Shrek

Brand new at this hobby with very limited equipment. Would

appreciate any constructive tips.

Hi Dave - love your doggie! Think a little fill flash would help to open up the dark areas in Shrek's face. You'd probably want to use it off-camera (SC17 cord with handheld flash, like an SB28, 80 or 50.) Alternatively you could use a reflector board to open up the shadows (even a piece of white cardstock will do). You may also want to try a warming filter (or adjust in PS) to warm up the fur color some. Would love to see more. ;-)

First, always scan from the source. Negative or positive.

 

Second, I suggest you change films. To begin with, print film has too much of a latitude, so you can get a 'decent shot' almost by hit-or-miss. I'm sure you want more control than that.

 

More importantly, with print film there is always too much input from photo lab workers. Not only are they usually untrained, they also weren't there when you took the shot - so they can only guess how it should look. And they're ususally wrong. (Why do you think some pros do their own printing, or at least only trust pro labs to print?)

 

Slide film has less latitude, so you have to be precise and expose for the highlights in your shots. It also means that lab folk won't be interpreting your pictures.

 

My underwater photos always came back wrong until I switched to Velvia, KC, or Provia. Also, I just recently rescanned in a negative of a silhouette photo. The lab had blown the contrast WAY up, thinking I'd underexposed by accident. So I'd thought the shot was ruined, until I scanned it in myself and saw it as I'd taken it.

 

One more thing - BRACKET, BRACKET, BRACKET (esp with slide film.) With slide, bracket 1/3 stop increments. If you still shoot print film, bracket in full stops (since it has a bigger latitude.)

 

Hope this helps

 

-Mel

Clever title (or maybe clever name.) Usually, it's best to get some light in a subject's eyes. Here everything is black. Using flash outodoors will often do the trick.

 

Also, I might try to get lower on a shot like this.