Please critique my composition, and overall idea of my project.

[BrandonKeeling]

Nikon D90
no flash
28mm
F5.6
ISO-200

This is a shot from a project i'm working on called $2 Portraits. I walk around the city on a back packing trip and any person that ask me for money i offer to take there portrait for $2. My plan is to go to seven major cities and then try to publish a book about my journeys and the people i encounter.

[Ladyblackswan]

I like the idea.....it would be good if there was a story to go with it from the people. Who they are, who they were. It could be a really eye opening book.

[JFSanders]

Good idea but crop in as the people are your focus. The story part is also a good idea, use street names and get releases signed. Just a paragraph or less is needed but more than a caption or a long caption as it were.

Jim

[kmarie93]

This is neat, love the idea- good luck! If we critique your pics do we get an autographed copy of your book? :P

I think the picture is good. I also think it would have looked neat if you would have shot landscape, stood next-ish to them and gotten the grafitti sideways/going away from them, if that makes sense. I wider aperture would have really drawn in the subject and made it look like the grafitti goes on for miles, given more drama, in a way. But I understand that you'd want to get the art in focus as well.

For future pictures, it might be cool to find something to document where you're at within the picture. For example, if you're in NY find something that you can only find in NY or that references New York and shoot there, might be cool.

Just my thoughts

Best of luck to you! Keep posting your pictures, I wanna follow along (!!!!)

[BrandonKeeling]

When these shots were taken it was very early on when i started photography, but i still enjoy them. this is another from the collection. it was taken in San Francisco.

[swiftmed]

I really love this idea. I also loved the first image you posted, the composition is nice, I love the colours of the graffiti, I maybe would have tried to separate them from that background slightly to try and blow out the background so that the main focus of the image is on the people, not the massive doses of colour going on behind them.

Does that make sense?

[BrandonKeeling]

Thanks for all the support with my idea. Yes it does make sense Andrew. I didn't want to move my subjects from the original state I found them in, so next shoot I will explore more angles. It's 2 yrs sense these images were taken, and I feel i have gotten over most insecurities a new photographer goes through when shooting people. Now i try not to let those things get in the way of my great shot, I'm headed back to San Francisco in Sep. to go at this again. I'm so stoked, and i have alot of new Ideas brewing for the shots i want. Thanks again I'll post a few more samples if you would like, but I can't let all of my goodies out of the bag.

[swiftmed]

Yeah I completely understand not wanting to move them. You want them in the same position you found them in rather than your own position - the minute you try to move somebody and 'pose' them, most of the time the image shows that.

And yeah Id love to see more shots when you head back out that way. I look forward to it. Good luck with the project, and for the book.

[BrandonKeeling]

This is Richard, He ask for his portrait like 7 times. I guess he figured out what every other model figured out about making money,lol. I really got my money worth talking to Richard.

[BrandonKeeling]

I didn't really get this guys story, but I left him $2 for his work anyway.