What would you do to improve this shot?

[LinkBeam]

Hi everyone! I'm new to DPS forums and here goes my first post.

I wonder what would you do differently if you wanted to make a similar shot (with same equipment) AND what would you do differently (or in addition) to this image in PP in order to improve it?

Here is some info: Canon 7D, Canon 24-105 lens, umbrella with speedlight camera left, reflector camera right (gets lit up by another speedlight).

I was limited to using only two lights in a fairly dark room, so could not really have a hair light or a kicker here. I'm also somewhat unhappy I darkened her feet a bit (might need to redo this).

Thanks for all your opinions, suggestions and general feedback!

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[miyukisarah]

Welcome to DPS! Nice first post Please make sure to check out the forum critiqueing rules.

I love your choice of colors. They work well together. The flowers are a little confusing to them though. Where are they coming from? What is their purpose? They almost look like they're growing out of her head. I like the lighting for the most part, but I do agree you shouldn't have darkened her feet. It's almost like an awkward cut off. The vignette is offcentered and bothers me as well. That could just be personal preference though.

[LinkBeam]

Thank you for the response! I almost abandoned hope to see any reaction to my post. Almost a 100 views and no replies is a bit discouraging...

Flowers are in a vase right behind the model and they were brought in on purpose. The outfit, hair and makeup - everything was chosen to communicate a "joy of coming spring" kind of message and feel. I also was trying to use the flowers to get an extra separation from the background. With my lighting setup i needed something between the model and the background to draw a bit of attention so that the model does not appear too flat on seamless backdrop. Might not be the best choice, but I had no idea what else could be done. Any suggestions?

The darkening - I completely agree. I'll need to correct that or maybe get the transition to the darkness a bit more transparent...

Any response will be appreciated!

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[cheryl_bain]

Agree with the darkening...its...a little awkward...I do LOVE LOVE that deep shade of red behind..its a wonderful change from the black or white backgrounds we typically see. Love the shot!

[FallinWoman]

I agree about the darkening of her foot...it is distracting. I think I would like it better if the flowers were off to the left of the picture instead of directly behind her. Or maybe they aren't necessary at all. I am also a little distracted by the darkness on top of her head. Is that her roots or a dark shadow? I am nit-picking, though, because I like the shot!
To me the "joy of the coming spring" feel would be better shot outdoors with a natural background.

[LinkBeam]

Originally Posted by FallinWoman

To me the "joy of the coming spring" feel would be better shot outdoors with a natural background.

Generally i agree, but this shoot was done when it was -20C and we were having tons of snow

Without flowers I was afraid she'd look too flat on that background (I did not have any background lights or hair lights or kickers). I was sort of trying to bring more depth into the shot with flowers on the background. And I kinda loved the overal color tones of the flowers (looks quite good with the other colors in this shot IMO).

Thanks for responses, I appreciate this!

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[Laurenbiz]

I really like this and I love the red. In my opinion, I like the darkening.

The flowers, though, do bug me. My first thought to this photo was, "why are flowers there?"

[abarickman]

Welcome.

IMHO I really dislike how heavy the vignette is but if you are gonna use it avoid cutting off the foot.

Out of curiosity, not saying its wrong, why did you bounce a second flash into a reflector? I wonder if knocking down the reflector side strength would have added more contour?

[Benji]

This is one of those shots that is not all that good but not all that bad at the same time.

Benji

[reedtm]

I really like the posing of the model, and the lighting.

Have you thought about cutting back on the vignetting? To me, this just suggests a cheap lens. I think if you're going for a spring time look, you'll want to open/brighten it up!