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I generally fail at photographing people but somehow got volunteered to shoot some portraits for a student fashion show a society at my university was putting on.  Fairtrade Fashion Show 2012 105-110 [2688] by TheSheepOfDoom, on Flickr  Fairtrade Fashion Show 2012 102-110 [2679] by TheSheepOfDoom, on Flickr I would have preferred a lighter background but I only had the stage curtains, how did I do? This one was for a photohunt type thing, the theme was "water" so I went for a swim in the back garden  11 (Under) Water [3712] by TheSheepOfDoom, on Flickr
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May 13, 2012 01:55
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LargeHadron posted:I like this, but you should clone out that egg growing out of his head. I'm bad at photoshop but I do think this looks better: 
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May 14, 2012 16:45
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powderific posted:I'm bad at photoshop but I do think this looks better: Yeah, that's much better. I really like the look of intense concentration juxtaposed to the busy bar scene.
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May 14, 2012 17:14
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sw1gger posted:Latest - it's been a while! The main issue I have here is the styling... that bed sheet is too wrinkly. Also the lighting is kind of strange- why have the bricks on the left lit up but not the ones on the right? I don't think the lack of symmetry does the picture any favors.
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May 14, 2012 17:41
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RangerScum posted:The main issue I have here is the styling... that bed sheet is too wrinkly. Also the lighting is kind of strange- why have the bricks on the left lit up but not the ones on the right? I don't think the lack of symmetry does the picture any favors. Yeah, tried ironing the thing beforehand to no avail. It was just so drat wrinkly :[ I attempted to fix it a bit here. The lack of symmetry in lighting I could go either way on, but now that I darkened up the left side I agree it looks a bit better. I may adjust some of the colors cause the left side seems a bit orange. Reason why only one was lit was because after holding the elevator 30 seconds the alarm started to go off. I had to get out of there quick  Putting the light in the middle (even pointing it up) had weird effects on the subject. Oh, and I only brought 2 lights
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May 15, 2012 01:10
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sw1gger posted:Yeah, tried ironing the thing beforehand to no avail. It was just so drat wrinkly :[ I actually like it. I think you could work some photoshop magic to soften the fabric a little bit but otherwise the concept is pretty solid. I feel dumb for not realizing it was an elevator tho! Here are some corporate headshots I did today.  IMG_8142 by avoyer, on Flickr  IMG_8021 by avoyer, on Flickr Not as fun but great guy... found me through pinterest, pretty weird!
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May 15, 2012 04:07
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Alright, really amateur photographer (not sure if I can even call myself that), here with a quick question. What's the best way to create an easily-croppable background? We're trying to create a Rolling Stone magazine-inspired image, but we're only able to snap the photos in an office. Every photoshoot I've ever been in has a really nifty lighting and background set up (those white walls with the white floor, curved 'ramp' where the wall and floor meet to remove presence of a corner) but those are in short supply when you work in a really exciting cubicle farm. Is some white drapery on the floor and wall sufficient? Yes, I know how silly this all sounds.
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May 15, 2012 05:16
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melon cat posted:Alright, really amateur photographer (not sure if I can even call myself that), here with a quick question. What's the best way to create an easily-croppable background? We're trying to create a Rolling Stone magazine-inspired image, but we're only able to snap the photos in an office. Every photoshoot I've ever been in has a really nifty lighting and background set up (those white walls with the white floor, curved 'ramp' where the wall and floor meet to remove presence of a corner) but those are in short supply when you work in a really exciting cubicle farm. If you're just shooting a headshot like that, you can just hang some white paper behind the person.
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May 15, 2012 13:25
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QPZIL posted:If you're just shooting a headshot like that, you can just hang some white paper behind the person. \/Thanks very much for that helpful information! melon cat fucked around with this message at 19:19 on May 15, 2012 |
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May 15, 2012 16:18
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melon cat posted:Every photoshoot I've ever been in has a really nifty lighting and background set up (those white walls with the white floor, curved 'ramp' where the wall and floor meet to remove presence of a corner) but those are in short supply when you work in a really exciting cubicle farm. The next best thing to a cyclorama (the big curved wall thing) is seamless background paper. Hell, it often gets used even if you have a cyclorama because it's much less work than painting the cyc a different color. Unless your walls are covered in terrible trim, you could tear off a big piece and tape it up instead of using a background stand. That being said, lighting's going to be a bigger deal than background, especially if you want a featureless white. You can do some good stuff with a single light if you don't mind a little shadow or a slightly uneven background color. If you absolutely want the background stark white, you're looking at around three as a minimum.
