[Liberalis]

Right, here goes nothing .... I thought I would share with you a few of my fave kids pics and hope for some comments, all are welcome, be they good or bad. Please note that each image is highly compressed for net use.

James

Christian

Spencer

Spencer 2

Jack & Dad


Kind regards

Kris

[GSVJase]

Some great captures there and I love spencer 2, the look on his face is truly fantastic and I'm sure butter wouldnt melt in his mouth !!!

[Steve]

It’s a refreshing change to see “people” photographs submitted for critique. This is an area of photography that I think offers the biggest challenges and if correctly done the greatest rewards. Working with children to get anything different or out of the ordinary is tasking to say the least.

The first two submissions “James” and “Christian” have a strange feel to them probably due to them being shot from above the subjects rather than eye level. Although “James” is not as pronounced with the framing not being as tight, I feel both these shots take on a slight sinister slant or more serious mood even despite the smile in the first. The tight crop of Christian would be better also if eye contact could have been established, as it is shown here it could have been a candid capture that’s been tightly cropped afterwards. These two are worlds apart from the last three that you have posted.

“Spencer” is a fabulous capture; you have managed to record and show his spirit and happiness. The clean white background forces all the attention onto his face and the combination of his wide sparkling eyes and great smile. By positioning him with his head turned also you have managed to remove a lot of the wide shoulders that most photographers allow and taken away the impression of the picture being posed. This is a great shot that many pro’s would be happy to have in their portfolio.

“Spencer 2” is again a variation on the one above but with tighter cropping. This works well with the very apparent highlights being caught in both his eyes. You positioning off to the right and drawing his attention has again paid dividends here. The wide open mouth, obvious giggles and superb lighting has added to this shot and thankfully the catch lights in both eyes have been maintained. The black and white of this shot also suits the image, not too contrasty but not flat either, can I ask if you processed the image yourself and if so what method you have used?

“Jack and Dad” is a great capture of a precious moment of time shared between parent and child. Taken as that it’s a great shot with the focus firmly locked in the right place, I am more than sure that Jack’s parents love this image. If I am to be critical from a purely photographical point of view, Jack’s arm is slightly distracting in the foreground and I would have tried to raise my camera position slightly higher to lower that out of frame. Obviously it is easy for me to sit at home as say this now, doing in on a shoot while working with live people that are set on doing their own thing is a altogether different situation. This is another great shot but for completely different reasons.

Please remember that I offer my critique from a totally personal perspective, this is honestly how I view your images with the information you have supplied, that doesn't make my opinion right or wrong. It is meant to be helpful and not destructive; hopefully it will be taken that way.

Overall a great set of images that I have enjoyed looking at and writing about..I look forward to seeing some more of your work in future.

[Liberalis]

Jase, many thanks for your comments, I am glad you like them.

Steve, Thanks to you too for such in in depth reply and opinion, I appreciate all comments be they good or bad, constructive or otherwise, its always interesting to hear what the image say's to you.

Just a little history on the shots:

The "James" image was taken at a relatives home, Mom asked me to pop round and grab a few for the family before they returned to their own country, I had about ten mins to grab my gear and get to the house, I did manage to use a fold away reflector to get some light on the dark side, and click away, as you can imagine, a child just about to go on a trip is a hyper little bugger, getting a shot in focus was the only real plan. I note what you say about being at eye level, but with this shot, I had to remove family from the background and using a large floor beanbag and a bit of tickle from mom we got one!

"Christian" was indeed a candid while he was playing in a paddling pool at a friends garden party, I too look for eye contact, but with such a wonderful light from the reflected sun on the water I could'nt resist, to me it has a mystery to it, the crop was done afterwards as you so rightly said.

The last three images were taken at a birthday party, the white background comes from a patio door, and flash from a canon 550 with a warm stofen filter. Spencer was sat still for intentional photos allowing composition, but Jack was a unexpected candid, I was sat on the floor getting a different (eye level) photo when this happened behind me, I think I shot 9 images as I stood up, this being the best of the bunch.

Each B/W image was converted using Paint Shop Pro, by splitting the RGB channels, then adjusting the levels accordingly and of course, general levels, sharpening, and smoothing has been applied.

Once again, I thank you for your comments, and I look forward to recieving more points and advice 8)

[Matty]

I dont see pictures the same way that Steve does, i think i need to think about them more!

I think the last 3 are excellent, the warmth in the childs face is lovely! Thanks for sharing

[Steve]

Thanks Liberalis for filling in the missing gaps. it sort of paint a slightly different picture and helps others to understand what has actually gone into creating such good images. As to offering critique, I am more than happy to write what I see but I am no expert. Some people have been known to get a little upset by my comments in the past however their intention has always been to help. I am glad you have taken my critique in that manner.