Securely Sleeping
Uploaded: December 08, 2001 12:03:05
Nikon CP950
Piper Lehman December 08, 2001
Heather, this is beautiful--so sharp! The purple is a nice touch, but I think my favorite part is her eyelashes! Wish mine were this long and lush! #2304Heather K. McFarland December 08, 2001
Thank you Piper. This adorable little girl is the sister of one of my sons friends.I decided to accentuate those great eyelashes by removing most of the color and contrast in the face. I also elected to keep the pacifier and spots on the blanket in color as those are the "secure" elements that make her content. #3628
Glenn Theal December 08, 2001
Lovely photo!Cheers,
Glenn #3633
Colleen M. Walsh December 09, 2001
Nice work. I like this. Very different. The contrast really make this a unique photo.colleen #3661
Richard Weiner December 09, 2001
Yes indeed it's a lovely picture. Well done. The only thing is the slight shadow (?) under the eye. Perhaps removing that would do the trick?Richard #3675
Piper Lehman December 09, 2001
what shadow? how picky can you be? #3676Richard Weiner December 09, 2001
You don't see the shadow? It's a half moon gray area directly under the eye.As to being 'picky'...I've been involved with a well established photo group for a few years now and believe me that shadow would be picked up immediately and commented on. If the author is going for a 'washed out' look then this 'blemish' to the image stands out.
No doubt images I enter for critique may be torn apart. A fate I accept as part of submitting for comments.
Remember, if you are looking at this site as a Vanity Room where people will "Oooh" and "Aaah" at your latest masterpiece be prepared for a few who may say "Wellll...it could be better" or even "Fertilizer". #3679
Heather K. McFarland January 01, 2002
Thank you Chuck for the comment. No we are not related to the Washington McFarlands that I know of...that's my husbands side of the family. But they are all pretty much located in Michigan or Flordia.In order to get the color out of the face I did the following.
First I made a mask to protect only those elements I wanted to keep in color.
I then desaturated the non-protected areas...or face.
Using the Level equalization tool in Corel Photo-paint (there will be this same tool in Photoshop), I just pulled the input value of the white point over into the 190 range, and also made some slight adjustments to the output black point.
Just desaturate first, then play with your level equalization and/or tone curve tools to get the look you want.
Hope this made sense! Heather #4336
Damian P. Gadal May 26, 2019
As for the shadow issue, I think it's absurd. This is a fine piece of work. Any nuances of the human face make it more interesting.Photoshop is touting a new feature call "heal" to remove lines under peoples eyes in photos, etc.
Fine and dandy, but that isn't the person nor their face. If they want plastic surgery they can get that done and that becomes part of the person. It's one thing when you get paid to airbrush stars for the covers, and another if you're trying for a portrait of someone.
.02ยข #21797
Heather K. McFarland May 26, 2019
Thank you so much Jessica and Damian! I appreciate all comments. People don't always know the photographers intent behind and image. I wasn't going for a total "high key" look. I intentionally left in some of the shadows on the forehead, cheek, nose and yes..the eye..lol. I didn't want to totally "wash" her out. But certainly all comments are welcome. I reworked it the other way also, and while it was still nice, I felt it lacked the impact of this one! It just comes down to personal preference is all! #21798Sign up for an interactive online photography course to get critiques on your photos.
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