"you have no idea what I think" Photo

Photographer’s Note

to continue with my attempts at portraits - here's another one (the first attempt is here). not sure it's any better than the first, but since it's different, I decided to post this shot.

the kids had made a few steps from the road towards the pastures, therefore the sheep in the background, but I quite like it, for me it gives the context to the whole story. if her sister and brother were actually feeling a bit more at ease with us, the youngest sister was still very serious and would not smile, even though I was making a fool of myself trying to entertain her in my broken Spanish.

it might look like that, but I did not increase the saturation, the colours of the clothes are exactly as we saw them - incredibly brigh and vivid.

Floydian, faubry, zmey, scobert, JorgeCK, JPeixe, flashpoint, fulvio52, hispic, Wandering_Dan, melmcree, trekks, dareco, gunbud has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

smarcell (14653) 2008-01-30 5:00

A marvellous portrait. The bright pink is very eye-catching, and the boy's eyes, with the help of the high sharpness of the picture, are really a magnet.
Srefano

Floydian (30970) 2008-01-30 5:04

Hello Kristine,
It's the same girl as in the previous version and i was hoping you would post such a shot. The way you placed her in the frame is very good, off center and looking to us within a certain angle, i like that. The skintones are very natural and typical for south-america just as the vivid and bright colours. Her hat is one size to big but that makes the portrait only more interesting. Okay, that was the good news ;-)
The background with those speeps or whatever they are is not something i like, but i know for myself that is something which hardly can be avoid. The other girl in the back behind her head is a good one, gives more colour around het hat and that part works pretty good.
Best part? The light in her eyes...priceless..!!!
Regards, Henk

vagabondtravels (6115) 2008-01-30 5:05

Hi Kristine

Very sharp. Nice comp and colros. Good focus on the eyes. Very vibrant.
Great work.
Ben

zmey (7282) 2008-01-30 6:26

hey there :)

as henk said, that light in her eyes is priceless and the background girl's sweater does do a nice job in colorizing the composition. so do the blurred but recognizable sheep: this little kid is not just playing. she's working. sorry about the scars on her face...

only now i noticed the necklace on the girl. she must be coming from a wealthy household it seems.

imnaaho, a fine composition. TFS.

hugs,
k.

just realized, it's fulvio's favorite color here... fuchsia :)

[2]

scobert (5333) 2008-01-30 7:21

Hello Kristine,
You did a great job with this portrait. Girls this age sometimes have a no-nonsense look on their face when they get a little moody. Maybe she was mad at one of her siblings. I think that this portrait works much better without her smiling. The composition, sharpness, and her expression is outstanding. You probably had to undersaturate the pink/red shawl because these South American colors are bold. Marvelous work!
Stan

sebinho342 (18784) 2008-01-30 9:07

Hi Kristine, once again i love this one, i remember well your first attempt on this "white wall", i do prefer this one, nearer to reality, i particularly like here the DOF of course but also saturation and look of this little girl you got.
Technically perfect and at the level of the mood you caught. Excellent overall picture

toto (18767) 2008-01-30 9:26

Belle photo de cette petite fille habillée comme la bas, cela est de toute beauté, jolies couleurs et bonne netteté qui nous montre bien les détails de ces vètements et de son visage.
Amitiés Thomas

mirarer (4427) 2008-01-30 11:40

Hola Kristine,
Excelente retrato de gran nitidez y óptimos colores. Me encanta la expresión que has captado en el rostro de la niña.
Saludos,
Mirari

JorgeCK (2600) 2008-01-30 12:18

Excellent Portrait Kristine. Love the expression of this little girl. The colors are wonderful and sharp. Well done!!
Saludos
joRge

JPeixe (92) 2008-01-30 13:28

Retracto fantástico!
E não não tenho ideia do que ela penssa... :( !
A composição está excelente tal como o DOF!
O contraste de cores dá imensso impacto á foto!

flashpoint (3570) 2008-01-30 14:51

the eyes and the look of this baby andina are worth the photograph. ...great capture..
...... best portrait Kristine

cheers sERGIO

fulvio52 (8314) 2008-01-30 16:37

Hi Kristine,
Henk and Kristaps said it all, and I fully share their opinion.
I'm not a portrait-guy myself, but I would have taken this picture, regardless, if only for those eyes!!!
Good job.
Ciao,
Fulvio.

hispic (7399) 2008-01-30 19:26

Hi Kristine,
Incredibly brigh and vivid pink! Dark gray of her hat must be a good supporting player for pink. You're a great colour magician indeed.
Adorable portrait with catchlights in her eyes.

Have a nice day, Hisashi

Wandering_Dan (3297) 2008-01-30 21:34

Hello, Kristine -

Nice capture; good expression (or lack thereof) on her face, and those are the strong colors one sees in the Andes. Nice sharpness, too.

