Photography Photography Criticism? [[ big photographs ]]

I am not a professional photographer but I also like to take pics of my dolls so I will try to share what I have learned. ^^ You are also the first person I write a critique for, so I hope I am doing everything right *haha*

I´d like to start with the positive aspects:

- clear, crisp shots with a lot of dimension due to your DSLR.
- good lighting (going outside is a great option for that).
- good compostion.

Things I think that could be improved:

- the wigs hide a lot of the faces and the dolls tilt their head away from the camera and it is a bit unclear to me if you wanted it that way or if it´s just by coincidence.
- some pics could benefit from a bit of digital modification afterwards: taming flyaways, highlighting main features, adding extra light overall, etc.

I hope that helps! ^.^

 

Hullo you!

Chipping in here with a bit more.

I like your colours. The pink and green are vibrant, which goes well with the bright lighting The pictures are joyous. You are also largely exposed well (although the top one is a little overexposed, which has blown out the whites on her shirt). I like your use of bokeh to separate the figure from the background. You have also managed to get good, uncluttered and useful backgrounds in there. This is all great stuff.

The things to think about.

I agree with LadyGinSling. I would like to see more of the doll's face, which is generally the most important thing in a portrait. You might have been aiming for a shy look, but perhaps then bring the camera down so that she can still have her head lowered but we can see more of the face. At the moment, the camera is aimed at a spot at the top front of her head, which isn't the most interesting part of her. See if you can aim the camera at her eyes.

In some, the bokeh is a little overdone. In the second one, the only area in focus is her face. This is good. It is the most important part of the image. You might have been isolating the face by using that and that can work really well with a head or head and shoulders shot. In a full body portrait like that, though, most of the picture is out of focus and I would have liked to see some more of the body, perhaps with just her feet blurring out into the background. Also, in the last one, it is not clear which part should be in focus. It looks as though it is the near sleeve. So, decide which part you want to draw the eye to and set your focus point on that, with enough depth of field (smaller aperture, so bigger number) to include the other useful parts.

And, one final one, although it is perhaps something to think about as you do along, rather than straight away. The feel of the photo. As I said, your colours are joyous. However, your subject looks despondent or shy. To have more impact, match the overall feel of your photo (lighting, colours etc) with the mood of your subject. Imagine what these could have looked like if she were joyously chasing butterflies.

Anyway, these are charming pictures and I hope that was of some use.

 

Photographers talk of the "golden hour." This is the time right around sunrise or sunset. The light is softer an does not create those harsh shadows that you had. Try shooting early or late in the day or when it is overcast (cloudy). I think you will be much happier with the results and you will need to do less editing. Back up a little. Some of the shots are very close. You can always crop the picture, if you want a closer final product. But a wider initial image gives you space and background to play with.