On 1-2-4 your subject placement is nice and the lighting is OK but you've got racoon eyes. You need to get a fill flash or reflector under the brow to lighten that area. Look how effective the color of clothing goes with the background in 1&4 then take a look at 2. You need a higher key background with a white shirt. Remember bright colors come forward and dark colors receede.
He is a very handsome man, I'm guessing the first shot will be his fave as boys like that whole brooding thing huh?? haha. I like that one as well but his face is a little soft, seems the jacket is more in focus than the face.
The sleeve of his shirt looks blown out in the second shot, this shot may work better in black and white (????)
The third, the focus is nice I think but my monitor is reading the skin a tad yellow/greenish (my monitor is not calibrated though so take that with a grain of salt) and the cropping seems a bit tight around him.
Fourth one is very nice, probably the best in series but the smile seems forced a little but there's not much you can do for that.
The single most impressive thing about each of these photographs is how relaxed and comfortable your subject seems to be--not an easy trick with a guy, since most guys this age would rather have all of their teeth pulled with a dull pair of pliers than have their picture taken. Bravo.
The one thing that detracts from every image is that they are soft. I can't find the focus point in any of them and the DOF is too shallow (50mm lens with f/ range between 1.4 and 2.2) in every shot...if eyes are sharp, then the nose, lips and teeth have to be sharp too.
The face is overexposed in shots one and four--no texture to the skin. If blemishes are an issue, then fix the blemishes in post, but skin can't be hot to the point where there is no texture to it.
Hackbone makes a good point--the white shirt, red tie and dark background is a problem...the contrast is too stark. A soft blue shirt and a medium blue tie with a very small print would have solved this problem if you wanted to use the backgrounds you have in these two shots. Otherwise, use the white shirt and find a higher key background as Hackbone suggests.
If you fix the focus and contrast issues in each of these images, the last thing that detracts is the teeth--they're yellow. Someone has put a lot of money into this kid's mouth and he has a great smile, but lightening the teeth would improve the smile in every shot.
I don't mean to be harsh here, but you have a good eye for portraits. Connecting with a subject and getting them to relax and appear comfortable in front of the camera is very difficult and the single most important issue in every successful portrait. Paying attention to the details will make your images stand out.
Portraits are made by the eyes - make sure they are in focus. The first image is strong, but the patch of green grass is distracting to the composition. I actually like the contrast of #2, but the slight blur/lack of focus ruins the photo. Very cool image, I assume you intended that. Shallow DOF works here too. Not sure if I like the pose - looks too forced. #3 lacks good composition (the horizon chops his head), subject is to centered, and it is too warm for my tastes. #4 looks like #1 but without the attitude. I think the attitude adds something to the shot.
The one thing that detracts from every image is that they are soft. I can't find the focus point in any of them and the DOF is too shallow (50mm lens with f/ range between 1.4 and 2.2) in every shot...if eyes are sharp, then the nose, lips and teeth have to be sharp too.
I couldn't agree more. I have been having a tough time getting spot on sharpness with my 50mm f1.4. Any advice? Also, anyone know where I can find a good "sharpening" tutorial in photoshop? I am a relative novice when it comes to photoshop.
Thanks for all the great tips and criticism...keep them coming.
I couldn't agree more. I have been having a tough time getting spot on sharpness with my 50mm f1.4. Any advice? Also, anyone know where I can find a good "sharpening" tutorial in photoshop? I am a relative novice when it comes to photoshop.
Thanks for all the great tips and criticism...keep them coming.
The lack of sharpness issue needs to be addressed in camera and is not something the Photoshop will fix. You need to use DOF to keep the parts of the photograph that you want sharp in focus. Also, make sure that you have the image in focus. In the second image, your focus is simply off. You need to nail your focus 100% in camera.
Obviously this gets to be difficult when working with a fast lens like a 1.4. Your DOF is so thin that any bt of movement (from either camera or subject) will render to photo OOF. Perhaps it might be best to stop the lens down a bit to help you out.
The third, the focus is nice I think but my monitor is reading the skin a tad yellow/greenish (my monitor is not calibrated though so take that with a grain of salt) and the cropping seems a bit tight around him.
The third, the focus is nice I think but my monitor is reading the skin a tad yellow/greenish (my monitor is not calibrated though so take that with a grain of salt) and the cropping seems a bit tight around him.
I see these colours too.
Is this any better? I am fairly new to photoshop so any and all help is appreciated. Thanks
But for a "blind" photog.... He's doin pretty good.
I think your in need of a better monitor and/or a colour managing device. And perhaps get these printed up, 'as is'. It'll give ya an idea of what we're seeing.
I didn't spend a lot of time on it I just was trying to get all the green and yellow out of the skin color
It's better. Can't really say gone, though..... Have a hard time getting past the eyes and teeth now (real freaky)..... I don't think we're going to correct it like this.
It's better. Can't really say gone, though..... Have a hard time getting past the eyes and teeth now (real freaky)..... I don't think we're going to correct it like this.
