Someone needs to tell this wanna be photographer that if you are going to use a prop like this then you need to develop the setting a little further…and get in there and set up your model…kids need help to get posture correct. C’mon people…it’s called follow through!!!
And on that note, I think y’all just picked the worst picture on her site. I just looked her up (not that hard since you didn’t cover her name well enough) and she has a lot of great pictures on there!
Very true. Her work isn’t awe inspiring, but she does have a lot of good images. I know of many “professional” fauxtographers with consistently AWFUL images throughout that are much more worthy of this site…and I know they’d appreciate some pointers.
Hi guys. I’m the photographer. I actually submitted my Facebook profile to the folks here on purpose, because I know full well that a lot of my photos really suck! And I knew I could count on all of you to let me know just how badly they suck. You didn’t disappoint! This was fun. Although, I’m curious to know why ya’ll can’t offer pointers and constructive criticism rather than just saying, “This fauxtog sucks.” I avoid working indoors with backdrops, because I know I’m not good at it. Yet. I also know I have outdoor shots that suck just as much as this one does. But I am still learning. I think I’ll come back here again next year and resubmit my profile. We’ll see if I’ve learned anything.
Don’t you feel the slightest bit of guilt for charging people for your work when you admit that you are not very good? I am not a professional (yet) but I know how to correctly expose my shots and make my compositions pleasing to the eye and I still would not dream of starting a business at this stage. I still have a year of studies to go and even then I am not confident that I will be good enough. It’s good that you are learning but why don’t you wait until you ARE ‘good at it’ before you set up a business? It’s like someone who can’t make toast without burning it opening a restaurant.
Did you notice how a couple people said I had some good images on my page? THOSE are the ones I charged for. As it turns out, MOST of the images on my page are of my own family. Therefore, I have not charged them. If I know my images suck, then, NO, I do not charge people for them. But there are people who LIKE most of my images and have asked me to take theirs (the two senior girls, for example). I think I did a pretty good job on those images, especially the ones of the girl with the dark hair. And I can’t give images away for free in those cases. That’s the long answer. The short answer is this: when I know my images suck, I don’t charge for them. And MOST of my images at this point are of my own family.
Marisa you do not have to explain yourself to any of these people they are just online trolls, i think that you have many great shots on your page, you have “clients” and thats all that matters right? Dont waste your time, all they will do is bash you for something else.
Marisa..
Have you taken any classes?
FIrst pointer for your in studio shots…don’t shoot like a run of the mill portrait studio…be creative. Learn how to use your lights to benefit the client. Pull people away from the back drop. It will decrease any harsh shadows and help diffuse the wrinkles in the backdrop. I understand this is a muslin type backdrop and it is suppose to be wrinkly but it is not attractive when you can see the crease of the wrinkles. Drop your f/stop. If you are shooting at an f/11 then drop it to f/8…make sure that you adjust the power of the lights when you do this as it will effect your lighting.
Second…use a focal length of between 55 and 109…this is standard focal length for portraiture. Anything else will make the people look strange. You can drop to 35 but that still has a bit of distortion. I only go lower than that when I want a fish eye look…and I purposely distort my photos. I have one on my site that is oddly attractive with the wide angle lens…but it is artistic. Most people don’t understand an artistic portrait and only want the basic. Some people may argue about this focal length but if you ever purchase a portraiture lens it will be between around 55mm and 109mm.
Third…look at poses online that you like…print them up and hang then in your studio, house or where you shoot. It will allow you to look at the picture and say….I want to shoot that shot. Then you can pose the person. If you have something to show the person what you want to do it makes it easier…and then soon you won’t need the photos and can replace them with your own. Also when you book your appointments go over poses with your client…tell them to look online and find poses they like. The happier your client is the more they will buy.
Fourth…play music for them….if you have an older couple play elevator music…babies play soft soothing music…kids play kid music…teens….ask them what they like and try to play their music…With Pandora, itunes, and all the other radio stations out there it shouldn’t be too hard to set something up.
Fifth…stop shooting like Olen Mills, CPI & all the other corporate Portrait studio…find the type of portraiture you like and expand on that. If you don’t like the props don’t use them. A photo looks fine without a prop…and sometimes props can ruin a photo…I currently work at one of the said portrait studios and I HATE it but it gives me experience on what I don’t want to do. I also understand why they are in business still though…because they know the formula that 90% of people want…a basic portrait of them and their family.
Last…and yes I know this is long but photography critique and tips are not short explanations. Take lots of photos if you are still learning…take photos of everything! But DO NOT show the client everything…pick the top 5, 8, or 10 photos…Definitely DO NOT show them the bad things. Show after production and editing not before. I only do this for very special clients…my personal best friends. If it takes you two days to edit the photos them so be it make another appointment with the client to show them the photos you pick from the session.
Hope this helps….
