[wez130]

took this a while ago, never got round to having a play so i thought i would, any good?

As this is in the critique section please allow me to cast a critical eye and try and explain how I think this shot could have been bettered.

I am left wondering what's going on in this shot. What is your niece looking at, and what is she doing with her left hand. While it gives me the sort of 'intrigue' I tend to prefer in a shot, there seems to be a lack of something to look at to keep me interested and thinking.

If you had perhaps gotten slightly lower and more to the right, you would have benefitted from capturing her face, or at the very least, both her eyes, and more of her facial expression.

Also, while the harsh lighting from the flash has helped bring out the main subject, it has also cast some rather heavy shadows, which, to me, seem too defined.

I think this was an opportunity for a very good shot, but maybe slightly missed by positioning.

Hope this helps

Regards

[CT]

There you see the typical evils of flash mounted on the camera with those terrible hard shadows. When flash is use directly like this it's also very unnatural looking - in everyday life we're used to our light sources coming from above - not from between our eyes, unless we're potholing and wearing a helmet lamp.

Bouncing the flash fom the ceiling or an adjacent wall spreads and softens the light from the flash and gives a softer appearance, as well as diffusing those hard shadows. White clothes are best avoided with flash as it's almost certain to over-expose and detract from your main subject.

Better still though is to take these type of shots by available light near a window - overcast days are actually better for this than when there's sunlight streaming through the window, when everything gets too contrasty. Lovely soft natural light, you can't beat it!

Good effort Wez and I like your composition with the arm giving that strong diagonal line - do it again by natural light and you'll see a huge difference.