[iliketag]

It seems rather silly that you would put such finality on that second to last post, only to come back with a “Oh, and by the way, other than the first five comments, I’m ignoring you.”

I think myself, EMF and IHF have offered up very critical and honest opinions regarding your work.
Another word of advice: Don’t turn to the internet to try and seek praise. Don’t fish for it. If your work is truly deserving of it, you should expect critiques or comments with more meticulous notes regarding the best nips and tucks to really make a piece shine. A shallow “love it” or “oooh pretty!” will get you no where and shouldn’t be what you go looking for.

[iliketag]

I would say, given the context of your tone in this entire thread, that yes; it is just OK.

The image is oversharpened, giving it jagged edges when most brides prefer a slightly softer, feminine look. Not out of focus soft, but not jagged either.
There are no catchlights in her eyes, which draws my attention away and into the brightest part of the image, her right breast (left side of image). She is also looking too far right (again, left side of image). Though there is some white on the other side of her eyes, again, it does not draw me in and I am distracted by the blown highlights in her dress and arm.
The shadows on the left side of her face (right side of image) are very dark, which means the light wasn’t spread well and it’s a hard light.
The tree branches on the left side of the image should be cloned out. Having the random shadow where I expect seamless sky is distracting to the overall image.

The reason I am not jumping up and down congratulating you is because you came in here without conveying context to the newer forum lurkers/contributors. You were defended very heavily when you were, as IHF so aptly put it, thrown to the lions. Copping an attitude will not win you any favor here and by declaring “SUCK IT” with no background/context,  puts a lot of doubt in my mind that you will outgrow the naivete most new photographers suffer from early on in their businesses.

I agree with Ebi.

[iliketag]

Why would you not hire someone? If you want engagement photos for save the dates or to put with an invitation, it’s worth it. Even if you don’t plan on putting it with the invitations or save the dates, it’s a great way to get to know your photographer prior to the wedding. Most professional photographers of quality will include the engagements with the wedding package.

[iliketag]

I would be more inclined to recommend a flickr account versus a facebook. There’s a misconception that anyone posting their photography on facebook is “in the biz” and you might get people coming to you, undermining any value you may have and asking for free photos. That’s fine if you can screen them for clients you actually want to portfolio build with, but ultimately if you’re not really ready to put yourself out there like that, just hold off.

The reason I recommend flickr is because it allows you to maintain your exif data, it’s easily accessible and easier to share on forums similar to this one. It’s also a good way to organize your images without being too overwhelming. Facebook has too many ads and things going on in the background, plus it’s riddled with viruses.

[iliketag]

I keep getting into trouble in this group I belong to on facebook because I’m not coddling people when they share terrible photos.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10200810100354438&set=gm.10151970437473987&type=1&theater

 

Why do people think cartoony HDR is good? Please tell me this fad is on it’s way out!

[iliketag]

Oh geez, I thought at first that Alexandra’s comment was regarding the before and after sky. I was all “I don’t see a white spot… am I crazy? Am I blind?”.

That wedding photojournalism though, yikes. That was just bad… so, so bad.

[iliketag]

I really like the concept of canvas, but since I’ve never seen a canvas print in person, only paintings, I can’t really decide one way or the other. I enjoy a well mounted and framed print – but I’ve never put any of my work through a pro lab yet. I’ve been trying to figure out how the hell to work color profiles to send my tests into Simply Color, who I signed up with in the spring. Working on an uncalibrated monitor is killing me, since I do most my work on my laptop. I can appreciate color, it’s why I got both my TV’s professionally calibrated (they’re plasmas and look so much richer now!) but sometimes it’s so jarring moving from the tv to the laptop to my phone or tablet. The differences are so drastic even with images I know are done well on a pro’s site.

I definitely wish I had looked into printing sooner. I certainly hope learning can help the way I see colors and appreciate exposures sooc.

