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|| SportsShooter.com: Member Message Board
Portfolio Critique...por favor?
Jamey Price, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Danville | KY | USA | Posted: 5:15 PM on 05.26.09 |
->> Hey Photogs,
Would you be willing to take time from your busy day and take a look at my photos/website?
http://www.jameypricephoto.com
Here is a little about why I'm here and what I'm about.
Im a 22 year old rising senior at a small liberal arts college in KY. I haven't taken any photography classes and am completely self taught.
Since I started shooting about a year ago, I have been published internationally, accepted a position as a photojournalist intern at the Charlotte Observer and I have photographed quite a few steeplechase horse races as a freelance photographer.
Anyway, if you could have a look at my portfolio either on my website or on my member page and let me know what you think I'm doing wrong, and what I'm doing right, I would sincerely appreciate it.
SIDE NOTE: I appologize for the load times on my website. I'm currrently saving pennies for webspace to host on something other then Apple's mobile me. So be patient. Sorry for the slow loading.
THANKS!!!
Jamey |
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Joel Kowsky, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Columbia | MO | United States | Posted: 6:11 PM on 05.26.09 |
->> I like the layout but you HTML/CSS could use a little tweaking. In both browsers that I used, Safari and Firefox, I get a scroll bar. That makes me think there's something further down that I'm missing, but there isn't. Thats a quick fix in setting a height in either CSS or HTML for your content frames.
I also don't know if you realized this or not, but the www.jameypricephoto.com link on your home page and contact page send me to Apple's hotnews page.
This is getting a little picky too, but the size of your site changes between the different pages that you have. Each page within your site should be the same size.
Consider changing the first photo in your steeplechase gallery though, I'm not really a fan of the photo thats there right now. |
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Jamey Price, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Danville | KY | USA | Posted: 6:34 PM on 05.26.09 |
->> Thanks Joel.
I have heard that the link goes to apple before. You may have pushed me over the edge to buy webspace. I'm tired of mobileme's awful server.
I'll work on the site.
Also another note: I just got a "bloody nose" from a photog who had the nuts to send anything and everything that is wrong with my work, and not provide even half an ounce of suggestions to make it better. How does that help someone who is new at this? It doesnt. At all.
So help me help myself. That is the ONLY reason I'm here. To learn. |
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Brian Hollingsworth, Photographer
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Austin | TX | USA | Posted: 6:43 PM on 05.26.09 |
->> Hey Jamey-
I think you've got some images most of us would be happy to have taken ourselves. Good work. You seem comfortable with action and candid portrait work, but I feel a distance (physical and psychological) between you and your subjects. I don't get a sense of being right there in the action or in mix on the sidelines and stands.
Although there are some great faces in your portrait work I feel there are few "moments" or evidence of interaction between the subjects in your shots. The one I reacted to the most was the shot of the ladies in the hats. They appear to be reacting to the action off camera. It works for me. Good shot, but to me an even better shot is if you could capture them interacting with each other in a similarly expressive way.
I'd recommend going to one of these events and spend a day combing the stands/pits etc. looking for moments between people. Hugs, fist bumps, good faces, dejection etc. Shots around the action but not just of the action.
You seem to have the talent...now just put yourself in position to make a bigger variety of photos.
Good luck and good shooting. Hope this helps.
Brian H. |
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Jamey Price, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Danville | KY | USA | Posted: 6:46 PM on 05.26.09 |
| ->> Thank you Brian. That is exactly what I'm looking for. I'll work on it for next time. |
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Nuno Gonçalves, Photographer
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Braga | Portugal | | Posted: 7:30 PM on 05.26.09 |
| ->> Por favor... nice portuguese sentence :) |
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Joseph Zimmerman, Photographer
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Jamey Price, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Danville | KY | USA | Posted: 7:46 PM on 05.26.09 |
| ->> Thanks. |
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Chris Large, Photographer
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Okotoks | AB | Canada | Posted: 11:10 PM on 05.26.09 |
->> I'm liking alot of your shots but I think the cropping could be better - tighter in a number of pics would draw the eye faster to what you want to convey. Also with selective focus, make sure what's sharp is what needs to be sharp. It can be really distracting if the wrong image is sharp and the key emotion is soft.
