lindy_c. Posted June 5, 2008 Share Posted June 5, 2008 I would love it if someone could check out some of the images from the link below. She is my favorite photographer and my motivator. What do I need to be doing to get my lighting the way she does? I think she uses 100% natural light, however, there are never any shadows or anything. Can never tell the direction of the light. I like the look of the fully lit portrait and the sharp detail. Also, any thoughts on what type of lens?? http://www.audreywoulardblog.com/ Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrettPrucha Posted June 5, 2008 Share Posted June 5, 2008 For the inside shots the room has a huge ammount of open windows and highly reflective flooring. It's a dream location for photographers. For the outside shots, shaded areas were used in most cases with a large reflector below the subject. You can look at the eyes of the subjects for clues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
victorwei Posted June 5, 2008 Share Posted June 5, 2008 It appears to me that multiple-angle soft lighting was used to reduce shadowing coupled with post production work to "blur" (smoothing out skin tone) and "sharpen" (to give a crisp look). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hultstrom1 Posted June 5, 2008 Share Posted June 5, 2008 I think Brett has the lighting down. If you look closely you can actually see that the left side of the nose in the picture is slightly darker, more in shadow, and that the lighting pattern is very close to a classic short loop in this picture (http://www.audreywoulardblog.com/images/content/hurly3.jpg). With the addition of lots of fill light to avoid any deep shadows. Corresponding to this you can see the reflection of the window to camera right. Concerning the lens. The first thing I notice is that it produces very shallow depth of field. With in-door photography that will mean a very fast lens (out-door it may be a long tele). On a 35mm or small-sensor digital it would probably be a 50mm f/1.2 or 85mm f/1.2. These are ofcourse very expensive lenses, and you may get similar results with a 85mm f/1.8. It is also nicely sharp and has good contrast, but at least the latter can be fixed in post-processing when you are shooting digital. So can the highly saturated colours. /M Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hultstrom1 Posted June 5, 2008 Share Posted June 5, 2008 I have to agree with Victor. It may also be all in post-production, but I think you could get it all out of the right equipment and technique. /M Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony_lai Posted June 5, 2008 Share Posted June 5, 2008 hi:<br> i actually have a question about the color. it looks to me that there are a lot of post works done with the photos. how do you get the colors so saturated with the eyes and the cloths? and, as the same time, the colors of the skin tone and background are so unsaturated.<br> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carbon_dragon Posted June 5, 2008 Share Posted June 5, 2008 The seem like classical high-key photography, very good work though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elaine marie Posted June 5, 2008 Share Posted June 5, 2008 Laura,<P> I have written to her and she is very nice to respond. I would say ask her. I know that she has a natural light studio with lots of large windows. She was my inspriation to go natural light also. Of course, there is a place for flash and I am not against flash but I love the look of the natural light.Most of my work on my site I did with all natural window light in my clients homes and I have had people ask me how I had my soft box placed? But really contact her on her blog and ask her, I think she will respond.<P> Elaine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hultstrom1 Posted June 5, 2008 Share Posted June 5, 2008 Tony: In most photo editing programs of quality you can pick a colour to desaturate, or up-saturate, while leaving the other as they are. /M Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darryl_roberts1 Posted June 5, 2008 Share Posted June 5, 2008 There's definitely soft boxes in play, see them in the the eyes (catch-lights). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tana_d. Posted June 5, 2008 Share Posted June 5, 2008 She uses all natural light. She's a regular on another photo forum, and has talked about her lighting. She says it's 100% natural, and I think she even said she doesn't use reflectors. She teaches workshops - look at the link in her blog. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve_levine Posted June 6, 2008 Share Posted June 6, 2008 Practice,practice,practice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lindy_c. Posted June 6, 2008 Author Share Posted June 6, 2008 Thank you all for your advice! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_waller Posted June 6, 2008 Share Posted June 6, 2008 She has huge windows behind her and I would guess the rest of the studio, including the floor, is painted white. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beauh44 Posted June 6, 2008 Share Posted June 6, 2008 I could be wrong but the blue in those blue jeans looks like the "Vibrancy" and/or "Clarity" slider may have been used in ACR. They're super-saturated but somehow not annoyingly so and the skin tones seem unaffected. I certainly can't add anything to the lighting suggestions already made. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricardo_tomasi Posted June 7, 2008 Share Posted June 7, 2008 @Darryl: those are windows. What I can add is that there is a fair amount of whitening and sharpening of the eyes in post-processing. The boy after the blonde girl actually looks a bit alien because of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheryl_jacobs Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 Audrey doesn't use all natural light -- she uses mostly natural light but has been known to use strobes as well. A very significant amount of her look is done in post- processing, including the sharpening of eyes and actions for color saturation. - CJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lindy_c. Posted June 9, 2008 Author Share Posted June 9, 2008 Thanks to all comments. I appreciate your thoughts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davemoss Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 the entire room is flanked by windows. you can see the glass in one of the photos. the walls are all white. it's like she's shooting inside of a white tent, or the way avedon did his western series, only with more white reflecting all over the place. i would bet the lenses are (depending on the body), either the 85mm 1.2 canon, or the 85mm 1.4 nikkor. that and maybe really fast 50mm lenses too. the colors are boosted unnaturally with saturation. too much for my taste, but that's me. that would be a perfect room to do head shots for actors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david_amberson1 Posted June 11, 2008 Share Posted June 11, 2008 Its not all natural light. You can see the softboxes in the subjects eyes in most pictures. Sometimes 2 softboxes. We know it at least went through CS2 from photo data. So she isnt limited on Post Processing. I like the work though. Its a little different. Just call her and tell her what you told us, I bet she would be flattered and delighted to talk with you about it. Provided you are not in her area and threatening competition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david_amberson1 Posted June 11, 2008 Share Posted June 11, 2008 Well, I could be wrong. I looked in her "About" folder and she claims she uses all natural light 100% of the time. I dont think she would lie about it. maybe what i saw in the eyes were windows. It sure did look like the catch light from softboxes. The CS2 part is right though. Still, if you are not in Chicago, hit her up. I bet you're suprised. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gwen_waite1 Posted June 12, 2008 Share Posted June 12, 2008 Just out of curiosity, which other forum does Audrey post on - Tana, you mentioned she was a regular in another forum - which one? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richard_crowe4 Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 I use a program called Portrait Pro which enables me to play with my subjects eyes to achieve very much the same effect as these photos. It seems like the vibrant eyes are a hallmark of her style. I have never used Portrait Pro to work with children but, it works great for men and especially women. It doesn't accomplish anything that could not be done independently with Photoshop. It is just that Portrait Pro is faster and easier for me. To play with Portrait Professional access this website: http://www.portraitprofessional.com/?gclid=CNejgujU8JMCFR8cagoddRJgWw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheryl_jacobs Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 Gwen, I assume she's referring to www.ilovephotography.com . - CJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
omega_vora Posted July 2, 2008 Share Posted July 2, 2008 Audrey doesn't use all natural light -- she uses mostly natural light but has been known to use strobes as well. A very significant amount of her look is done in post- processing, including the sharpening of eyes and actions for color saturation. omega <a href="http://nachofoto.com">nachofoto</a> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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