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Critique Me-Kati at Kati Ann Photography
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Remember:
Read How to Critique a Photo
Make a critique sandwich – something positive, something you would have done differently, something positive
My rule: no improvement tip = deleted comment
This will benefit the person leaving the photo critique just as much if not more than the person receiving the critique.

Thank you to Kati of Kati Ann Photography for submitting the following image.
Settings: ISO 100, SS 1/200, f/1.8

25 Comments
  • November 26, 2012 at 11:01 AM

    Hi Kati Ann!

    I really like this image! The only thing I would do is try to capture the image using the rule of thirds… so for this image I would like to see the couple slightly more to the right of the image! Other than that though I love the pose, the colors, and the location! I think it’s an excellent image all around!

    Thanks,
    Shaye Kennedy

  • November 26, 2012 at 11:05 AM

    Love the pose of the couple ~ their feelings come through in the photo. One think I would do different is not have them centered. I do like the way the sky pops above them.

  • November 26, 2012 at 11:07 AM

    Awwww! What a sweet pose! If I had to change something, I think I would have warmed up the picture a bit, it seems a bit cool to me. Other than that, I love the location– it’s not something you usually see in a portrait– great idea!

  • November 26, 2012 at 11:25 AM

    I love the pose, so romantic! I think I would warm up the image a bit and also use the rule of thirds and maybe bump up the contrast just a tad! It looks awesome though, love the location and the peek of sky in the background! Great job!

  • Tanya T
    November 26, 2012 at 11:49 AM

    Gorgeous picture Kati Ann!
    I love the feeling (so much love), the location, the light – everything!! The ONLY thing I would change would be to have the couple off centered (rule of thirds), but honestly the picture is really beautiful the way it is too! Great work!

  • November 26, 2012 at 12:07 PM

    Gorgeous location and couple! You did a fantastic job telling a story here! I LOVE the pose; however when my eyes follow her feet, her shoes get lost in the trees. I actually like how you centered the couple. I love how the trees create a natural frame and how you have the horizon horizontal and not slanted :) Your clients will love this!

  • Kira
    November 26, 2012 at 12:08 PM

    So I’m going against the grain here, I actually like them centered because of the leading lines of the trees. I might try cropping some of the left and bottom out of the picture, just to get a little closer look at the couple. Great job, and beautiful couple!

  • Erin
    November 26, 2012 at 12:46 PM

    Photos in apple orchards always hold a dear place in my heart because I had my engagement and wedding photos taken in one. I love the symmetry you achieved with using the middle of the rows for the subject. I would like to see the ground straightened a little as it’s tilting a little to the left. I love love love the sky peeking through at the top. It adds such a sense of lightness to the whole photo. Great job!

  • Melissa
    November 26, 2012 at 12:50 PM

    This is a great image, telling a great story and shows great emotion. What I might try would be to switch up the angle, maybe drop low and try to get more of the sky in the shot (but not so low, your eye goes to her butt!) Or even from the direction of her shoes, giving a lead line towards their kiss? This gave me some great ideas of my own. Well done!

  • November 26, 2012 at 12:59 PM

    i loooovveee this photo!! the only thing i would have done differently is gotten lower to the ground and instead of having them in the center of the frame, use the rule of thirds, and move them closer to the bottom, showing off more sky at the same time. But I still love this image. I think my favorite part is the foot pop! :)

  • Erica
    November 26, 2012 at 1:34 PM

    What a fun shot! I love orchards, too! I agree with PPs that the shot is a little cool – I would warm it up some as well, but watch the reds as it seems like their skin tones are already a little rosy in the faces (could be because of the energy exerted in the pose? This might be a great shot to pull a little lighter edit on, make it look a little more dreamy and romantic. The horizon is tilted to the left – you might want to straighten it out some (a degree or two clockwise). Her skirt and his pants are so close to the same color that they blend a little bit – perhaps you can mask one of them a bit to create a little more difference there? Her shoes also appear to be different colors? I’m not sure what the lighting was that would have caused that – the sky doesn’t appear to be having an impact – were you using off camera flash? I also agree with PPs about using the rule of thirds – the leading lines of the trees/sky are fantastic, but you can still use those lines and un-center the photo. Might not work to crop this photo to make that work, but something to keep in mind for the future. Beautiful colors and great capture of the connection between the couple!

  • November 26, 2012 at 1:38 PM

    Love this picture and this pose. So creative! I love the trees providing a natural border for the photo and think if you had followed the “rule of thirds” that some of natural border would be lost and detract from the picture, so I like the composition. I would prefer the bottom and sides to be slightly cropped so that the couple is me prominent in the picture. Great picture!

