Please critique these photos?
Also, if anyone has any advice on how i should go about expanding into more of a business instead of a hobby, i would appreciate it!
Update:oh, and i should mention that i'm not in it to make enough $$$ to pay the bills. i'm a SAHM, and i wish to offer very affordable sessions and packages to people here and there...people who can't afford the area photogs but who don't want the pressure and hassle of walk-in studio prints.
Comments
First, a comment regarding going professional. It is gratifying to hear of your understanding of a need to take baby steps. You didn't mention what kind of photography you are interested in, but I'll assume it is in the studio portrait genre. Forgive me if I have guessed wrong.
The three photos are great snaps in a more-or-less photojournalistic style, but I am not sure they constitute an experience level I'd consider necessary for insuring the start of a successful photography business. That shouldn't be taken as a suggestion you are a poor photographer, but rather that you just need some more seasoning. We all do, really.
I suggest you join a couple of internet photo sites if you haven't already done so. Some have business forums that you can take advantage of with more detailed answers.
Running any business can be difficult, but it is even more so in photography. I always tell wannabes not to quit their day jobs until after they can pay *all* their bills using their camera.
Are there other photographers in your area practicing in your genre? That is important because you will be directly competing against them. To insure success, your work should be as good and preferably better than the competition. If the market is saturated with photographers, you will have a hard time succeeding regardless of your talent.
Consider buying an existing photo business, or at least part of one. This can help a lot, especially in a difficult market. It is also much easier in getting a loan for an existing business rather than doing your own start-up.
A good alternative to starting your own business is to first work for someone else. There is no shame in working for someone else! You will not just get paid, but you will learn technique, business practices, and more. I think this type of seasoning would be of great benefit to you. You might have do an unpaid internship, but I know a lot of people who worked it into a paid assistant or as a second shooter.
I know it is blunt, but the three photos you provided are not sufficient evidence of you having the shooting skills necessary to pull off a full-time business. I think you can do it once you get more experience, so don't give up.
Photo Critiques:
Purple Flower: Sweet shot but bad angle. You are shooting close by and from a standing position with what seems to be a wide angle. This makes the top of the head very dominant. The crop only makes the distorted forehead more dominating, pulling the eye from the point of interest, the flower and face.
I suggest a reshoot, but use a short telephoto and drop the lens below the level of the child's nose. This will make the face stronger than the top of the head, as well as showing more of that wonderful backlighting.
Flower & Face: The best shot of the three, but it seems to me that the eyes are a bit out of focus and they lack a strong catchlight. The eyes are an important aspect of the photo, so being soft is a great distraction.
This is a perfect example of needing to use a fill flash. It would have provided a good catchlight and sharpened things up a bit. A gold reflector could have also been used to bounce light into the eyes. Make sure your camera is focusing on the same thing you are.
Looking Up: This is a nice snap shot, but not a great portrait, sorry. The composition is disturbing, and there is far too much open space.
Again, drop down to just below eye/nose level and shoot with a short to medium telephoto.
Your style seems more photojournalistic than the classic portrait style. I suggest you look at the work of Margaret Bourke-White, Gene Richards, Eugene Smith, and similar shooters. You really don't have that style, but from what I have seen, you might enjoy their work.
I hope this helps. Good Luck!
The baby is cute. These would be fine for your personal album, and are vibrant and colorful. I am going to be honest here, you are not asking as a beginner how your snapshots are, you are asking how to expand into a business.
All three have some problems. The first one is not a very flattering angle and/or lens choice. The top of baby's head is too big in the frame, demanding attention away from her face, and making her look like she has hydrocephalus. Her eyes are not in a good position in the frame, and her hand is chopped at the fingers.
I don't care for the post processing in the second one. Washed out skin and vibrant grass are not a good combination. That neon grass has too much texture and is distracting. Also awkward cropping, she is too close to the edge of the frame.
The third one would have been best in terms of composition and execution. Unfortunately it is not in focus.
I would suggest some more work on the fine points of portraiture.
Take a workshop if possible. Visit the bookstore for books on child portraiture, there are a lot of them. Search Amazon and you will find a ton. Practice some more and work on the small things that either make a portrait great, or stop it from being so. If you have little business knowledge, take a class at the local community college. Perhaps more photography businesses fail for lack of business acumen rather than photography skills. Good luck and best wishes in your future.
1 is very nice, the coloring is good and the scenery are cute. Hopefully you have other angles too while she is doing that with the flower, maybe a insect view (on the ground).
Number 2 alright I guess, not the best.
3 is good as well, a bit too close for my comfort, but I prefer 1, 3, then 2.
image 1 : nice pov , i would like some eye contact with the subject , remember not to cut people arms .. also the the compostion is a bit tight ..
image 2: poor composition
image 3 : try to increse you shutter speed , the picture is a bit blurry ..
you need to center the girl more