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May 15, 2012 16:46
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xenilk posted:I actually like it. I think you could work some photoshop magic to soften the fabric a little bit but otherwise the concept is pretty solid. The second shot sort of suffers from being a bit formless. I like the repeating pattern and the demarcation behind him, but I just don't see him as existing in the surroundings, if you know what I mean. He's just sort of plopped in the middle of the frame, but not for any compelling reason. Also, you need to get more light into his eyes. Especially in the second shot. Last shot from my trip to Pescadero:  Emilie tiptoes across the water. by McMadCow, on Flickr
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May 15, 2012 18:57
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McMadCow posted:The second shot sort of suffers from being a bit formless. I like the repeating pattern and the demarcation behind him, but I just don't see him as existing in the surroundings, if you know what I mean. He's just sort of plopped in the middle of the frame, but not for any compelling reason. Agreed, I actually found it difficult working with someone that has such a darker skin. Is there any rule for that? Like over-expose by a stop or something?
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May 15, 2012 19:24
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xenilk posted:Agreed, I actually found it difficult working with someone that has such a darker skin. Is there any rule for that? Like over-expose by a stop or something? Well for one thing, never point a reflected meter at skin. It's very unlikely that you're going to get Zone V reflectance so your reading will be a little off to begin with. You really should use an incident meter for portraiture. I don't think the problem is with your metering, though, I think you just didn't get enough light into his deep-set eye sockets. You should use a reflector to bounce some light in there.
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May 15, 2012 19:31
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Mannequin posted:I saw that this is the first real model you've met up with, so I'm curious if/what direction you gave her, both for posing and expression? Any words to focus on? Working with models or actors who know what they're doing can be really fun in that regard.
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May 15, 2012 20:16
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xenilk posted:Agreed, I actually found it difficult working with someone that has such a darker skin. Is there any rule for that? Like over-expose by a stop or something? Honestly, your last batch is a bit disappointing (compared to your other awesome work. I also hate saying it because you just complimented my poo poo). Few things - I don't recommend you ever let someone do a headshot while they're facing straight on like that. It's a bit put off-ish. Have them stand at an angle and turn their head towards the camera. Secondly, there are tons of ways to shoot a headshot, but I think the finished product should provide atleast some insight as to what the goal of the headshot is (is it for acting, corporate, dating websites, etc). These just look like pictures of a dude. That said, the smile in the second one is pretty good (ie, natural), which means you made him feel at least somewhat comfortable during the session. That's worth noting
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May 16, 2012 00:09
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I snapped this during a game event a fortnight or so ago, was wondering what you guys thought of it. Wasn't posed, he's just  naturally
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May 16, 2012 00:51
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sw1gger posted:Honestly, your last batch is a bit disappointing (compared to your other awesome work. I also hate saying it because you just complimented my poo poo). Few things - I don't recommend you ever let someone do a headshot while they're facing straight on like that. It's a bit put off-ish. Have them stand at an angle and turn their head towards the camera. Thanks for the critique! I feel like it's not my best shoot ever. It's no excuse but that headshot thing just made me feel way out of my comfort zone, because usually I just go with the flow (and end up with some closer/headshot type of pictures). I guess my mind just sat on the headshot thing at first. I'll post some other shots that I feel like got a good caliber of photos but I don't feel like they go in the "corporate headshot" category :/ lol Edit: Here are a few quick examples:  IMG_8371 by avoyer, on Flickr  IMG_8352 by avoyer, on Flickr  IMG_8283 by avoyer, on Flickr  IMG_8267 by avoyer, on Flickr I guess the last two could be corporate (only thing I don't like is how the hand is inside on the first picture, looks off to me) I think. xenilk fucked around with this message at 01:12 on May 16, 2012 |
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May 16, 2012 01:03
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I'm pretty new to people shooting, so C&C is welcome and appreciated. I have a lot more from this session, but lets start with these two. Emily by xxyzz road, on Flickr  Emily 2 by xxyzz road, on Flickr
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May 16, 2012 04:15
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I really like the first one. It's got attitude to it, and looks like there could be a story behind it. You could look at this and almost immediately picture the character she'd be playing in a film or tv show. I feel like it's just about 5 degrees crooked to the right, but it's not terribly distracting or anything. Great lighting, and great model. Was that a window or a softbox to the right? Second one, is a good effort, but there's a couple of things that take me out of it. First, her teeth are lips stand out way too much for the muted colors of the rest of the image. My eyes keep coming back to her teeth. Second, her eyes are pinned to the left, while her face is pointed directly towards us. Typically, you want the eyes to follow the nose, and be able to see some white on either side. It's a cool pose, I like the tone and lighting, but the mouth is just really distracting to me. Cool stuff, though. You did a good job of capturing her expressions.
