Self Portrait

[Nina]

I took this picture about 2 years ago & just recently came upon it. It was taken with an older, not so great digital camera. I realize the picture itself has quite a few flaws not including my odd expression. No work has been done on it & this is just the raw image untouched. Comments are appreciated.

[opus]

hmm, since you recognize that the picture has flaws, I'm not sure what kinds of comments you're looking for. There's an obvious bright flash glare off your forehead and between your eyes, and the harsh shadow behind your head on the left side is distracting too, as is the darkness off to the far left.

Your facial expression is interesting ... one wonders what exactly you were thinking when you took this. I've taken self-portraits myself where I really love the odd expressions I capture, because they're so different from what I see in the mirror every day.

What do you think? What kinds of comments would you make about this shot?

[jar_e]

Nina,

I am kind of following Kelly's logic, I don't know what kind of comments your looking for. It's an interesting shot, to say the least. I don't mind the expression, taht's probably the best part of this shot. Techinically, Kelly nailed the problems. It's an interesting shot,

Jared

[Nina]

What I found interesting was that upon showing this to a few people I got totally different reactions. One of my closest friends didn't like it at all. 2 other people (family members) found it humorous. One other person thought it was okay but nothing spectacular. I am aware that the lighting could've been better and that the image isn't all that sharp. It's not the greatest composition which is difficult to do if taking the picture yourself but at the time I was just horsing around and not all that serious about it. i just wanted to know what you got out of this or your critque be it technical or otherwise. My friends seemed more focused on my expression and I just wanted feedback & some others opinions.

[Lava Lamp]

I took this picture about 2 years ago & just recently came upon it. It was taken with an older, not so great digital camera. I realize the picture itself has quite a few flaws not including my odd expression. No work has been done on it & this is just the raw image untouched. Comments are appreciated.

Portraits are funny - I think a good one can be pretty bad from a technical sense and still give us some sense of the person, which is what it's all about, right? This one is a "mug shot" - dead on and flawed in the ways described above, but I suspect that the reaction you get from friends is based on the look you have. Is it different than your walking around look ? Probably so. The trick for next time might be to find the similar conveyance of emotion and imprvove on the tefhnicals.

[opus]

What I found interesting was that upon showing this to a few people I got totally different reactions. One of my closest friends didn't like it at all. 2 other people (family members) found it humorous. One other person thought it was okay but nothing spectacular. I am aware that the lighting could've been better and that the image isn't all that sharp. It's not the greatest composition which is difficult to do if taking the picture yourself but at the time I was just horsing around and not all that serious about it. i just wanted to know what you got out of this or your critque be it technical or otherwise. My friends seemed more focused on my expression and I just wanted feedback & some others opinions.

I think this picture is all about your expression. It's not compositionally strong, because it places you right in the center of the picture with nothing else of interest in the frame. It's not technically great, which you already know, so unless it's about something specific like your hairstyle, makeup, clothing, etc., (which we'd have to know you in person in order to make the comparisons), what we're left with of interest is the expression on your face. I think that's what your friends are reacting to, also. Sometimes you've got to trust the non-technical people to react to exactly what your picture is about.

Your expression is a mixture of surprise, boredom, interest, nonchalance, and irritation. I think it's neat how you've captured a look that exposes the fine line between such opposing emotions. And that's probably why you're getting such different reactions from your friends. They're all reading something different from the same expression. I find that fascinating.

[gahspidy]

This is a real hard, raw shot that has lots of technical flaws but can mean something different for anyone looking at it, especially those who know you. Kelly had some good thoughts on this. Your expression is confusing and your looking wide eyed directly into the camera has a stark rawness about it. Raw shots like these usually work well for self portraits, but i think if you were less attentive to the camera it may have been more effective.

[Nina]

Thanks, Kellybean, Jared, Lavalamp & Gary for your time. You all made some very interesting, good points. I truly appreciated your feedback and just love being on a forum where so many people are willing to contribute their time. (I did have a friend tell me that I looked like a deer caught in headlights) I did think that was hysterically funny, but oh so true.

[GB1]

Nina - This photo has character, even if it does have flaws (those being the type we photographers would harp on. A layman would probably not even mention any of them).

