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DPChallenge Forums >> Individual Photograph Discussion >> Improving my portrait shooting.
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Showing posts 1 - 7 of 7, (reverse)
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02/01/2009 03:20:06 PM · #1
I'd like some general comments please :D









Thanks in advance.
02/01/2009 03:25:24 PM · #2
Well, most of them are well balanced compositionally, but the lighting is too harsh or too weak in my opinion. I'd also consider bumping the ISO down to 100 and close the aperture to try and get some sharper images... use a tripod, if you aren't already. For outdoor portraits, try shooting somewhere more interesting? Just some stuff off the top of my head...
02/01/2009 03:29:41 PM · #3
Thanks.

Any of the indoor ones have been shot in my room or kitchen, the flat is very dark :(

02/01/2009 03:32:10 PM · #4
I like the two black & whites - perhaps the lighting worked better for making b&w's ... I don't really know. I'd like to see the third one converted as well.
02/08/2009 09:13:35 PM · #5
Play with your lighting and composition. The composition of the first two definitely feels the best. The image is framed so that the person's view moves towards the negative space. It keeps the image open and feeling natural. The third feels awkward that his face is turned out of the frame and is cropped rather strangely. The fourth has very pleasing tones, but the cropping is a little awkward, try it square or with a little taken off the bottom and right. The last three feel haphazard, more like snapshots than considered photographs.
02/09/2009 09:44:52 AM · #6
Originally posted by Adamsw216:

Well, most of them are well balanced compositionally, but the lighting is too harsh or too weak in my opinion. I'd also consider bumping the ISO down to 100 and close the aperture to try and get some sharper images... use a tripod, if you aren't already. For outdoor portraits, try shooting somewhere more interesting? Just some stuff off the top of my head...


Noooo! Don't use a tripod for portraits it's just too restrictive and your shots will start to look boring / staid and overly similar as you shoot more and more. Allow your creativity to flow with angles and positions handheld, if the light is not bright enough then move your subject, get yourself a reflector if you can't fund an off camera flash setup this will at least give you some control of the light and softening of shadows. Don't worry about noise in your images as much as getting a good shutter speed, I'd take a slightly noisey image over an out of focus one any day of the week.

Consider as cheap options for lighting a couple of those bendable desk lamps, put in daylight bulbs and either shoot in RAW to adjust wb later or do a custom wb when you first setup. Not ideal but at least it will allow you to practice in otherwise unshootable conditions.

Composition #3 I would put the chin back in and crop down a little on the forehead, the outside shots are let down by location as much as anything too much going on to keep focus on your subject.

Good luck
Mark

02/09/2009 10:25:27 AM · #7
Originally posted by Mark-A:

Originally posted by Adamsw216:

Well, most of them are well balanced compositionally, but the lighting is too harsh or too weak in my opinion. I'd also consider bumping the ISO down to 100 and close the aperture to try and get some sharper images... use a tripod, if you aren't already. For outdoor portraits, try shooting somewhere more interesting? Just some stuff off the top of my head...


Noooo! Don't use a tripod for portraits it's just too restrictive and your shots will start to look boring / staid and overly similar as you shoot more and more. Allow your creativity to flow with angles and positions handheld, if the light is not bright enough then move your subject, get yourself a reflector if you can't fund an off camera flash setup this will at least give you some control of the light and softening of shadows. Don't worry about noise in your images as much as getting a good shutter speed, I'd take a slightly noisey image over an out of focus one any day of the week.

Consider as cheap options for lighting a couple of those bendable desk lamps, put in daylight bulbs and either shoot in RAW to adjust wb later or do a custom wb when you first setup. Not ideal but at least it will allow you to practice in otherwise unshootable conditions.

Composition #3 I would put the chin back in and crop down a little on the forehead, the outside shots are let down by location as much as anything too much going on to keep focus on your subject.

Good luck
Mark


I will comment in a while on each individual photo bot agree use a tripod as last resort, monopod is a bit more acceptable but still restricitve.

Really agree with shooting raw, but there are other tricks to use and I will comment on each photo with things you can do to mprove etc...
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