[iliketag]

The two sigma lenses I own, while being only consumer level, have been very good to me. I’m selling my 10-20 simply because it vignettes pretty terribly on a full frame body… but it’s great little wide angle for a aps-c body. I know BEG has their 70-200 and has high praises for it, too.

[iliketag]

EMF, if you ever saw the Lord of the Rings movies, it was a staple in cinematic forced perspective. Very cool stuff.
I showed these to my boyfriend last night and was went through them saying “that’s so cool!” over and over again. Just a great job. I love how he combined the architectural models with the real world backgrounds/lighting too!

[iliketag]

My kit isn’t terribly advanced, but I like that it gives me enough variety to play with.
I started learning digital (and had previously worked with Film through high school) in 2006 and picked up my own dslr on Black Friday in 2011. So technically my very own first was a Canon Rebel T3i, which I passed along to my mom in February after procuring my 5D Mk II for the ridiculously low price of $500.

Right now my bag includes:
5D Mk II (and saving for a Mk III)
Rebel T3i (which I “borrow” when I have a shoot and need a backup body)
Canon 50 1.4
Canon 85 1.8
Canon 70-200 L (Non IS 🙁 )
Canon 135 L
Canon 24-70 L I
Sigma 50 2.8 Macro (Which I will be trading up for a Canon 100 L come the holiday season – when the sales on that guy are great)
and a Canon 580 EX II (Waiting for another to pop up on Craigslist for 300 again. Patience, patience, patience!)

Lately my 24-70 only comes off when I move to another L. I will say my 85 is probably my least used, sadly. My 1.4 I got for a steal at $50 new using my protection plan and saved up reward coupons from where I bought it. Most of my equipment was purchased either second hand or through meticulous price matching/taking advantage of deals. I managed to get a Canon EOS M for concerts that don’t allow dslr’s for $50 using over two hundred dollars in saved up reward coupons during the 4th of July deal B&H was running. My equipment is worth as my as my boyfriend’s car in terms of having to replace everything… but I paid maybe a 3rd of the price.

[iliketag]

WHOA GIANT BABY! … Seriously though, that is one aggressive first page.

[iliketag]

Wow Ebi, I’m very impressed. Not to say I thought you were just spouting jargon or anything, but I just like how simple yet elegant all of it is. Food photography has always been such a confusing subject for me; how do you nail that much color variety? how do you make something look that delicious? All these hangups kind of scared me away from it, for now. Til I can figure out off camera lighting at least! Some day I’ll get at least one good’un so I can tell myself I did :p

[iliketag]

I don’t think they’re bad but I do think the brownish tone and over-warm light make it hard to really enjoy. Personally I find it a little distracting. The shots themselves are interesting enough that I like the subject matter. However, I would be interested to see the sooc images to compare.

[iliketag]

That was absolutely brilliant. If anything, my many years in retail has taught me that there is a distinct different in Value vs. Cost. It’s part of why I’m a habitual protection plan buyer if I can see the value in it. (For instance, I got $600 for my phone that broke because they couldn’t get me a replacement. Verizon had actually authorized my upgrade a month in advance so I got a new, free phone and used that $600 to buy a new lens – my Canon 135mm)

[iliketag]

I’m honestly with Ebi on this one. I also do not agree that you need to be great at both portrait and landscape to be considered a good photographer. It’s absolutely better to be more well rounded, yes, but I don’t think it should be required. You can compose a landscape well but still turn up with a boring shot. Likewise, you can shoot a couple or a high school senior with strong composition and totally miss any sort of emotion or personality. Technical skill it one thing, but it’s far more likely someone will hone a certain skillset in order to succeed in a particular market.

I can photograph people far better than I can photograph mountains. The way I shoot landscapes doesn’t move me the same way that a couple completely enamoured with each other does. My mind just doesn’t turn the gears regarding landscapes like it does to others. Thus, environmental portraits are my niche. I could probably produce decent fashion work, but that also wouldn’t have the same kind of -oh gawd this word, but it applies- passion attached to it either.

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