Settle an argument please

[AdrenoJunkie]

Ok so me and my model are having a disagreement on this one. I think this is a great shot(for my skill level). She thinks it's a terrible shot and that she looks bad in it because her mouth is open, there is a fold on her neck and she has no well defined cheekbones. I don't think any of those things detract from the photo whatsoever. Am I wrong here? Keep in mind I am not a pro and this was not a paid shoot. I will also take any other crtiques you have. This was shot with natural light from the window and just enough flash to give catchlights.


Exposure 0.006 sec (1/180)
Aperture f/2.8
Focal Length 60 mm
ISO Speed 200
Exposure Bias 0 EV
Flash Off, Did not fire

[CurlyCorry]

Personally, none of the things that she's pointed out pop out of the photo to me. I think its a very well composed shot, the lighting is great and her open mouth, to me, totally invokes a feeling of her emotions... like you've interrupted her thoughts and she's like.... "ughhhh...."

[RLucas]

None of the model's gripes are what I don't like. The biggest distraction to me is the window. The photo is well exposed, and sharp, but my eyes keep going right to the window. If you would have moved a little left, maybe you could have gotten that out of the way.
Did you have the flash on the floor? The catchlights are in the 4 o'clock position. Not a gripe, just wondering?

[oldwolf]

The open mouth doesn't bother me. I would have to agree with the model as far as the cheekbones and neck crease is concerned. You can easily fix that by having her stretch her neck out or dropping her shoulder and moving it back a bit. The cheekbones you can fix by take black foam core and holding it opposite the window. That will cut the light bouncing back onto the model's face.

The other things that bother me a little bit are the fingers growing out of her shoulder and the cut off arm. I don't think you should cut off limbs at the joints. Just looks unnatural to me. Her left eye is also covered up a bit too much. It's ok to cover up eyes but with wispy hair that you can see through so you can see most of the iris.

Anyway, that's just my two cents.

[AdrenoJunkie]

Thank you guys for weighing in on this.
@RLucas- The flash is slightly camera right at eye level. Is it the accepted standard to have the catchlights in the upper portion of the eyes or were you just curious?
@Oldwulf-Do you feel that those two things detract from the photo or her attractiveness? If it was your shot would you trash it because of those things?

[RLucas]

Originally Posted by AdrenoJunkie

@RLucas- The flash is slightly camera right at eye level. Is it the accepted standard to ?

I think conventional portrait "rules" are that they should be @ 11 or 2 o'clock. I personally don't have a problem with where they are. I was just curious.

[oldwolf]

Originally Posted by AdrenoJunkie

@Oldwulf-Do you feel that those two things detract from the photo or her attractiveness? If it was your shot would you trash it because of those things?

They detract from the photo in my eyes. They do not detract from her attractiveness but it unsettles the picture so that the eye is more concerned about what it doesn't like even though it might not know what it is. So instead of admiring the beauty of the model you're left wondering what is it about the picture you don't like.

If it was my shot I'd trash it and hope that I have one where her shoulder was dropped more or her neck was strethed out more.