Melissa's Photoblog
M.
Posted by Melissa W. (Warsaw, Indiana, United States) on 31 March 2008 in People & Portrait and Portfolio.
This past year we celebrated Thanksgiving at my house. After our bellies were full and we could no longer eat another bite, we pushed everything aside (including the table) except for one single chair. I set up my camera and had everyone take turns sitting in the chair.
Since it has been awhile since I've uploaded some portraits, I thought that I would share a few this week.
This portrait of my niece was taken in my dining room. I have a north facing patio door that lets in beautiful light, or at least I think so. ;)
November 2007.
Jrask from Pasadena, United States
Your portraits are always some of my favorite! I'm excited to see the rest :)
31 Mar 2008 7:35am
@Jrask: Thank you so much, Josh, for the kind words. :)
Jan from Belgium
Great great portrait !!! Lucky she could sit still for the 1/13 seconds :)
31 Mar 2008 8:31am
@Jan: I was very, very lucky. ;) I purposely wanted to keep my ISO down and take my chances at a longer exposure. Sometimes it paid off, sometimes not so much... For some reason, anything beyond ISO 400 comes out too noisy for my liking on my 30D.
Ron from Saint Louis, United States
A beautiful portrait, Melissa. All of the elements – the beautiful light ... a simple, elegant pose ... a beautiful backdrop ... a spirit shining from within ... a deft photographic hand – have been woven together into a lovely reminder of this moment in time.
31 Mar 2008 9:30am
@Ron: Thank you so much, Ron, for the lovely comment. Everyone seemed to really enjoy having their pictures taken...there was a lot of laughing (though you couldn't tell by this photo). I really hope this is a start of a tradition for us at Thanksgiving. Definitely one of the most memorable Thanksgivings I can recall.
Suzanne Labbé from Granby, Canada
Ohlala, quel magnifique sujet :o) Elle est très belle ta nièce et la photo est sublime. Je seconde pour la lumière qui provient de la porte patio. Elle est parfaite ! Bravo.
31 Mar 2008 9:41am
@Suzanne Labbé: Merci beaucoup.
Bonj from Jefferson City, United States
Very nice portrait. I agree with your assessment; beautiful lighting.
31 Mar 2008 11:14am
paulski from Muncie, United States
i agree that the lighting is great. awesome portrait...
31 Mar 2008 11:28am
MaryB from Staffordshire, United Kingdom
Simply beautiful Melissa, again the lighting is superb. I really do love your portraits.
31 Mar 2008 12:09pm
Dimitrios from ATHENS, Greece
this is brilliant, she will treasure this foto for ever!
31 Mar 2008 1:43pm
@Dimitrios: Thank you very much, Dimitrios. I hope she treasures this as much as I do.
Shrig from NorthEast, United States
The lighting here is fantastic! What a lucky girl to have such a great picture.
31 Mar 2008 3:44pm
@Shrig: Thank you very much, Shrig. Your comment is very much appreciated.
Also, thank you for taking the time to stop by (btw, your pblog is impressive...beautiful work).
Graham Russon from Cape Town, South Africa
Wow, this is amazing. Better than any professional portrait I've ever seen. The lighting and colours are marvelous, the warmth of this shot is beautiful. Well done.
31 Mar 2008 8:15pm
@Graham Russon: Thank you so very much, Graham. You just made my day. Thank you. :)
standley from brou-sur-chantereine, France
Superb portrait. The colours and the lighting are fabulous!
31 Mar 2008 8:32pm
@standley: Thank you so much.
danthro from Suburbia, United States
to say that your patio door lets in beautiful light is clearly an understatement. very beautiful shot!
31 Mar 2008 9:38pm
@danthro: Thank you so much. :)
Gary from Cochise County, United States
Gosh, This is good. From now on I'm calling you the Light Lady.
1 Apr 2008 12:27am
@Gary: Gary, you are way too generous. ;)
@Rags: Thank you so much.
GJC from Kyoto, Japan
As everyone has already said, this is superb. The lighting is the star here; you've done an excellent job picking the location and exposure. Just marvelous. I wonder if I might have cropped that right edge so that it ended a little closer to her hair. Just a thought. Can't wait to see more from the same shoot.
1 Apr 2008 3:37am
@GJC: That's funny you would mention the crop because when I looked at this before I uploaded it I was wondering the same thing, but decided to just leave it be.
Thank you so much for the very lovely comment.
Ronnie 2¢ from London, United Kingdom
Ah, yes, I see the light. How impossible it is to describe that north light to those who do not know how to work it. Beautifully modelled in both senses of the word.
1 Apr 2008 7:33pm
@Ronnie 2¢: Thank you so much, Ronnie, for the very lovely comment; I really appreciate it. :)
Jen from Alpharetta, United States
Stunning! Just simply stunning...excellent light,
I just love natural light and this is a perfect compliment to her lovely face
2 Apr 2008 1:23am
@Jen: Thank you, thank you, thank you. :)
akarui from Kagoshima, Japan
Excellent portrait. Good lightning on this beautiful girl. The pose on the chair and the plant in the background are nice too.
2 Apr 2008 2:30am
Illuci from Hurdegaryp, Netherlands
Amazing and never to be over-estimated! Hinestly, reminds me of Rembrandt (the light) and Vermeer (the look of the girl, you know the portrait with the pearl), fabulous, how do you manage! The pot with the plant is also well positioned and lighted, and sustains the portrait's elegance.
7 Apr 2008 6:56pm
@Illuci: You are the first person to mention that; that's the look I was going for. Granted, my portrait pales in comparison, but (Rembrandt lighting especially) that was my inspiration. Yes, I am familiar with Vermeer's "Girl with a Pearl Earring"; it is one of my favorite portraits...I just adore that portrait. Thank you so very much for the lovely comment. :)
Canon EOS 30D
1/13 second
F/4.0
ISO 100
50 mm