Darwin Young wrote:
I do!

Lot of really good stuff in your port, lot of filler, too.  Personally, I'd lose some of that filler, particularly the weak headshots and pretty much the "new beginning" section, and tighten your port up.  I'd hazard a guess you have some sort of chronology thing happening here, but the great thing about evolving as an artist is that you can show off where you are without having to compare it to where you used to be.

Favorite shot:



Everything here is perfect - pose, expression, balance, it all just comes together beautifully.

Least favorite:



Everything that was right about the first one is pretty much wrong about this one.  It just seems completely disharmonious.  I get the intentional humor component, but the joke isn't funny.

Would I shoot with you?

I would probably send you my rates, simply because I see nothing in your port to indicate that you've had any experience shooting males (except a couple of nudes where the guy was more a prop than a focal point), hence I don't see where you would be able to enhance my port.

Scott.... wrote:
Qualifier:  I actually used to be on that side of the lens, and had a reputation for a good eye, but struggled with hand tremors, so I eventually gave it up.

I'm going to do two things here:  A best/worst critique, and then an "under what circumstances" game, would I pay you to shoot me, would I TF with you, or would I send rates, along with a quick explanation why - I'm not typically a "YOU SUCK!" type of person.

If you'd like, you can reciprocate with a casting - what sort of shoot you'd like to do with me.

Who wants to go first?

Let's hear it

Craziest Benny wrote:
sure

Gosh, you folks with the massive folios are going to wear me out quickly!

First, let me say that there are so many images in your port that are almost home runs - really, really good pictures that are just one minor element short of being perfect.  The one that sticks out in my mind is the two on horseback on the first page - that angle is juuuuuust a little too severe - otherwise it was brilliant! The devil is truly in the details...

Favorite



My eyes kept coming back to this one, over and over again.  It's just a stunning shot.  Well done.

Least favorite

Well, skipping the toilet shots (personal pet peeve - I don't get the fascination)... 



This just doesn't work for me.  Her dress clashes with the chair, the hair is wrong, the expression is wrong, the angle increases the severity of all these things...

Would I shoot with you?

If you had a very specific project in mind (that didn't involve toilets! ), I'd trade.  You have imagination, which intrigues me.

HBP II wrote:
Shoot, go head.

Well, we had this conversation on your thread last night, actually.   Your avi pic is probably my favorite, as it's the most emotive.   My least favorite is the polaroid pair.

Scott.... wrote:

thanx well i know one image going bye bye, ok maybe one toilet one too, they are very old.

Nadirah B wrote:
k!

What's to say here? Your port is a clinic on lighting techniques, poses, conceptual collages, I mean, I feel like I'm not even telling you anything you don't already know, to be honest, because it looks like everything there was carefully selected to reflect your grasp of all these things.  I especially appreciate your ability to extract performances out of people.

Favorite



The raw emotive value of simplicity.  There is an entire book waiting to be written about what is behind her eyes, and you captured it beautifully.

Least Favorite



I confess, it's probably because I have no idea what you were trying to accomplish here.

Would I shoot with you?

Yeah, I'd spring for a half day if I ever made it out to the left coast.  That'd be a worthy investment, IMO.

Osiris-Photography wrote:
I would love your option.

I confess, when I looked at the first page of your port, I was concerned that I'd be staring at 95 pictures of a handful of models in similar poses on a blank background.  I was pleasantly surprised, the farther I dug.  You have quite a range, and you do it all well.

Favorite



There is a rawness to this shot that keeps drawing me back to it.  I can't really explain what it is, but it is definitely captivating.

Least Favorite



If the model hadn't been blocking out the only other significant component of the shot, I'd like it. 

Would I shoot with you?

I'd do a TF, for sure.  I think I'd be something different for your port, and your eye would definitely be something different for mine.

Scott.... wrote:

Well, we had this conversation on your thread last night, actually.   Your avi pic is probably my favorite, as it's the most emotive.   My least favorite is the polaroid pair.

right, to be honest with you, I started this portfolio with the intention of making it an all polaroid port. It just evolved into what you see now.

