# I SUCK...



## MLeeK (Aug 16, 2012)

When it comes to portraits and my own family? Yeah... I screwed this one up. And chances of me getting to do it again in the next year? Slim to none. 
So... I am printing this on a 20x60 canvas for my living room. 



A little context here: 
The littlest girl-total non-cooperative. She thinks she should be behind  the camera with Grandma every time I get it out. While I am glad that  SOMEONE wants to follow in grandma's shoes, it's really hard to get an  image with her in it.
The daughter-in-law to the right is not a natural blonde... That made things a bit... colorful. 
Older boy behind her is typical 16 year old boy and is there by force. He was pretty awesome for a 16 year old to be honest. Except he'd forget to watch me and always would have his head turned toward the grand-daughter who is the future photog. The baby... He was probably the easiest part!!
The blonde boy on our left-more attitude problem than the 16 year olds. WOW. The two teens in the middle are mine and they're used to this, BUT... of course my boy kept slouching down every chance he got. 
The guy on the left end (my problem son) getting him dressed and not looking like a pot-head degenerate in filthy clothing is not ever going to happen. This is high class for him. 

Lighting is 3 lights straight across them to give me the flattest lighting I could get because of the total unpredictability and to keep everyone from being green. We were surrounded by green. 

What more could I have done? I know that people will have suggestions I missed-this is my own family. I have all the time and patience in the world with other people's quirks. Just not my own kids!


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## Heitz (Aug 16, 2012)

no chance of bringing up the blacks a tad?  Really I don't think its that bad.  Its fun.  Best part is that its not your cookie-cutter sit-and-smile family portrait.  Each person has their own personality and you kind of get that.  i.e, the teen in the center is the "bad ass" one.  the teen with the white shirt is the joker, and to his left is the reserved adult.  Or maybe not...


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## Majeed Badizadegan (Aug 16, 2012)

You don't suck!! 

I actually think the image is a really good base. Grop shots are incredibly difficult and this one makes a great pano. 

I'd suggest a couple things to improve the image as it stands. Try pulling back the highlights on the skin. The most noticeable highlight problems are the woman's legs in the foreground. 

Also, there are a couple trees growing out of heads. With some masking and cloning, should be about a 5-10 minute fix. If you're going to print big and hang on the wall, I'd resolve the basic exposure issues.


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## Photographiend (Aug 16, 2012)

You are too nit-picky. Looks great.


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## cgipson1 (Aug 16, 2012)

Rotanimod said:


> You don't suck!!
> 
> I actually think the image is a really good base. Grop shots are incredibly difficult and this one makes a great pano.
> 
> ...



 ^^this!  Very difficult to get a shot  like that, especially with children involved. You got them all  participating, they are all looking at the camera, no one is making a  face! I'd say you did damn good!


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## manaheim (Aug 16, 2012)

Ummm yer crazy.  I like this shot a lot.


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## Majeed Badizadegan (Aug 16, 2012)

Photographiend said:


> You are too nit-picky. Looks great.




Hey, if you're printing anything out at 20X60, you reserve the right to be as nit-picky as you want. . Picking nits is actually a great trait in photography/processing. It makes your resulting photographs better.


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## amolitor (Aug 16, 2012)

It looks pretty good. They seem to be looking at something bright, are they facing into the sun here? That's the only thing I see that's not pretty much fully decent, and maybe you just come from naturally squinty-eyed stock, what do I know?


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## Tuffythepug (Aug 16, 2012)

Well I think "suck" is too strong a term.  I do sense your frustration and I'm sure you wish it had turned out a little better.   But,  really, it ain't bad at all.   Getting my family together for a group shot is almost too traumatic for me to do any more.  My wife and my daughter are great for the closed eyes at the critical moment.   Usually when one's eyes are beginning to close the other one's eyes are beginning to open so that in virtually every picture one of them is caught in mid blink.  Even if I tell them to close their eyes and wait for me to tell them when to open.   At least in your picture they all have their eyes open !


