Author Topic: Advice to make it stock oriented (Read 15151 times)

FRooGZ · « **on:** September 14, 2011, 13:45 »

I would like to ear some thoughts on how to make this shot more stock oriented. It was a unpretencious photo that i took over the weekend with my wife and my dog. But after post-processing i actualy saw some potencial. I am thinking about giving it some manance concept. Would you care to share some thoughts?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/66388284@N08/6142937286/#

Sean Locke Photography · « **Reply #1 on:** September 14, 2011, 14:16 »

Are you asking "How do I make a shot of 'girl riding a dog' more stock oriented?"? Or are you asking for a critique of the image?

click_click · « **Reply #2 on:** September 14, 2011, 14:24 »

What are you trying to sell using this photo?

Canine equipment?

Sunglasses?

Sportswear?

Creating a stock oriented image means conveying a solid concept in a direct and obvious way. The viewer has to understand the image instantly. This is not a guessing game.

FRooGZ · « **Reply #3 on:** September 14, 2011, 14:27 »

sjlocke,

I will ignore the part of "girl riding a dog", since as i explained earlier "the girl" is my wife. a little respect is appreciated.

Yes i would like a critique of the image with some thought about how to produce it for stock! I have imaged the woman with a serious expression, not smiling and strong holding the dog and both looking away from the camera, the background showing more the fence and entrance of the house. My idea is to give it a concept of security or protection.

Sean Locke Photography · « **Reply #4 on:** September 14, 2011, 14:33 »

Quote from: FRooGZ on September 14, 2011, 14:27

I will ignore the part of "girl riding a dog", since as i explained earlier "the girl" is my wife. a little respect is appreciated.

I don't know it is your wife. I see an image with a girl riding a dog. Thus the question.

djpadavona · « **Reply #5 on:** September 14, 2011, 14:36 »

I understand the security aspect of showing a woman with a dog in front of a home. But why would she be riding the dog?

A humorous stock photo can certainly be a strong seller. And I suppose a woman riding a dog could become humorous with enough creativity. Think of a greeting card, or something a buyer might repackage through Zazzle. But I don't find this photo humorous, and it is going to take a lot of hard thought and creativity to make it so.

If you want to go with security, drop the whole woman riding dog angle. And drop the attitude too if you want people to help you sell photos. Nobody in here, including Mr Locke, is in the business of building your portfolio.

click_click · « **Reply #6 on:** September 14, 2011, 14:40 »

Quote from: FRooGZ on September 14, 2011, 14:27

... I have imaged the woman with a serious expression, not smiling and strong holding the dog and both looking away from the camera, the background showing more the fence and entrance of the house. ...

Why didn't you do that? Shoot that, and re-post here for further critique.

FRooGZ · « **Reply #7 on:** September 14, 2011, 14:41 »

Quote from: djpadavona on September 14, 2011, 14:36

I understand the security aspect of showing a woman with a dog in front of a home. But why would she be riding the dog?

A humorous stock photo can certainly be a strong seller. And I suppose a woman riding a dog could become humorous with enough creativity. Think of a greeting card, or something a buyer might repackage through Zazzle. But I don't find this photo humorous, and it is going to take a lot of hard thought and creativity to make it so.

If you want to go with security, drop the whole woman riding dog angle. And drop the attitude too if you want people to help you sell photos. Nobody in here, including Mr Locke, is in the business of building your portfolio.

Exactely, i want remake the shot and produce the hole posing in another way... Therefor why i wish to hear some suggestions in order to achiver the most stock oriented image possible. I would also would appreciate some critques at the lighting and overall aspect of this shot, always in mind that i will remake and produce it again.

FRooGZ · « **Reply #8 on:** September 14, 2011, 14:42 »

Quote from: click_click on September 14, 2011, 14:40

Quote from: FRooGZ on September 14, 2011, 14:27
... I have imaged the woman with a serious expression, not smiling and strong holding the dog and both looking away from the camera, the background showing more the fence and entrance of the house. ...

