Emmasmom Loc: Missouri

I am new at taking pictures so I know I have a lot to learn, do you all have any tips for me to make these better in the future?

ebbote Loc: Hockley, Texas

Nice job, I see nothing wrong.

lesdmd Loc: Middleton Wi via N.Y.C. & Cleveland

They are excellent family portraits. The only preference I have is to dress everyone in a brighter color(s) to make the image pop.

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

I don't take portraits, but looks like you knew to not shoot in harsh light and shadows, and to have backgrounds that don't distract. Good job!

Papa Joe Loc: Midwest U.S.

Well done family portraits. Very good arrangement of the people. Nice job.

bobmcculloch Loc: NYC, NY

Very nice, esp #2&3,

sr71 Loc: In Col. Juan Seguin Land

Repeat of what others have stated. Nice Job, Nr3 while being good, my suggestion is not to have top of a tree line coming outta his ear, You could shift positions slightly but if you can't do that then use a "portrait type of lens and have the background very blurred (Bokeh)" 85MM to 105mm otherwise very good,,,,

Ched49 Loc: Pittsburgh, Pa.

Not too bad...what camera were you using?

Emmasmom Loc: Missouri

I use a Nikon D5300.

MtnMan Loc: ID

I agree with the others. Well composed and well executed.

Shooting groups can be difficult. You kept them all in focus.

Many take images under harsh light causing shadows. It messes up people shots. The lighting you chose is perfect.

You are off to a great start!

imntrt1 Loc: St. Louis

Brighter colors of dress for the subjects and a little less busy background...Anything prominent in the backgound takes the eye away from the subject matter.

MtnMan Loc: ID

I thought the backgrounds he chose were suitably subtle and deliberately out of focus. No harsh light areas, which is the real killer/eye attractor. My view is well done on the backgrounds! They are about the best you'll get in a natural environment.

Jackel Loc: California

You've done the most important element in taking portraits: Let the subjects occupy most of the picture. They are sharp and clear. None of the other elements in the pictures are distracting in the least. Rather, they lend mood and harmony to the human subjects.
Excellent portraits of a happy family.

Apaflo Loc: Anchorage, Alaska

Very nice to start with! That middle girl is a character!

Separating a subject from it's surroundings is always a major issue. It's any significant contrast change with sharp edges that is a problem. In the third image the abrupt change of the background from ground to sky is very distractive, and exaggerated because it sliced right through the subjects at head level. For that one the best option is just reshoot it with different angles.

In the top two pictures it would be very easy to mask off the trees in the background and very slightly blur them. Not much though. It could have originally been slightly better with a wider aperture to allow less Depth of Field to accomplish the same effect.

I absolutely would not want brighter clothes! All that does is distract from the people. For many images that is okay, but not for a family environmental portrait.

Of those three, the middle shot is the one to work more with. That composition is fabulous! The "funnel" effect of the bridge rails and grouping the parents significantly behind the children has high impact. Keeping each of the two groups flat and perpendicular to the viewing axis, all within the narrowing environment of the bridge adds emphasis to the impact.

It may be that the shot as is can't be improved! But I'd want to try all kinds of variations on that theme. Different camera to subject distances (which means different perspective), different distances between the two groups. A wider crop would be interesting too, if it can emphasize the angle of those rails.

Jim Soholt Loc: California Central Coast

'Mom,

I'm not a portrait photographer in the traditional sense. I work hard at photoing folks so they don't look like they know (or care) that they are being photographed. That said, to me the second shot has something of a dynamic quality that the other two lack, simply from the more casual or natural positioning of the subjects. My family, for example, seldom lines up symmetrically all facing the same direction. For me, a more spontaneous (or spontaneous-seeming!) arrangement can sometimes capture a fuller sense of the people.

Please note that these are just thoughts about style rather than technique or image quality; just something you might want to consider.

Keep shooting.

Respectfully,