Aurora

[KimC]

Hi Marie, what a nice set of images. My favorites are 2a - it's so naturally beautiful (from an artistic perspective, I would have liked to see this with a shallower depth of field); 3 - love the tones, lighting and "wonder" it inspires; 2b for its sweetness - it looks like a hot chocolate commercial.

I plan on experimenting on my niece when she comes home from college...so I can imagine all the fun you had with Aurora :-)

[Marie Hass]

Thanks, Kim!

Aurora was intriqued and felt very, very important. I got to play dress-ups with a "tweener" who needed the attention and fussing.

Have fun. That is the biggest part of it.

'Rie

[purplehaze]

Wish my nieces and nephews were half as cooperative as your muse, Marie. Lovely job with #2 in particular.

[Loose Canon]

I am asking for C&C - posing, lighting, PP. I have a wedding to shoot on New Year's Eve, and while a different situation, I am still working on getting the best shot from maybe less than ideal circumstances.

Hi Marie!

What a lovely young ‘tweener you got going on there! You did a nice job with these.

Okay, so 2b may be a little too tight possibly.

2a is classic good! Pose, lighting (classic short lighting), expression, it has it all. Kay had a good point with both the horizons, crops, and the “who cares” comments!

Three is hands down my fave. I just love the happy look of wonder and the lights. That she has a light string in her hand makes the shot to me.

No one really mentioned #4 but I like it too! Goes with the story and must have been a treat for her. Cool that she got to eat some of the “real deal”!

The formal may be a bit underexposed and I wonder if my tired old eyes may be seeing a bit of a color cast? The blonde highlights in her hair look a little green to me.

Just me but I think it might also benefit from a little vignette action! Especially if you are less than happy with the BG. If you use a bit of negative clarity on your portraits it can help even out skin tones. Helps if there may be a bit of “blotchiness” to the skin, which is pretty common. It’s a good pose. Shoulders slanted, arms bent. If you wanted a bit more classic feminine pose a little tilt of the head toward the high shoulder would be that and would also get her eyes on a bit more of a diagonal. Maybe turn her head slightly toward camera left (not a lot, but some).

A quickie example of what I was talking about with a white/black point adjustment, and I added just a touch of high pass skin softening since it is a formal and oh so lightly burned the mids in her face/neck. But that’s all I did. I think the ink could be removed easily enough in post if one had a mind to and maybe a bit less tight on the crop. A reflector in front of her and a bit favoring camera left out of frame pointed up at her face would help that shadow under her chin be a little less defined. But the shadow wouldn’t be a deal breaker if it were my shot.

[Stagecoach]

You did a good job with these Marie and No 2a is a clear winner.

[IzzieK]

I am late to this party too and all the comments had already been said, especially with Kay and Terry. You might want to take a look-see of this article, Avoid Amputating People in your Photos: http://lifehacker.com/5991733/avoid-...ng-cheat-sheet. Terri did a good job with #1. I thought I was the only one who saw greenish cast as no one mentioned it until Terry did. My favourite is #2. She is a pretty girl. A little bit mature looking for a 10 year old really but maybe that is the trend of the time nowadays...I love my kids when they were 10 and under but they grow up...unfortunately. It is a defining age. I am just glad you have a wonderful Thanksgiving this year.

[Marie Hass]

Terry,

Thank you so much for taking the time to lay out detailed suggestions for me. I do need to buy a new reflector. When we moved last year, the one I had got put somewhere and i cannot find it.

'Rie

[Marie Hass]

Janis! Hi there! My best piece of advice is to keep each session very short. The kid did tire easily, and once she did, there was nothing I could do after that.

Good luck and have fun.

I have been thinking of you and hope you are well.

Grahame - good to hear from you. Thanks for commenting.

'Rie

[Marie Hass]

Good morning, Izzie!

Thank you for your input and your link. I saved the amputating chart.

Aurora was at times, every age. Perhaps the way I dressed her and asked her to pose and smile was more grown-up than her chronological age? I will ponder this.

'Rie