Flat

[hciere]

I like the expression on my niece's face in this photo but it feels flat to me. It was a blah day so no nice light to add any interest and I had virtually no clean backgrounds to work with so this background is not ideal. I am wondering - are those factors the cause of this image not working? Or something else? And does anyone have any suggestions for PP that could add some punch and interest? I've done curves, contrast and WB... Thanks in advance.



Any tips in general for shooting on grey days would also be appreciated.

EXIF:
Exposure 0.003 sec (1/400)
Aperture f/1.8
Focal Length 50 mm
ISO Speed 320
Exposure Bias 0 EV
Flash Off, Did not fire

[carlyfan]

I really like this image! She is very pretty, and I think the lighting is fine. (I love winter light!) Overcast days are generally better than direct harsh sunlight. The background doesn't really bug me either, but I wish her right eye was not blocked by her hair. As for PP, I would try levels (or is that the same thing as curves?). Have you tried B&W? That might be cool; plus it would help with the colors in the background. I don't really know; I just wanted to say that I like it. Nice shot!

Lisa

[shon.williams]

First off I think it's a great shot. The background is not at all distracting and you have a great subject. Here is your image again after I put it in Lightroom. I raised the exposure +0.05, adjusted the white balance temperature to make the image a little cooler, increased the blacks in the histogram, and desaturated it a little

[edbayani]

yes, it does look flat. you can pp by using shadows and highlights to lighten the coat since it does not have any detail. desaturate a little of the cheeks with sponge tool and 20% opacity and adjust in levels for more contrast.

[carlyfan]

Okay, since everyone else is posting their edits, I will too.

Here's what I would do.

For this one I just adjusted levels a bit to give it more pop.

Here's my B&W


Lisa

[tasmo2]

Ok.. so I had a really hard time uploading this pic! And im still not sure it actually uploaded! LOL! But if it worked... Here is my 2 cents.. I think you had a GREAT shot! Her expression is great! So all that I did is go in and adjust the levels a bit, and do some basic pp... sharpening, skin smoothing, hair smoothing.. etc.. soften it up and then give it some pop! Great shot!

[kristenh]

when it comes to pping, i am a devoted edbayani follower, and i do love what he did to the coat, but i like the softness and pinkness of the face on carlyfan's edit for this one. it's a great shot to begin with, though.

[hciere]

Thank you all for the awesome feedback. Sometimes you just need someone else (or a few someone elses) to take a stab and show you some alternatives. I really appreciate everyone taking the time and it gives me lots of ideas to finalize this photo. I can now see where I went overboard and where I didn't do enough with the PP. Thank you again!