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Rikki


Photograph Information Photographer's Comments
Challenge: Color Studio Portrait II (Advanced Editing IV)
Camera: Canon EOS-20D
Lens: Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 USM Macro
Location: San Jose, California
Date: Apr 12, 2006
Aperture: f2.8
ISO: 800
Shutter: 1/60
Galleries: Emotive, Portraiture
Date Uploaded: Apr 15, 2006

 Challenge Entry No. 66

This is my friend and co-worker Stephanie. This image was taken in our office on a light table with a black backdrop. I'm not good at portrait photography but I hope this one makes up for the lack luster performance I've had in portraiture. We took so many photos and I really thank Stephanie for being so patient with me. This image by far stands out to me than the rest. I have so many favorites from the set but this is a bit different and hopefully folks would consider this a portrait.

Shot in RAW and converted with RSE. Multiple adjustment layers for the eyes, skin, lips. Ran though NI @ 10%. No crop here. This is the full frame and just resized. Saved for web. This image was shot with Meera's 100mm macro. This marks the second challenge I've used this lens. I definitely have to have this beauty of a lens in my bag. Thanks Meera!

I might be going up against Kiwiness or Judi on this challenge. Both are GREAT portrait photographers. Both are professionals. Yikes! I just hope to finish within 20 places of them and hopefully above a 6. This looks like my last hurrah for Achoo's League of Death. It was fun and I've definitely pushed my skills beyond my usual ;) Great job Doc!

Good luck all! Cheers!

IMG_4244.CR2

Post Challenge
Well I knew it. Facing Gary is next to impossible! Anyway, I had a fun shoot for this one and I am glad that it did very well in the challenge considering portraits are not my strong suit.

For those that commented that I seemed to have overdone it with NI, guess again. Stephanie's skin is really that smooth and clear. The perfect model for portraits if I may say so ;)

Thanks for all the comments and the vote of confidence that this image would take a top 10 place or even possibly ribbon. It was definitely a thrill and I lost to a very, very worthy opponent. Congrats Gary!

Outtakes

Statistics
Place: 11 out of 199
Avg (all users): 6.7564
Avg (commenters): 8.1923
Avg (participants): 6.3874
Avg (non-participants): 7.0061
Views since voting: 3941
Views during voting: 599
Votes: 275
Comments: 49
Favorites: 8 (view)

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AuthorThread
 05/04/2006 01:39:16 AM
Great work here Rikki! The contrasting and skin tone are spot on! Excellent!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/02/2006 02:46:34 PM
Beautiful model with soft lighting
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/29/2006 02:03:41 PM
Hola Rikki! Greets from the Critique Club.

(Yes, I am just doing this for the free study.)

This is just so great in so many ways, your imagination and creativity always inspire me, man.

The only thing I can say that might be on the critical side is that you could have used a bit more sharpening.

Ears, I like the ears, you hardly ever get to see nice ears in a portrait. :o)
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/29/2006 11:25:15 AM
Great shot. I love how you included her reflection. Let me get this straight, the lighting was from a light table. Did you use any reflectors, or just that? Is the reflection surface just the glass on top of the light then?
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/24/2006 01:52:00 PM
Congratulations Rikki. A really splendid portrait. Though I didn't get how the title relates to the image, and at the end didn't care because this is a wonderfully composed and lit shot.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/24/2006 10:54:04 AM
I think this is a nice image Rikki and what can I say about this beautiful model? The composition is lovely along with the lighting. I find it odd that when someone first uses a post processing program or technique like Neat Image everyone wonders in amazement, then after most people know what it is or how to use it it's considered a hindrance. I realize that you didn't use NI but the fact that your model's skin is so beautiful here may have hurt your score. Isn't that ironic?
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/24/2006 10:10:44 AM
Such a beautiful portrait, well done!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/24/2006 09:03:01 AM
Congratulations on your 11th place finish with this double portrait.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/24/2006 03:36:56 AM
This is one of the very few images I scored lower than the group. I only gave it a 6. I review images scored lower than the group to see what I overlooked and most of the time the group is right.

Image composition here is fantastic, especially with the hair and reflection. Lighting and color are basically good. But a couple technical issues were bothersome. The whiteness of the eyes seems unnatural. Focus on your model is in that never, never land where it is not soft enough to be considered artistically soft focused but not quite sharp enough to be considered in best focus. The ear ring draws strong attention to this fact. The reflection in the mirror (a very nice touch I might add) appears to be in better focus than your model. That should be the other way around.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/24/2006 03:06:11 AM
Nice image Rikki, both you guys beat me this round. Great model.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/24/2006 01:18:49 AM
Love this Rikki, especially the pose allowing us to visually see her reflection as well.....I am so proud of you, as this is a great image, well done.....
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/24/2006 01:17:08 AM
So I'm not even close hey!!! Less than a point my friend...

