Untitled

Anthony,

 

She is a beautiful girl. I love her smile. She has very nice catch lights and eye contact with the camera (viewer). You have focused well on her eyes. The background is nicely out of focus.

 

Her skin tone could be a little warmer, but I like the pastel appearance. I would like it more if it wasn't for the black straps on her shoulders and the brightly colored stones in her ring.

 

The angle at her left wrist, formed by her forearm and hand, is 90 degrees. That is not a feminine angle for her wrist. It is masculine. You do not want sharp angles anywhere on a feminine female. It would look better if her hand was more up the side of her face. You have done very well posing her hand on its side (edge). That makes it appear thin, feminine and graceful.

 

It looks very awkward to have both elbows on her leg. The triangular composition of her shoulders and arms looks very strange to me.

 

Because her clothing is so light colored and her skin tones are fair, the backlight doesn't really serve much purpose as far as helping to separate her from the light colored background.

 

I do like the softness of her face which you have created with the light, but the lighting is a bit flat. You want the main light to come from above, in front and to her side. The ideal location for the catch lights would be at about the 10 or 2 o'clock position on her irises. Judicious use of shadows on her face can help create interest and the illusion of depth within your photograph.

 

Do not pose your subject straight on to the camera. This is not a very feminine pose. Showing your subject’s widest areas (shoulder to shoulder or hip to hip) makes those areas appear wide. Your subject will appear thinner, more feminine and more graceful if turned at an angle to the camera. The lines you see from an angle have more apparent motion, interest and grace.

 

Her right hand and a strap or ribbon under her left arm is quite annoying. She should straighten her dress on her right side. It is poofing (sticking) out and doesn't look good. She has a beautiful face without make-up, but I would like her to have a little mascara, eyeliner, eye shadow, lipstick or lipgloss and blush. You want her face to have a little color and her eyes to be a bit more dominant.

 

The pattern in the background is nicely mottled except for the upper right corner where there is a line. That is a distraction.

 

If you want her to be exactly centered you should move her face to her left just a little. You want to compositionally balance the left and right sides of the photograph. The compositional "rule" for this suggests that you position the tip of the subject's nose in the vertical center of the photograph. You could, of course, leave her face where it is and more her slightly to her left. Either would compositionally balance your photograph.

 

Nice shot,

 

Mark

This is flat and over exposed (at least it appears to be on my uncalibrated monitor). The background and the foreground are both equally bright. The backlight or hair-light is spilling on to her forehead. It needs some control like a grid and maybe less power. The left forearm is missing. I suck at posing hands and arms, but you always want to see more then a stump. Still, a great subject with great eyes. If this is a candid, good catch, but I would try a crop tighter on the head and burn down the background.