Alexia

[deitz]

Hi All,
Here's my 1st picture in this forum.
Nikon D70, 18-55mm, direct sunlight, post processed in Lightroom 3.2.
Please do C&C

[jiro]

Hello, Ray from a fellow D70 user.

Lovely model, if I may say. If you are using photoshop I would recommend that you tone down that highlight on the nose of the model to avoid distraction. Second, you cropped the back of the model. For balance, it would be nice if you can fully position her inside the frame. The way she placed her thumb on her left hand is a bit different. I can't say it's bad but I just feel like it's a bit odd. I like how you used that muted color on the background as your choice of color. It made her stand out and become the main element of the scene. However, did you notice that small red column on her back? I would probably suggest you clone it out. Lastly, I would probably add a small amount of sharpening just on the eyes to really make it stand out and be the main focus on her beautiful face. Good shot, Man.

[rob marshall]

Hi Ray, and a warm welcome to CiC.

This is a very good effort, but there are several things that could be improved.

1. Part of her body (right arm, I think) is showing behind her left arm, and it looks a bit disconnected.
2. It would be nice to see her right eye (one with the hair over it)
3. There's a lot of shadow in the neck area, which possibly may have been improved without her hand there.
4. Try to avoid pillars/posts coming out of people's heads. It tends to spoil the balance of the subject.

I think you could have got a great shot here by moving her to a more sheltered area with just a plain background - perhaps just against the stone wall. She is so attractive that she doesn't need any extras in the shot.

Aren't you glad that you joined here?

[deitz]

Hi Jiro n Rob,

Agree with both of you, she is so lovely
Thanks for the C&C, and yeah I'm really glad to be here, hopefully I can learn and improve more
I will try my best to fix those area and will post it again later and perhaps I will post another picture of her

[whited3]

Ray,

I'll preface what I'm about to say; I know nothing about portrait photography!

Now that that's out of the way, what focal length is this taken at? She seems slightly distorted or out of proportion, as if the pic was taken at 18mm. Perhaps its an illusion caused by her right arm.

[deitz]

Hi Mark,

Thanks for the comment, I believed this one was taken at 50mm.

[Markvetnz]

Hi Ray

I have done a simple edit. Cropped in tighter to her face. Got rid of bright spot on her nose. Straightened the pillars before cropping them out. Got rid of bright background above her head. Selective sharpening on eye. Changed the colour balance a bit - skin tone looked yellowish to me. Like Jiro, I think that hand is not doing the picture any justice. Of course, these are only my personal preferences.

[deitz]

Hi Ray

I have done a simple edit. Cropped in tighter to her face. Got rid of bright spot on her nose. Straightened the pillars before cropping them out. Got rid of bright background above her head. Selective sharpening on eye. Changed the colour balance a bit - skin tone looked yellowish to me. Like Jiro, I think that hand is not doing the picture any justice. Of course, these are only my personal preferences.

Hi Mark,

Maybe it's becoz of my screen is not calibrate.
Like the picture that you posted, in my screen it will look totally pale.
I guess I need another screen

[Markvetnz]

[QUOTE=deitz;111074]

Hi Ray

I have done a simple edit. Cropped in tighter to her face. Got rid of bright spot on her nose. Straightened the pillars before cropping them out. Got rid of bright background above her head. Selective sharpening on eye. Changed the colour balance a bit - skin tone looked yellowish to me. Like Jiro, I think that hand is not doing the picture any justice. Of course, these are only my personal preferences.

Hi Mark,

Maybe it's becoz of my screen is not calibrate.
Like the picture that you posted, in my screen it will look totally pale.
I guess I need another screen

There is a lot on this forum about calibrating and profiling monitors. It is essential if you are serious about photography. I use a Spyder III. There are other devices available.

[Colin Southern]

Another interpretation - concentrating more on skin tones ...



For some reason the skin looks quite a bit over smoothed to me

[rob marshall]

There is a lot on this forum about calibrating and profiling monitors. It is essential if you are serious about photography. I use a Spyder III. There are other devices available.

Yes, there is. If you go to advanced search from the top of the forum page and hit 'view tag cloud' and enter 'colour management' you will find them all. This is probably the most comprehensive one, but there are others. monitor calibration - I suggest you all read this.

[rob marshall]

For some reason the skin looks quite a bit over smoothed to me

Colin. They call it 'youth'.

[deitz]

Colin. They call it 'youth'.

Why they call it youth?