Self Portrait + 1

[CLKunst]

Well here's a big fat departure for me. One of my great weaknesses is self portraits. I'm not comfortable composing them and I never look natural in them. I suspect it's something about having no one to connect with on the other side of the camera. BUT for my birthday last week I decided I wanted pictures with myself and my immediate family and we were NOT going to the mall to cram into a picture booth.
I'm not satisfied with the bulk of them and no one in my house is off the hook for this project yet (that includes the dogs!) but I am happy with this one of me and my husband together (it may not be cheerful but it's US) and wondered what the group might think of it. I am looking to improve on this whole technique so any one who can suggest better come at me with it!

Thanks!

[readingr]

CL,

Other than hubby having a dirty grin on his face, I really don't know what your problem is. What did you have to promise to get him to pose??? LOL

Technically it looks good to me, the composition may have been a tad better with a bit more of your arm on the left but it works as is for me.

Roger

[ChowChi-Ching]

I think I am having a hard time with the "feeling" in this picture. You look so serious, but just in your eyes, I do not feel that you are very comfortable in front of the camera. I am not sure, maybe it is your position, I can't quite put my finger on it. I think I would try again and maybe work on being a bit more relaxed.

[OldSchool]

What a handsome couple, and I think your expression is very natural. Very nice job. It's obvious that there is a connection and history between you two.

On a technical note (from my lousy monitor), your face and hand on the left look over-exposed. Did you shoot this RAW? If so, it would be easy to recover the exposure.

BR,
Tim

[srobb]

I think it a very good portrait. I have to agree with your right hand and right side of your face looking a little overexposed compare to the other sking tones in the image. Other than that and liking to see more of you on the left side of the frame, I cannot think of anything else to nitpick on.

[Alison]

I'm not comfortable with self portraits either. I think most photographers prefer to be the other side of the camera.
I think you did incredibly well to be honest.
Your clarity on the whole thing is fantastic!
What lens and settings did you use?

[Lava Lamp]

I like it. One thing I noticed that I'd change is that your hands seem to be "floating" without any connection to your arms.. I just got a new monitor and the exposure problem may be mine, though.

[jar_e]

Interesting shot. I feel it's a tad tightly cropped and wouldn't mind seeing just a smidge more of the hand on the left hand side (just to the forearm), just to give it some breathing room. Other than the overexposed areas pointed out, this shot is great,

Well done,

Jared

[dbutler]

I think it's great! You don't look all that at ease, which for me makes this very special because you need to be ON THE OTHER SIDE!! I understand that need. I even like the floating hands. You are, after all, a photographer. All you need are those beautiful eyes and those hands right?

I've got a self portrait (of sorts) too. Maybe I'll post it (eventually)

[CLKunst]

Wow! That's a lot of response! Thanks everyone. Gosh! Allright here it goes:

Roger - the dirty grin is permanently fixed on, no promising necessary it just gets wider with conversation. He very happily obliged for this so I would STOP asking.

Chow - Thanks for your analysis. I agree that there is some tension in the eyes. I desperately want to see what's happening through the view finder and it's taking everything I have not to run back and check it again (and again and again). I think your suggestion for trying it again but more relaxed is good. My birthday wish actually made me "work" on my birthday so I truly wasn't very relaxed at all. Perhaps I'll try again in a about a week or, set everything up, then have a few drinks and it will all look more natural.;)

Tim - Thanks for your comment and insight, we've been together for almost 15 years, married for 7 and there is a LOT of water under that bridge and two kids to boot. I did not shoot it in RAW but in .jpg the compressed file is lighter than the big one in on my hard drive and I probably over boosted the brightness a bit. I've posted the original color version for comparison.

SRobb - Thank you as well. Like I said I'm not entirely comfortable with composition for leaving enough negative space to include myself in it. I originally shot this as a vertical frame but felt it was much too cramped and added on the negative space in post to fill it out to an 8x10 size frame. Next time I will try to leave more room for me.

Allison - Thank you for your understanding and kind words. I used my Tamron 28-300 lens, focal length 53mm, f8, 1/60, with my standard soft umbrella off camera flash and opposite side reflector set up in front of a plain black cloth.

Lava - There is more detail I think you will be able to distinguish in the original but the floating hands were intentional. I am very fond of a turn of the century illustrator named C. Coles Phillips http://www.bpib.com/illustrat/phillips.htm who used a visual illusion to allow the eye of the viewer to "draw" in the lines to complete the image. I thought I would incorporate that element into these even though the "rule" says subject should be distinguishable form background.

Jared - Thanks and I agree the only thing I really wish was different about this pic is that I had included the curve of my wrist.

D - Bless you. You have seen it as I feel it. I often feel in the dark of a concert hall that I am a floating pair of hands and eyes. I have also attached a self portrait of just me using my B-day pinatas as decoration. I had my husband stand behind the camera and encourage me to smile more truly and I like it. It's the person I feel like right now anyway.

[Young Shooter]

I would crop the chair out and
i would hang those numbers with fishing line
cause all i see is white string and a distracting brown chair
Keep Shooting

[swmdrayfan]

CL....did you consider this with possibly a lighter bg? Black on black kinda muddles things for me (but then again, it doesn't take much ) FWIW I'm not crazy about seeing pictures of myself either.
John

[CLKunst]

I would crop the chair out and
i would hang those numbers with fishing line
cause all i see is white string and a distracting brown chair
Keep Shooting

Thanks for your analysis YS. I actually did take the time to clean this one prior to printing but did not post it because I was in a hurry when I replied to critiques the last time. I am not entirely happy with the placement of me within the frame with this crop but it takes care of the weakness created by the chair. I suppose thats a good reminder to use a posing stool even for myself. I hope you can see more than brown chair and strings in this picture now.

[CLKunst]

CL....did you consider this with possibly a lighter bg? Black on black kinda muddles things for me (but then again, it doesn't take much ) FWIW I'm not crazy about seeing pictures of myself either.
John

Thanks for the critique John I'm sure there are many who would agree with you about the background. I was going for the fade away look. Check out the link I posted in response to Lava Lamp in my earlier post. It was done as an homage to a favorite illustrator of mine.