Hi Ali,
As I opened this image to look at it, a colleague of mine (another pro photographer and occasional judge at the APPAs) looked over my shoulder and gave the picture a thumbs up. That’s good coming from my friend.
I like the image too – the tonal range is good and the angle and lighting are working for you.
There are two things that I would prefer to have seen in this picture though. The first is the hairline… I would have preferred to have seen the framing composed upwards some more so that we can see more of Luci-Anna’s hair. Had you had just a couple of centrimetres of hairline in there it would have added to the framing of her face. Instead, the forehead touching the edge of the composition is providing an exit for our eyes.
My second concern is that hair over Luci-Anna’s lips. The lips are one of the most expressive parts of the face and yet in this instance we have lost them.
At this point I would suggest going back with you sister to the same spot and having another go at this image… remember to pick a similar time of day and conditions to see if you improve in this image.
Going back to reshoot is never easy. I have done it quiet a few times in my career, including a reshoot with a 747 reflected in a terminal building window. The client did not like the look of the model in the of the original image! Despite my best efforts the following day with a different model we never got the same feel and the client ended up using the original image. Then there have been other times when a reshoot has made the difference between an ordinary photo and an award-winning image.
Go and give it a go and see what happens in this instance!
Cheers,
Anthony