Colleen (03-0965560)

Does this picture suggest any kind of story? Does the presence of the

window add, or detract from that story? Is the format (1:3) suitable,

or would you suggest something more squarish? Does the light on her

face look unnatural (over dodged)? Thanks for your opinions.

I would desaturate the green from the window because it's like a punch in my eyes !

IMHO it does not belong here with the other warm tones...

 

Everything else: excellent!

Sacha, that's an interesting suggestion that I didn't think of. I'll give it a try. In other shots at this location the window works well, but the emotional content of those begins at a different place, so I can see how it might not work here.

wow, big difference. I desaturated it about 25 % and also darkened it a tad. thanks Sacha.

I think I could probably still do better, probably by cropping differently.

I tried to change the color to something warmer then remove saturation and increase the lightness a touch...

Fantastic photo!

 

Thanks Bob,

 

Sacha, I like the direction with the color that you've done there, but it's way too light, don't you think?

I agree that the outside doesn't work as you started out. It looks odd. Is that the JPG'ing only?

 

I prefer the light on the model in the original but like the way the rest of it has gone. There's also a mark on the chair under her arm that needs to be fixed.

 

To me, the sleeping shot is theh standout so far. Are there more?

"Is that the JPG'ing only?" --Depends on what you mean by "odd." The view outside contained some random bright elements, which I cloned out (or attempted to), and the jpg is of sufficient quality, so if you're objecting to it, it's either because my cloning work was sub-standard, or the content of the view just isn't going to work no matter how I try to fix it. It could be a combination of both over cloning and poor content.

 

Fixing that spot on the chair shouldn't be a problem. It looks like brushed velvet. The shot you didn't like, the one without the story, is the last of this combination of room/garment. She changed her clothes after this and we tried some other stuff, so I will be working on those over the next few days, as I get opportunity.

 

Thanks Jeff.

brushed velvet! that explains why the tapestry looks dirty and patchy at some places...

 

desaturation of the green is obviously desirable, to what extent... up to you

 

i wonder why she's leaning forward...

"i wonder why she's leaning forward..." do you think she looks bad that way? I like your crop, by the way.

SHE doesn't look bad... i'm not saying anything more

Looks very posed... I'd say that's ok but not very alive, and for something so posed, I'd prefer studio lighting to control better the impact and emphasis of her expression - which would stand out better with darker surroundings. So, it's nice, but not my favorite in this series.

Marc, you should have seen me struggling with the studio lights, trying to balance the exterior with something natural looking from the little strobe I was using. I had such a difficult time getting it balanced that I eventually just use the strobe modeling light as a fill. I have forgotten so much about working with strobes, and with digital, it's somehow true that the equipment made years ago, which is what I have, is too powerful for digital. Anyway, maybe so, maybe not, but I was still all thumbs and perspiration shooting these.

"it's somehow true that the equipment made years ago, which is what I have, is too powerful for digital." Really, no. You must stop believing this, in my opinion... Try building a cone, a snoot with aluminium foil - if you have no snoot, and add tracing paper at the end of it, and you'll now have a very directional light that won't be too powerful, but powerful enough to "kill" daylight if you want too... Trying to mix daylight and strobes - WELL - requires a pretty good equipment, or at least you'd need to be very used to your equipment. It's often easier to redo the light entirely and to leave daylight out... Sometimes, not always, and not for subtle and gentle lighting... But to me, a strong expression like this one is difficult to emphasize with such overall lighting... Personal taste only, but I'd have imagine something a bit more dramatic here... Regards.

In the old days....I could do it, and I have no money, so I will have to re-acquaint myself with those battered and dented, but still working strobes. Thanks Marc.