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May 16, 2012 05:16
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bisticles posted:I really like the first one. It's got attitude to it, and looks like there could be a story behind it. You could look at this and almost immediately picture the character she'd be playing in a film or tv show. I feel like it's just about 5 degrees crooked to the right, but it's not terribly distracting or anything. Great lighting, and great model. Was that a window or a softbox to the right? Yeah, softbox camera right. Fill flash bouncing off the wall on camera left. As for the second image, there are a lot of things I liked about it, but I knew deep down that on the whole it didn't work. I think you capture some of the issues with what's going on with her face. And it's a shame because I liked the framing and pose she was doing. At the time she was just sort of freestyle posing, so I didn't get another shot with that pose and a different expression. TheAngryDrunk fucked around with this message at 05:39 on May 16, 2012 |
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May 16, 2012 05:31
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brandino posted:I saw that this is the first real model you've met up with, so I'm curious if/what direction you gave her, both for posing and expression? Any words to focus on? Working with models or actors who know what they're doing can be really fun in that regard. I didn't give her much direction, we played it very loose. She was a relatively experienced model and had some good poses in her bag of tricks. She was also very much a natural, and that made it easier for me. I was fairly specific on a few poses, especially in terms of the emotion or feeling I was trying to convey. She was good at posing her hands and feet, I did not give her those cues. We tried a lot of ideas and some worked well and others didn't. What did not work was the actual concept. There really wasn't one, actually. In my casting call I talked a lot about wardrobe, but about the actual shoot I just said that it was "fashion-based", and hoped they would get an understanding of the concept through my suggestions about the wardrobe. To her credit, I think she delivered on the wardrobe, but that jacket was awfully dark and in some of the shots that were a bit underexposed it was hard to bring the details out. (As a side note, one of the reasons we shot on those steps was because I had photographed someone there before and always wanted to go back. This was the previous photo I took there. I have a close-up of her on those steps just like my older picture, but the lighting conditions were different as well as time of day, and I just didn't get the right colors.) It would have been better if I had planned the actual concept in my head better and maybe even mapped out very specific shots because I could have perfected those, and then we could have experimented with other kinds of shots outside the script. So the direction I gave was pretty much "let's try this" and "let's try that" and "no, that's not working, let's do this instead", etc. It was fun. We all had fun doing it but I feel like I let myself down because I could have done much better. I think I have maybe one or two more shots at most that I would consider "successful", and the rest... forget it. 4 rolls of film and 6 usable pictures != good ratio. I don't get a sense that the subject is relaxed. He also seems to be doing what a lot of people do when being photographed, which is to raise their chin up a little. I often tell people I'm photographing to lower their chin a little bit, especially when I'm photographing men (who seem to have a tendency to do it more than women), because it helps make the photo look more natural. Keep working at it, though! You do good work and this is all a learning process. Regarding photographing people with darker skin tones, the rule of thumb is to use an incident meter, like McMadCow suggested, not just for people with darker skin but for all portraiture. Incident metering doesn't care about things like skin tones; it just takes into consideration how much light is falling on the subject and gives you an accurate exposure for that. You will therefore always render the skin tone the right way under any lighting condition. It's one of the most accurate ways of measuring light, short of using a spot meter and metering numerous parts of the scene and determining the correct exposure yourself, (something that takes practice and know how). Of course, the previous rule of thumb is thrown out the window all the time, especially with the prevalence of digital photography where in-camera meters are good and convenient and most people base things like skin tones on "what looks about right." I, of course, have also chucked the concept out the window myself since using my new Pentax because it has an in-camera meter and that's all I pretty much rely on with that camera.
