Gizmo in the Light

This was done my first time trying out flash attachments. I would

like to start doing portraits but have no one to practice with. I

thought the cat would make a great subject. He was sitting by a

lamp, so I tried to use the existing light as much as I could while

using the flash only to create more detail. The flash I was using

doesn't sinc with the camera, so everything had to be manual. Any

suggestions or comments would be very helpful! Thanks!

This is really cute of your cat! If you want suggestions on portrait lighting, I can tell you one definite thing: unless you are interested in high-fashion modeling portraits, lighting should come from the cross-section of the face, so that the light hits the "smaller" side. This is more flattering; makes a face look thinner. So an easy way to remember this is to put the light in the direction of their nose.

 

On this actual portrait, I like the DOF and this adorable creature's intensity in his eyes. Great start and lots of luck in your portraiture endeavors.

 

Rachel :o)

Thanks Rachel. I see what you mean now. I guess for the cat, he doesn't care if his face is bigger. :-) But if this was a portrait, and the light was from the right side, I would just have them turn their face towards the light. Exactly the kind of input I was looking for.