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## MLeeK (Aug 16, 2012)

amolitor said:


> It looks pretty good. They seem to be looking at something bright, are they facing into the sun here? That's the only thing I see that's not pretty much fully decent, and maybe you just come from naturally squinty-eyed stock, what do I know?


Yes/and no. They are facing toward the light, but not directly at the sun. The main light is actually 3 flashes in front of them. 
My oldest son (on our right) always squints. The teen boy in the white always looks like he is squinting because of his baby fat cheeks. The little girl in pigtails-if she smiles her eyes disappear and she gets these funky little bag/wrinkles under them. Like her eyelid is upside down or something. So, some of it is probably the subjects, some of it is the flash.


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## Stradawhovious (Aug 16, 2012)

If you suck, I'm the worst pile of **** that has ever owned a camera.

Don't be so hard on yourself.  Sounds like a lot of the issues you have are with your family member's traits, rather than the photograph itself.  Would it really be a family photo if those didn't show through?


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## Robin Usagani (Aug 16, 2012)

well.. should have hired someone or get someone to operate the camera.  I would personally snap photos from one location and start making loud noise, funny faces, and jump around.  That would get the kids interested.  Then out of 10-20 frames, I should be able to get one good one.  If not, you can always clone from one to another frame.


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## MLeeK (Aug 16, 2012)

Schwetty, that kind of doesn't make sense. As a photographer I should hire someone to be the photographer. I am not photographing myself. I am not in there. Only my kids and their kids/brother/step kids. If I wanted one with us in it? There's no way in HELL I'd try to do it myself. That would be a MISERABLE FAILURE.
Believe me I pulled out all of the antics. I have a remote and I don't keep my eye to the eye piece. This was on a tripod. While I was behind the camera, I was looking at them, acting a fool as I would with any other family portrait. I even pulled out the air horn to get them all to look at me... which Genna then took and had a blast killing everyone's ear drums.

If I should hire a photographer then I probably should hire one for every gig I pull.


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## Robin Usagani (Aug 16, 2012)

MLeeK said:


> Schwetty, that kind of doesn't make sense. As a photographer I should hire someone to be the photographer. I am not photographing myself. I am not in there. Only my kids and their kids/brother/step kids. If I wanted one with us in it? There's no way in HELL I'd try to do it myself. That would be a MISERABLE FAILURE.
> Believe me I pulled out all of the antics. I have a remote and I don't keep my eye to the eye piece. This was on a tripod. While I was behind the camera, I was looking at them, acting a fool as I would with any other family portrait. I even pulled out the air horn to get them all to look at me... which Genna then took and had a blast killing everyone's ear drums.
> 
> If I should hire a photographer then I probably should hire one for every gig I pull.



Oh.. i thought you were in it LOL.

You should be in it!


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## MLeeK (Aug 16, 2012)

Schwettylens said:


> MLeeK said:
> 
> 
> > Schwetty, that kind of doesn't make sense. As a photographer I should hire someone to be the photographer. I am not photographing myself. I am not in there. Only my kids and their kids/brother/step kids. If I wanted one with us in it? There's no way in HELL I'd try to do it myself. That would be a MISERABLE FAILURE.
> ...


OH HELL NO! LOL!


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## Robin Usagani (Aug 16, 2012)

Yeah,  make them pose and not move around, take several photos.  If you are lucky, one will turn out good, if not... clone!  That is the only advice I can give you hahaha.  I would take at least 10 for each pose with this many people+young kids.


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## Robin Usagani (Aug 16, 2012)

what you got is pretty good though..


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## MLeeK (Aug 16, 2012)

I have to fix that honkin' zit on the teen in white! No one saw that??? WTH is wrong with you people! LOL!


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## Tuffythepug (Aug 16, 2012)

MLeeK said:


> I have to fix that honkin' zit on the teen in white! No one saw that??? WTH is wrong with you people! LOL!




