Need Honest Critiques Please

[crazyfly1]

K, these are my first three for requesting critiques.
What I am mainly interested in is one the crop and two the style.
These were taken with a midrange camera and I didn't get the best results. Also I am GWC at best but hoping to get better. So I made an effort to take plain shots with poor lighting and make the best of them. It is difficult for me to find a look that works and stop there, I tend to go on and on until I give up and start over.
One last note These were modified entirely in Lightroom with no Photoshop whatsoever.

[Janet Petty]

People are not my strong suit. I hope someone who has more experience and actually likes taking pictures of people will step in and critique. Maybe give some posing pointers that will actually stick with me.

Good luck crazyfly1.

Janet

[crazyfly1]

Ok does the lack of response mean nobody likes any of them and no one wants to leave critisizm that is entirely negative?

[crazyfly1]

Come on folks, somebody, anybody.
At least tell me if it's the photgraphy or the editing that stinks.


Or both

[hawkeye60]

I can say I don't care for the lighting on the first and the third image, but you already said your lighting was poor. The second image is better, but it's hard for me to comment much not having seen the before pictures, or not knowing what it is you are shooting for. Plus I'm no expert.

[crazyfly1]

Thank you for your comments hawkeye60.
I was working with on camera flash and not much else. The origional photos tuned out to be typical snapshots as far as lighting. What I wanted to accomplish was to overcome the origional lighting with a more dramatic b&w or split tone. I really was most interested in opinions about the crop and composition.

[TommyO]

Wm.,
Since you did not elaborate on what your overall goal was, it is a bit hard to critique. (I know that is what we tell everyone.... but, it's true for your images as well.)

You asked about the crop....
I like the first and second, not as much the third. The first two hold some interest and could seemingly be used to convey several moods or thoughts in a variety of settings. The third is a bit neutral and not quite so intriguing.

Style...
They strike me as thought provoking, not so much glamour. The lighting effect is very even at this point.... makes me wonder if you plan to alter it to add shadows/highlights later... especially on the first.

Hope this is helpful. Continue on and give us some feedback !

[crazyfly1]

Very helpful TommyO,
What you said about the first two being interesting and conveying different moods...I wonder if that has something to do with the fact that she is looking into the camera in the third?
The glamour look is not so much what I was going for. I wasn't trying for anything like a magazine cover. Like I said, I didn't take any of them into photoshop at all except to resize to post. Really what I wanted was to make them... good photos, I guess I wanted them to do some of what you said I wanted them to be interesting and intriguing and I definatly wanted to show the models natural beauty, she is stunning.
Thank you for your comments, I'll give them some thought and maybe work on the dodge and burn and repost.

[MatthewMarshall]

How can we comment on what yo need to improve on if you don't have the originals on here.

[crazyfly1]

I can post the origionals, but again, my question was not about retouching if you read my first post. The question is are they good shots or do the suck. Does the lighting work or it doesn't. Do they look good in B&D or not. Like TommyO said maybe they need more contrast.
I really wasn't looking for a comparison between the origional and these because as I said they haven't been retouched to speak of.

[crazyfly1]

Here are the origionals, cropped but otherwise unedited.

[mayday]

I think the originals look pretty flat so it would be hard to give them good contrast. I would suggest shooting them with some good natural daylight and maybe using a reflector or large white board to bounce some light back onto
the model.
I agree 1&2 have a nicer feel to them. These sort of shot could work well as high-key Black & whites with some grain.

[JD Spears]

As far as cropping;composition I'd say the 3rd is the best. However, her left eye kind of bugs me as it is looking off. The pose in the other one laying down is better, but compositionally leads the eye straight to the cleavage. Not that we don't all like cleavage but I think some D&B to help move the viewers eye to the face would make a big improvement. The other upright one just leaves me wondering what she's looking at. Rule are meant to be broken but aside from ring flash, straight ahead, on camera flash is alway the most unflattering light. Amongst other things it makes her eye makeup harsh looking. Aim your flash at a wall or ceiling then do your lighting in Photoshop.

[LQQKER]

Ok, this is based on your originating post, seeing that the originals are in a different order. Please keep in mind as always, only an opinion.

The first to me seems to be blown out a bit, even if you factor in high key. A Lower key may have been better to bring out subtle and softer shadow detail. High noise and low resolution of the original make correction difficult. The arm placement could be better to lessen the perspective in relation to the camera. As far as the composition, I think a little less crop on the viewers left could have been an improvement.

The second image may have a bit of distortion due to camera placement (distance), exaggerating facial features nearest to the camera. Really difficult to say for sure not seeing a better facial close-up.
The contrast of the eye make-up in relation to the iris could be better to separate the two. Composition wise, it might have been better to start off with a little more image, north and south. Usually when someone has a round face you can compensate with a more retangular image to create a length illusion.

The third image the head doesn't appear to be relaxed. Again, I think the crop could have been less, especially the viewers left and bottom. The direction of the eyes does not seem to be in the best direction for the models pose. Having the model straighten her fingers or a few would have been better. The overall image is a bit dark while the eye whites too white.

I understand that sometimes a re-shoot is not possible and the only image available is what you have. That said, my comments are assuming this is not the case.

[crazyfly1]

Not ignoring you all I'm just trying to digest everything your suggesting. I'll post at least one new try in the next day or so. Lqqker, thank you for the detailed critique, lot's to think about.