How do you shoot Enviromental Portraiture?

09/11/2004 02:49:03 AM · #1

I'd like to learn more about shooting portraits of people in their natural environment. Can anyone doing this kind of work offer any advice as to what equipment to use, especially in relation to lens and flash/lighting. A lot of these shots would be produced in low or natural light and might involve some subject movement. Trying to keep the setup fairly spontaineous and non-intrusive to allow a candid response from the subjects. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

09/11/2004 04:02:40 AM · #2

Well, I'm not an expert, but I would use the 50mm 1.8 mkII lens. It is small and not as intimidating to your subject as a big honking lens would be plus it's pretty fast and sharp, GREAT quality for the money. I've done a bit of enviromental portraits myself and I enjoy them very much. You can check some out here. Another thing, if you have a smaller, less intruisive camera that you can use inconspiciously, even better. Hope that helps.

June

BTW, I really like "The first bite is the sweetest"

Message edited by author 2004-09-11 04:04:00.

09/11/2004 04:29:20 AM · #3

Thanks Juneisy,
I've been considering the 50mm 1.8 or 1.4. Just needed a little more confirmation to convince me it really was worth the purchase.
I've got the Rebel kit lense (18-55) and have found it to be very useful but was wondering how useful the extra couple of f-stops were.
Your images are truly inspirational.
Do you find that you shoot at 1.8 very often or do you end up using 5.6 or so?

09/11/2004 04:31:29 AM · #4

Are you talkin' about portraiture or candid photography? Different techniques for each...

I've read that you can actually get much more powerful candid shots with a shorter lens like the 50mm that chiqui74 recomends (damn I gotta get me one of those) because you are close enough to actually interact with the scene! If you are talking about environmental portraits then you may want a longer lens and back off from your model to get a different feeling to the shot and also seperation from the background.

09/11/2004 04:35:28 AM · #5

Originally posted by chiqui74:

You can check some out here.

Very nice shots! Like the use of B/W and duotone to give a feeling of a much more simple lifestyle than we're normally accustomed to seeing!

09/11/2004 04:44:25 AM · #6

Originally posted by TooCool:

Are you talkin' about portraiture or candid photography? Different techniques for each...

I guess I'm talking about something in the middle. Imagine that someone wants some family photos but they are prepared to do something a little bit different. So you can spend a bit of time with them to set up something that looks spontaneous. It might involve low light and some slow movement to give it a natural and spontaneous feel. It requires a fair bit of co-operation from the people in the photo. Chiqui's photos, although candid, pretty well demonstrate the kind of range I would need.

09/11/2004 04:48:28 AM · #7

Originally posted by chiqui74:

BTW, I really like "The first bite is the sweetest"

Thanks.

09/11/2004 04:49:24 AM · #8

Originally posted by enigmania:

It requires a fair bit of co-operation from the people in the photo.

I know that some of the better portrait photographers will not snap off a shot of their subject/model untill they have had the opportunity to to spend time and talk to the person. This gives them a chance to see what makes the subject tick so to speak. A chance to portray the subject the way the really are and not the way the subject wants you to see them...

09/11/2004 05:04:10 AM · #9

Originally posted by enigmania:

Actually, all those photos are pre-Digital Rebel, they were taken with either the Dimage 7i or the DX4900. I like zoom lenses for the convenience of not having to change lenses or physically move, so when I switch to the 50mm lens it's usually because I want the wider aperture. You wont believe what difference a few stops make. The kit lens is about 5.6 at 50mm, so it is a big difference. You know, as cheap as the 50mm 1.8 is, it should be a crime not to have one. And last but not least, thanks for the compliment!

June

09/11/2004 05:06:35 AM · #10

Originally posted by TooCool:

Originally posted by chiqui74:
You can check some out here.

Very nice shots! Like the use of B/W and duotone to give a feeling of a much more simple lifestyle than we're normally accustomed to seeing!

Thanks! Funny thing is, it never crossed my mind to actually do anything with the original images. They were taken last year and only recently came to me that a series like this would be cool. Except for the first 3, they are just snap shots of my family in Cuba.

June

Message edited by author 2004-09-11 05:07:07.

09/11/2004 05:16:12 AM · #11

Originally posted by chiqui74:

You know, as cheap as the 50mm 1.8 is, it should be a crime not to have one.June

OK. I'm in the market for a 50mm 1.8. :)
Also, I think your image "At Play" is someting special.

09/11/2004 05:19:51 AM · #12

Originally posted by TooCool:

Originally posted by enigmania:
It requires a fair bit of co-operation from the people in the photo.

I know that some of the better portrait photographers will not snap off a shot of their subject/model untill they have had the opportunity to to spend time and talk to the person. This gives them a chance to see what makes the subject tick so to speak. A chance to portray the subject the way the really are and not the way the subject wants you to see them...

This is the type of thing I'm really interested in. Getting to know the people a bit before trying to represent them photographically. There is so much beauty in the subtlty of peoples facial expressions. A few minutes spent discussing topics that are important to them can yield some sublime results.

09/11/2004 09:18:08 AM · #13

Bump....
Love some feedback from the Americans, Canadians, Brazilians etc. ....Good Morning :)

09/11/2004 09:57:42 AM · #14

Originally posted by enigmania:

Love some feedback from the Americans, Canadians, Brazilians etc. ....Good Morning :)

Whadya call me??? :-P

09/11/2004 10:02:57 AM · #15

Originally posted by TooCool:

Originally posted by enigmania:
Love some feedback from the Americans, Canadians, Brazilians etc. ....Good Morning :)

Whadya call me??? :-P

I mean the ones that run more conventional hours ;)

longlivenyhc

Sigma 105mm f/2.8 EX DG Macro for Canon

09/11/2004 10:12:29 AM · #16

i have the 50mm 1.8 great lens for the money. it stays attached to my 300D like 80% of the time.

09/11/2004 10:15:25 AM · #17

Originally posted by longlivenyhc:

i have the 50mm 1.8 great lens for the money. it stays attached to my 300D like 80% of the time.

I'm getting the impression that this is a popular choice :)

Nikon AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D

09/11/2004 11:59:07 AM · #18

Originally posted by enigmania:

Originally posted by longlivenyhc:
i have the 50mm 1.8 great lens for the money. it stays attached to my 300D like 80% of the time.

I'm getting the impression that this is a popular choice :)

It is. I don't know how much they would cost in Australia, but bhphoto.com has them for $74.95 and I'm sure you could find them cheaper somewhere.

June

magicshutter

Nikon D70

09/11/2004 12:25:33 PM · #19

I think the answer to this depends on how far you want to go. A 50mm 1.8 is a good start but alone is useless IMHO. beyond that you're going to need a reflectoras minimum because the most beautiful locations have low light and people don't stay still long enough for the long exposure you would normally need without the reflector. If you really want to get into it you need to buy some gels. What this does is match the lighting color to that of an outfit or to that of the background your using. This is used in alot of switsuit photography i.e. shoot against a sunset with an orange gel. Anything beyond these few things is up to you.