Same baby, 15 months later. A Little Old Man already. I guess this is "posed" somewhat. The question is: who's in charge?

Beautiful portrait capturing the eyes of the child particularly well. I would happily have this picture in my portfolio.

Some may call it cliche (and they might be right) but the DOF for the face works for me because the features are crisp and interesting.

WOW

I got so happy when I saw this oldfashioned beautiful portrait!

That´s the kind of picture that makes me melt !

I wish you could show me more of your work !

Do you have a homepage ?

 

Best regards Patrik

Nice use of shallow depth of field to emphasize the face, but when I look at the image I keep thinking that the child is taking a crap...

I think it's a nice portrait and the child is adorable. I think the DOF is a little too shallow and too sharp and defined. I would have preferred a little less so. Also, I have to agree with the last poster, the kid kinda looks like he's taking a "squat". But overall nice tonality and good subject, I'm sure you can take loads more with that cute mug to play with!

Re. "taking a crap", no such luck. Jayden requires no ceremony or change in posture at all to perform this bodily function. He was deliberately jumping up and down to annoy the crap outa ME!

 

As to DOF, I had no choice. It was late in the afternoon and Jayden jumps around like a ferret in a sack. The solution was a faster shutter speed necessitating a wide open f2.8 lens. It's a simple case of making do with ambient conditions. This was a spontaneous outdoors shot, no time for studio lighting.

 

(Signed: The Photographer)

 

I really like this picture. The perspective evokes a feeling of an adult (parent, older sibling, grandparent, family friend) looking down at the child. It's a lot less impersonal than most pics and might capture the personality of the subject a lot more accurately.

This is beautiful, and nothing about it indicates he's - ahem - relieving himself. I think the DOF works perfectly as is. This made me smile.

I like the DOF but I feel that it works better in the background than the foreground. I find the out of focus hair in front and the forehead distracting.

Very nice overall. My knee-jerk reaction was "top of the head is cut off" but framing is excellent on the right and left sides. As a parent myself, I know that perfect framing of active children is nearly impossible. The shallow DOF on the face works very well but attention is shared between the face and the in-focus hair on the top of the head. B+W was the way to go with this one

His face is well lit, and his cheeky eyes really 'sock it to ya', the face of innocence??

Well done.

 

Allison M Dunn

I'm a connoisseur of differential focusing. Looking at this PHOTO,- one could be excused of assuming: The author was aiming to push a portrait close to the edge of grotesque. Isn't there a golden RULE not to talk down to a child? In translation: Meet little people at their eye-level to portray them. I do feel uncomfortable looking at the child! From a technical point of view,- there is nothing to improve. This picture does not appeal to me. Adelaide SA

Herman,

Jadon was jumping up and down like a yo-yo, playing a game with me. Some shots looked "up", others "down". My 47 year old bones couldn't keep up with him, so I just stayed put. Our relationship has had a certain tension in it until recently. You spotted that, I think. But I don't philosophize too much when making a portrait. Look "up", "across", "down" to the subject, "Golden Rules"? - it's all the same to me if the result is honest. We both had fun. That's MY "Golden Rule".

 

(The Photographer)

Gotta admit that my immediate reaction upon seeing this picture was, "Why would anyone want a picture of a kid taking a dump?!"

 

Oh, wait, he still has his pants on. But the first impression was already made.

Terrific, expressive shot! Congratulations.

Pose is a little odd.

Very good B&W child portrait.

Nice shot, but my immediate thought -- like others, I see -- was, "oh my god, the kid is taking a crap!" The out-of-focus is nice, but makes it very hard to see that pants are on yet. It's a wide-eyed, yet devilish look like, "Hehhee.... I'm taking a crap right here. This is what happens when you won't take me into a restroom right away when I ask." Or something like that. Yeah, that is what I see.

Personally I happen to like this image. The useage of the extreme shallow depth of field used to transcend the familiar photographic cliche of a child proudly hunched down in preparation of standing tall to walk upright. It's like I've mentioned to my students; "If you're using shallow depth of field, focus especially carefully on the part of the scene you want sharp-or else the wrong thing will be sharp." :o)

Realmente me atrapó la foto, me gusto el juego de profundidades de campo y los contrastes.

 

Joaquina Moujan

The textbook advises: NOT to photograph a Model from above, as it 'compresses' the person to a dwarf-like figure. It may also make the Model to look up to the extreme of the circumference of the eyes, which is regarded as an 'ugly' pose.

Finally: All the skills in the world are of no use,- if a satisfying rapport between Model and Photographer cannot be established. Adelaide SA

Herman!

 

He's TWO FOOT SIX for cryin' out loud! It's hard for an adult NOT to photograph him from above in such a spontaneous pose - even when you squat down yourself.

 

Anyhow, what is the exact title of the textbook you are quoting? And the chapter? And the page number where these "rules" are spelt out? Who was the author? and the publisher?

 

If the photograph works, it works. If it doesn't, it doesn't. If YOU don't like it, fair enough, but don't quote "rules" and "text books" as your authorities please.

 

Rules are only rules until they are broken - and then the broken rules become the NEW rules - until THEY are broken in turn, and so on, ad infinitum. Rules provide a comfort zone until you're ready to move on and try something different. Having said that, I am not claiming that this pic is a "radical", "courageous" or "ground-breaking" adventure in avant garde pictorial technique. Maybe a tiny bit unusual. A little provocative, perhaps. No more. That's probably why the elves picked it for special critique. I dunno...

 

Young Jadon was playing a game called "you can't photograph me", as little infants do. It's the sense of humour and the dawning intelligence in his eyes that I wanted to portray.

 

 

(TONY DUMMETT, Photographer)

 

 

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Your right Tony. The eyes say it all... Gorgeous shot. Something to treasure...By the way .Is there any way I could talk you into letting me know what kind of filter your using to get such great color in your other photos?