Why didn't you do that? Shoot that, and re-post here for further critique.

Sorry for my bad english. imagined is what i meant.

click_click · « **Reply #9 on:** September 14, 2011, 14:44 »

Quote from: FRooGZ on September 14, 2011, 14:42

Quote from: click_click on September 14, 2011, 14:40
Quote from: FRooGZ on September 14, 2011, 14:27
... I have imaged the woman with a serious expression, not smiling and strong holding the dog and both looking away from the camera, the background showing more the fence and entrance of the house. ...

Why didn't you do that? Shoot that, and re-post here for further critique.

Sorry for my bad english. imagined is what i meant.

Still, if you had the idea, why didn't you shoot it that way? At least it would be a lot closer to your concept than the image you posted.

I'm confused.

click_click · « **Reply #10 on:** September 14, 2011, 14:46 »

Quote from: FRooGZ on September 14, 2011, 14:41

... i wish to hear some suggestions in order to achiver the most stock oriented image possible. ...

So you ask us, to tell you how make the best stock images possible? Seriously?

How about you present the idea as you have imagined it and then post it for critique?

I can't see anyone telling you how to do the light set-up, composition and in-camera settings so you get the best possible image.

You need to bring something to the table first.

digitalexpressionimages · « **Reply #11 on:** September 14, 2011, 14:47 »

Quote from: click_click on September 14, 2011, 14:44

Quote from: FRooGZ on September 14, 2011, 14:42
Quote from: click_click on September 14, 2011, 14:40
Quote from: FRooGZ on September 14, 2011, 14:27
... I have imaged the woman with a serious expression, not smiling and strong holding the dog and both looking away from the camera, the background showing more the fence and entrance of the house. ...

Why didn't you do that? Shoot that, and re-post here for further critique.

Sorry for my bad english. imagined is what i meant.

Still, if you had the idea, why didn't you shoot it that way? At least it would be a lot closer to your concept than the image you posted.

I'm confused.

I get it.He's shooting snaps of family on the weekend and then using those to brainstorm concepts, then shooting the concepts. Interesting approach.

I think he has the idea of how to make it commercial stock and is now looking for feedback on the photo itself.

FRooGZ · « **Reply #12 on:** September 14, 2011, 14:48 »

Quote from: click_click on September 14, 2011, 14:44

Quote from: FRooGZ on September 14, 2011, 14:42
Quote from: click_click on September 14, 2011, 14:40
Quote from: FRooGZ on September 14, 2011, 14:27
... I have imaged the woman with a serious expression, not smiling and strong holding the dog and both looking away from the camera, the background showing more the fence and entrance of the house. ...

Why didn't you do that? Shoot that, and re-post here for further critique.

Sorry for my bad english. imagined is what i meant.

Still, if you had the idea, why didn't you shoot it that way? At least it would be a lot closer to your concept than the image you posted.

I'm confused.

Well i apologize for making a confusion. Let me try to explain it again. I have made this shot, it was meant to be a private photo. But than during last night while post-processing, i saw some potencial and had this idea of concept that i posted.

What i wish from this post is some thoughts about how to make it the better possible concept, some ideas...

Would also like some critiques about lighting etc

Sean Locke Photography · « **Reply #13 on:** September 14, 2011, 14:49 »

Quote from: FRooGZ on September 14, 2011, 14:41

Therefor why i wish to hear some suggestions in order to achiver the most stock oriented image possible. I would also would appreciate some critques at the lighting and overall aspect of this shot, always in mind that i will remake and produce it again.

That's why I asked, what are you trying to accomplish?

The best "girl riding a dog image"? A metaphor for horse racing, with children riding small animals? Perhaps a businessman riding a pig to show recklessness?

How are we to know what you want to accomplish. A security image? I'd toss out the girl and the dog and get a guy in a security uniform and ... etc...

To that end, it's hard to critique the lighting, but I can see you laying on the ground on your back in her glasses.