The blurred panning stuff is pretty darn good.
Chris |
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Chuck Liddy, Photographer
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Durham | NC | USA | Posted: 11:46 PM on 05.26.09 |
| ->> Well, to be blunt and honest. The photos are quite mundane and look like photos that could be shot by anyone with a high end point and shoot. Panning? Well, yeah actually pretty easy to accomplish in this day and age with the limitless data space our cameras give us. Moments? Well, there's the rub, heh? I actually saw no moments in those photos. I saw the usual from the usual. I didn't see anything different from the various situations that would separate YOU from the army of point and shooters out there. Sorry to be so harsh but this is the real world. There are THOUSANDS of "photographers" out here now and if you want to be a working professional and get paid you need to rise above the mundane and obvious. Just because you own a nice camera and have access to a big event doesn't mean you have a future in the business. |
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Joseph Molieri, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Ardmore | PA | US | Posted: 12:05 AM on 05.27.09 |
| ->> There were a few decent shots in there. I think you have potential. There were a number of very boring shots as well though. Whittle it down as best you can if it is your portfolio. If a shot doesn't grab you get rid of it. In the gallery with the horses there was a number of images that seemed blurry or out of focus, whatever it was they seemed lacking technically. The first image in that gallery was very boring. It was a decent composition but there is nothing engaging about the butt of three horses and their riders. The images need to be more than composition. It needs to be composition and content. The third one, I think, of the rider with the muck on his face was good. It would've been better as a vertical, had alot of dead space on right but that may be opinion. Either way it had content. You could see his expression and the muck said something about what he was doing. The next head shot of the guy smiling wasn't there. It looks a little underexposed. way too much dead space on the right, go vertical. Work on more interesting action shots getting tight. The horse ones were too loose and snap shot like. The racing ones were a bit of an improvement they were clean. The smiling driver was good, the one in b/w. Get rid of the action shots that were just mediocre. Hope that helps some. Also you'll need a thick skin in this critique business. Just try to ignore the unhelpful and take what can help you. Thanks for posting up and sharing. |
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Chris Large, Photographer
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Okotoks | AB | Canada | Posted: 12:08 AM on 05.27.09 |
->> Chuck
Nice advise for some young guy who is trying to get some input into his work other than get out of the game. He's got the jam to put it out there for all of us to see and comment - perhaps you might be abit more gentle and alot more constructive. We need to be honest about what we critique but there has to be some human element in it all.
I'm the first to admit that is a hard, cut throat, winner take all gig that we all do but I think more compassion and feeling might be in order.
Just my humble view on things and if you all what to rant about survival of the fitness then so be it.
C |
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Bradly J. Boner, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Jackson | WY | USA | Posted: 12:35 AM on 05.27.09 |
->> Chris - Though it was blunt, I thought Chuck's critique was honest and right on. While there's some nice images in there, I probably flipped through both galleries in less than a minute each (and one gallery because I had to wait for the images to load).
Basically, nothing really caught my eye and made me really want to stop and read a caption (even though there weren't any to read). If Jamey is aspiring to be a photojournalist, I think he needs more diversity in his portfolio and needs to show he has skills other than panning motion. Jamey needs to work on making his images TELL us something rather than SHOW us something.
How do the jockeys feel when they win? How do they feel when they lose? What is their relationship with their horses? With each other? Chuck's critique was just a blunt way of saying these images look like they were taken by someone simply attending the event, rather than someone trying to show others who weren't there what the event was like, and more importantly, showing us things that even those in attendance didn't see. |
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John OHara, Photographer
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Petaluma | Ca | United States | Posted: 2:12 AM on 05.27.09 |
->> Jamey,
Take the heat anyone gives you as constructive . That is a good thing. No response from anyone might suggest something worse.
A strong foundation in your images. Sharp photos, correct color balance, and proper expose, all come first. Any type of a gimmick, panning should be used in a way that complements the other images. To many , is to much.
Content, is telling a story with one photo or a dozen, without words. Finally, fix your web site. That long delay will never get past an editor or potental client, I think. |
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Jeremy Harmon, Photo Editor, Photographer
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Salt Lake City | UT | USA | Posted: 3:18 AM on 05.27.09 |
->> I agree Chuck and Brad.
