JJ's 2 month birthday

[drummersteph]

I shot this picture of little JJ using window light in my home.

I believe the settings were as follows (I'll have to check a bit later to be sure)

ISO 400
f2.0
1/125
50mm lens

I would love comments on both the image composition and processing.

[i speak in math]

Lighting looks nice. My only CC would be that the face looks a little red/orange in the shadows. I would like to see a similar shot taken on his level. Get down to the same height as his face and have him look over at you. Try not to get your shadow on him though.

[drummersteph]

I have been fighting with those reds. Partly it is his skin tone (got to love red heads), but partly it is camera bias I think. I've been trying to calm them down, obviously not with the success that I would hope for. Thanks for the suggestion. Glad to know I'm not the only one seeing that.

[SusanH1970]

Firstly, let me say he is beautiful! Love the red hair and big blue eyes, and you've caught such an adorable expression.

As I Speak in Math said, the lighting does look good - nice and even. The overall image is a bit soft, though. A slightly tighter crop and some work on the red tones and blotchiness would make this even sweeter than it already is. A touch of eye-pop (not too much, as his eyes are pretty intense just the way they are) might be nice, too. If you'd like me to have a play at it, let me know, I'd love to!

You can try lowering your ISO a bit and shooting at a slightly slower shutter speed for a little more clarity, too. Maybe 1/100 and ISO 200? That works for me a lot of the time with window light, but it depends on the camera used, too. I'm far from an expert so take my advice with a grain of salt, LOL.

[drummersteph]

Susan H1970 you're welcome to take a stab at it. I'm always open to input and love to see what others can see in my image. I guess I didn't write it but I am shooting with a D300 with my 50mm f1.8 (my favorite lens).