OK, it is way too quiet on this forum. So...I'll post a dog portrait. Give me your critique. My self critique is to not cut feet off, and to go out closer to the golden hour. And to probably stick to cats.

Yup, it's a dog all right. I like the angle from which you shot it but, the down side, I also don't like losing the feet. A bit of a Catch 22. The dog is set up nicely and has very cute/lively expression. Ears are UP! Very good. Tail is UP. Also good.

I think I'd like to see the background (is it water?) more out of focus. And the lighting is a bit harsh. I'd clone out the dog tag. Overall, a very nice shot of what appears to be a very nice, happy, alert dog.

Jim

Thanks for being gentle, Jim. I can't tell if it is so mundane that no one else wants to say anything, or if I need to post a really awful one to get some more posts. It was just starting to seem like a ghost town here. Hopefully everyone is just booked and busy.

Well, Jim Poor is off at the Boston Terrier National so that cuts the number of posts by about 2/3 . And James is in the process of editing my 7D Mini-Review which is apparently taking more time and effort than originally estimated. So, it's basically just you and me.

It would be helpful to put the image in context: what was it taken for? Was this a formal session? A candid shot? What exactly where you trying to achieve with the image? Once we know those things, we can be brutally honest .

Jim

The technicals are all fine on the portrait. Your cat photos all have an emotional edge that draws you into them. They are vibrant and you feel almost like the kitty's are flirting with you, or showing off, whatever it is they are doing, they evoke an emotional response.

Though this portrait is sharp, exposed properly and has all the elements of a good photo, it really doesn't evoke that same emotional response. She has a sweet expression, but, nothing really draws you into it.

Next time, try to get the dog to be either playing or sitting with its head turned, stuff like that.

Its hard to critique your photo because there is nothing very wrong with it. Its just missing that emotional piece

Jim, This was a grab shot. I was scouting out a dog park for a client shoot. Looking for good spots, backgrounds, runs. I was shooting black dogs at the park because they seem more challenging to get right.

Julie, I concur. Must...learn...to...speak...dog.

No critique here either but I like it, great color and love the stance and expression on the dog.

Diana

On the feet, I don't have an issue with it, especially in an outdoor portrait. Over at BPN, we had "virtual" feet a lot with wading birds and the general concenus is that if there is enough room left in the frame to show where the legs / feet would be when hidden by grass, water, sand, etc there is no problem.

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Its hard to critique your photo because there is nothing very wrong with it. Its just missing that emotional piece

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I say this much too often but . . . I agree with Julie. There's nothing wrong with it; but it lacks a connection that comes through in all your cat images. It's not that you have to learn to speak dog; you have to learn to listen to dog the way you intuitively listen to the cats you shoot.

Jim