I like the eyes here, they take over the photo. Your lips almost look model-like, like you used some clear lipstick (?). I like the shape of the mouth -- It has a very subtle smile curviture, like you would prefer to let loose and laugh (a little like the Mona Lisa). The hair is pretty wild.

As u mentioned, it isn't a classical pic, for it's background, hot flash etc violate a full rules, but it does stand on its own -- It was definitely worth a post

GB

[mdmc]

I looked at this last night, But didn't post. After thinking about it I'll start off with the last thougt that occurred to me.
It's a hoax, yer jerkin' my chain girl!
This thought stems from a defensive part of me that dosent trust anyone!
However, overstepping that and having a little faith in people(I did look at some photos from you're threads started).
To me it shows a beautifull, open minded, curious, honest, intelligent woman.
Cought not so much as offgaurd, but with her hair down.
I get the feeling that the expression is not affected, but natural.
I think that it shows who you are without pretense.
So now please tell me why you posted the pic here!
Whatever the reason, it's refreshing and made me think.
Mark

[Nina]

GB1, and Mark, I wanted to thank you both for your comments. GB1, I am not a lipgloss wearing kind of girl. I might've had a tad bit of lipstick but that's it. Mark, I am not jerking your chain. No this is not a hoax. I actually decided to post this because I showed the pic to a couple of friends and got such different reactions that I thought"this could be a little controversial" so I decided to post it.
Now those who know me best, know that I am not one to start controversy but I myself wasn't sure how I felt about this pic.
Being the generous opinionated members that you are, I knew I could count on some of you to express your thoughts on it, technical or otherwise. I am amazed at how this particular picture is viewed so differently by everyone and I find that oh so interesting.
One of my closest friends pointed out that maybe I was too focused on the camera being in front of me and didn't relax enough and as a result I got "deer in the headlights." I had to agree. I also think the too bright flash caught me off guard. My appearance in the pic is so far from the real me.
Normally I am a happy-go-lucky, smiley kind of person. I posted this purely out of curiosity as to the reactions of others but I do appreciate your interest and could see how you might think my intentions were otherwise. That is a no. Thanks for posting

[mdmc]

So you were jerking our chains! I know BS when I fall face first into it! (usually!).
Still I think its a telling photo!
Great post, and refreshing,
Mark.

[Roy Latham]

I like it. A good expression and the flat lighting works remarkably well. I tried it as a tight crop and did a little Photoshop retouching. Only a young person benefits from unsharp masking. Older folks need diffusion instead!

[Nina]

Looks are deceiving and I'm actually alot older than I appear but thanks for the compliment...

[GB1]

Yeah, many of us are generous opinionated members but I think most everyone here has good intentions. (Of course if we weren't opinionated, we'd all be wasting each others time, right?) The board is for posting less-than-perfect shots. If my critiques come across a little harsh sometimes, please excuse it - writing can come across harsher than in-person conversation. GB

[gahspidy]

A crop helps, but I like the hair (pigtails)? as it has lots of character. a slightly looser crop with all the hair in view would work better, I think

[Nina]

GB, you didn't come off harsh at all. It seemed to me you complimented the photo more than anything.
Gary, I have to agree with you on the pigtails. I always did my hair up that way because liked it and did actually look alot younger as a result. Leave those babies in !

[Chunk]

Nina, I'm not a people photographer so I'll let those who are comment on the technical aspects. I'm also not a self portrait photographer because I could never find a good looking subject. You beautiful people have all the advantages there.
I like the overall look here with Gary's suggested crop but get the feeling that you are concentrating on the camera rather than looking through it into the eyes of the people who are viewing the shot.
I agree with that close friend of yours. Maybe focusing on something well beyond the camera or just letting yourself become kinda distracted would make a slight difference in the overall feel. I think there would be subtle changes in the eyes that give different signals to the viewer. When we are concentrating on something we open our eyes a bit and that'll give that 'deer in the headlights' look.
Try some more self portraits and post them. We always enjoy seeing photos of beautiful young women and who knows, you might get a tiara some day.

[Nina]

Gee Chunk that's a sweet thing to say considering the photograph. I doubt that I'd be getting a tiara anytime soon. As far as taking self-portraits, I won't be doing that. I actually hate being photographed, so posting this one was a huge leap for me and if 37 years is young then I guess I'm young.