Thanks for your time though.

ConnorStewart wrote:
im in

You definitely have a taste for stark pose/expression on harsh backgrounds, don't you?

Favorite



I love the contradiction here.  Everything in this picture says beach - except the hard, grey tile.

Least Favorite



To be blunt, it looks like an attempt to channel Annie Lennox that didn't work out so well.

Would I shoot with you?

Well, I'd send rates.  Why?  Because I know I can execute the kind of image you'd be after, but I'm really not sure it'd be something that would end up in my port.

PhillipPhotography wrote:
Let's hear it

My bad - didn't mean to skip anyone...

I've seen a lot of impressive work with light so far tonight, but here it seems you specialize in shadow, and you do it well.  That's a challenging motif, to catch just enough light to make the point, without allowing too much.

Favorite



The most emotive composition of the bunch.  Close runner up - the shooter.

Least Favorite



Just a bit too dark here.  Needed to see a bit more of those eyes to sell it.

Would I shoot with you?

I would definitely TF with you.  Again, I think we'd both be bringing something different to each other's body of work, and could mutually benefit.

Villainous Photography wrote:
sounds fun

I was concerned by the gas mask and your moniker, that I was headed into steampunk hell.... Thankfully, I found otherwise.  You do love severe angles and lighting though, there's no denying that.

Favorite



The only part of the picture that bothered me was the model herself, but it didn't matter, because the way the dress melts into those clouds just makes me forget there's a face there at all.

Least Favorite

Your avatar.  Why? Probably personal bias - 25 years of being a metalhead has made the whole apocalypse thing just a bit trite for me.

Would I shoot with you?

I'd take a risk on a TF, probably out of sheer morbid curiosity.

GoingtoSnap wrote:
in

Hey, look, there are smiles in some of those pics!  Haven't seen many of those tonight, everyone is just so serious (I'm guilty too)....  Lots of whimsy in your port, I like it.

Favorite



Granted, this is a colorful character, which always makes the shooter's job a bit easier, but you managed to simultaneously tame him down and bring the rest of the planet up to his level of ludicrousness here - the angle, background, composition, and coloring makes his outrageousness look completely normal in the shot.

Least Favorite



Probably personal bias again - this looks like a frame lift from a music video by any number of 90's-current alterna-grungy (think 3 Doors Down, Nickelback, et al) bands.  Especially his "whattup?!?!?!!" pose.

Would I shoot with you

I'd definitely TF with you, once again, because I think there could be a mutual benefit here.

Scott.... wrote:

My bad - didn't mean to skip anyone...

I've seen a lot of impressive work with light so far tonight, but here it seems you specialize in shadow, and you do it well.  That's a challenging motif, to catch just enough light to make the point, without allowing too much.

Favorite



The most emotive composition of the bunch.  Close runner up - the shooter.

Least Favorite



Just a bit too dark here.  Needed to see a bit more of those eyes to sell it.

Would I shoot with you?

I would definitely TF with you.  Again, I think we'd both be bringing something different to each other's body of work, and could mutually benefit.

Thanks for taking time

Sylvester Photography wrote:
Love to hear what you think.  But already mostly do TF for experience.

Something immediately offputting about your port - the "old photos" section, and the fact that nearly everything in your port is in there.

Favorite



This is the most standout piece in your port, by a wide margin.  So much said, with so little pretension.

I'll leave out "Least Favorite", primarily because I feel like there are many shots in your collection that really shouldn't be there, because they are not exemplary of the work you are capable of.  I could thin your port down to about half a dozen shots that would say everything that needs to be said about where you are as a photographer, and would make your TF offer look significantly more attractive to models within your driving distance.

Would I shoot with you?

I would send rates, because I have no doubt I'd be on my own for pose/expression on a shoot with you.  That's not a slam.  The best thing you could do for yourself as a photographer is to learn to create the shot, instead of waiting for the shot to create itself.  Spend time sketching out concepts if need be, on paper, so that when you have a subject in front of you, you already know what you want to see in the lens.