Anastasia

[billtils]

C&C welcome.

[Round Tuit]

Bill,

I am not a portrait photographer but I would suggest that the background is too busy and too bright to let your model stand out. Had her dress been less busy, it might have helped but not likely enough. The other thing that does not work for me is the cropping of her left (camera right) shoulder and arm.

[billtils]

Andre, these were pretty much my initial feelings too, but the image grew on me with time - specifically the way that the window and dress complemented each other and contrasted with her pose (red flower and red lips for example).

Well spotted too on the crop - there was quite a lot of "junk" on that side - the pole that seems to be growing out of her shoulder for example. One of the great things about CIC is that it gives us the chance to bounce ideas around in its critical but friendly community.

[Manfred M]

A nice shot here, but I feel a bit more work in post would be worth considering.

If this were my image, I would go with a much tighter crop. All that material above her head is distracting and does not add to the main subject. The skin on the arms along the bottom edge are a bit distracting. so eliminating those areas is worth considering. I suspect that this shot would work well as a classic 4:5 format. This brings the red flower into more prominence and does what you appear to have tried for with it.

I'd also look at burning down the background to get Anastasia to stand out against it some more. I suspect a very slight vignette would be worth considering. Burning down the bright spots on the background at the top right puts more attention on your subject too.

The catch lights in here eyes are effective and I suspect adding a bit of brightness on a small part of her lips would be worth looking at as well.

[billtils]

Super edit and suggestions Manfred - thank you. I'll have another look (and will mute the yellow areas at the top of her dress too).

[billtils]

Here is a version edited to take account of all the comments. Curiously enough, given Dan's post on using blend modes rather than burning, this was edited by making a new fill layer, fill with white at 80% opacity, soft light blend mode, and paint with black brush.

[Chataignier]

Much better - the crop in particular. Overall I'm not a huge fan but that's not a reflection on the photography, but because I find her makeup too heavy and contrasty - her mouth looks quite artificial.

[billtils]

Much better - the crop in particular. Overall I'm not a huge fan but that's not a reflection on the photography, but because I find her makeup too heavy and contrasty - her mouth looks quite artificial.

Thanks David - and i agree about the makeup but there was nothing I could do about it!

[Manfred M]

Much better - the crop in particular. Overall I'm not a huge fan but that's not a reflection on the photography, but because I find her makeup too heavy and contrasty - her mouth looks quite artificial.

That is personal taste / opinion.

From a photographer's standpoint. a subject that wears well applied makeup reduces the amount of work required in post significantly as far less retouching is generally required. It can take away the hot spots on the forehead, chin, bridge and tip of the nose. It can show / enhance the contours of the cheekbones very nicely. Skin defects are nicely covered up quite nicely by a well applied foundation.

On the opposite end, pearlized eye shadow and / or lipstick can cause problems as they can throw hot spots back at the camera. Poorly applied makeup can require retouching as well.

I prefer shooting models who have seen a makeup artist and hair stylist. They reduce my work by a lot...