# The L Family Child Portraits: 2 Boys, 2 Girls



## NJMAN (Sep 21, 2007)

Here are some from my latest portrait session with a few favorite regulars.  I've previously done individuals of them from time to time. C&C always welcome.  Thanks for looking. I appreciate it! 

1.






2.





3.





4.






Thanks for looking! 

NJ


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## JimmyJaceyMom (Sep 21, 2007)

Wow I love their eyes!  The third one is my favorite.  I think in 4 on my monitor anyway she has some splotchiness on her forehead and under her right eye.  I can't tell if it's shadows or if there was something there that was taken out?  Or like I said - this monitor sucks.
I like the dreamy look of them, nice job!


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## holga girl (Sep 21, 2007)

i agree 3 is my fav! they are all very nice, but one thing i notice is that in all but 3, you are shooting down on them. i always think it is nice to shoot kids on their level.


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## ~Stella~ (Sep 21, 2007)

Beautiful kids - love the photos!  They are all very nice.


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## NJMAN (Sep 21, 2007)

Thanks kathi, holga girl, and stella!  I have shots of them all with different angles, but the ones I felt the most comfortable posting at first were the ones where they are looking up at me (#1, #2 and #4).  Its just one of several styles that I like to do.  I will try to post a few more with me shooting at their level. 

I really appreciate all of you taking the time to comment.  It means a lot to me!


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## NJMAN (Sep 21, 2007)

JimmyJaceyMom said:


> Wow I love their eyes! The third one is my favorite. I think in 4 on my monitor anyway she has some splotchiness on her forehead and under her right eye. I can't tell if it's shadows or if there was something there that was taken out? Or like I said - this monitor sucks.
> I like the dreamy look of them, nice job!


 
Hi Kathi,
Im not sure why you are seeing splotchiness.  Thats all of her natural skin.  They look like shadows to me.  Thanks for commenting.  I always appreciate your time.


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## SYKES3 (Sep 21, 2007)

NJMAN, those are top notch.  I agree they are dreamy, I would add a bit romantic too.  In a sweet way.  Did you layer in photoshop and blurr the background?  Maybe their faces a little too?  And sharpen the eyes?  Or did you just use a macro lens?  I'd be interested to know.  SYKES3


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## AprilRamone (Sep 21, 2007)

Hi NJMAN,
I actually love shots of kids when they are looking up at you.  I think it's nice because it seems intentional, and it doesn't look as amateurish as the shots people get because they don't know to get down to their level.  In those, the child is often not looking at you...
I also really like the softening you've done on these.  And, I do like the eyes as well, but in my opinion, I think they're a tad overdone on all of them except for the 2nd shot.  Just a tad too oversharpened I think.  I think it may just be the contrast between the nicely softened skin and then such sharp eyes is making it look too fake for my taste.  I think if you toned it down just a bit they would look absolutely fabulous!  
I think these are the best you've posted so far.  Really nice


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## elsaspet (Sep 22, 2007)

I love them.  Great job.

I also see some "splotching" on the fourth.  I have no idea what it is, but it looks like smudges with a big "healing" tool.


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## Mike Jordan (Sep 22, 2007)

Cute kids and nice job.  To me, except for the 3rd one, they seem to be cropped to tight though. Maybe as large wall prints with a nice big frame around them it would look different.  The 3rd one to me is about right for the amount of space around him. 

Good exposure and color on them.

Mike


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## JimmyJaceyMom (Sep 22, 2007)

NJMAN said:


> Hi Kathi,
> Im not sure why you are seeing splotchiness. Thats all of her natural skin. They look like shadows to me. Thanks for commenting. I always appreciate your time.


 

Yeah like I said this monitor sucks bigtime!  All that matters is what it looks like printed anyway and with the way you captured her beautiful eyes, her mom and dad aren't likely to notice if you tattoo'd LIFE SUCKS on her forehead!   

I love shooting kids from above them.  In my opinion they give you such a genuine expression moreso than when you have a camera aimed right at their face straight across from them.  Maybe if feels less intimidating but some of the true smiles I get out of kids with those angles are aweseme!


