Brooke Does the Bahamas

Bilsen

Our next model from the Bahamas cruise is Brooke, a great girl with just enough crazy to make her a blast to work with.

Oh and for all you Cindy fans, my star is next.


Click the first image, etc.



2.


3.


4.


5.


6. WHoever stole her top-- Thank you - LOL

Bryce Wilson

IMHO, in image no's. one, two and six something should have been used to put the lower half of her body (legs in one and six and tummy in two) in a shadow or at least much less bright that the top half of her body.

If you compare number one to number five, look at how much more attractive the image and model is without the legs.

Bilsen

Interesting point Bryce.

I usually leave the model as natural as possible and her legs are what they are, but you're PP suggestion makes a lot of sense to de-emphasize them. Perhaps the gradient tool in ACR.

Thanks.

Quincy T

John,

I'll give you a paraphrased quote from Scott Kelby on PP for individuals, which, in my opinion is both accurate and ethical:

When you meet a person, you will immediately assess their appearance. Male or female, it doesn't matter. You may also notice imperfections, particularly in their face, if they are of a normal body type. After those first seconds pass, and you begin a conversation, those imperfections begin to disappear. The personality of the person comes through, and they are no longer an "odd mole on the left cheek" or a "slightly bad complexion", they are your friend/soulmate/coworker and you share your humanity with them, not your appearance. That is what post processing should accomplish. The goal is to render the person so that they appear as others know them, not as a stranger sees them.

While that is a bit vague for the exact technical details, it's obvious what he's saying. I don't notice my wife's blemishes when she wakes up without makeup (although she has very few anyway), I notice the smile that has warmed my heart for many years. That is the favor we, as photographers and retouchers, should do for everyone we shoot.

Bilsen

Thanks Quincy.

Definitely a perspective to think about.

novicesnapper

Nicely stated Quincy. Two tips I have picked up in the last few months on PP. If they have knees, they have legs. In other words, if you include their knees, you should include the rest. if their legs are a down feature, shoot higher or crop up. One I use on facial blemishes is, if you're eye goes to a blemish and it dominates or detracts from a face, PP it out. I'm sure YMMV, but these came from a stellar photographer and I took them to heart. I have always liked a girl with a few extra pounds, to me personally, their more feminine (their real I guess). Rail thin girls do nadda for me, jmo lol. This girls personality comes through her images and it looked like a fun shoot. Ok John, bring on the next one lol.

Bilsen

Thanks so much Guys.

Novice, thanks more for understanding my motivation than anything else. I think that we sometimes let the technicals overwhelm the image analysis.

Brooke is an exceptional young woman but in front of the camera she tends to go to one sexy expression. On this cruise I told her to leave the sexy sh*t for the other guys. I wanted the real her, funny, easygoing and just enough (good) crazy to make it interesting. My point was there is a lot more to her than "sexy" and, regardless of the technicals, we accomplished my objective.

In fact, that last shot was all her idea. Only took 10 clicks and she nailed it.

Thanks again all.

divamum

I'll jump in. Of all of these, I like #3 best - this is another example of you using backgrounds really WELL. Texture and lines.... but the subject is still up front and center #4 has potential if you crop it so it's ONLY the door - that will probably take some cloning/patching work to extend the background etc etc, but as it is it looks messy; not enough of the whole building to set the blue door up, or too much of it to let the blue door be the background itself. I actually think the last one is kinda cute, too - it's a little cheesy, but it's flattering to her body (the twist you've got into her behind the palm leave is a really good pose, actually), and her face is adorable in that expression; the hard lines of the flipped-up liner blend into her expression and she's just so much prettier like that.

Overall, my problem with these is with the model's styling. I don't think she looks sexy, but a bit, er... trashy. You can see the differences in colour in her hair (darker at the ends), and it's pretty obviously been dyed darker because the condition of it isn't so good. The makeup job is ok for the pinup vibe on the ones with the flower, but looks way at odds with the other outfits and doesn't really do much to enhance her facial structure (cf why I think she's so much cuter when can't see the eye-liner ). The belt with the bikini to me just looks weird (you guys think the colorblock dress is strange? This is way weirder to me).

Anyway, I'm not quite feeling it with this set - I feel like the model could've used some more help and guidance, whether from you, a friend, or a stylist... And I DO know how hard it is to ride shotgun when it's just you! This is why it's so much better having an assistant (or subject's buddy) along for the ride!!

Bilsen

As alway Diva, I'm glad when you chime in.

As you know, there is a limit to what we can do flying solo. I've gotten much more active with my direction ( ie: weight on the back leg, angle on your body etc) but I find metering, gray card, background ( yes I pay attention to it ), composition and focus, along with direction to be a pretty full plate.

Also, what I know about styling and makeup might just fill a small tea cup.

I absolutely agree that a full team helps ( see: Aenna in Paradise ) but it just doesn't happen that often for a TF hobbyist.