  • November 26, 2012 at 3:50 PM

    I love how the couple is posed and all the colors. What a beautiful location. I like how the couple is framed by the trees. Usually I would say offset them a bit too (rule of thirds) but in this case, I think it works. I would have cropped it a bit more (less ground in front of them). Also the horizon might need to be straightened just a hair. But it’s a beautiful photo!

  • Shelbie
    November 26, 2012 at 4:09 PM

    I love the orchard! Right off the bat, I just thought maybe the image was a little dark and could have used some pops of color. If I looked REALLY hard, I can see the water pipe and tall grass around just behind his leg that could have been cloned out. I like the center pose and overall, think you did a great job. BTW-I am an extreme amateur so take that for what it’s worth.

  • November 26, 2012 at 5:48 PM

    love the couple, love the pose, love the orchard. I will TOTALLY disagree with everyone that says rule of thirds. I love them perfectly center, thats the point with the trees framing them on each side! I would have closed your aperture a bit- maybe to 2.2 just so they are sharper, you lost some of that sharpness on them and the focused spot is on her legs and the tree right behind them. But all in all, great shot any client would love.. just super technical stuff only photogs notice! AND I love the processing :)

  • Autumn
    November 26, 2012 at 6:35 PM

    Love this picture! I really like how the trees form a frame around the couple! Just my opinion, but I think this is a great example of when rule of thirds might not be the best choice. In this pic you would loose the effect of the trees if you used thirds. It looks like the horizon is not level. Also, I would crop a little tighter on the left so that the trees show an equal amount in each side. That being said, I had to really study the pic to find things to change. Fabulous job!

  • November 26, 2012 at 9:27 PM

    Beautiful picture! I love the pose! I agree with Autumn, if you did the rule of thirds, you would have lost the beautiful framing of the trees! One thing that I would have done is in Lightroom or Photoshop (what ever editing you use) I would have increased the saturation just a little to get the brightness of the trees and fruit on the trees. It took me forever to find anything to change. This is an AMAZING photo! Great job!

  • Julie
    November 26, 2012 at 10:16 PM

    This is my first time doing this. What a beautiful pose and awesome surrounding. Looks like a fun and enjoyable time. For compostition it would be nice to have been a little closer to them. Maybe making the portriat veritical instead of horizontal. Super job! ;). Keep up the good work.

  • Aubree
    November 26, 2012 at 10:54 PM

    I actually love that the couple is centered. It was a great time to break the rule because it shows that their love/engagement is center of attention in the story you are telling. I would warm up the color a little bit- too cool for my taste. I love all of the leading and implied lines in the photo. Beautiful!

  • November 26, 2012 at 11:06 PM

    I personally like that the couple is centered. However, I would like to see the symmetry a bit more extreme with them centered–like the trees being the same distance from edge of the frame on both sides. And the horizon perfectly horizontal rather than a bit off. Love the emotion the image gives off!!

  • November 27, 2012 at 8:29 AM

    What a nice, dynamic shot! I like the way that the trees in the orchard frame the couple, and the mountain in the background adds interest too. Rules are meant to be broken, and I think in this case that having the couple in the center of the shot framed by the orchard works :) I would probably crop it a little so that there is less of the foreground, and to let the couple stand out a little more. The background seems to have a very slight cool cast, while his face seems a little red, so I might have warmed up the background and tried to minimize the red in his face a little. I’d also brighten it just a tad. Nice shot, and thanks for sharing!

  • November 27, 2012 at 10:12 AM

    I love this photo and the pose is just great! The colors are wonderful too. My only critique would be that my eye tends to drift to the trees rather than focusing on the couple. The trees are great but I think because they are not more in the background but at the same level as the couple in the picture it causes you to loose focus. I think cropping the picture differently as some suggested might correct this. Overall a great shot and love the story it tells!

  • November 27, 2012 at 5:30 PM

    I love this. What a happy image.
    I think I would have warmed it up ever so slightly & cropped it just a tad on both sides.
    The photog has chosen a wonderful location for the photo, looks like they are free :)

  • Crystal Kneeland
    November 27, 2012 at 11:46 PM

    Incredible photo! I like that they’re centered because it follows the natural lines of the trees. One thing I might do differently is warm it up a bit in post editing. That looks like a wonderful location and I love the pose!

  • Shannon
    March 20, 2013 at 9:24 AM

    I like that this photo IS centered because of the leading lines of the trees–off-centering the couple would throw the balance off in this photo.

    The only critique I have is the color of her shoes seems to be different. Her right foot appears to have on a brown shoe, while her left foot appears to have a nude shoe on. To me, that just caught my attention and I focused on why were the shoes different vs focusing on their kiss.

    Other than that, a very pleasing photo to look at.

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