Self portraits by Marko and Carmy - 2009

[Marko]

Over the past week or so my wife helped me shoot a series of self portraits. Not exactly sure why we did it but it was great fun. I'm going to post a few from each series over this next week. These first 2 were shot for May's Nostalgia assignment and 1 of these 2 was posted there. The rest was shot (you'll see) based on hairstyle. Feel free to comment on any aspect.
Thx - Marko

[kat]

The glare on that second photo is awesome!

[Mad Aussie]

My wife says you look grumpy Marko http://www.mtbdirt.com.au/home/smf/Smileys/classic/biglaugha.gif

Seeing as I know you are paranoid about colour Marko ... that 2nd shot looks like there's a bit of a yellow cast in it and the background looks greener than the 1st shot lending more weight to this observation.

[AntZ]

I like the pose in the first one and the piercing look in the 2nd. Looking forward to seeing some more.

[Marko]

Thanks for the comments everyone and especially the color comment MA. I should have matched the colours. Grumpy eh? You Won't get that in the next set - Promise. More to come in this thread.

[casil403]

Wow...nice sharp eyes Marko....
I'm kinda getting a bit of a "Boogie Nights" feel to them...lol!
Great movie btw.....

[Marko]

Here's 2 shots from another series shot last week. Feel free to comment/critique on any aspect. More to come! Thx - M

[kat]

OMG..I had to take a double take there and make sure it was you! What fun!! This is awesome! :highfive:

[JAS_Photo]

Lol, those are great! I especially like your expression in the second shot of this last two. :)

[Marko]

Thanks! These were great fun and I'll be uploading more pix and 2 new series over the next few days.

[Marko]

and another. My wife is getting the biggest kick out of these and wants people to see them so it's easiest to post here and email 1 link. :clown:

[Mad Aussie]

I love the dof here in these last few ... from mike to ears there's great focus. Colour all looks spot on to me as well.
My only critique would be that you are simulating a singer on stage (Man I hope you are only simulating and not putting that poor lady through hell!! :eek: ) so I think the lighting should also simulate that. The bricks suggest a little nightclub wall somewhere deep in the city so maybe some subdued lighting with a spotlight or something like that might enhance the mood and strength of the image. Depends on the realism you are going for I guess.

[Barefoot]

This second set is way cool!

You're not exactly "Ol' Blue Eyes", but I gotta admit, you're looking pretty sharp, Marko.

[Alex Wilson]

http://www.photography.ca/Forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=3234&stc=1&d=1242831427

Love this -- but watch the catch-light on the far eye when using this setup.

[Barefoot]

The bricks suggest a little nightclub wall somewhere deep in the city so maybe some subdued lighting with a spotlight or something like that might enhance the mood and strength of the image.

Yeah, I think I might snoot a light from above to simulate a soft spot light on the face.

[Marko]

Thanks for the honest input everyone!! This was a hard shoot because everything was very cramped and I did not have 100% control. Normally I like models to be a good 5-10 feet in front of a background but in this case maybe I was about 4 feet from the wall. I actually tried a more sophisticated lighting plan but the spill was everywhere so I decided to settle for a less sophisticated setup and 'just shoot'. More to come....

[Greg_Nuspel]

Under the B 5

Looks like you're having fun

[JAS_Photo]

Lol, I can just hear an Al Green imitation.

[AcadieLibre]

Very well done, very lighthearted and it shows. Very nice shots.

[Marko]

Thanks for the comments - More silliness abounds so here's 2 more shot the following day on the same background. Feel free to comment/critique any aspect. - Thx - marko

[Alex Wilson]

Ha! Those are fantastic!

[Mad Aussie]

Wow marko ... you have a million faces. A gay Frenchman ... done so well. http://www.mtbdirt.com.au/home/smf/Smileys/classic/hihi.gif You'd be great in one of those comedy skit shows where about 4 actors play loads of different parts. Great job.

[kat]

Bwahahahahahaha! You look like my french stepdad there! Well done! Oh you got me wanting to do some!!! Absolutley enjoying these..great photos to see, great photos to look back on. Great moments!

[AntZ]

Hillarious, very well done!

[Duane]

The french guy was my favorite :). Good job and thanks for the laugh.

[JAS_Photo]

Lol, I like how the mustache changes. :)

[Marko]

This last set was inspired by the hairstyle alone. Feel free to comment/critique on any aspect. Thanks - Marko

[kat]

Those are my favorite..the last onebeing the best for me. marko..I did the last image up real quick in b&w, and for me..it nailed it. Gave it that old quiality to it.

Greaet job!

[kat]

Sepia looked really good too! :)

[Marko]

thx kat - Hmm Interesting. I actually planned to do this in b/w and did a fast version in camera raw but preferred the colour. I'll play again and upload some black and whites for comparison.

[kat]

Hope you don't mind. Just a quick color change. One could do this way better than me.. :)

..it reminds me so much of my youth and seeing these prayer cards for the saints laying around the house...memories...