Quick and dirty color correction
No other changes but color correction, and a conservative one at that. If you like it, here's what I did. In Photoshop, added a second layer and set the blending mode to Screen. Then filled the screen layer with a sort of obnoxious magenta-violet and set the opacity to somewhere between 10% and 15%. You could do the same thing with Image | Adjustments |Photo Filter or with a Photo Filter adjustment layer, but the screen layer made it really easy for me to click-check the whites on his shirt and adjust the "filter" color accordingly. The shirt still shows a little blue bias, but a lot of white shirts do, and I thought his face looked pretty close with this color. (Edit: Eyeballing it worked ok for me because my monitor is calibrated, and because I'm not invested in the precision of the result since it's not my pic. YMMV.)
You got the nasty yellow-green cast by shooting him in available light, where the grass in front of him reflected back onto his face. Could have improved it (and the panda eyes) with either a little pop of fill flash or a white or silver reflector.
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The sleeve of his shirt looks blown out in the second shot, this shot may work better in black and white (????)
The third, the focus is nice I think but my monitor is reading the skin a tad yellow/greenish (my monitor is not calibrated though so take that with a grain of salt) and the cropping seems a bit tight around him.
Fourth one is very nice, probably the best in series but the smile seems forced a little but there's not much you can do for that.
Overall I'm sure he'll be pleased with these
http://aliceswonderland.smugmug.com/
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The one thing that detracts from every image is that they are soft. I can't find the focus point in any of them and the DOF is too shallow (50mm lens with f/ range between 1.4 and 2.2) in every shot...if eyes are sharp, then the nose, lips and teeth have to be sharp too.
The face is overexposed in shots one and four--no texture to the skin. If blemishes are an issue, then fix the blemishes in post, but skin can't be hot to the point where there is no texture to it.
Hackbone makes a good point--the white shirt, red tie and dark background is a problem...the contrast is too stark. A soft blue shirt and a medium blue tie with a very small print would have solved this problem if you wanted to use the backgrounds you have in these two shots. Otherwise, use the white shirt and find a higher key background as Hackbone suggests.
If you fix the focus and contrast issues in each of these images, the last thing that detracts is the teeth--they're yellow. Someone has put a lot of money into this kid's mouth and he has a great smile, but lightening the teeth would improve the smile in every shot.
I don't mean to be harsh here, but you have a good eye for portraits. Connecting with a subject and getting them to relax and appear comfortable in front of the camera is very difficult and the single most important issue in every successful portrait. Paying attention to the details will make your images stand out.
I hope all of this is helpful!
I couldn't agree more. I have been having a tough time getting spot on sharpness with my 50mm f1.4. Any advice? Also, anyone know where I can find a good "sharpening" tutorial in photoshop? I am a relative novice when it comes to photoshop.
Thanks for all the great tips and criticism...keep them coming.
The lack of sharpness issue needs to be addressed in camera and is not something the Photoshop will fix. You need to use DOF to keep the parts of the photograph that you want sharp in focus. Also, make sure that you have the image in focus. In the second image, your focus is simply off. You need to nail your focus 100% in camera.
Obviously this gets to be difficult when working with a fast lens like a 1.4. Your DOF is so thin that any bt of movement (from either camera or subject) will render to photo OOF. Perhaps it might be best to stop the lens down a bit to help you out.
Still there. If ya can't see it, it'll be tough to pull. If any thing, it's a tad heavier.
Have you tried adjusting for skin tone?
Going back, I see it in 2, 3 and 4. 3 just happens to be the one that stands out.
DocumentNameA_as7a copy.jpg
EF 2.0x II extender BG-E6
I think that looks too "processed". The teeth are too white and his left eye stands out more than his right eye.
I think your in need of a better monitor and/or a colour managing device. And perhaps get these printed up, 'as is'. It'll give ya an idea of what we're seeing.
I didn't spend a lot of time on it I just was trying to get all the green and yellow out of the skin color
EF 2.0x II extender BG-E6
It's better. Can't really say gone, though..... Have a hard time getting past the eyes and teeth now (real freaky)..... I don't think we're going to correct it like this.
not trying to be a hardass; just real.
How about this........
No other changes but color correction, and a conservative one at that. If you like it, here's what I did. In Photoshop, added a second layer and set the blending mode to Screen. Then filled the screen layer with a sort of obnoxious magenta-violet and set the opacity to somewhere between 10% and 15%. You could do the same thing with Image | Adjustments |Photo Filter or with a Photo Filter adjustment layer, but the screen layer made it really easy for me to click-check the whites on his shirt and adjust the "filter" color accordingly. The shirt still shows a little blue bias, but a lot of white shirts do, and I thought his face looked pretty close with this color. (Edit: Eyeballing it worked ok for me because my monitor is calibrated, and because I'm not invested in the precision of the result since it's not my pic.
You got the nasty yellow-green cast by shooting him in available light, where the grass in front of him reflected back onto his face. Could have improved it (and the panda eyes) with either a little pop of fill flash or a white or silver reflector.