Regards,
Dan

faubry (32429) 2008-01-31 1:50

wow, superb glance, wonderful decentredportrait.. beautiful bright colours, the background is very interesting also, superb
francine

ninaL (19592) 2008-01-31 2:26

Hi, Kristine.
Lovely portrait, indeed.
I maybe would like it in black and white but I undrestand the reasons for wich you decided to present it in color.
Best regards. Grazyna.

vincz (19045) 2008-01-31 3:05

Great portrait with excellent vivid colors. I love the tight framing with the hat, the face, the pink cloth.

melmcree (2261) 2008-01-31 13:49

Hey Kristine,

Really good job on this portait. Hey eyes are steely and cautious yet innocent the way a little girl's eyes should be. Just like you said very vivid and bright in colors and the background is blurred well for 6.7. I like your off center composition and her pose is excellent. The big hat is humorous to me but I'm sure that is daily wear for them. Excellent shot.

Mel

batalay (21213) 2008-01-31 18:50

Hello Kristine,

A wonderful portrait of the little girl, a descendant of the Inca, and wearing a traditional costume. So this photo is from your trip to South America at the end of December. I can feel vicariously the experience of having seen them personally. Warm regards,

Bulent

Polonaise (5638) 2008-02-01 18:10

O, yes, a'do, little sister !
I know what you're thinking...
How much monies there will be in your small hand - afterwords, eh ?

This extremely rich lady from the west...
That's what those ladies from the west are for, right ???

A real portrait.

Because of the girl's face...?
Naaah...
Because of the environment behind...
And that's what I call:
A portrait in its natural surroundings...
Gosh... That goat' ass behind...!!!

A marveloso (;-)))))

george

trekks (14334) 2008-02-01 19:54

Hi Kristine

Very shy but lovely kid and always colorful dress in that country. They never dress in dull color! What is behind the eye stare and what is the kid thinking at that moment?

Great portrait. TFS
bill

ThomasL (417) 2008-02-04 14:08

Hi Kristine,

Great shot of this little girl! You captured her emotions very well, and the colors are great! Indeed the colors are like that in reality. I spent some time in Peru and people of the Andes wear the same kind of clothes.

TFS! Greetings,
Thomas

ElAprendiz (7370) 2008-02-04 14:54

Hello Kristine:

Ecuador is a beautiful country and appropriate for grasping through the lens.

The large number of contrasts that exist, are wonderful for photography. This portrait of this native girl is very well designed.

The puzzled look in the camera, messy hair, that expression of sweetness, communicate a lot. I love it.

John

scalerman (25787) 2008-02-05 10:16

Hello Kristine: I can barely remember coming through your gallery - but these images are top-class. Beautiful and evocative with a host of details to compliment your vision. Sharpness is whee it should be and the bokeh is superb. Congratulations. Straight to the favorites folder on my desktop. regards, c

Matthew-Watt (4471) 2008-02-06 2:47

Hi Kristine,

Congratulations, you have created a terrific photo in my opinion. The pink clothing grabs the attention of the eye and then you become transfixed with hers. I love the selective use of the aperture, showing the subject in clear, defined form while intentionally resulting in blur in the background. Nevertheless you can see some livestock so you can understand the setting and lifestyle. Excellent sharp quality, a beautiful final result. I think the only minor negative is that the hat is cropped too close to the top of the frame, but at least it is not in contact with the white. It works well, a pleasing composition.

Matt

plimrn (19740) 2008-03-24 8:31

Hi Kristine,
I got here from Kristaps site; of the three photos of this group, I like this one best. Your title describes her expression perfectly and the framing is just right just showing her hat and face and leaving plenty of space for her to look into. I also really like the way you used DOF to blur the BG.
HLJ, Pat

dareco (17104) 2008-05-22 9:47

What a beautiful portrait!! A perfect title! Very vibrant color and I love those sparkly eyes! One of my favorites. Have a great day!

gunbud (28165) 2008-06-21 19:33

Hi Kristine,
Love this lovely portait of the sky young lady who's beautiful features really standout as she is seen in her vivid pink shawl traditional hat. Wonderful clear crips colors against a beautiful muted mountain backdrop.
Regards, Tom

Waylim (11159) 2009-02-04 13:25

Kristine,
I have a few portraits, and yes the first few is always a little tough to do and quality is not as good, but I learn to be comfortable with it, especially with children. My trick is to get involved, say something, even if they don't understand you, most understand "Hello" some will say, "I love you," and giggle. when they are comfortable with you, you will pretty much click away. This one is fantastic no matter what, she seems a bit shy and timid, and a littl skeptical of you, but that the expression that make this image just lovely. the way she looks at the camera is very engaing. The color of the poncho is so strong but true to the culture. They do love strong colors. I love it.
Way

Photo Information

Copyright: Kristine KM (avene) (11140)
Genre: People
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2007-12-29
Categories: Daily Life
Camera: Nikon D 200, Nikkor 18-200 3.5-5.6G IF-ED AF-S DX VR
Exposure: f/6.7, 1/500 seconds
More Photo Info: view
Photo Version: Original Version
Theme(s): Adorable Kids 2, Quilotoa Loop, Ecuador People, They Have Dreams [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2008-01-30 4:57
Favorites: 1 [view]