Taking a stroll

[kasiakoz]

Another quick shot I took of my daughter. Looking for tips on exposure and composition.
Thanks!

Camera Canon EOS REBEL T2i
Exposure 0.004 sec (1/250)
Aperture f/7.1
Focal Length 55 mm
ISO Speed 200

[MrJones]

exposure seems fine to me, love to see that photo with her face to the camera.
but why oh why take the photo from above? it gives it that regular mommy snapshot which, well, everyone does. why not get on the floor and take it from the ground eye level? I bet that would have made this photo really stand out of the rest
and yes, I know it's hard to think about these things when you're kid is walking and you have that fraction of a second to actually take the shot.

[kasiakoz]

Originally Posted by MrJones

exposure seems fine to me, love to see that photo with her face to the camera.
but why oh why take the photo from above? it gives it that regular mommy snapshot which, well, everyone does. why not get on the floor and take it from the feet eye level? I bet that would made this photo really stand out of the rest
and yes, I know it's hard to think about these things when you're kid is walking and you have that fraction of a second to actually take the shot.

Thanks, I will have to keep that in mind.

[mattjordan]

I agreee with MrJones about the prespective. Whenever I shoot kids I even candidly, I bring the camera to their eye-level or lower. I personally think it makes the photo more personal and less intimidating. Nevertheless this is a great shot, with wonderful fall colors.

[Eileen D]

I agree about the eye level perspective but I want to say that I love the details of the red sneakers, the rolled cuffs, the hands in the pockets. I also like the way the sidewalk draws us through the image. Well done!

[Laurenbiz]

I can't agree more with the comments about perspective! Get down on the ground! :-)

[NgaiHill]

I second the comments about getting lower, even just to drop to one knee would get you there. But I like your composition and the child's body language is great - hands in pockets, head down, really suits the shot-from-behind angle here.
And only just to be a little bit picky but I find that that cross path at the top of the frame kind of stops my eye, I think this wouldn't be so noticable if you were lower and could then see further along the path.

[Rpulliam]

I agree with the cross path. It draws the eye towards that. Just a straight walkway would be better suited. I also agree with dropping the eye level of the camera down. This would also help with the sun light hitting the hair on the top left hand side.

[DivotMaker]

I am going to go slightly against the grain here...

I like the height of the camera....however,

Turn the camera, to shoot in portrait
Attempt to frame so your daughter is in the lower right 1/3
Lean the top of the camera slightly forward.
Attempt to crop the cross walk as much as possible

What I would have attempted to achieve:
Portrait - brings the path more into subject, removing the crossing path from grabbing my eye.
Leaning forward - Help the path achieve a little more perspective to draw my eye into the picture.
Framing 1/3 - Continue the nice job you did in this shot, in proportion
Height - Looking slightly down on the child, reminds me of the innocence..helps with the perspective...and allows my eye to continue down the path without the child blocking the view...

Just my 2c's....but don't let these comments take away from the nice job you did..

I do like this photo, the way it is...the collar tag, the rolled up cuffs, hands in the pockets and the red sneakers... priceless.

[deck]

Ok I'll also go against the grain here, and politely shoot all the "get down to the ground" suggestions here
Hehe, first of all I would like to say that it is a pretty clean shot, kid in the third of the picture, the intersection placed right at the head level therefore not making an awkward cut, the exposure is fine and the walk is caught mid-stride, I just don't know if it's intentional

Now about the comments on getting lower... I would also agree with the general guideline of getting lower to get to the eye level of the kid, but then again I don't know what the background would look like in that situation and IMHO might come up with a messier background (or maybe nicer, I don't know) and another thing is, why go eye level when you don't see the eye?