Fauxtogs just point and click…nothing better than a snapshot…Photographers look, assess, evaluate, pose, balance, wait, and then click….that is why they can call them selves photographers. http://www.facebook.com/C.B.Photography.SC
Erm, great advice and then i check’d your page and its the worst work ever! Out of focus, blurry, underexposed and do you even know what white balance is?
Hi Marisa, this is my first time commenting on here, but as a fellow beginner/aspiring photographer, I wanted to say, I admire your bravery for subjecting your work to the type of harsh critique that is typical here. You do have a lot of good photos on your fb page, I know most of my photos would really be picked to pieces too, but hey, we are learning, Rome wasn’t built in a day, right! Anyways, here’s to wish you lots of luck as you grow and improve, and to the future of your career, truthfully, Photos by beginners like you and I are probably no worst then the ones by some of the folks who critique us:-) (and actually may be better then some!) At the same time, besides being a bit overly harsh, I have to say I do learn some things here… Anyways, good luck!
This shot is just craptastic all the way around. Are the fake flowers shoved into the tree stump supposed to make this boy look more masculine? Is the fauxtog saying she has a stump in her basement so she set this shot around it?
I think the wrinkled backdrop says a lot as well… if she doesn’t care for her equipment more than this, what does that say about her work?
The colors are a bit off, and it looks like it was wadded up instead of carefully put away. A good steam bath and it would look better… I’m not quite as harsh about the background.
I love the white knights coming out to defend the fauxtog. Whether you charge for your bad shots or not, you shouldn’t put them in your portfolio. Also rule of thirds.
Sage
Maybe it’s a Twin Peaks reference? Yeah, probably not.
Kelli
Someone needs to tell this wanna be photographer that if you are going to use a prop like this then you need to develop the setting a little further…and get in there and set up your model…kids need help to get posture correct. C’mon people…it’s called follow through!!!
Veronica
I agree with Kelli, this picture has potential, just need better posing and adjust their F stop to throw the background out of focus!
Veronica
And on that note, I think y’all just picked the worst picture on her site. I just looked her up (not that hard since you didn’t cover her name well enough) and she has a lot of great pictures on there!
Gregg
I guess our opinions of “great” will have to differ. Her work is terribly inconsistent, especially her exposures.
Photo snob
Gregg I think you and I have the same opinion of great. Bad lighting, dead children, unflattering poses…just to name a few of her fauxto mishaps.
Audrey
Very true. Her work isn’t awe inspiring, but she does have a lot of good images. I know of many “professional” fauxtographers with consistently AWFUL images throughout that are much more worthy of this site…and I know they’d appreciate some pointers.
Veronica
Hehe and on another note, someone should teach her about the rule of thirds!
Missy
What rolls downstairs? Alone or in pairs? Rolls over your neighbors dog? What’s great for a snack and fits on your back? It’s LOG, LOG, LOG!!!
All kids love LOG!!! (I can’t believe no one brought that song up! LOL!)
Anne
Missy, that was the first thing I thought!
Soxinsc
It was the first thing I thought of too.
Rick
This picture can be fixed very easily….
Zoom in or crop, steam iron, and wait for a better facial expression
Andreas Steen
I am not feeling the log at all
manda rae
his expression says it all… pure amusement at the situation. even he knows a fauxtog when he sees one!
Marisa Hall
Hi guys. I’m the photographer. I actually submitted my Facebook profile to the folks here on purpose, because I know full well that a lot of my photos really suck! And I knew I could count on all of you to let me know just how badly they suck. You didn’t disappoint! This was fun. Although, I’m curious to know why ya’ll can’t offer pointers and constructive criticism rather than just saying, “This fauxtog sucks.” I avoid working indoors with backdrops, because I know I’m not good at it. Yet. I also know I have outdoor shots that suck just as much as this one does. But I am still learning. I think I’ll come back here again next year and resubmit my profile. We’ll see if I’ve learned anything.
Gail
Don’t you feel the slightest bit of guilt for charging people for your work when you admit that you are not very good? I am not a professional (yet) but I know how to correctly expose my shots and make my compositions pleasing to the eye and I still would not dream of starting a business at this stage. I still have a year of studies to go and even then I am not confident that I will be good enough. It’s good that you are learning but why don’t you wait until you ARE ‘good at it’ before you set up a business? It’s like someone who can’t make toast without burning it opening a restaurant.
Marisa Hall
Did you notice how a couple people said I had some good images on my page? THOSE are the ones I charged for. As it turns out, MOST of the images on my page are of my own family. Therefore, I have not charged them. If I know my images suck, then, NO, I do not charge people for them. But there are people who LIKE most of my images and have asked me to take theirs (the two senior girls, for example). I think I did a pretty good job on those images, especially the ones of the girl with the dark hair. And I can’t give images away for free in those cases. That’s the long answer. The short answer is this: when I know my images suck, I don’t charge for them. And MOST of my images at this point are of my own family.