FRooGZ · « **Reply #14 on:** September 14, 2011, 14:52 »

Quote from: digitalexpressionimages on September 14, 2011, 14:47

Quote from: click_click on September 14, 2011, 14:44
Quote from: FRooGZ on September 14, 2011, 14:42
Quote from: click_click on September 14, 2011, 14:40
Quote from: FRooGZ on September 14, 2011, 14:27
... I have imaged the woman with a serious expression, not smiling and strong holding the dog and both looking away from the camera, the background showing more the fence and entrance of the house. ...

Why didn't you do that? Shoot that, and re-post here for further critique.

Sorry for my bad english. imagined is what i meant.

Still, if you had the idea, why didn't you shoot it that way? At least it would be a lot closer to your concept than the image you posted.

I'm confused.

I get it.He's shooting snaps of family on the weekend and then using those to brainstorm concepts, then shooting the concepts. Interesting approach.

I think he has the idea of how to make it commercial stock and is now looking for feedback on the photo itself.

That's it!

digitalexpressionimages · « **Reply #15 on:** September 14, 2011, 14:52 »

If you want advice, I don't mind the girl but i would put her in more formal clothes, lose the shades and change her pose. The dog has a good alert guard dog look in the photo so however you did that keep it but she should have it on a leash in front of her. The low angle is good it puts her in a position of authority but the framing is too tight. Widen out to show the house.

lthn · « **Reply #16 on:** September 14, 2011, 14:55 »

Is this a prank? Maybe you should donwload some of jaffbanke's ir rinder's ebooks... I heard they are fabulous : D


The Joker - and I thought my jokes were bad

FRooGZ · « **Reply #17 on:** September 14, 2011, 14:57 »

Quote from: digitalexpressionimages on September 14, 2011, 14:52

If you want advice, I don't mind the girl but i would put her in more formal clothes, lose the shades and change her pose. The dog has a good alert guard dog look in the photo so however you did that keep it but she should have it on a leash in front of her. The low angle is good it puts her in a position of authority but the framing is too tight. Widen out to show the house.

Thank you very much!

Sorry guys for the confusion... sometimes i mess up.. you see, i am a brazilian who lives in uruguay, so my brain thinks in portuguese but talk all the time spanish and a lot of times my english is prejudiced because that!

FRooGZ · « **Reply #18 on:** September 14, 2011, 15:04 »

Quote from: lthn on September 14, 2011, 14:55

Is this a prank? Maybe you should donwload some of jaffbanke's ir rinder's ebooks... I heard they are fabulous : D

The Joker - and I thought my jokes were bad

Don't need to be mean, man! If anyone are not willing to share some thoughts, simply don't do it.

rimglow · « **Reply #19 on:** September 14, 2011, 15:08 »

I'll give it a critique. First off, what does the background building have to do with the picture? It's boring and unattractive. The blue shield under the dog's neck looks like it's part of a dog collar that's shifted off center. The dog looks good and is well lit. The girl has major problems Her clothes look disheveled. Her coat is too small and doesn't fit. Also appears dirty. Looks like she slept in her white shirt. Hair is a mess and uninteresting. The lighting on her face makes her appear to have a second chin. If you're going to compete with the big boys, you must try harder with how you present your model.

FRooGZ · « **Reply #20 on:** September 14, 2011, 15:12 »

Quote from: rimglow on September 14, 2011, 15:08

I'll give it a critique. First off, what does the background have to do with the picture? It's boring and unattractive. The blue shield under the dog's neck looks like it's part of a dog collar that's shifted off center. The dog looks good and is well lit. The girl has major problems Her clothes look disheveled. Her coat is too small and doesn't fit. Also appears dirty. Looks like she slept in her white shirt. Hair is a mess and uninteresting. The lighting on her face makes her appear to have a second chin. If you're going to compete with the big boys, you must try harder with how you present your model.

