"Me watching you, watching me!"

Hi-key B&W version. Trying to decide if it's too light! I've been looking at it too long, just can't decide. Give me some feedback please. Thanks!

 

I used a glow filter around the edges to dodge the edges and allow accentuation of their faces and eyes. It causes them to be just a little darker & without any grain. Hard to really see in the web version. Can't wait to print it today on some velvet art paper. Hoping the effect is a keeper!

Critiques & suggestions are always welcome. Thanks!

Wonderful slice of life in a very good high key. Nice work. You get my email on the card stock last week?

Ken- I did! Thank you!

It's a keeper in my book!

The glow filter. Was that on the lens or a plug in software?

I like the high key on this, as well as the way you captured the baby looking at the camera.

Jayme, another great image. it really works as the eyes just pop out anfd make you smile.

Ken- the glow fiter is the diffuse glow filter in PS. I used white as the background color. I then made a vignette around just their faces with the elliptical marquee tool using a 250 pixel feathering on the edges. Then applied a mask in layes removing it only around their faces. I hope this makes sense. Easy to do, hard to explain! :)

 

I have an old image of my husband done in the early 50's. It's printed on flat gloss, textured photo paper, similar to Epson's velet art paper. It has a slight sepia casting (probably from age!). But back in the 50-60's, as I understand it, it was really popular to do the white on white, hi-key images of kids. I have another of of he & his older brother that is wonderful. The image was dodged & burned by hand at the time of developing. It has a really fine grainy texture. I have always loved these 2 images and had hoped to write an action filter for PS to resemble these images. Fat chance! Way too many subjectvie choices for an action. This one, being the first one, took me some 4-5 hours to perfect. But now I at least have a formula to follow!

 

Probably would have been a lot easier & faster to use film & develop it myself! :) Of course though, I'm guessing, I know nothing about developing film! :)

Thanks and your explanation makes sense. You are correct about the 50s hi key shots. Though a little guy back then there were portrait photogs that did a lot of that particular style

To Anonymous 2/3 rater:

 

Thank you for your email. I tried to email you back, but your server must be down, it keeps coming back as "undeliverable". I appreciate your insights! I visited your website, your images are truly amazing, I envy your talent. As requested, I will not reveal your name. Thanks for the advice & your personal explanation of your ratings! I'm honored you spent the time! Thanks! I will be getting back with you in a few days re: my decision. Thanks for asking!

It's perfect Jayme. You really must have looked at it too long, because I can't find anything wrong with it--I tried. Keep up the good work.

Excellent!

Great shot Jayme - I prefer the color rendition a little better. I like the softness of it but this one is awesome too. My only little critique is when I look at I am drawn to the mother's eyelash - it seems a little too dark. I know you tried to do that but I would rather be pulled to the child's eyes and expression. Make sense?? The moment captured is precious. Too bad she couldn't to this with both of the boys:)

I'd say they were 5 hours well spent.Your PS skills are impressive,and the image is delightful,no pun intended. I wish I knew why they keep asking me to edit or delete;it must be my ADD.

Well done!

Thanks All

 

Emily, I agree about Mom's lashes. I prefer the colored one too. Actually, the father did the other twin. Both images are really cute. However, Dad was lying on the floor, so it's a horizonal crop. Why I didn't see this when I took it I don't know, confusion I guess. Learn something new everyday! I was hoping to be able to put them both in the same frame, but it doesn't work well. Geez!!!!!

I like the high key glow effect! It is something a little different. Your skills are tremendous...as is your creative vision. You have gone so far in such a short period of time.

Well done! The high key is very well dominated. Congrtulations!

Excellent High-key shot. How come I didn't know? Works for me. Didn't quite follow your technique however.

I'm in the minority here, but I really do not like this image at all, on any level. It's way too posed and artificial, the artifice accentuated by the uber-PS work. I know this is very negative (sorry), but I'm sure the shot is great in GOF colour. B&W doesn't work here at all.

 

Sorry to be negative, but I say as I see.

 

 

Andrew- I have no problem with you not liking this image. I do, however, find myself wondering what "GOF colour" is and what "uber" PS is. Everyone has unique tastes. I prefer the color version of this image. Thanks for sharing your opinion. ("Opinion" being the key word). I also call them as I see them, just can't lie! :) Nothing wrong with that!

Sorry Jayme, Good old fashioned and over-done Photoshop. Writing in that way was plain dumb. Sorry again. Did you place the catchlight in his right eye? I don't what it is I don't like, but it could be the knowing look in the boys eyes that's offputting. It robs the shot of it's innocence..maybe.

 

It's only opinion.

Andrew- Thanks for clarifying the abrevs.

 

The catch light is real. The only PS use was to change the image to B&W & add a very light diffuse glow filter around the edges leaving a highly feathered oval around the faces without the glow. I could have done this with a camera filter, I just like being able to place the center exactly where I want it and in the shape I want it. So I used PS.

 

I did burned the baby's eyes and Mom's lashes, which as mentioned above, are a little dark for me.

 

This was shot on a white seamless background with a 4 light set up. No PS was used to remove anything from the background. I did crop a little off the bottom. Everything I did in PS could have been done in the "Good Old Fashioned" darkroom at the time of development of film. The PS skills used were meniscule. The time I spent on this was trying out different effects and tossing them out! I settled on the five minute effect above! Sad but true. But I did learn a lot!:) That's what counts!

 

I prefer not to highly PS my images. I attempt to do little more than the GOF film developers of years gone by. To see the original color image you can view:

 

http://photo.net/photodb/photo?photo_id=3600800

 

Please check it out and let me know what you think. I like the color myself.

 

I did some thinking since this image was taken and I am wondering if using a light gray background might have added something. I believe I am going to try out the light gray in the near future.

Sorry J baby... I think this is not up to your high standards.

 

In my not so humble opinion... The mother's dress steals my attention. Also, I think that there is not enough middle tones in the skin. I think you could improe the shot by cropping out some of the mom and re-adjusting the tonality once her gray whatever is not as prominant. Besides that... you are still wonderful.

 

Larry