Ancient Foggy Morning

overall critiques welcome: Light, mood, makeup and styling, cropping,

etc.. Thank you.

.......... she's like a viking maiden. This is a great shot, captioned well.

The crop works well for me as does the subdued lighting from the left. I think I would have liked just a "touch" more sparkle in her eyes to make her a little more captivating.

She is lovely.

Well done to you both.

Regards

Grayham, Thank you.  I was about to give up hope, based on the ratings.  Good point about the eyes, and fortunately something that should be easy to remedy.

There are so many elements that come together well here, Doug. The fog effect is terrific and adds nicely to the mood you seem to be creating. The way she is holding her hands is lovely. Her hair framing her face is also very nice. The blue makeup and the jewelry work nicely together and show off her eyes beautifully.

I think that Grayham is right about the eyes but I have no idea how you are going to do it. Other than that, it's excellent.

Nothing like fog to suck the impact out of an otherwise interessting portrait. I would encourage you to resubmit this image sans the fog.

Nothing like fog to suck the impact out of an otherwise interessting portrait. I would encourage you to resubmit this image sans the fog.

................... I gave up on the rating system ages ago. To me, they are (in the main) "armchair photographers" who rate yet never comment. You would do well to submit for critique only and get the benefits from those members who have a real interest in the science.

Take heart...................

Regards

Mark, thanks, I appreciate hearing your echo on all the reasons why I like this shot, too.  Jeff, I'm going to try to brighten, ever so slightly, just the catchlights in her eyes. John, I'm afraid I can't remove the fog, but it's interesting to note your distaste for fog as a pictorial element.  I thought everyone liked fog.  Go figure.   Grayham, I agree.  I don't put *too* much stock in the ratings as I know that photos that are glossy and slick do the best, but I do use them as a basis for understanding how the average viewer might regard a picture.  All of us know how we can get too involved in a shot, either in the production, or the post processing, and thereby lose our objectivity.  If anything, those armchair photographers have that--a greater sense of objectivity. 

 

Thanks very much.  Everyone's feedback has been very helpful. 

I am submitting my technical preference for your portrait for your consideration.  For me, many things can detract from an otherwise strong portrait---distracting borders, loud colors or patterns in clothing, false attachments, and filters that call out for you to notice it first and the content of the image second.  Ultimately, I do respect each artist's right to express his or her own vision and to contribute to the conversation of what motivated them to do what they did with an image.

John, I like your version quite a bit. It's very vibrant. How did you cut through the fog like that? 

This is my problem with the photoshop and its ease of transformation: I like just about everything it does!  There are so many permutations possible that I find it so difficult to choose one as the end-all of an image.  I think both our versions are good, yet obviously different.

Just to be clear, though, that fog is real.  It's not a photoshop filter.   Well, it's not "fog" as in suspended droplets of water vapor caused by cool air over top of warmer, moister air.  It's predominantly smoke from a commercial fog machine.  There was natural fog present, but the make-up/wardrobe crew took longer than anticipated, and most of it had evaporated, so we augmented it.  My point is that it was an intentional choice for this picture, and it works well (in my opinion) with the softness of her pose and expression.  There are other exposures from this shoot that are more in line with your revision, though, so don't misunderstand my defense of this particular one.  I like them both, for different reasons. 

I used levels and curves to remove the fog and add my version of color.  In levels, you can move the left slider to the right to remove the fog.  In curves you can control each RGB setting to give the color you want.  Bring up curves, put the eye-dropper on her cheek, press control-shift, click on her cheek with the eye-dropper.  You are now able to control mainly her cheek color,  although the rest of the image will be affected to a lessor degree.  Press control 1 to adjust the red, control 2 to adjust the green, and control 3 to adjust the blue.  Find other photographers who understand this method and can show you how to use levels.  Also, you should be able to find more discussion on using photoshop levels and curves on the internet.  Good luck.

What a wondrous mystical effect, Doug!  Very original.  I love the muted soft hues and tones.

--Lannie

Thanks Lannie. 

 

And thanks John. I apologize for not responding to your efforts for so long. 

I am bleu with jealousy! :( :( :(