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01/15/2007 06:59:19 PM · #1 |
This site has given me so much knowledge and information that I wanted to share my ongoing story in jumping into professional photography.
First, a bit of background. I've been a business strategy consultant and professional for about 12 years. I've worked for small companies, large companies, and even owned my own consulting business. I'm sick of it. While I'm not quitting my contracts, I'm going to start looking for professional photography work. I want to focus on weddings, events, and non-studio portraits.
I've been taking pictures for about two years now, starting with a Canon Rebel XT and moved on to a 30D. I've got a couple of decent lenses and I'm hoping that gets me thru for a while. I was looking at the Canon 24-70mm L series, but man, it's pricey. Maybe someday, if this takes off. For now, I'll stick with my 28-135mm IS and 50mm 1.4f (maybe bring in the 10-22 wide angle if necessary). I was eyeing the Sigma 24-70mm but I'm not sure it would be the quality of the Canon L series, but it's less than 1/2 the price. Decisions, decisions... best not to rush in to anything or else I'd have the 70-200mm L too. :)
Anyway, I ordered some business cards and (based on advice on this site) decided to post to Craigslist offering free photography in exchange for model releases to build my portfolio.
Within two days, I had two hits on my ad. The first was a woman who was part of a band who'd just replaced their drummer and needed new promo photos. The second was someone who wanted portraits of their two-year-old twins.
I called the band lady back and was asked to call her band leader. Turns out, both of them are local radio personalities and have one of the more successful wedding bands in the area. Pretty lucky break, I'm thinking. Right now, they don't want anything creative, just something in 8x10 they can send out to wedding coordinators for promotional materials. If all goes well, they want me to do some more creative stuff including live action shots.
I haven't heard back from the twins gal yet.
So I don't have studio lighting or anything like that, but I did invest in a nice 580EX flash with a Gary Fong Lightsphere. I've shot with it a little bit and it seems to light nicely. I hope it does as well when I go to take the band shots. I've got a couple of cheap painters lamps from Home Depot that I've used in the past - I might throw them in the car just in case I need something extra.
So anyway, the band calls me today and wants to know if I can shoot them tomorrow. No problem, I say, I'm free (butterflies in the stomach already). Great - they want to know where I can do it. Uh... hadn't thought of that, I don't really have a studio. Hmm, I suggest some outside places, maybe a plain interior. The band guy (being on the radio), knows the weather is turning crappy tomorrow, so that's out. He says he'll call around and find a place. I feel like a fool that I hadn't thought of that. He calls back and we're on for a recording studio tomorrow night. Great. Wait a minute - what am I going to use for a backdrop? crap...
A quick trip to the local camera store and I pick up a Savage portable stand and two rolls of paper (dark gray and white). I haven't set it up yet, but that will be my project tonight. I figure I should have set it up at least once before I show up at the studio tomorrow.
So now, I've got the gear (camera is charged, memory cards are blank), I've got the flash and psuedo lighting, I've got the backdrop - what else? Oh yeah, and a book on portrait photography and posing technique. All things like "what to do with your hands" and stuff like that - a little evening reading. Hopefully I'll pick up enough tips to get a decent picture out of it. Act confident, be calm, take a lot of shots, and pray that something comes out.
If anyone is interested, I'll keep updating as more progresses, but that's it so far. Not a huge leap into professional photography, but dipping my toes and testing the water. Let's see how this comes out...
Special thanks to  fotomann_forever for the wedding tutorial on here and answering some of my questions personally - MUCH appreciated.
Message edited by author 2007-01-15 19:02:59. |
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01/15/2007 07:05:36 PM · #2 |
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01/15/2007 07:08:37 PM · #3 |
Originally posted by mattmow:
The band guy (being on the radio), knows the weather is turning crappy tomorrow, so that's out. He says he'll call around and find a place. I feel like a fool that I hadn't thought of that. He calls back and we're on for a recording studio tomorrow night. Great. Wait a minute - what am I going to use for a backdrop? crap... |
Sounds like a great opportunity - Good luck with it!