Congrats on your finish mate, great photo.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/24/2006 01:05:11 AM
Sooo you beat me by .005. LMAO!!! You can't get much closer than that. But anyways...fantastic job for someone who was really panicking with this challenge in the beginning.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/24/2006 12:47:52 AM
Congratulations on 11th Rikki - fantastic image.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/24/2006 12:26:19 AM
Man 11th! I think this should have been Top 10.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/24/2006 12:14:45 AM
Very nice Rikki! Stephanie is a very lovely lady! Congrats on your 11th place finish!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 Comments Made During the Challenge
04/23/2006 06:45:56 PM
Very nice use of reflection.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/23/2006 04:19:57 PM
Very nice reflection shot. I like it that it is her reflection that is looking atthe camera. Well done.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/23/2006 04:14:11 AM
Love that reflection and composition. Ribbon worthy, IMO.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/22/2006 04:43:14 PM
Very very nice! Hopefully it'll be in top 3. :)
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/21/2006 09:16:29 PM
Lovely. The reflection is nice too.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/21/2006 08:49:12 PM
I love the eyes, the color, the reflection alot, however I want to turn my head sideways to "get a better look" if thats the effect your aiming for then way to go!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/21/2006 06:57:20 PM
Sweet gradation into and of the reflection. Nice.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/21/2006 05:13:45 AM
This is a nice shot. I'd like to see more of the reflection.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/20/2006 10:29:44 PM
I like the green/red contrast and the reflections - great stuff
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/20/2006 08:24:28 PM
Lovely...but I do wish I could see all the reflection. Great idea. :)
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/20/2006 08:21:52 PM
I like the smoothness in light and color. The subtle reflection is brilliant.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/20/2006 07:23:48 PM
very nice indeed. i do like that the only eye looking at the viewer is a reflected one.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/20/2006 04:13:29 PM
Beautiful. Everything works here.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/19/2006 11:28:00 PM
first of all, that is such a lovely face!
I like the warm and serene feeling about this photo.
sorry I'm not that good with the technicals, but I find the lighting perfect.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/19/2006 07:44:32 PM
This should be Top 10 if not Top 5! It will be a shame if it doesn't.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/19/2006 06:39:54 AM
8 - Very nice. The gaze in the reflection works well. Not sure how easy focal-wise it would be to do (still retaining the reflection), but a little more skin/eyes/hair detail may have made this even better in my opinion. Wonder about it flipped horizontally, but I don't think it'd work the same, who knows.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/19/2006 05:17:56 AM
this is beautiful!
the reflection is great.

I think you over-used neat image here though. a little more skin texture would make this picture more realistic
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/18/2006 10:50:52 PM
Very interesting capture, I like it.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/18/2006 03:00:09 PM
i likethe its interesting. nice light and nice colors. i like how its not her but the reflexion that looks directly at the "spectator"
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/17/2006 09:00:56 PM
Girl of my dreams! 10
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/17/2006 07:27:13 PM
Super image and I do like the idea with the reflection. The processing looks good, the skin tones come over well, the composition and lighting is very fitting, and I love the flow of her hair. Only something about the eyes gets me though, I am not too sure what it is though, maybe it is the whites that are too white and have lost their detail. Yep that is it, especially the bottom eye, it is too white, there should be more shadow there. My guess is this will be top ten though for sure.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/17/2006 05:11:04 PM
Absolutely beautiful and stunning image. I can see this as an advertisement in a magazine.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/17/2006 04:51:29 PM
Really nice image.
Love the reflection of your model.
A 9 from me.
best of luck with the challenge

Kev
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/17/2006 03:55:01 PM
my fav to ribbon, well done! love the comp.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/17/2006 11:46:11 AM
Very cool! I love that in her relection, the eye is looking right at the camera. A subtle element that makes this great. The picture looks like it could have been a bit sharper (just barely). Great job! -8
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/17/2006 09:24:31 AM
what a gorgeous girl. Cool reflection!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/17/2006 08:00:21 AM
Wow! This is amazing! Perfect in every way! 10
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/17/2006 07:54:36 AM
Wow, what a shot....love the green eyes....and the hair....nice pic!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/17/2006 07:16:30 AM
Lovely...really stunning face, nicely captured...Well done, hope you do well with this...
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/17/2006 01:24:07 AM
Beauty in every sense.....just beautiful.....
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/17/2006 12:44:48 AM
Great idea on the reflection.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/17/2006 12:25:59 AM
This is beautiful. I like the reflection.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 04/17/2006 12:25:34 AM
Just incredible!!!! my vote for the Blue.
  Photographer found comment helpful.


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