Big eyes in a small bathtub

[cshine]

Hello there, this is my virgin post so please be gentle I am trying to improve my portrait work so I would welcome your feedback on this, which I took last year with my 350D and kit lens. Thanks in advance!



EXIF info:

Camera: Canon EOS 350D Digital
Exposure: 0.017 sec (1/60)
Aperture: f/5.0
Focal Length: 18 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Exposure Bias: -2/3 EV
Flash: On, Fired

more here, not sure how much you might need!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/craigsh...50808034/meta/

[PinkLens]

Aww..so cute! Im a newbie so dont really know how to critique-just wanted to come around and say that the little one is terrible cute. And yes, very big, precious eyes

Thanks for posting-welcome to DPS! Im sure the others will give you comments to work on
Priya.

[cshine]

Thanks Priya!

I guess if nobody has any suggestions the shot is either perfect or beyond help

[PinkLens]

Nah, dont say that-it definitely is not beyond help. Give it a bit of time, I am SURE someone will get back to you. Dont you give up!

[lcb]

i'm no expert by any means but i think it is a great shot
love the black and white, you can just imagine what's
going thru his mind. the closeup is in focus, the shadows are
gradual, and the bubbles are very visible.
lcb

[SterlingNYC]

This is a fantastic photo! I really enjoy your choice of a short lens to add the cartoonish emphasis on the eyes and forehead, and it's amazing that it's so crisp and full of expression considering the shutter speed and that babies wiggle so much.
It has such an air of innocence and clarity it might be fun to play that up by trying out the channel mixer technique of generating black and white photos and adding going heavier on the red channel. This will make the skin lighter, almost white, and add to the contrast with the eyes. If you find this whites out certain reflective spots on the forehead, sometimes that can be corrected with the healing tool.
This is a great photo that will be jolly blackmail material for years to come!

[irishmuth]

I think you're getting few critiques because it really is a great and adorable photo. The only thing I can think of is that there is that the flash created a pretty harsh shadow on the left side of the photo. But you got the most important thing, which is really sharp focus on the eyes.

[cshine]

Originally Posted by lcb

i'm no expert by any means but i think it is a great shot
love the black and white, you can just imagine what's
going thru his mind. the closeup is in focus, the shadows are
gradual, and the bubbles are very visible.
lcb

Thanks lcb - I'm really glad you like it I guess for me it's maybe a little too dark but maybe this adds to the drama of it all, I don't know..

Originally Posted by SterlingNYC

This is a fantastic photo! I really enjoy your choice of a short lens to add the cartoonish emphasis on the eyes and forehead, and it's amazing that it's so crisp and full of expression considering the shutter speed and that babies wiggle so much.

Thanks! And you're right, I managed to catch him at a rare still moment - the other shots in the series were pretty blurry. As for my choice of lens, it was the only one I owned at the time so I can't take any credit there :-)

Originally Posted by SterlingNYC

It has such an air of innocence and clarity it might be fun to play that up by trying out the channel mixer technique of generating black and white photos and adding going heavier on the red channel. This will make the skin lighter, almost white, and add to the contrast with the eyes. If you find this whites out certain reflective spots on the forehead, sometimes that can be corrected with the healing tool.

Great, I'll do some Googling and try that technique next time. In my innocence I set the camera to take B&W JPGs instead of shooting RAW and converting later - something I really regret now.

Originally Posted by SterlingNYC

This is a great photo that will be jolly blackmail material for years to come!

No shortage of embarrasing photos waiting for him when he grows up. Thank God we grew up in the pre-digital era and only have a handful of mortifying shots lying around!

Originally Posted by irishmuth

I think you're getting few critiques because it really is a great and adorable photo. The only thing I can think of is that there is that the flash created a pretty harsh shadow on the left side of the photo. But you got the most important thing, which is really sharp focus on the eyes.

Thanks for the feedback - and I agree, it's a bit darker than I'd like in some parts. I have a better flash now (this was the onbaord flash) so hopefully that would help the illumination without washing out the detail..