None of your stuff really jumps out at me. I've seen every one of these photos before. Steeplechase has got to be pretty exciting/emotional/grueling/whatever for the jockeys. Photograph that.
I know nothing about the world of horse racing so when I look at your steeplechase photos all I learn about the sport is there are horses and sometimes they jump over things. The spectators where hats and smile and there is a gazebo looking thing next to some bushes.
Surely there is more to it than that. Photograph the stuff that will help people like me understand what it is really like to be there and you will have a much better collection of pictures. |
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Mark Peters, Photographer
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Highland | IL | USA | Posted: 7:59 AM on 05.27.09 |
->> Jamey -
Reading your SS page, I note that you are a jockey yourself. I don't see that in your images however. You have an insight as a participant that if translated into your images could really tell a story. It has obviously given you access - it is now up to you to combine the access and personal awareness of the sport to allow us non-participants to experience it through your eyes. |
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Jamey Price, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Danville | KY | USA | Posted: 8:29 AM on 05.27.09 |
->> Thanks to you all. Really.
You're all right. I agree with what you say in finding the moments and all that. I'll keep at it for next time.
Yes, I am a jockey and yes there is more to steeplechasing then what I've shown. I'm finding it a tricky balance between what an event sponsor wants to see and what I think I should show. I probably won't be able to shoot a steeplechase until november maybe but I'll let you see what I get when we cross that bridge.
Again, I appreciate the comments, harsh or otherwise. |
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Jamey Price, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Danville | KY | USA | Posted: 8:37 AM on 05.27.09 |
->> Also, on the captions...
Adobe lightroom's flash exporter has a few templates and all that with captions being one of them. Of course I realize captions are hugely important but with this software, it comes at a price and that price being it takes up half top of the image.
What photo software do you use to present your photos on your website? Is there something "simple" like Lightroom's that you can dump the photos in and out pops all the coded folders and things like that? |
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Clay Jackson, Photographer
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danville | ky | usa | Posted: 9:07 AM on 05.27.09 |
| ->> Mark hit the nail on the head- It sounds like a talk I had with someone recently. ;) |
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Brian Tietz, Photographer
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Fort Myers | FL | USA | Posted: 10:19 AM on 05.27.09 |
| ->> Jamey, you apologize right off the bat for a slow website and bad web reproduction of your photos. Instead of apologizing, fix it. |
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Patrick Meredith, Photographer, Assistant
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Austin | TX | USA | Posted: 10:42 AM on 05.27.09 |
->> Jamey,
I noticed you compete as a swimmer with your school, as a jockey and in triathlons. Have you thought of applying your access/knowledge of these sports to put together a picture/multimedia story? It seems to me you already have the access to the scenes many photographers dream about (locker rooms before and after games, coaches offices, other players homes, stables, etc), so why not use them to your advantage while you can?
-PM |
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Alex Witkowicz, Photographer
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Denver | Co | USA | Posted: 10:58 AM on 05.27.09 |
->> Jamey - As a student, you're eligible for a $99 Livebooks website.
It's incredibly simple to use, runs fast and smooth, and it will take your site from amateur to pro overnight.
www.livebooksedu.com |
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Jamey Price, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Danville | KY | USA | Posted: 12:08 PM on 05.27.09 |
->> Yes Clay, I remember :)
And yes, I do have access to these events. Swimming doesnt start until august again and while Im not making those excuses, I only recently bought a camera that can handle the horrific lighting conditions so last season, i have almost nothing useful. The D80 and the lens I had in season weren't cutting it.
I'm very much looking forward to the coming season because I now have both a camera and lens that can handle the low light and fast action that makes swimming, swimming.
Thanks for the heads up, Alex. I have heard of livebooks but I didnt know about the student discount. |
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Daniel Berman, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Seattle | WA | US | Posted: 2:50 PM on 05.27.09 |
->> Jamey,
The $99 investment in LivebooksEDU is one of the best you can make. I use them and I get a lot of compliments on its ease of use and design. It is incredibly important to editors that a website be easy to use, display the photos well and accurately. It is also important to be able to be found by those editors, a fact that is emphasized by Livebooks embedded IPTC info options for your work.
Get one! |
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Jamey Price, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Danville | KY | USA | Posted: 3:17 PM on 05.27.09 |
->> I signed up and bought one.
