Trying to capture culture and warmth

[AmberTillman]

I'm looking for composition and lighting critiques here. Is it too much brick? is she too warm? etc.



EXIF
Exposure: 0.004 sec (1/250)
Aperture: f/3.5
Focal Length: 28 mm
ISO Speed: 1600
Exposure Bias: -1/3 EV
Flash: On, Fired
White balance set to cloudy for warmth. it wasn't cloudy
I was in aperture priority mode

[scootermcq]

I am in no way a pro, so I can only tell you what I feel when I look at the picture, so take it with a grain of salt. I think there is too much brick and the focus should be on her. I think the rule is she should be 2/3 of the frame, but I could be wrong. I also find the fact that the brick does not run parallel to the frame distracting, and maybe should be rotated to being level in PP.

[Lois khalafalla]

Was this taken at night? I was wondering about the high ISO and flash. She is a beautiful woman. I think the bricks don't do her justice. Her color and color of her clothes and the bricks seems to blend together. IMO. The wall seems to be tilting, which is distracting. I think I would put her in front of something more colorful. Make her beauty stand out.

[AmberTillman]

I didn't even realize my ISO was so high... ooops. It was middle of a sunny day in LA. 80 degrees. I was wondering about the brick. I cropped it, and coudn't tell, so I posted this one. It is so i nterested to hear other opinions. Thanks so much!
Here is the croped version.

Now the weird thing about the bricks, if you notice o nthe original pic, the bottom row is straight, but the top isn't... I couldn't get it straight in any of my shots.



Other than the bricks competing, is the cropping better?

Here is another pic, maybe white balance is best?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/amberjaye1/4359520685/
Exposure: 0.04 sec (1/25)
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire

[WooD]

I dont see any row of bricks as being straight/level.

If you had moved her about 8 to 10 foot from the wall, I think it would have come out a lot better.

[jax314]

Getting the bricks straight is tough, if not impossible...but I tried if you don't mind.....

Jaxon

[scootermcq]

Bricks looks good now.....

Was the wall curved or something, because you are right in the large picture the bricks are screwy.

[LeeR]

Using a brick wall like this is always problematic especially if you don't have access to a perspective control lens. One way to deal with this would be to intentionally skew the shot at an angle (see the thread on "Dutch Tilt")

[AmberTillman]

I can't remember if the wall was curved. I think it was just my lens... not sure.

Jax, how did you get the bricks straight? photoshop? Incredible. makes a huge difference. I shot a few diagonally so I didnt have to worry about the bricks.


Not quite a dutch tilt i guess, since her head isn't tilted..... but some tilting definitely going on.