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## elsaspet (Sep 22, 2007)

But I'm seeing it too, and my monitor is a high def NEC Widescreen calibrated weekly.  I'm definately seeing something here.  Maybe she was just flushed or something, but a little soft blur might help the splotchiness I'm seeing.


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## NJMAN (Sep 22, 2007)

SYKES3 said:


> NJMAN, those are top notch. I agree they are dreamy, I would add a bit romantic too. In a sweet way. Did you layer in photoshop and blurr the background? Maybe their faces a little too? And sharpen the eyes? Or did you just use a macro lens? I'd be interested to know. SYKES3


 
Thanks much Sykes! I always put a slight blur around the outer edges as well as the edges of their heads, but very slight.  I added a vignette as well.  And yes, I sharpened the eyes just a touch, but the sharpness from the lens did most of that.  The 50mm helps a lot.  I dont usually use all the way to 1.8. I set to f/2.8, and that really sharpens the focus. 



AprilRamone said:


> Hi NJMAN,
> I actually love shots of kids when they are looking up at you. I think it's nice because it seems intentional, and it doesn't look as amateurish as the shots people get because they don't know to get down to their level. In those, the child is often not looking at you...
> I also really like the softening you've done on these. And, I do like the eyes as well, but in my opinion, I think they're a tad overdone on all of them except for the 2nd shot. Just a tad too oversharpened I think. I think it may just be the contrast between the nicely softened skin and then such sharp eyes is making it look too fake for my taste. I think if you toned it down just a bit they would look absolutely fabulous!
> I think these are the best you've posted so far. Really nice


 
Thank you April!  I really value your input.  Thank you for the great critique.  I am always trying to do something to improve my portrait work. 



elsaspet said:


> I love them. Great job.
> 
> I also see some "splotching" on the fourth. I have no idea what it is, but it looks like smudges with a big "healing" tool.


 
I think Im going to rework that 4th shot, and try to clean up a bit.  I hope its not too noticeable.  The prints actually turned out nice with none of that showing.  Thank you for the very kind words Cindy! 



Mike Jordan said:


> Cute kids and nice job. To me, except for the 3rd one, they seem to be cropped to tight though. Maybe as large wall prints with a nice big frame around them it would look different. The 3rd one to me is about right for the amount of space around him.
> 
> Good exposure and color on them.
> 
> Mike


 
Thank you very much Mike!  I really appreciate the nice comments.   I have other ones where they are cropped differently and at different angles, which I would like to show.



JimmyJaceyMom said:


> Yeah like I said this monitor sucks bigtime! All that matters is what it looks like printed anyway and with the way you captured her beautiful eyes, her mom and dad aren't likely to notice if you tattoo'd LIFE SUCKS on her forehead!
> 
> I love shooting kids from above them. In my opinion they give you such a genuine expression moreso than when you have a camera aimed right at their face straight across from them. Maybe if feels less intimidating but some of the true smiles I get out of kids with those angles are aweseme!


 
Thanks again Kathi for following up! 



elsaspet said:


> But I'm seeing it too, and my monitor is a high def NEC Widescreen calibrated weekly. I'm definately seeing something here. Maybe she was just flushed or something, but a little soft blur might help the splotchiness I'm seeing.


 
Thanks Cindy for following up also.  Im going to rework it.


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## elsaspet (Sep 22, 2007)

BTW-you are getting fiercly good at that eye thing.  Wanna share your steps?


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## zendianah (Sep 22, 2007)

Hi NJ.  I love the post processing that you have done. Yes please share the secret to your kick butt eyes. !


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## oldnavy170 (Sep 22, 2007)

NJ, before I even read everyone elses post I was thinking to myself how much I LOVE #4.  I don't see anything funny with that shot.  I think that little girl is just the cutest too.  Great portraits and awesome processing.


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## NJMAN (Sep 22, 2007)

elsaspet said:


> BTW-you are getting fiercly good at that eye thing. Wanna share your steps?


 
I would be happy to share my steps.