On first impressions, I don't like one thing about the generalized EDU format is just that. Its generalized.
Apart from the background color, NOTHING about mine will be different from anyone else's who is a student. And that is disappointing to me. Font changes? Nope. Font size? Nope.
Save for the photos, mine will look like anyone else who has a LIVEBOOK EDU site.
Am I mistaken in this fact? |
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Jack Gruber, Photographer
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Fall Church | VA | USA | Posted: 3:30 PM on 05.27.09 |
->> I don't care how the photos are presented just so they are easy to view WITHOUT lots of bells and whistles. Livebooks or a slide page full of tightly edited images showing your best work is fine by me. Just show me your photos via a simple and clean site. No way does it matter to me if your site looks like others. It does matter to me if your photos look like everyone elses. Just show me photos that are different than those other photographers. Don't get hung up on the vehicle you are using to illustrate yourself and your work. Bust your ass and make 10-20 killer images and you will be on your way to a decent portfolio.
Remember, sometimes less is more and edit tight.
jack |
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Jack Gruber, Photographer
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Fall Church | VA | USA | Posted: 3:44 PM on 05.27.09 |
->> Also,
why the disclaimer on your site?
"Please Note: The photo quality and color contained within the following galleries are NOT representative of the true resolution and color."
I gotta tell you that is a big red flag for many. I see that you are heading to an internship in Charlotte which has had a bit of bad history with creative burning and image saturation. If you are trying to put together an impressive PJ portfolio, you should really find where the limits are for working your images and show true representations of your work. Probably the best place for that right now would be the paper you are heading to this summer.
You are getting an incredible opportunity in Charlotte. Forget the 40 hour work week and about sleep while you are in Charlotte. Take on this internship as a mission. Find two or three stories on your own time. Work hard but listen and watch that staff. You will learn loads just by being there.
good luck and have fun. |
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Patrick Fallon, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Columbia | MO | USA | Posted: 3:47 PM on 05.27.09 |
->> Jamey,
Wish I would have seen this sooner, I have a referral code that would have given you a free 30-Day Trial of LivebooksEDU - 11726 [In case anyone else is looking]
That said, Jack is right on about your photos matter more than how it is presented. Just worry that its fast and clean, so people can see your work!
Mine:
www.patrickfallonphoto.com
I have not updated for a while, but I can tell you I have had more people say how they liked it because it was clean - than saying they wish I had more bells and whistles! |
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Jamey Price, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Danville | KY | USA | Posted: 4:11 PM on 05.27.09 |
->> "Take on this internship as a mission. Find two or three stories on your own time. Work hard but listen and watch that staff. You will learn loads just by being there."
That be the plan.
Look. I know I have a lot to learn. Thats why I'm here. I don't take classes, my college offers me nothing. Everything I have done to this point, I've done because I wanted to do it and I worked my tail off for it.
I appreciate your comments. Keep them coming. I am currently working on the LIVEBOOK EDU site and will post something when I get the chance. Right now, I need constructive advice. Things like "its an ok shot BUT this would have worked better.
I'm learning on the fly. Im learning from professionals I meet in the field and Im learning from each and every one of you. Whether it be what to do, or how to act, and what not to do and how not to act.
So thanks for the good, thanks for the bad. I'll report when I have more to show. |
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Manuello Paganelli, Photographer
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Los Angeles | CA | USA | Posted: 4:43 PM on 05.27.09 |
->> Self taught, learning on the fly and F1 fan? Boy you are speaking my tongue. And NO other car racing in the world gets close to F1.
Keep on shooting and shooting and when you get tire shoot some more. Try to shoot other sports too with the same passion.
Dont limit yourself to only two fields. Photography is quite tough and to make a cool living only few of us can say that. The more sports you shoot the better you will be in many aspects.
Good and bad advices are always great. Good advices makes you see how far you have come while bad ones is a way of getting motivate to go much further and to shut off the rest.
Back to F1 lets hope Fernando Alonso goes to Ferrari so he can show the rest of the pack why he is a 2 times WDC.