Oh, I think we saw it..   hard to miss that.  but really, doesn't it just add to the whole ambiance ?  It just adds charm and "realism" to the scene.     translation:   that's a big job even for photoshop.   good luck


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## MLeeK (Aug 16, 2012)

Yeah, but I don't exactly want it in SUPER SIZE on my living room wall... That would be a major distraction issue!


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## manaheim (Aug 16, 2012)

But I _like_ super-size zits.


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## manaheim (Aug 16, 2012)

I'm so tempted to make this my avatar...


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## MLeeK (Aug 16, 2012)

manaheim said:


> I'm so tempted to make this my avatar...



That just makes me think of the uber zit YouTube videos my kids thought were so cool...


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## manaheim (Aug 16, 2012)

must... resist... looking... for ... uber zit... videos...


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## MLeeK (Aug 16, 2012)

Biggest ZIT ever EWWWWW!!!!! - YouTube


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## manaheim (Aug 16, 2012)

Holy good christ jesus lord on high.


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## MLeeK (Aug 17, 2012)

Make your evening more pleasant?


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## cloud9imagery (Aug 17, 2012)

MLeeK said:


> Schwettylens said:
> 
> 
> > MLeeK said:
> ...



LOL Yet, another photographer who hates to be in front of the camera. Totally agree with you, I hate being in the shot, too! But, I agree that the setup/composition is really cool. It's different.


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## MWC2 (Aug 17, 2012)

I kinda of like it, I like the posing you did. And oh do I understand 16 year old boys, have one myself... I heard teenage girls where hard to deal with whoever said thatmust not have had to live with a teenage boy, lol.


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## MLeeK (Aug 17, 2012)

MWC2 said:


> I kinda of like it, I like the posing you did. And oh do I understand 16 year old boys, have one myself... I heard teenage girls where hard to deal with whoever said thatmust not have had to live with a teenage boy, lol.


I have a 17 year old girl and a 15 year old boy at home right now and sometimes a 14 year old boy (not mine... long story.) I couldn't tell you which one is more drama on most days, BUT! I would probably concede that girls are harder after raising 3 (this is my 4th & 5th) boys and one girl. The girl is one of those incredibly NO maintenance girls and she's still as hard as the boys or worse some days.


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## PhotoWrangler (Aug 17, 2012)

Schwettylens said:


> Oh.. i thought you were in it LOL.
> 
> You should be in it!




I was going to ask if you were the hot one on the end, or the hot one on the end. Dammit.


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## MLeeK (Aug 17, 2012)

eeeewwww!


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## MTVision (Aug 17, 2012)

ChristopherCoy said:
			
		

> I was going to ask if you were the hot one on the end, or the hot one on the end. Dammit.



You know MLeek is a female right??


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## PhotoWrangler (Aug 17, 2012)

Nope. But I guess the fanGIRL thingy in her siggy line wasn't obvious enough until just now when I read it.... LOL LOL LOL


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## snowbear (Aug 17, 2012)

I like this - I really hope to work up to being this bad!


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## SCraig (Aug 17, 2012)

I don't think you suck.  I design water and sewer pumping stations.  I normally do the buildings, the mechanical systems, the electrical systems, the piping, etc.  Doesn't mean I know crap about nuclear or aeronautical engineering though.  I know where my niche is, I'm pretty good at what I do, and I know my limits.  I have a suspicion you are much the same


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## jaicatalano (Aug 17, 2012)

The image is fine. Everyone is in the moment. The world doesn't have to be perfect.


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## jake337 (Aug 17, 2012)

I guess you just raised the curve for grading "sucky" photos, lol.  I'd be damn happy.


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## MLeeK (Aug 17, 2012)

Ok... You have all fed the ego a little and I much appreciate it! I will let you know how things turn out when I get the 20x60 canvas back. I am praying it's 'good enough.'


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