Carian
Marisa you do not have to explain yourself to any of these people they are just online trolls, i think that you have many great shots on your page, you have “clients” and thats all that matters right? Dont waste your time, all they will do is bash you for something else.
CB
Marisa..
Have you taken any classes?
FIrst pointer for your in studio shots…don’t shoot like a run of the mill portrait studio…be creative. Learn how to use your lights to benefit the client. Pull people away from the back drop. It will decrease any harsh shadows and help diffuse the wrinkles in the backdrop. I understand this is a muslin type backdrop and it is suppose to be wrinkly but it is not attractive when you can see the crease of the wrinkles. Drop your f/stop. If you are shooting at an f/11 then drop it to f/8…make sure that you adjust the power of the lights when you do this as it will effect your lighting.
Second…use a focal length of between 55 and 109…this is standard focal length for portraiture. Anything else will make the people look strange. You can drop to 35 but that still has a bit of distortion. I only go lower than that when I want a fish eye look…and I purposely distort my photos. I have one on my site that is oddly attractive with the wide angle lens…but it is artistic. Most people don’t understand an artistic portrait and only want the basic. Some people may argue about this focal length but if you ever purchase a portraiture lens it will be between around 55mm and 109mm.
Third…look at poses online that you like…print them up and hang then in your studio, house or where you shoot. It will allow you to look at the picture and say….I want to shoot that shot. Then you can pose the person. If you have something to show the person what you want to do it makes it easier…and then soon you won’t need the photos and can replace them with your own. Also when you book your appointments go over poses with your client…tell them to look online and find poses they like. The happier your client is the more they will buy.
Fourth…play music for them….if you have an older couple play elevator music…babies play soft soothing music…kids play kid music…teens….ask them what they like and try to play their music…With Pandora, itunes, and all the other radio stations out there it shouldn’t be too hard to set something up.
Fifth…stop shooting like Olen Mills, CPI & all the other corporate Portrait studio…find the type of portraiture you like and expand on that. If you don’t like the props don’t use them. A photo looks fine without a prop…and sometimes props can ruin a photo…I currently work at one of the said portrait studios and I HATE it but it gives me experience on what I don’t want to do. I also understand why they are in business still though…because they know the formula that 90% of people want…a basic portrait of them and their family.
Last…and yes I know this is long but photography critique and tips are not short explanations. Take lots of photos if you are still learning…take photos of everything! But DO NOT show the client everything…pick the top 5, 8, or 10 photos…Definitely DO NOT show them the bad things. Show after production and editing not before. I only do this for very special clients…my personal best friends. If it takes you two days to edit the photos them so be it make another appointment with the client to show them the photos you pick from the session.
Hope this helps….
Fauxtogs just point and click…nothing better than a snapshot…Photographers look, assess, evaluate, pose, balance, wait, and then click….that is why they can call them selves photographers.
http://www.facebook.com/C.B.Photography.SC
In wonderment
Erm, great advice and then i check’d your page and its the worst work ever! Out of focus, blurry, underexposed and do you even know what white balance is?
Practice what you preach dear!
Candy
Hi Marisa, this is my first time commenting on here, but as a fellow beginner/aspiring photographer, I wanted to say, I admire your bravery for subjecting your work to the type of harsh critique that is typical here. You do have a lot of good photos on your fb page, I know most of my photos would really be picked to pieces too, but hey, we are learning, Rome wasn’t built in a day, right! Anyways, here’s to wish you lots of luck as you grow and improve, and to the future of your career, truthfully, Photos by beginners like you and I are probably no worst then the ones by some of the folks who critique us:-) (and actually may be better then some!) At the same time, besides being a bit overly harsh, I have to say I do learn some things here… Anyways, good luck!
Wsroadrunner
Come on people, f-stop is NOT a rap star!
This shot is just craptastic all the way around. Are the fake flowers shoved into the tree stump supposed to make this boy look more masculine? Is the fauxtog saying she has a stump in her basement so she set this shot around it?
I think the wrinkled backdrop says a lot as well… if she doesn’t care for her equipment more than this, what does that say about her work?
Melchan
could that backdrop be any worse?
Marisa Hall
It’s not a bad backdrop. I just used it poorly. So, yes. It could be worse.
Wsroadrunner
Yeah, it is bad. Maybe used under the car in the garage?? Nah, it would still be bad for that. LOL
[email protected]
The colors are a bit off, and it looks like it was wadded up instead of carefully put away. A good steam bath and it would look better… I’m not quite as harsh about the background.
Jon
The Wicker Chair had the week off.
Don
I love the white knights coming out to defend the fauxtog. Whether you charge for your bad shots or not, you shouldn’t put them in your portfolio. Also rule of thirds.