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May 16, 2012 06:06
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TheAngryDrunk posted:I'm pretty new to people shooting, so C&C is welcome and appreciated. I have a lot more from this session, but lets start with these two. I think the first one looks a little trite in terms of the pose. It looks like something I would see on an early 90's glamour poster and that style of posing is outdated and somewhat cheesy. I'm sorry. I think the second is a lot better because it looks more natural. That's the direction I usually lean towards with photography, so take my opinion for what it's worth. To me, there appears to be a slightly odd color cast to the photos, like a greenish hue. Something is going on there, I wonder if it's reflection from the color of the wall or mixed lights.
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May 16, 2012 06:14
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^^^ Thanks for the critique, I kept telling him "chin forward and down!" but yeah he was feeling tense, I feel like I wasn't able to relax him enough  Also he had problem with his mouth doing the "downward/harsh" mouth look so he was super self conscious about it which made me feel a bit uncomfortable throughout the shoot since I had now idea how to make him forget about it (other than to make him laugh).It was a though challenge for me, since I'm usually really good with people and especially when it comes to making them throw their self-consciousness out the window. But as you said, very good learning experience Not sure I was made for corporate stuff tho TheAngryDrunk posted:I'm pretty new to people shooting, so C&C is welcome and appreciated. I have a lot more from this session, but lets start with these two. I'll be the odd guy and say that I like the pose/attitude on the first picture I wish the door wasn't there tho since it kind of gives a crooked vibe because of your perspective from it. Otherwise I couldn't have told you were new to people shooting, props.Edit: oh wait people are saying they like the first one too, oops... I guess I'm just one in many then :P xenilk fucked around with this message at 06:42 on May 16, 2012 |
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May 16, 2012 06:37
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xenilk posted:^^^ Thanks for the critique, I kept telling him "chin forward and down!" but yeah he was feeling tense, I feel like I wasn't able to relax him enough Oh yeah, that's tough. Sorry, didn't realize you pulled out all the stops on this one.
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May 16, 2012 06:46
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Mannequin posted:Oh yeah, that's tough. Sorry, didn't realize you pulled out all the stops on this one. I really tried, but at least I got good money out of it and he's really happy with the shoot so I'll call it somewhat of a success hehe! P.S: Please go and shoot models again, thank you!
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May 16, 2012 06:52
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Mannequin posted:To me, there appears to be a slightly odd color cast to the photos, like a greenish hue. Something is going on there, I wonder if it's reflection from the color of the wall or mixed lights. Nah, that's how I processed them. I was playing around with Lightroom's Cross Process presets. No ambient light; all light is from strobes. Here's the second one without that look.  No worries on not liking it the original. It's all about personal tastes. TheAngryDrunk fucked around with this message at 12:47 on May 16, 2012 |
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May 16, 2012 12:43
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Did anyone here do some belly/pregnant portrait session? I was asked to do one and I might be interested if the money is there... but I'm scared of doing the typical (and very overdone/bad) letters on the belly and heart with hands on the belly. I want to aim for something different.
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May 16, 2012 15:18
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xenilk posted:Did anyone here do some belly/pregnant portrait session? I was asked to do one and I might be interested if the money is there... but I'm scared of doing the typical (and very overdone/bad) letters on the belly and heart with hands on the belly. I want to aim for something different. take a shot with her looking down at the belly being terrified, and when the baby is born photoshop it bursting through with a huge poo poo-eating grin on its face like this ...but no really, maternity pictures are the hardest. from my limited experience with them, there's not a huge amount of things you can do because of the mother's somewhat limited range of motion. maybe try it backlit / silhouetted?
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May 16, 2012 15:59
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whereismyshoe posted:take a shot with her looking down at the belly being terrified, and when the baby is born photoshop it bursting through with a huge poo poo-eating grin on its face like this I think it'd be really fun/unique/awesome to do a maternity series stylized like Alien where the baby is bursting through the stomach, but all the mothers-to-be that I know are loving boring and would never agree to that. <pout>
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May 16, 2012 16:11
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whereismyshoe posted:take a shot with her looking down at the belly being terrified, and when the baby is born photoshop it bursting through with a huge poo poo-eating grin on its face like this RangerScum posted:I think it'd be really fun/unique/awesome to do a maternity series stylized like Alien where the baby is bursting through the stomach, but all the mothers-to-be that I know are loving boring and would never agree to that. <pout> Okay that would be awesome LOL Thanks for making me bursting out laughing at work. And yeah those type of shoots are so classic, it kind of scare me. Thanks for the input whereismyshoe, I actually think silhouetted by the window might work nicely!