More 2 Come
www.ManuelloPaganelli.com |
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Joe Cavaretta, Photographer
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Ft Lauderdale | FL | USA | Posted: 6:20 PM on 05.27.09 |
->> I would like you to look through your photos a little more, especially when considering what to put in your portfolio. Most of these are perfectly acceptable publishable pix for daily use, but for your port? I see a lof of green and white tents and other clutter behind everything, which is going to be the norm at a lot of things, however, once you start to notice they are there, you'll be surprised how you look for different angles to minimize their presence.
Your incoming internship will be an amazing opportunity. Take advantage. Do not say no to any opportunity. Every assignment is worth at least a look and I truly believe there is a best picture to be made at every assignment.
Keep us up to date and best of luck |
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Brian Hollingsworth, Photographer
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Austin | TX | USA | Posted: 6:35 PM on 05.27.09 |
->> While Jamey is busy working on his new website and digesting the critiques of his work I thought I'd offer an opinion related to his once and future website.
I'd prefer to view the best of your work as an all encompassing portfolio edited tightly and ordered with a nice flow/visual rhythm. I think Jamey could do something interesting integrating the horse shots and the F1. Show me speed, power, and grace as defined by those sports.
In fact Jamey, here's my assignment to you. After you've practiced finding the "moments" everyone is talking about...try to shoot your favorite sports and make some shots that epitomize speed, power, and grace.
Back to the website: Personally I'm not a huge fan of dividing up your work into lots of sub categories that I have to navigate back to. I'd like to see a general portfolio of the best stuff.
If you feel you need to market yourself to a certain client base or showcase a style or project you can just make a hidden page and direct some clients to that page and other clients to another page.
I'd be interested to hear others thoughts on this.
One general portfolio or separate categories? |
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Darren Whitley, Photographer
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Maryville | MO | USA | Posted: 11:31 PM on 05.27.09 |
| ->> I enjoyed looking at your photos. I don't see any portrait work. I would recommend you work on that. You need some samples of lighting skills and controlling a subject. You also need to shoot at different times of day. Not everything can or should be photographed in Kodachrome lighting. |
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Jamey Price, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Danville | KY | USA | Posted: 12:30 AM on 05.28.09 |
->> Hey all.
Ok. I bought the Livebook website and I'd like to know what you think.
Again, Im extremely appreciative of your comments.
Brian: I'd love to work on that assignment. The steeplechasing will have to wait a while to get rolling again since it is a spring and fall sport (there would be dead horses everywhere if we ran in the summer. Heat exhaustion is a serious problem for steeplechasers. Its a little more involved and athletic then flat racing at Churchill or another track) but I'll keep it in mind and start working on that. Sounds like fun to me.
What I have added to the livebook site is some of my editorial/PJ stuff. I have portrait work, but again, less is more is what I'm hearing and it doesn't really fit into what I'm aiming at.
I already have the domain name registered on the iWeb account and Im waiting for livebooks to get back to me on shifting that over to the new site. In the mean time, here is what I have so far. Obviously, anything can be changed. I integrated "sports" into one portfolio of what I think is my best, and the PJ stuff into another porfolio.
http://jameyprice.deluxe.livebooksedu.com/
Manuello: Alonso in a Ferrari would be great, but first, lets get Ferrari signed on for 2010 eh? |
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Armando Solares, Photographer
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Englewood | FL | USA | Posted: 10:47 PM on 05.28.09 |
->> "I'm finding it a tricky balance between what an event sponsor wants to see and what I think I should show."
I would not worry too much about what the sponsor wants to see. As you develop as a photographer and as your eye begins to define your voice, sponsors, clients, will hire you based on that.
I spent years trying to please editors, clients, and others. Then I realized that what would set me apart from everyone else would be what I saw, and how I photographed it. If it pleased me that was it. Some call it your vision, some call it your voice, some your art. whatever it is, make yourself stand out from the rest. That is what you should be worrying about.
On another note: Go to a library and look at books and magazines and get ideas. Go to a museum and look at paintings and see how the artists use light, composition, and how they develop a style unique to them.
The technical part of photography is easy. Developing your vision is difficult. Work on that.
Good luck! |
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Aaron Rhoads, Photographer
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McComb | MS | USA | Posted: 2:58 AM on 05.31.09 |
->> Keep shooting.
Live life and pay attention to whats going on around you.
You'll get better. |
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