Whow David, this one is a great shot in many ways.

I like the high key effect that you have processed and the charm of Harmony is very striking also. It's very diffuse lighting from your 580ex flash, no sign of any catchlight though which was always the signature of master portrait photographers. How did you achieve this - do you have a flash diffuser or bounced it off a reflector?
Well done, I'm sure Libby must be pleased with this one.

sweet :) love the DOF and the soft tone of this one

This portrait is full of little details. Beautifully mastered!

David, just a little apart... the name of Harmony is not correct in your comment. :-)

Love it.

Graham: thanks. As for the lighting, it was bounced off the ceiling but I left the diffuser attached to the flash, so most of the light was bounced but a portion of it was more direct.

nferreira: thanks, and well spotted :-)

I don't know...there's something about her eyes that just don't look quite right to me. Almost as if they didn't catch enough light so you've had to rescue them somewhat but in doing so they've stood out for the wrong reasons....or you've knocked something out....something.

I can't believe in this one! It's simply perfect.

Very nice :) The high key effect works great, and her pose is just adorable.

Reminds me of an antique doll - with the spooky glass eyes and serene expression Very lovely though, would love a blow by blow 'how to' on this!

Beautiful!!! That look in her eyes... lovely shot!

Wow. This could be gorgeous. Such a wonderful expression. And a pretty little girl.

However, she rather looks like a doll or a CG invention and not a person with all that USM and skin processing.

Hmm. I really don’t like this one, I’m afraid. I suppose because it’s the sort of shot I hope I never take: a pretty flat, posed, studio-style portrait, that lacks a spark of intrigue or suggestiveness.

Those truly dreadful things said (even more so of someone who’s work I admire, and who’s been very helpful and inspiriational), there is technical excellence: perfect DOF, and exquisite toning.

The bar has been set so high with the likes of Rho and Mia, Don’t look up #2, and When we were young that even a photo anyone should be proud to have taken can seem ordinary by comparison...

:-)

Mark: I've toned down here eyes a little.

Jennife: yes, she can be a bit doll-like :-) As for how this was done: the background layer was duplicated and gaussian-blurred (by 15px). The blend mode for this layer was then set to overlay and the opacity knocked back to around 60%. The black and white conversion was done using the channel mixer to extract the red channel and the overall contrast for the image was adjusted using a Curve. Her eyes were lightened using a second masked curve.

Jeppe: I've used different settings in 'smart sharpen' for this one so it's interesting to hear that you think it detracts from the image. As for the skin processing: the technique I described above is one that I've used quite often, but I take your point.

Arthur: this works for me because this is one of Harmony's typical expressions: a kind of dreamy but contented 'elsewhere' look, and it wasn't posed. She knew I was taking photographs, but at this point she was watching TV while sat on a settee. Again though, I take your point about it looking like a typical portrait shot. I still like it though ;-)

Bonjour,
A great technical shot.. Thank for the lesson !
Your url is on my new blog..Do you agree!?

I agree with some of the comments above. The USM is pretty aggressive, to the point of distraction in her hair and eyelashes. One of my favorite techniques to keep it from getting too hyper-real is to duplicate the main layer BEFORE applying USM, then apply as necessary, and use the eraser set to a medium opacity to erase away all the overzealous bits.

Otherwise its a lovely portrait.

I love your portraits... among the best

what's wrong with a typical portrait shot? NOWT! I really like this.

High key rules!

are her eyelashes really that perfect, or is that the result of your post processing?

nice portrait !

Nice one !

Thanks, DJN: I know just what you mean.

I took a portrait of a friend’s daughter a little while ago, and processed it in a similar high-key way. Her parents were stunned and touched by her ‘fragile’, ‘reflective’, and ‘introverted’ expression.

She was watching Tractor Ted......

:-)

How did you get such a clean background when she was sat on a sofa? Please include this sort of stuff in your tutorials!

Quel magnifique petit ange!
La photo est magnifique, vriament!

beautiful expression and details!
did you use photoshop on the hair or erase the background? it's so clean, as if it were shot in a studio. and "doll face" is one of my favorites, thanks for reminding me of it :)

DJN,
It would be interesting to see the 'raw' image that was your starting point for this portrait, just to see how much work got done for the transformation

Hooray. Welcome back from decrepit Blackpool.
NIce pic today :-)

Ohhh goodness me, she's absolutely GORGEOUS! Images like this make my heart melt, David. You don't need to be a talented guy to get something out of this, she's doing all the work for you! Soft textures and wonderful lighting, this is an absolute cracker.

I usually always fade USM (Edit > Fade Unsharp Mask) directly after I apply it to tone it down a bit, with the Mode set to Luminosity..

This is a very good shot, the girl is cute and the lighting is very nice. The DOF is wonderful as well. Can't say enough about this shot. The sense of emotion is what really makes the difference for me!

Excellent work David, soft tones and focus are perfect!

Beautiful portrait, very fine light.
//John

Thanks everyone.
Alec: yep, I do something similar but in this instance decided to leave it a bit sharper than usual.

sarah: she has nice eyelashes but I suspect the USM enhances them a bit.

Arthur: yes, kids expressions when watching televsion are quite fascinating.

Simon: will do.

Rick: I'll be doing a tuturial on high-key portraits at some point soon so will include some unedited versions when I do.

Really nice shot Dave. Technically fantastic. I was not sold on the expression until you wrote what she was doing. At first glance it looks posed and a little forced, but now you say it, I can see the far away look.

I love you portraits. Especially the ones of your kids.

its cool to watch your kids grow up. fantastic shot.

ooh, thats a dreamy beauty!
Very nice!
Love the B&W tones!

Forgot,...
You use a studio lights setup??

Nice depth of feild. light is so soft, which is very nice to a child.
Bravo!

NO doubht we all are getting old. or your kids are growing incredibly fast. Love the use of ligth. What was your source?

Ronnie and Adriana: I used my 580EX speedlite, bounced off the ceiling. And yes, they're growing up fast.

Very nice potrait

Beautiful pic. The lighting is nice; enhances her facial features. I also like the detail in her hair. Your pics of your children amaze me.

Amazing...