First Post - Easter Pictures

Starlite Alley

Hi All - This is my first post on DGrin however I have been lurking for several months and am so impressed with the quality of work presented on this site. I am new to photography and have been taking classes at a local college with the desire to improve my skills and eventually start up a part-time photography business to supplement my income. I still have a long way to go so any C&C would be appreciated. I love taking pictures of children but it's a lot harder than one would think - but of course you probably already know that...

Trinity - Age 5



Alexis Age 6 Months

rhondavid

Welcome aboard. You will lots from the group here.

Your daughters are beautiful. I love the name Trinity. I am not sure I have ever heard of anyone being named that.

No expert here and I am sure you will get more valuable information that I could every provide. However, my only nit is on the first one the shadow around your daughter is very dark and darks attention away from her. Move her away from the background more and rest your lights based to elimiate it. Nice job on the baby.

Surfdog

Nice work and lovely young ladies. I can only echo what David said. The shadow in the 1st image is distracting, but otherwise I like them.

Starlite Alley

Thanks for the feedback - I was really stuggling with the shadows which is the primary reason I added the texture to the photo - hoping to distract...guess it didn't work (lol) - I plan to take some of the lessons I learned from this shoot, and from your helpful comments, and try again - before they outgrow the dresses. PS: Not my daughters - hate to admit it but "my granddaughters". I believe in lifelong learning and never too old to learn new tricks.

kidzmom

A great start! I also noticed the deep shadow in #1..perhaps this was with a direct flash? Obviously b/g too close. You could probabally work to clone it out. I'd definately try to clean it up because it is cute! So is the baby shot, but the colors seemed a little harsh for a baby shot to me--too unnatural and neon, but it is really cute overall. I wonder what it would look like a bit more desaturated and toned down? Look forward to seeing your progress. You will learn SO much here!!!

adbsgicom

Not knowing what you did, and what your equipment is, the first one looks like a lot of my shots from the not-so-distant past with the flash when you turn the camera to portrait orientation. If you are using a pop-up flash, you are sort of stuck, so shoot landscape a bit wider and crop it down to portrait. The light won't be ideal, but you won't have the harsh shadow (it will be hidden behind your subject). If you have shoe-mount, flash, make it bounce off a wall and/or ceiling to get the light more diffuse and coming in at a better angle. I'm by no means a pro here, but hopefully this helps.

pwp

Can't add much that hasn't been said, but I find the texture on her skin in the first shot extremely distracting as well. A little masking and a soft brush at low opacity to bring the skin's natural smoothness and her dress back through would work well here. Otherwise, she just kind of becomes a part of the background. echo the previous sentiments on the shadow and colors. Cute shots of adorable little girls!