Day-In-The-Life Photo Session- questions

[cafeteria celebrity]

I'm an amateur photographer who was approached by a friend to photograph

he, his wife and his 6-month old baby. My idea and my comfort zone is

unposed photos. I offered to spend a day with the three of them as they go

about their business on a common Saturday:

 

morning, greenmarket shopping (outdoor light)

afternoon, walk through park (outdoor)

late afternoon/evening, cook dinner

 

As you might have guessed, they simply want a document for the child of what

a typical Saturday was like when the child was 6 months old. They are

thinking about doing this regularly on a 3 or 6 month cycle so there may be

opportunities to do more work with them.

 

I've set expectations insofar as my skills and experience go - i.e. I've never

done this before and it will be an experiment. He's comfortable with that and

has been very encouraging.

 

My questions relate to the following components of the shoot:

 

1- recommended lenses for candid, capture-the-moment shots. i'm using a

nikon n90s body.

2- recommended flash equipment. I don't own one, but I live in New York City

and can rent for the day.

2a - speaking of renting, should i look at renting a medium-format camera

outfit? what will that get me?

3- the indoor situation. I'm not sure what to really LOOK for ahead of time (I

have about 2 weeks before we do this).

4- what questions COULD I be asking myself as I go into the shoot?

5- Payment. I've asked my friend to pay for materials only. I'm going to ask

him to feed me at the end of the day (he's a sophisticated chef with aspirations

to open a restaurant). That's fair, right?

 

I'm truly grateful for any advice you might have to offer.

 

Thanks.

 

Geoff

[wind.dk]

I would go for available light (not having a flash sort of gives it away, and I like available light).

 

You could do the entire job with a 50mm prime, some rolls of slow film for the daylight and some rolls of fast film for indoor/evening. Or you could do it with a 35mm. Or even an 85mm. Or with a mix of them. Or a normal zoom, though it had better be reasonably fast. It depends a lot on what focal lengths you're comfortable with (the last thing you want is to spend your time figuring out how to make a good composition with a focal length you're not used to).

 

I don't know why you'd want to rent medium format for this. It doesn't sound like the pictures are intended to be blown up as individual masterpieces, and again you don't want to spend the time learning how to use the equipment. If you had MF already it would be a different matter.

 

The "payment" is fair if you both think it's fair - and you're having a good time doing it. So stop worrying, there's a very high probability they'll like the pictures. By the way, remember the hidden materials costs - throw in a packet of batteries and some lens cleaning tissue.

[james_oneill]

1. If this were me I would take my 28-105 zoom (sensible range for what you're talking about), and my 90mm prime - useful portrait lens and fast if the light is poor.

 

2a. Don't shoot with unfamiliar equipment, if you're after capture the moment stuff you don't wan't to be figuring stuff out on kit you don't know. The improvement in negative quality over 35mm is not worth it

 

3. Look at where the light is good and where it isn't, where you'll want to use flash (keep it to a minimum).

 

4. You've got to get a balance between planning the shots, and capturing what you see (best compromise is have some idea of what you want but let things develop in their own way).

 

5. Doing this for freinds a day in their company isn't a chore, so out-of-pocket expenses and dinner is about what I would ask for. For people I wouldn't choose to be with a day of my time is a bit pricey.

[r.m.]

Geoff, this is the kind of stuff I do everyday of my life :). First, I would stick with the equipment you're most familiar and comfortable with. Flash photography, in particular, is something you'll need a bit of practice with if you want to get it right. I, personally, would use available light only, which means you'll need a fast lens(es) and film (for indoor shots). A fast lens is also definitely in order for 'candid, capture the moment shots'. I use my 50mm prime for almost all of my day to day photos. I only use a zoom if I want to avoid distortion when photographing close-ups. As for film, I'd use premium color emulsions (i.e. Portra NC & Fuji NPH(400)/NPZ(800)/CU(1600). If you're developing your own b&w or have a good lab, then do a search of the archives here on PN. There's a treasure trove of info on low/available light film/developer combos. My personal favorites are Tri-X @320/800, Delta 3200 @1600 (if you don't mind grain) and Fuji NP1600 (if you do) all in DD-X.

 

Sounds like a great assignment. Have fun!

[jkantor]

You want to do two kinds of shots: closeups that show a lot of interaction and emotion and wide-angle shots that establish the setting. Most of your shots would be the closeups, shot with a moderate telephoto so that your subjects aren't too self-conscious. A 28-135 would be ideal.

 

Use 400 speed film (I use Portra) for good lighting situations and 800 for low-light (like indoor at home) with your N90 plus Speedlight on Program. It will expose for the background and add just enough flash for fill as appropriate, so you'll get very natural shots.

 

To get good candids remember to wait: anticipate the moment, compose the shot, and wait for the emotion (the interaction).

[brandonhamilton]

A nice tele-zoom would be very nice. I shoot a lot of portrait stuff with my 70-200 f2.8. This allowes me to be 6-10 feet away, and still be able to get a close headshot for example, and the wide range gives incredible flexability without having to dance around to get the right composition, which you will no doubt have to do with just a prime 50mm. Being able to keep your distance will keep your subjects really comfortable, and able to act naturally which is what you are trying to capture in the first place. I would also bring my second body with a 15-30, just in case there is a nice wide shot needed.

[stevenbarall]

You have to go with the flow. Hang back a little as not to get in the way but you have to be in on the action at the same time. Every picture has to be about something afterall and you have to recognize and even anticipate what that something is. That's what being in the flow is all about, that decisive moment stuff.

 

Use the gear that you feel comfortable with and know best. Most of the fast neg films are great these days. If you want B&W try the Ilford XP2. It processes in a color neg machine so it's easy to get it done where ever you are. If you don't process B&W yourself at home, it has gotten difficult to get it done right at most labs these days, the C41 B&W films are very useful. But... the Ilford Delta 3200 is a great film.

 

Don't shoot with telephoto zooms from the next room. Keep as close as you can. Feel out the situation. Also, they want family photos that show the situations of their day, not just headshots.

 

It sounds like a great experience can be had by all. Just have fun.