Portrait attempting child photography

[szuzu1969]

This is my first serious attempt at child photography. What do you think about the lighting and composition. What would you have done differently. Thanks for looking B-)




Here is the exif

Camera Canon EOS REBEL T1i
Exposure 0.003 sec (1/320)
Aperture f/5.6
Focal Length 154 mm
ISO Speed 200
Exposure Bias 0 EV
Flash Off, Did not fire
X-Resolution 72 dpi
Y-Resolution 72 dpi
Date and Time (Modified) 2010:10:13 00:26:58
YCbCr Positioning Co-sited
Exposure Program Manual
Date and Time (Original) 2010:10:13 00:26:58
Date and Time (Digitized) 2010:10:13 00:26:58
Metering Mode Spot

[scubajen]

Focus seems to soft to me.--cute kid!

[kristenh]

well, i'm just a newbie, but here's what i think:

i love the way she is looking right at the camera and like her expression. if she had turned her head just a bit more to her right, you would have gotten the very nice effect of the sun, which i like, on just her hair and it wouldn't have made shadows on her face. i don't know if you cropped it, but if you did, i'd like to see more of her head and less of her shirt. or just less shirt even if you have more head. including more head would also let you put her eyes right on that "rule of thirds" line, which i think will be nice. i think it's a nice shot overall, though

[Jolemery]

I would like to see the top of her head also, I would have used a reflector to add light to the shadow side of face. Nice photo and cute child.

[szuzu1969]

Originally Posted by kristenh

well, i'm just a newbie, but here's what i think:

i love the way she is looking right at the camera and like her expression. if she had turned her head just a bit more to her right, you would have gotten the very nice effect of the sun, which i like, on just her hair and it wouldn't have made shadows on her face. i don't know if you cropped it, but if you did, i'd like to see more of her head and less of her shirt. or just less shirt even if you have more head. including more head would also let you put her eyes right on that "rule of thirds" line, which i think will be nice. i think it's a nice shot overall, though

Okay so here is the original with only the color removed and the contrast increased a bit.



same exif as above.

[jojonac]

I think you made an excellent crop from the original. Her hair is a little out of control and the crop you made did a good job of masking that. The harsh shadow that falls accross her face I could do with out. I would have either used a reflector, to help soften the shadow, or moved the girl fully in or out of the shade. Hope this helps.

jojo

[candleman]

the crop is good... keep it that way

1. the lighting is waaaaaaaaaaaaaay too harsh, she's obviously in direct sunlight.
you need soft diffused light to contour the shape of the face without harsh lines.

move her to shade and use a reflector to bounce a little light onto her to create some nice soft light.
(youtube on how to use a photographic reflector)

2. you need catchlights
(those bright sparks of light in the eyes.. and thats only achieved by a dominant light source close to the subject. (normally these are created by the same Key light that is used to "shape the face" in point 1.)

3. try a little more pleasant background.. you kept it nice and simple, no distractions.. but dead brown leaves dont envoke feelings of cuteness.. so use your background to help the emotion in your portrait.

4. emotion.. well.. there is none..
she's kindof sitting there, no sparkle in there eye and this doesnt tell me much about her as a person.
she's kindof just.. there.
(insert eye roll in anticipation of heated backlash)
not every portrait need sto be a smiling portrait.. but this is a cute little girl, so show her cuteness.
get her to play with a flower, tel you a story.. anything to get that little personality to shine out and make her "cute".

the biggest thing is the light..
learn how to light a person properly, and you've won most of the battle.

[szuzu1969]

Originally Posted by candleman

the crop is good... keep it that way

1. the lighting is waaaaaaaaaaaaaay too harsh, she's obviously in direct sunlight.
you need soft diffused light to contour the shape of the face without harsh lines.

move her to shade and use a reflector to bounce a little light onto her to create some nice soft light.
(youtube on how to use a photographic reflector)

2. you need catchlights
(those bright sparks of light in the eyes.. and thats only achieved by a dominant light source close to the subject. (normally these are created by the same Key light that is used to "shape the face" in point 1.)

3. try a little more pleasant background.. you kept it nice and simple, no distractions.. but dead brown leaves dont envoke feelings of cuteness.. so use your background to help the emotion in your portrait.

4. emotion.. well.. there is none..
she's kindof sitting there, no sparkle in there eye and this doesnt tell me much about her as a person.
she's kindof just.. there.
(insert eye roll in anticipation of heated backlash)
not every portrait need sto be a smiling portrait.. but this is a cute little girl, so show her cuteness.
get her to play with a flower, tel you a story.. anything to get that little personality to shine out and make her "cute".

the biggest thing is the light..
learn how to light a person properly, and you've won most of the battle.

Thanks for the feedback. I love how straightforward you are. I agree totally about the the light. It was mid day and I did not have a reflector. I will not make the same mistake. I did not eye roll because I know there is something off with the picture and that is why I asked. No worries on my end. I value what you have said and will make every effort to creat a different picture in the same spot (old castle). I will be sure to post the follow up. Thanks again.

[MrJones]

previous comments said almost everything on how this photo could have been "saved".
I want to talk about the location you chose to begin with, with regards to the lightning.
to tell you the truth, if this is a paid job or an actual session and not just a candid photo, you chose the worse location possible and you should have seen it right from the beginning.
look at the lightning on her face, there is no way this could have worked. you are taking a photograph in the shade with a strong, harsh light beam coming from the side through something that blocks some of it, creating harsh lightning and shadows on her face.
now, this can work if you mean it and plan on using it, but my guess is you didn't notice it till you got home.

I know I sound harsh but believe me, I've been there too and sometimes I fail in this situations too. it happens to all of us and we are all here to learn. even those with experience of over 20 years.
I'm just giving you something to think about for your second shoot which I'm certain will come soon

PS.
I'm really not sure a reflector would have saved the day here. you would still get an unbalanced shadows and light across her face.

[Gaurav Prabhu]

For catchlights, fire the on-camera flash at its lowest power. I would like to see more of her face in the frame than her body. Again soft light through curtains or diffusers would be preferred.