Depth of Field: Is it a distraction in this photo?

[Jayco304]

So I am new to this. I have setup a basic home studio. This is recent shot I did with my daughter. Shot with Nikon D40x at ISO 200, Shutter speed 1/200 at F1.8. I was using to off camera speedlights. My question does the little out of focus at the front and back of the chair distract from the photo? Would it have been better to go with more depth of field? This is as shot with no post processing. Any other comments welcome.

[highlydope]

It's hard to tell since there's not much going on in the background but the DOF in this photo is very subtle - I think the child is a bit out of focus however. Otherwise, the picture while well lit and exposed, seems a bit clinical to me and the stark contrast, size and detail of the chair and child's clothing is overwhelming the subject. It could be improved (in my opinion) by shaking things up a bit. Maybe by trying a less busy chair, draping something over it, or by turning the chair for a 3/4 pose. You could also try positioning the subject off center, or providing a bit more interest in the background, but most importantly (and I know how hard this can be) by trying to capture some emotion from the child. When shooting portraits I always repeat the same phrase in my head "one subject". It helps me a lot. Good luck!