Tony Lawrence wrote:
You're lucky to have a willing subject and she's pretty.   A few tips.   Grab a reflector.   If you don't have one the sun protectors sold at auto parts stores is okay.   Use a tripod or light stand to hold it and bring the harsh shadows down.   In general I find late afternoons or very early to shoot.   Your wife is lovely.   I'd treat her to a make-over at the mall.   Cosmetic counters will do free work when you buy a product.   Then buy her a few nice dresses.   If money is tight I've found cool things at thrift stores.   Women often have a better feel for color and styles.   

When you drive around take notice of unique or beautiful locations.   I like your landscapes and wildlife work.   Composition is as important there as with people.   Remember the rule of thirds.   Its difficult to judge you work now because there isn't much to see but in general its best to only use the best of a group but you are just starting.   Here's where your wife can help.   Does she have friends?    Look for more places to shoot.   Try more full length shots.   The one you did of her from a distance is nice.

Thanks so much for the advice! I was looking at a reflector on Amazon to soften the light. I have my eye on a 40x60 one. The only shot I did later in the day was the one shot of her face where only half is lit. She definitely has a better feel for color and style and loves thrift stores. Giving an excuse to go shopping won't be a problem.

I know most people don't like shadows, but they really draw me in and leave a little to the imagination. I tend to like darker images with more shadows I guess.

She's not really into make-up and I can't say I am either but I will see what she says about the makeover thing.  I have taken hundred of pictures of her and only picked the ones that I thought were the best but I am extremely biased. Thank you for taking the time to look over my photos and give me advice. I really appreciate it.

Mark C Smith wrote:
THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE!!!

You've got some basics down, good framing (though be careful as far as cutting off fingers and what not), solid color contrast...your experience as a landscape photographer shows there.

My biggest critique would just be trying to shape your light a bit more. She's got some very harsh, unflattering shadows on her face, it can work sometimes but in my opinion it doesn't here. It looks unintentional and kind of sloppy (except the one where it splits her face in half...but I think that'd look better with her face lit evenly)

The winter shot is nice but she sort of gets lost in the frame and the busyness of the branches. Tightening the frame/zooming in on her a bit would fix that...both by filling the frame more with her and by softening the focus of the branches in the foreground and background more.