Thank you a lot. Like i said above this is a family picture, is not intended to be used. but i had an idea with it and wish to share some thoughts with you... Thank you again and will keep all your thoughts in my mind whenever i can produce this idea for real.

luissantos84 · « **Reply #21 on:** September 14, 2011, 15:30 »

don´t ask advice here

these guys will eat you alive, 99% are 100% right but come on you have a few "days" of stock, you are trying to see use in every picture you do and I do understand (I still do that, I am so anxious to upload that a find myself sometimes shooting crap and I know it won´t be approved in the big agencies and I always give it a quick edit and upload, if you have the time why not upload it? sure you can plan a lot and shoot great stocky pics like Sean but that takes time, money and skills, we cannot get there before doing a lot of crap)

keyword and send

dont forget the keywords dog and woman and you are set!

Pixart · « **Reply #22 on:** September 14, 2011, 15:42 »

One little piece of advice. Know who/what the subject of your photo is. Regarding this particular shot - and forgive me if I'm wrong b/c viewing a web sized resolution - but it looks like the dog is in focus and the woman is not. I would think that the woman is the subject of the photo and her eyes should be in sharp focus. If you view at 100% and she is not sharp, it would not qualify as a stock photo. Animals are tough too, they have such long faces, it's easy to get distortion . You really have to focus on the edge of their eye if they are your main subject. Unless the subject is the nose

FRooGZ · « **Reply #23 on:** September 14, 2011, 15:43 »

Quote from: luissantos84 on September 14, 2011, 15:30

don´t ask advice here these guys will eat you alive, 99% are 100% right but come on you have a few "days" of stock, you are trying to see use in every picture you do and I do understand (I still do that, I am so anxious to upload that a find myself sometimes shooting crap and I know it won´t be approved in the big agencies and I always give it a quick edit and upload, if you have the time why not upload it? sure you can plan a lot and shoot great stocky pics like Sean but that takes time, money and skills, we cannot get there before doing a lot of crap)

keyword and send dont forget the keywords dog and woman and you are set!

Thank you Luis! Indeed there are a few bad a$$es around here, but the fact is that they are everywhere. So i am not afraid to deal with them and to eat some frogs once and a while as well (portugues expression, Luis will get it)...

I will take my time and produce the idea in a stock oriented way at the weekend. Money is not a problem and i am building my equipment set, need sometime to learn and adapt myself, and thought that a forum like this was a good place to share, get and build knowledge... That's why i have posted this thread.

Thank you again luis for your advice!

FRooGZ · « **Reply #24 on:** September 14, 2011, 15:48 »

Quote from: Pixart on September 14, 2011, 15:42

One little piece of advice. Know who/what the subject of your photo is. Regarding this particular shot - and forgive me if I'm wrong b/c viewing a web sized resolution - but it looks like the dog is in focus and the woman is not. I would think that the woman is the subject of the photo and her eyes should be in sharp focus. If you view at 100% and she is not sharp, it would not qualify as a stock photo. Animals are tough too, they have such long faces, it's easy to get distortion . You really have to focus on the edge of their eye if they are your main subject. Unless the subject is the nose

Thank you a lot Pixart. Maybe the web resolution is giving this impression. but in fact the focus is at her face. Obviously is not at the eyes since she is wearing glasses

... in fact since i was shooting against the sun, it was really hard to make the camera focus at her face, but after some fighting with it, i made it. This picture was shoot at f6.3, so the DoF is big enought to mantain almost both, girl and dog in the focus range.

Thank you again.

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Author Topic: Advice to make it stock oriented (Read 15151 times)

FRooGZ

Sean Locke Photography

click_click

FRooGZ

Sean Locke Photography

djpadavona

click_click

FRooGZ

FRooGZ

click_click

click_click

digitalexpressionimages

FRooGZ

Sean Locke Photography

FRooGZ

digitalexpressionimages

lthn

FRooGZ

FRooGZ

rimglow

FRooGZ

luissantos84

Pixart

FRooGZ

FRooGZ

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