First of all, I start out with a sharp lens. My 50mm f/1.8 is by far my best portrait lens. I dont have a lot of lenses, but I make do with what I have. I set the aperture to f/2.8, not wide open at 1.8. For post processing on the full size image, I first use the dodge tool at 10% opacity and brush size of about 25-40 px depending on how big the eyes are. I pass it over the whites just enough so that it brightens them a bit, but not too much. Then, I also use the dodge tool on the irises to bring a bit more life to the eyes as well. Again, just enough to liven them up but not too much. I set the brush size to just enough that it goes around the pupil. Sharpening is the last step. I make a careful selection around the irises only, and use unsharp mask at 50-75% (amount), 0.3 radius, and 0 threshold. You can also use the Sharpen tool from the tool pallete (its with the Blur tool and Smudge tool). If I use that, I set the diameter to just enough to fill the iris, and set the hardness to 0%. Then pass over once or twice. On each image, its slightly different because the size of the eyes are not always the same. One important thing that I always do is sharpen the whole image after I resize for web viewing (75-100%, 0.3, 0).  It gives it that final crisp touch. 

But I must give credit to someone who has been a great help to me on this forum, and that person is heip! Thank you heip for all the helpful processing tips and support you have given me over the last several months. And of course, Cindy, you have been wonderful in helping me learn more about finer points of processing as well. 



zendianah said:


> Hi NJ. I love the post processing that you have done. Yes please share the secret to your kick butt eyes. !


 
Thanks dianah! Always a pleasure. I greatly appreciate the kind words. 



oldnavy170 said:


> NJ, before I even read everyone elses post I was thinking to myself how much I LOVE #4. I don't see anything funny with that shot. I think that little girl is just the cutest too. Great portraits and awesome processing.


 
Thanks oldnavy! Your comments mean a lot to me. By the way, WELCOME BACK! We miss you when you are away.


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## Anita (Sep 22, 2007)

Beautiful! I'm sure the parents just absolutely love you! I can see these photos hanging above the fireplace.


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## NJMAN (Sep 23, 2007)

Thank you so much Anita for the very nice words!


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## NJMAN (Sep 23, 2007)

I wanted to post a few more of these kids in poses that were not tightly cropped.  The jpeg compression might be a little pixely on a couple.  In any event, C&C always welcome. Thanks! 

1.






2.





3.





NJ


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## Mike Jordan (Sep 23, 2007)

They are just as beautiful as the first but I do like the extra space around them. 

You have a good knack with kids.

Mike


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## NJMAN (Sep 24, 2007)

Thanks Mike.  Truly appreciated.


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## mentos_007 (Sep 24, 2007)

awesome! you have some great portraits! And thanks for sharing tips and tricks for such a wonderful eyes!


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## wildmaven (Sep 24, 2007)

I actually like your second batch better than the first. The poses are so natural and sweet. 

Marian


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## heip (Sep 24, 2007)

Nj, nice work!
I like that angle/pov, especially on young people such as this. Nice lighting.
The eyes have it. Where did you ever learn to accentuate the eyes like that??
Great work as usual my friend.


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## NJMAN (Sep 24, 2007)

mentos_007 said:


> awesome! you have some great portraits! And thanks for sharing tips and tricks for such a wonderful eyes!


 
Thanks mentos!  I am honored to get such nice feedback from a great tpf veteran such as yourself.  



wildmaven said:


> I actually like your second batch better than the first. The poses are so natural and sweet.
> 
> Marian


 
Thanks Marian.  I greatly appreciate it. 



heip said:


> Nj, nice work!
> I like that angle/pov, especially on young people such as this. Nice lighting.
> The eyes have it. Where did you ever learn to accentuate the eyes like that??
> Great work as usual my friend.


 
Hey, I already mentioned you in post #17 of this thread, ya big goof! ;-)

Hey everyone, just for the record again, HEIP is a master at processing eyes and I give him full credit for helping me learn more about it.  

Thanks for the comments!


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## heip (Sep 24, 2007)

LOL, you're too much!! 
Keep posting my friend, you rock!


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## zendianah (Sep 24, 2007)

Yea.. again I love your shots..  OH By the way.. HEIP you helped me with my post proccessing maybe you dont remember but you did ! You ROCK to.


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## NJMAN (Sep 24, 2007)

Thanks again dianah.


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