By the way, if you're shooting a band then you might also get away with some shots with the recording studio stuff in the background. |
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01/15/2007 07:11:12 PM · #4 |
Originally posted by mattmow:
Special thanks to fotomann_forever for the wedding tutorial on here and answering some of my questions personally - MUCH appreciated. |
You're welcome and good luck. I have no doubts that you will do well. :-)
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01/15/2007 07:11:59 PM · #5 |
Originally posted by jhonan:
By the way, if you're shooting a band then you might also get away with some shots with the recording studio stuff in the background. |
Agreed, don't pass up the opportunity for "environmental" portraits
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01/15/2007 07:14:09 PM · #6 |
If it were me, I would Google "Professional Band Photographers", "band photgraphers" and similar information. Look over what the pros are doing to get some ideas and then keep it as simple as possible.
As for the backdrops you just bought, consider that you are in a recording studio and you may already have the perfect backdrop. A band belongs in a studio. I wouldn't put a backdrop behind a lion in Africa.
Just my 2 cents.
I wish you all the luck tomorrow. Looking forward to the follow up pics. |
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01/15/2007 07:48:32 PM · #7 |
Wow, I'd love a shot at something like that. I hope you'll post your results, I'd love to see what you get.
And yeah, I agree, I wouldn't put up the backdrops. Only if you want to later isolate them for some additional images (a black or white background would be easier to knock out and use for other purposes).
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01/15/2007 08:41:04 PM · #8 |
i shot this
outside a house one night after practice. i selected them and dropped them in front of a gradient. point is, it doesn't really take much to come away with something workable. congrats on the job, good luck with everything. |
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01/15/2007 09:17:26 PM · #9 |
and (based on advice on this site) decided to post to Craigslist offering free photography in exchange for model releases to build my portfolio.
Great idea!
I wish you the best of luck and please keep us posted. |
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01/15/2007 09:26:33 PM · #10 |
Originally posted by skiprow:
i shot this
outside a house one night after practice. i selected them and dropped them in front of a gradient. point is, it doesn't really take much to come away with something workable. congrats on the job, good luck with everything. |
How do you select so accurately?
Whenever I try to select something it's about as effective as peeing straight up and hoping it lands in the toilet. In fact, I find Photoshop to even be less accurate in masking selection then my old Photopaint 8.
??? |
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01/15/2007 09:50:45 PM · #11 |
not meaning to go off-topic, just answering
Originally posted by theSaj:
How do you select so accurately? |
practice and patience ;-)
seriously, a combination of selecting with the magic wand, the lasso, the magnetic lasso. i toggle back and forth between selecting to include and selecting to exclude. i periodically save my selections just to be able to get back to my last known good selection. i have my history option set to 200. i try different settings starting out to see what will get me the most/best selection to start with. sometimes i erase edges to smooth out stuff that doesn't select well (like hair). |
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01/16/2007 08:19:49 PM · #12 |
Ok, literally just finished the shoot.
It was setup in a local recording studio that's been around since the early 70s. I guess its one of those "well kept secrets" because REM did their first two albums in this studio. Last year, James Brown recorded there. I didn't get a chance to tour the whole place, but I think I'll be back.
The shoot went ok. The lighting was terrible and the flash cast some pretty serious shadows on my backdrop. Yes, they wanted the backdrop so they can send these shots to agents and such. The want me to come back and shoot while they're doing their 2nd album in a few months. I'm guessing I'll need to do some photoshopping to make these come out ok.
Once I got there and got everything set up, I was so excited/nervous that my mental checklist just went out the window. I remembered to check the ISO, make sure my shutter was greater that 1/focal length, and that was about it - I started snapping from the tripod. I'm pulling the shots off the memory card as I type so no clue if they're good or not yet. I had planned to use my 50mm, but there wasn't enough depth, so I switched to my 28-135mm. After a few shots, they wanted full body shots but even that lens wasn't enough, so I switched to the 10-22 wide angle and that got it.
