Lighting portrait- experiment at home-1st try

[Chiacj]

#1

1. in what area is critique to be sought?
I know the background could have been better, I'm more concern to seek out opinions on lighting improvement with 2-3 lights setup.
2. what one hopes to achieve with the piece of work?
Hope to achieve nice looking portrait, is it acceptable in terms of light, exposure?
3. under what circumstance is the picture taken? (physical conditions/emotions)
I'm currently mimicking some lighting setups each day to learn more on lighting, picture is taken with a light mood with my wife =)
4. what the critique seeker personally thinks of the picture
I added blurness in post process, to give it a soft feel, cheerful, yet contrasty pic. How does it look to you?

 

[ed9119]

hmmmm..... the lighting seems too top-right heavy...(the shadows seem very marked on the lower half of her face (looks totally weird) ... also the neck area...

try using light from other directions ? either move light source or have her reposition herself ? or have a reflector (or white paper) below her face throw some light back to fill in that uneveness?

Curious...are u using a Center-Area-Clear soft filter ?

best of luck !

 

[ahliang]

I think u should put some effort in looking for a better background.

 

[ismokeweed79]

Seems abit soft even at the area of focus..

 

[bblurrr]

is this natural light or from stobes/flash? the shadow seems to be a bit harsh

 

[indfo]

As most of them have pointed out the light facing down on the model is a little harsh.
Shadows look a little wierd

If it was a 3 light setup, the one light could have been dedicated to washout the background. A little more far placed light would have diffused it a little more to reduce shadows...

 

[shaoken]

Sorry to say but the "black" part of the background is a little distracting.

 

[akszaksz]

erm... it's not sharp enough?
Seems very soft...