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May 16, 2012 16:21
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xenilk posted:Did anyone here do some belly/pregnant portrait session? I was asked to do one and I might be interested if the money is there... but I'm scared of doing the typical (and very overdone/bad) letters on the belly and heart with hands on the belly. I want to aim for something different. A guy in our local group did this shoot last year: http://ndphotostudios.com/a-maternity-photo-shoot-of-the-third-kind/ Yeah, it's sorta corny, but the couple was getting hounded by family to get pictures done... so they did.
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May 16, 2012 16:47
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xenilk posted:Did anyone here do some belly/pregnant portrait session? I was asked to do one and I might be interested if the money is there... but I'm scared of doing the typical (and very overdone/bad) letters on the belly and heart with hands on the belly. I want to aim for something different. I saw this maternity shoot and thought it was pretty neat. They took photos in a grocery store of the mom-to-be filling her cart with all the weird things she was craving. http://www.amelialyon.net/portraits/jill-expectingagain.html
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May 16, 2012 19:17
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Caramaline posted:I saw this maternity shoot and thought it was pretty neat. They took photos in a grocery store of the mom-to-be filling her cart with all the weird things she was craving. Okay that's awesome. I wonder what her lightning setup looked like. The concept is solid
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May 16, 2012 20:07
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I need some advice. My friend wants me to shoot their toddler's b-day party. I'm wondering if my 17-50 Tamron will be good enough for this? I'm worried that I'll have to get so close to the kids that they'll go, "Oh, camera!" and stop doing whatever it is they were doing. Would it be better to rent a 70-200 f/2.8 for this? Also, any other advice for shooting children - with a camera - is appreciated.
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May 17, 2012 00:27
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Oxford Comma posted:I need some advice. My friend wants me to shoot their toddler's b-day party. I'm wondering if my 17-50 Tamron will be good enough for this? I'm worried that I'll have to get so close to the kids that they'll go, "Oh, camera!" and stop doing whatever it is they were doing. Would it be better to rent a 70-200 f/2.8 for this?
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May 17, 2012 00:34
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FasterThanLight posted:Unless the birthday party is going to be in a huge outdoor space, you'll be fine. Little kids (at least mine and the ones we know) really don't get distracted by cameras easily - I almost only use my 35 and 50. Its going to be at Tilden Park, in Berkeley, which is a pretty huge outdoor space.
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May 17, 2012 01:03
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Oxford Comma posted:I need some advice. My friend wants me to shoot their toddler's b-day party. I'm wondering if my 17-50 Tamron will be good enough for this? I'm worried that I'll have to get so close to the kids that they'll go, "Oh, camera!" and stop doing whatever it is they were doing. Would it be better to rent a 70-200 f/2.8 for this? To snap really cool and candid moment you won't really have a choice than to get in their face (and at their level). So go with the 17-50, that's what I'd do. But be sure to use it at ~50... otherwise you might get some slightly distorted faces! From experience kids don't really care about the camera... it's the parents that usually do and start posing/guiding them... that that's annoying!
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May 17, 2012 03:02
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Which look do you prefer? (And yes, the coffee mug needed to go.) Emily 3 by xxyzz road, on Flickr  Emily 4 by xxyzz road, on Flickr TheAngryDrunk fucked around with this message at 06:32 on May 17, 2012 |
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May 17, 2012 05:56
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TheAngryDrunk posted:Which look do you prefer? (And yes, the coffee mug needed to go.) I like the straight up look but that's me. Sideways kind of look sexual/naughty secretary.. depends what you're looking for. P.S: Remove those eye bags thing! I can almost guarantee she won't be a fan of those pictures only because of those things. Edit: Yeah coffee cup mug feels off... and I would have put her other hand somewhere visible but it's not throwing the picture off for moi.
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May 17, 2012 06:01
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xenilk posted:I like the straight up look but that's me. Sideways kind of look sexual/naughty secretary.. depends what you're looking for. Hmmm...I went back through the series and for some reason those are the only pictures where that's a problem. But I think you're right. I'll clean 'em up a bit. The coffee mug I didn't mind, but I didn't like how it blocked her hand. TheAngryDrunk fucked around with this message at 06:32 on May 17, 2012 |
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May 17, 2012 06:12
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