Home Forums Am I a Fauxtog? Would love to hear what others have to say!

Viewing 10 posts - 1 through 10 (of 10 total)
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  • #18316
    klportraits
    Participant

    My website is Klportraits.com and you can reach my gallery by going here: http://www.klportraits.com/gallery.html

    Would love to hear what you all think about my portrait photography as well as my other images. Thanks!

    #18319
    EyeDocPhotog
    Participant

    I spent some time looking through the portraits.

    Every shot has some kind of hazy, muted, desaturated cast (perhaps some filter with a blend mode?). It’s very distracting.

    Also, not one portrait is filling the frame and tack sharp – some are even downright blurry around the eyes. Are you using quality glass, or shooting raw?

    If I was a potential client, I’d say you didn’t capture the beauty of these women at all – and this is presumably your BEST work (portfolio should be)? I wouldn’t hire you…

    #18325
    Bill
    Participant

    I am on the same page as EyeDoc, but I want to indulge a little bit further.
    I think some filter do fine for a theme but before any filters or effects are used, the underlying photo must be able to stand on it’s own merit. Never use a filter to “save” a photo, if it’s no good, toss it away.

    I believe you have a good eye and I like some of your poses. They are not to provocative for the models age, but yet lend a certain amount of moderated beauty.

    The 1st gallery of Lauren, half of the poses seem to emphasize more of the background than the model. There are a few good close up shots or as I like to call intimate portraits, but they are not executed well.
    The 2nd group of Wendi & Valencia, I think the 9th photo, you nailed, but the others are lacking sharpness, focus or other things.

    In the 3rd gallery of Jessica, what happened to the 2nd photo of her? It is skewed to the right and cropped or cut off at her nose. Bad editing or bad choice to post that one, delete, delete, delete. The 1st photo of Jessica I would rather see it look more like the thumbnail, but without the faux black and white effect.

    I think you are not a faux but going there if you don’t watch your editing or get a better grip of what you display as your “portfolio”. Your portfolio should be your best of your best, not a collage of random edits and pics from every shoot. Follow a theme or have an underlying progression where the photos tell the story. You’ll get more interaction from a portfolio that communicates with your audience.

    #18326
    fautox1977
    Participant

    I agree with Bill that you have an eye for photography, but what I see is signs of inexperience and inconsistency in your outcome. Bought photoshop actions have been made by photographers to apply to their particular style. Using them on image inconsistent with their photos will yield a bad result most of the times.

    I understand that you’ve just started. The outcome is average, but with potential should you further educate yourself in the subject.

    One other thing. A yahoo email does not scream “professional”. You can get a free account from (zoho.com) and have an email with your company extension. (i.e. whatever@klportraits.com)

    #18328
    IHF
    Participant

    VSCO!  Yeah, I’m in an agreement with the others.  Drop the  VSCO unless you’re just playing around on Instagram, and work on consistency.  I don’t think the actions actually suit your style of photography well.  You’re not a bad photographer, but your port needs culling and that consistency we all look for just isn’t there.

    #18330
    klportraits
    Participant

    Thanks everyone. I have a photo session this Thursday I will take what you all said and see if I can improve and post again. Thanks!

    #18333
    Peterography
    Participant

    Not a fauxtog.

    With that said, I actually liked your work, they all seem to have this soft dreamy effect. I think your clients also like the style you take as they seem to be young and in-tune with instagram. Your photo’s do have an instagram feel to it and I can understand why.. but i wouldn’t say its a bad thing.

    I believe you take more of an artsy direction rather than traditional style portraits. As with anything, the more you do it, the better you’ll get. So keep up the work.

    I would recommend that you kill off the other galleries on your website such as black & white and Misc.. doesn’t really serve what you are trying to do with portrait photography. Also if you have the option.. change the facebook and instagram links to open in a new tab when you click them. That way your website always stays available for clients to come back to more easily. That is me just being nit-picky.

    You might want to check out this photographer as I think you would enjoy her work and gather inspiration.

    https://www.facebook.com/juliatrottiphotography

    #18336
    cameraclicker
    Participant

    I only looked very briefly at the Lauren set.  The firs photo is over saturated and her skin is over smoothed.  Most of the rest also have over smoothed or blown out skin.  And she is class of 2014?  So she is 17, 18, or 19?  Why does she need skin smoothing?

    I had to laugh.  I was at a dinner with a number of women who are all probably 50 to 65 years old.  They were passing around 4X6 photos, one said were Hi-Res.  They were so low resolution I couldn’t tell if they were in focus or had been over smoothed without keeping features like eyes and lips sharp.  One of the women said they loved the look because all their lines and wrinkles were gone.  All the others agreed with her.  There is definitely a market for that look, but I wouldn’t expect it to be the under 25 crowd!

    #18344
    cameraclicker
    Participant

    I had to run off yesterday and left the computer on.  Today I saw your page was still open and had a look at http://www.klportraits.com/wendi-and-valencia.html, the first photo is showing a breezy day!  The balloons are going sideways.  Your horizon is tilted a lot!  You should have used a flash to reduce the shadow which is covering the features half of the little girl’s face.  A positive thing I can say is that you certainly got Rembrandt lighting on her face.  Although I suspect it was unintentional.

    #18371
    nairbynairb
    Participant

    Not all of your pages are centered the same – irritated me while browsing your site.

    Too many navigation links across the top. Simple is good.

    Your gallery link should lead to a gallery, not text.

    I see a lot of focus issues. Even some camera shake can be seen. Could be you’re using a lens without IS/VR or not using a fast enough shutter speed.

    You definitely need to invest in a 5 in 1 reflector or a speed lite and a remote trigger. Catch lights in your subject’s eyes will add a whole new dimension for your photos.
    I don’t think any 2 images of yours have the same feel. Some are edited A LOT more than others.

    Just work on focusing, work on consistency, get a reflector and learn how to use it and then you’ll be on your way.

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