Heather_L._Smith
01-29-2011, 03:53 PM
I just want to make a quick reminder to all the folks who are out there working on images for certification portfolio submissions. There is a lot of really good work going on out there, so kudos to everyone working on improving their skills!!
The best advice I can give is to really, truthfully, step back and take a very objective view of the images you're thinking about using for certification. It should be a sample of your absolute, very very best work. If you see flaws in the image, the judges will, too. They are well trained professionals who know when posing is off, when lighting is off or nonexistent, and who know when you've tried to hide something with a texture, burning, or other technique.
The judges don't know how hard it was to capture that one image of that frisky little child or how heartwarming it was to capture that family, or how that one sweet senior girl cried when she saw her images and then spent boatloads of money on them. The judges don't know any of that, which is why we absolutely MUST take an objective view of our images.
Being able to see the strong and the weak in our images is what ultimately makes us better photographers.
When you're looking at your images, do a mental checklist on some of these critical things that keep coming up over and over again in the submissions we're seeing:
1) Is there an actual lighting pattern in this image? Do you know what a lighting pattern is and how to achieve it? If not, go back to square one and learn everything you can about that, then practice, practice, practice. If you don't have a lighting pattern in your image, it will not pass submission. Do it on purpose, not on accident. Know how to minimize flaws in a subject and how to accentuate their positives. On a side note, ON-CAMERA FLASH does not qualify as "lighting." Please do not submit images with on-camera flash.
2) How is your subject posed? Is it flattering? Is there anything you would change in that image to make your subject look better? If the answer is yes, then find another image. Not many people can be photographed straight-on to the camera who wouldn't look better by bending, twisting, turning, or tilting some part of the body to create more contour and dimension. Is the posing awkward or forced? Even if it was a "natural" capture, how does it come across to the viewer? Remember, we weren't there, so your image has to tell us a story without words. Make sure relationships between objects or other people is natural and flattering. Don't crop off body parts at the joints (like fingers, elbows, knees, etc.). It creates tension in an image and if there's no other way to do it, find a different image.
3) Color. Do your colors go together? If your client shows up in terrible clothing, don't use that image for certification! Does your background go with your subject? You don't have to be matchy-matchy, but you must understand color harmony and how it works - and actually use that in your images. If you have 7 different patterns going on in your image with a rainbow of colors, don't use it.
4) Clothing. While clothing falls under the color category, too, it's a category all by itself as well. Is it well fitting? Is it pressed?? Don't submit images where clothing is wrinkled or the subject looks unkempt - unless it's all supposed to be that way and it's done completely on purpose. Anything else just comes across as sloppy.
5) Hair. Take the time to fix hair when you shoot. It's a lot harder to do in photoshop, so just take the 10 seconds to fix it when you're actually shooting. If you have messy hair that isn't meant to be that way, don't use the image.
DON'T SETTLE FOR 'GOOD ENOUGH.'
You need to find the very best representation of your work, and if that means you need to wait and improve and study and work a little longer, then do those things.
For some, this will be the most difficult aspect of the certification process. There are lots of folks willing to help, but please make sure that you're showing your very best work as you go seeking that help.
Disclaimer: this is simply a compilation of issues that we're seeing over and over again as more folks gear up for certification, and is not even remotely directed at any one or any group in particular.
The best advice I can give is to really, truthfully, step back and take a very objective view of the images you're thinking about using for certification. It should be a sample of your absolute, very very best work. If you see flaws in the image, the judges will, too. They are well trained professionals who know when posing is off, when lighting is off or nonexistent, and who know when you've tried to hide something with a texture, burning, or other technique.
The judges don't know how hard it was to capture that one image of that frisky little child or how heartwarming it was to capture that family, or how that one sweet senior girl cried when she saw her images and then spent boatloads of money on them. The judges don't know any of that, which is why we absolutely MUST take an objective view of our images.
Being able to see the strong and the weak in our images is what ultimately makes us better photographers.
When you're looking at your images, do a mental checklist on some of these critical things that keep coming up over and over again in the submissions we're seeing:
1) Is there an actual lighting pattern in this image? Do you know what a lighting pattern is and how to achieve it? If not, go back to square one and learn everything you can about that, then practice, practice, practice. If you don't have a lighting pattern in your image, it will not pass submission. Do it on purpose, not on accident. Know how to minimize flaws in a subject and how to accentuate their positives. On a side note, ON-CAMERA FLASH does not qualify as "lighting." Please do not submit images with on-camera flash.
2) How is your subject posed? Is it flattering? Is there anything you would change in that image to make your subject look better? If the answer is yes, then find another image. Not many people can be photographed straight-on to the camera who wouldn't look better by bending, twisting, turning, or tilting some part of the body to create more contour and dimension. Is the posing awkward or forced? Even if it was a "natural" capture, how does it come across to the viewer? Remember, we weren't there, so your image has to tell us a story without words. Make sure relationships between objects or other people is natural and flattering. Don't crop off body parts at the joints (like fingers, elbows, knees, etc.). It creates tension in an image and if there's no other way to do it, find a different image.
3) Color. Do your colors go together? If your client shows up in terrible clothing, don't use that image for certification! Does your background go with your subject? You don't have to be matchy-matchy, but you must understand color harmony and how it works - and actually use that in your images. If you have 7 different patterns going on in your image with a rainbow of colors, don't use it.
4) Clothing. While clothing falls under the color category, too, it's a category all by itself as well. Is it well fitting? Is it pressed?? Don't submit images where clothing is wrinkled or the subject looks unkempt - unless it's all supposed to be that way and it's done completely on purpose. Anything else just comes across as sloppy.
5) Hair. Take the time to fix hair when you shoot. It's a lot harder to do in photoshop, so just take the 10 seconds to fix it when you're actually shooting. If you have messy hair that isn't meant to be that way, don't use the image.
DON'T SETTLE FOR 'GOOD ENOUGH.'
You need to find the very best representation of your work, and if that means you need to wait and improve and study and work a little longer, then do those things.
For some, this will be the most difficult aspect of the certification process. There are lots of folks willing to help, but please make sure that you're showing your very best work as you go seeking that help.
Disclaimer: this is simply a compilation of issues that we're seeing over and over again as more folks gear up for certification, and is not even remotely directed at any one or any group in particular.