First Senior Pictures.. Feedback please??!!

System

Hey, this was my first experience shooting senior pictures and I thought they turned out pretty good. These are just a few from the shoot that I liked the editing on. The rest are at this link here http://jondraperphotography.smugmug.com/gallery/7670127_iDxjC/1/495214134_ibDG5. Please leave me some feedback because I am still learning more and more every day and enjoy the critiques. Thanks!

heatherfeather

That first one is a stunner. Simply amazin'.

The rest all have little issues to work on.
2- Her face is oof and she has raccoon eyes.
3-1/2 of the photo is completely blown.
4-Find some shade. That hot sun is really blowing out your highlights.

But all of that is redeemed by that stunning 1st one. That one is a wall hanger.

Cuties02q

I really like #1!! #2 is oof but #3 I do like even with the blown half

System

Yeah, both number 3 and 4 I actually intentionally high keyed them a bit.. maybe didn't do a good job of it.. but number 3 is basically exactly how I wanted them to look.. with the blown out highlights.. the original pictures were not blown in the originals.. but maybe there's another way to give the same effect without blowing them out? Anyway, thanks for the comments!

Agnieszka

heatherfeather wrote:

That first one is a stunner. Simply amazin'.

The rest all have little issues to work on.
2- Her face is oof and she has raccoon eyes.
3-1/2 of the photo is completely blown.
4-Find some shade. That hot sun is really blowing out your highlights.

But all of that is redeemed by that stunning 1st one. That one is a wall hanger.

+1

Chrissiebeez_NL

say what you want but i'm totally falling for #3!

Love the liveliness of the photo! The blown highlight add something of a very sunny day to the shot, something i would like about now

I think you did well in the first and third shot but the second and last dont do that much for me. Second is OOF or at least unsharp and her hand looks like an amputated stump. last shot: snapshot feeling: centered, blown out but not adding anything IMO, tilted in such a degree it looks unintentional.

Not trying to get you down just giving my input.

How did she like the shots?

zoomer

Love the first one, very nice.

System

yeah, the last one is kinda snapshotty.. but at a point you got to do a few for people because for parents it's all about how they can see the kid.. and the artistic angles don't always get the parents favorites.. but anyway, I actually have not gotten a response from them on the pictures yet. I'm sure I will later tonight. And no worries on getting me down.. i'm enjoying hearing what everyone has to say. Thanks!

jeffreaux2

I am not seeing a couple of them for some reason, but do agree with Heathers comments. #1 is a keeper for sure.

In general....The skin work that you have done appears plasticky.....too smooth. Be careful of that....it doesn't take too much of that to make folks not...look...like...themselves. If acne is aproblem....there are better ways to fix it than going blurry.

speedsk8r

Love 1 and 2.

Cantfeelmyfingers

I too am another vote for the first. I took the liberty of looking at your site, one thing I did notice though, throughout several sets, were several eyes look wayyy oversharpened, there are many strong images throughout your sets, and imo they would be that much better if they were toned down just a wee bit. Overall though, very nice!

printergirl

Just my opinion, take it for what its worth. Others here have far more photography experience than me, so I am going to offer my critique as a casual observer only.

#1: While I like the shot, for a senior portrait it does nothing for me. You can't really see the girl. Great shot of the architecture, etc. but I though Sr. pics were to highlight the PERSON. If I was her mother I doubt I would pick this one as a keeper.

#2: Something bothered me initially about this one, then I realized part of it was her hand. At first I thought it was deformed or something, because I couldn't really see her fingers.

#3: Call me crazy, but I really like this one, even with the 1/2 blown highlights. Its very bright and highlights her face. My favorite of the bunch.

#4: I like the colors in this one too. I wish there was more detail in her face however.

I also like #20 and #45 from her album on your site.

Mike J

The setting for #1 is fantastic as is the shot. My one nit with this one is the little bit of brightness off the right side of her head. This almost makes it looked she was extracted from another photo and dropped into this background.

#2 Like this one but I would crop a little off the right to reduce the amount of blown space there. I like the look - just think there is too much of it.