot and think the few tweaks you mentioned would be perfect.

edit..oh damn...just read the above comment about the brick and have to agree...hmm may need to fix that too.