I'm sure I've got a lot to learn about this and I'm just hoping a couple come out usable.
More to come...
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01/16/2007 08:38:11 PM · #13 |
If I may... may I make a suggestion on your next photography related purchase?
You need Lighting
These aren't terribly expensive, but are quite enough for what you need. There is another identical set with umbrellas (which is more practical for portable setup) but it's more cost effective to get this kit and some umbrellas too.
You're gonna run into issues with light and really strobes are cheaper than good flash guns.
BTW, the Alien Bee - DigiBee kits are definitely enough for your needs and only cost maybe $200 more than these.
Message edited by author 2007-01-16 20:55:43.
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01/16/2007 08:41:47 PM · #14 |
Good luck Matt. Btw, Leroy your link doesn't seem to be working.
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01/16/2007 08:52:17 PM · #15 |
I would second that. I've done a little bit of onsite promo type photography using a couple of speedlites. Even that is challenging. I'd rather have strobes.
Fotoman, wouldn't he also need a light meter (Not cheap) if he goes for strobes?
Originally posted by fotomann_forever:
If I may... may I make a suggestion on your next photography related purchase?
You need Lighting
These aren't terribly expensive, but are quite enough for what you need. There is another identical set with umbrellas (which is more practical for portable setup) but it's more cost effective to get this kit and some umbrellas too.
You're gonna run into issues with light and really strobes are cheaper than good flash guns.
BTW, the Alien Bee - DigiBee kits are definitely enough for your needs and only cost maybe $200 more than these. |
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01/16/2007 08:58:57 PM · #16 |
Originally posted by AltCtrl:
Fotoman, wouldn't he also need a light meter (Not cheap) if he goes for strobes?
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Dedicated flash meters start at $55 Definitely not gonna break the bank. Some people will tell you that you need a digital flash meter for digital photography, which is total BS. Exposure is exposure is exposure.
This is not an item I'd bust the bank on.
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01/16/2007 09:00:15 PM · #17 |
Originally posted by yanko:
Good luck Matt. Btw, Leroy your link doesn't seem to be working. |
I think I fixed it, if not it was a link to:
Impact VS160 2 Monolight 2 Softbox Kit - includes: 2- 160 Watt/Second Monolights, Reflectors, 24x32" Softboxes, Light Stands, Sync Cord - 320 Total Watt/Seconds (120V AC)
At B&H
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01/16/2007 09:00:51 PM · #18 |
Cool I never thought about non-digital light meters. Good Tip :)
Originally posted by fotomann_forever:
Originally posted by AltCtrl:
Fotoman, wouldn't he also need a light meter (Not cheap) if he goes for strobes?
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Dedicated flash meters start at $55 Definitely not gonna break the bank. Some people will tell you that you need a digital flash meter for digital photography, which is total BS. Exposure is exposure is exposure.
This is not an item I'd bust the bank on. |
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01/17/2007 02:42:27 PM · #19 |
Ok, here we go... After a bit of photoshop work, the first four shots are done. I know the posing is WAY off, all my ideas went *pfft* right out of my head once I got the camera out, and I know the lighting is less than perfect (ordering that this week)... but I'd welcome comments/critiques for a first time band portrait shoot.
 
 
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01/17/2007 02:52:49 PM · #20 |
You really need to fix the skin color...
And maybe try to fix the lighting on the second guy from the left.
He looks like a dead guy compared to the others, on all 4 shots.
Good luck!
Message edited by author 2007-01-17 14:53:52. |
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01/17/2007 02:59:43 PM · #21 |
Not bad, I really think you should get more aggressive in posing for band gigs. These are the fun gigs to do. Go over the top with posing.
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