Portrait Practice

I've asked several of my friends to help me build my portraiture portfolio. This is my friend Jon, who posed for me yesterday. I would be very grateful for feedback. I know I cut a little of his head off in the corner. (Oops)

[Simply Amanda]

A handsome fella. Great pov and pose. Maybe a little flash or reflection on his left lens. I do like it and think you did well with the processing.

[Paul T]

Very good :)

[vstap]

I like the tilt of his head, and showing one of his hands, very important for an instrumentalist!

[Iris]

Beautiful portrait! Lovely tones. Maybe just a little flat, but that is very subjective. I like portraits when the light tones are just a tad lighter, but the dark stays as you have it.

[Jane Anderson]

I think this is a wonderful portrait! I bet he loved it too!

[Lin]

Love it!

[Milanie]

Very good job with the portrait - that looks so hard to me. You have him looking quite natural which I imagine is quite hard to do. Nicely focused.

[☠northy]

nicely done... i am horrific at portraiture and rarely even bother to try - good for you for making a concerted effort to practice! looks like you got a good connection with him happening here - which i think is key to good portraiture... and i like how you've incorporated the musical instrument to make it more than just a head shot... one thing i would probably do if it were me is work on getting a bit more contrast out of the shot...

[Lesley Chisholm]

Wonderfully focused and happy portrait. You've done really well. As mentioned above if you bring up the whites/lights a little more to give him some more dimension. I would also allow a little more room around his head. But I love what you've caught here, and having his instrument in there really enhances his portait.

[Robyn]

Nice directness and expression. I'm not good at portraits but would just suggest more space as said above

[Yao RL]

it is lovely, may be it is better to avoid the two lines in the background.

[Denise fuller]

I like the focus on his hands and instrument. You could fade out slightly on hid face if you wanted that to be the main focus or focus on his eyes if you want his face to be the main focus,
I think its great

[Erika]

@amandal @paulty @vstap @irisn @cejaanderson @milaniet @linnypinny @northy @kiwichick @flyrobin @yaorenliu @denisefuller @denisefuller Thank you all so much for your suggestions and comments! I learn so much from this.

[Stephanie Swift]

I don't so many portraits, so I won't presume to offer advice, but I like the smile you caught and I like the position of the hand and fingers on the instrument--I think it was a good idea to include that, emphasizing the fact that he's a musician.