Requesting critique on the following photos.

Please only on the composition and the technical matters of the photo itself.

https://www.modelmayhem.com/portfolio/pic/36619620

https://www.modelmayhem.com/portfolio/pic/36619703

Thank you!

The first is ok, I like it better than the second mostly because it's a different view where as the second is just rather "everyday" looking. I do think the white tank top lines are a bit distracting in the shot. It throws off the nice flow of colors in the first shot. The makeup ties in the flowers and the nice earth tones match the skin..then that tank top just messes that up.

The second shot she is too scrunched up in the corner. You can do better with that shot if you had more of her in the frame and less of everything else.

I agree, second shot isn't doing much for me. Shooting a model straight on like that can be unflattering for her, generally it makes models look bigger than they are.

First shot isn't terrible, I'd be curious to see it cropped with the model on the right side of the panel though. A rule of thumb I've always heard is that the model should be facing the inside of the frame, not the outside.

Thank you both for the feedback.

I'm not generally a fan of shots looking down on the subject, but this image is an exception. You've nicely captured the model's face while letting the rest of her body go soft focus. And she either has a remarkable complexion or you've done a very nice job retouching her skin, or both.

The second image suffers from a couple of flaws. First, I don't like to see arms and legs pointing back at the camera. It foreshortens them. Second, the cropping is awkward. Some of that had to do with the pose -- one knee up, the other out. An often-quoted rule is that if you show the knees, show the feet. Here there's a lot of at least one knee, and no feet. If you have all of her in the original frame, try a vertical.

On balance, I'd certainly keep the first and consider losing or reworking the second.

As others have said, there are a few positioning problems in both shots.  By placing the model far off center, you need to pose her such that something about her draws the eye back towards the center of the image.  Otherwise, the "blank" side if the image is just that - blank space.  The first one could have been a very successful image if the model was turned to face toward the right a little.  That would draw the eye more away from the far left side of the photo and bring the whole image together.  As it is, both her shoulders and face are turned to the left and separate the two halves of the image from each other.

I definitely have a lot to learn but truly appreciate the guidance along the way.

In the second one, the model's face and neck are a different color than the rest of her body, which I'm sure is a makeup error, but you can fix that in post.

I like the first one, the composition, DOF etc.are good I think.  The second one is too "straight on" I think and the skin tones remind me of Nikon Active D Lighting that always looks "flat" to me for want of a better word.

But I like the first one quiet a bit. And hope you remember that free advice is always worth exactly what you pay for it!

https://www.modelmayhem.com/portfolio/pic/36619620
Great composition, awesome color and use of depth of field to set a wonderful soft mood

https://www.modelmayhem.com/portfolio/pic/36619703
Seems off to me. It's not a "WOW" photo.