[Marko]

Interesting take kat - I think I prefer the darkness of my treatment, but it's good to get a fresh eyes take.

here's the set in B/w - and a set to follow in sepia - comments? thx - M

[Marko]

sepia-ish set - comments? thx - marko

[kat]

Yah..see to me that is better than the colored. But to me. Yah..the dark is better. I did the color change and that was it - dont' really have much time to play. Looking forward to your sepia ones too!

And they were posted before I did..lol. I'm not liking the first pose in sepia-ish. But liking the second. I guess it all comes down to preference and what you want out of it :)

In the end..great series. :highfive: To your wife..she did a great job!

[Mad Aussie]

Hairstyle? I thought that was a smudge on your sensor? You are definitely a bit short for that hairstyle Marko ;)

You certainly go out of your way there Marko.

I like the lighting in these ... perhaps a tad too bright for the biological solar panel you got going there, but love the black background blending with the robe.

The tears are a nice touch ... what ... did the wife tell you shes not really a woman? Scratched your car? Hid the TV remote? :)

[AntZ]

Hairstyle? I thought that was a smudge on your sensor? You are definitely a bit short for that hairstyle Marko ;)

You certainly go out of your way there Marko.

I like the lighting in these ... perhaps a tad too bright for the biological solar panel you got going there, but love the black background blending with the robe.

The tears are a nice touch ... what ... did the wife tell you shes not really a woman? Scratched your car? Hid the TV remote? :)

:laugh:

I like these shot too. :highfive: The Sepiaish ones are the pick for me. I think the reason the colour ones don't quite work for me is that for some reason I feel that monks' cloaks should be brown.:confused:

[Marko]

Thanks for the comments! Yeah brown robe would definitely have been better, but ya take what you can get. These were fun to do and great fun for the family/friends to see. I may post a few more random shots as outakes.

[Duane]

My favorites were the french guy :). That last set would be my second favorite. I am torn to which ones though. I really like the colored versions but maybe the sepia ones tell a better story. The image quality of all these shots are just excellent though.

Nice work!

[casil403]

Awesome work marko! What fun! I looked forward to the new sets each time i logged on! Thanks for that! :highfive:

[darkness]

Excellent shots. I really like the sephia color.

[Greg_Nuspel]

I just want to know where you forgiven :evil2:

[jjeling]

Marko, I really like these shots. I believe they could be a bit sharper, but this may just be my monitor. Aside from that, I love the lighting and the feel of these images. Images like this to me are far more than just photographs. It takes an idea and a creative thought, technical competency, and the ability to interpret the ideas and bring them to life. This is what Fine Art Photography is all about. Good to see this stuff. Thanks for sharing.

[Marko]

Thanks for the continued comments everyone. I like the results that Carmy and I got with these shoots. The intent was more 'fun' than art but I do agree some of the results are decent.

It was an incredibly interesting experience walking around with different 'hairstyles' for a week and a half. You really get to test people's 'honesty' filter this way. When we shot the 'lounge singer' I walked around with that ridiculous moustache and haircut for a couple of days and several people told me I looked really good. When I told them it was just a silly look for a photo shoot, they said thank god, you look ridiculous. :p:laugh:.

[scorpio_e]

My wife says you look grumpy Marko http://www.mtbdirt.com.au/home/smf/Smileys/classic/biglaugha.gif

Seeing as I know you are paranoid about colour Marko ... that 2nd shot looks like there's a bit of a yellow cast in it and the background looks greener than the 1st shot lending more weight to this observation.

Too funny !!!

[nomad358]

The french guy photo with the bread and the spilled coffee was the best, IMO! I laughed my bag off (camera bag) when I saw that. :laugh:

[susan]

and another. My wife is getting the biggest kick out of these and wants people to see them so it's easiest to post here and email 1 link. :clown:

Dude! do you have on mascara and eye liner? looks good! accentuates your eyes. women have known this for a very long time. men can benefit too as you show here :thumbup:

[Iguanasan]

Thanks to susan I finally got to see this thread that I managed to miss probably because it was originally posted just after I joined. I love these. Marko, you are a man of a thousand faces. ;) What a great set!

[Marko]

Dude! do you have on mascara and eye liner? looks good! accentuates your eyes. women have known this for a very long time. men can benefit too as you show here :thumbup:

Nope, no make-up. I'm naturally this beautiful.:laughing:

[mbrager]

These are hilarious, and very well done. Marko, who knew you're an actor and a comedian, as well as a photographer?

[asnow]

These are hilarious, and very well done. Marko, who knew you're an actor and a comedian, as well as a photographer?

Those are cool Marko. I never saw these before as they are a few years old.
I think Mike has summed up it up well.

[susan]

Nope, no make-up. I'm naturally this beautiful.:laughing:

Man. I pay to look half as good. Enjoy that natural beauty, Marko!

[Runmonty]

Very creative and fun Marko. I am looking forward to the next round.

[Jason]

These are brilliant! It's been a while since I laughed this hard!