Prom 2004 # 1

This was done in my basement with three lights and a reflector. The

backlight was set at f22. The main light to the right of camera was

set at f16 and the fill light above the camera was set to f11. A

reflector was placed to the left of camera. The exposure was at f16

at 1/60 using a Pentax 645II with a 150 lens.

I don't know if it is just my monitor, but I see no texture/detail at all in any of the black areas; especially in his tuxedo. I don't even see the lapels of his jacket. Maybe moving the main light to the left of the camera would have spread the light across his jacket, adding some depth, showing some texture.

 

I don't mind the shadows at the bottom of the picture. I think that cropping the top down and adding some shadows there would help draw the viewers attention into the picture. What do you think?

In the original photo you can see detail in his tux and clearly see his lapel. The scan does not pick up any of this detail. I do like the burning of the edges, thank you.

Your background needs to be a little brighter - perhaps by repositioning your backlight and opening it up a little bit? Also, your fill light could probably be opened at least one more stop, perhaps two. This would give you the detail in the black tux and fill in some of the facial shadows. This one is a hard metering situation because of the white background and black tux. Keep at it! It's the only way you learn. I just started studio two years ago and constantly am learning new things.

Thanks Jen for the advice. I will make my back light brighter next time. If I open up the fill light by one stop, it would be the same f - stop as the main light...is that still OK? Christopher

The portrait still look quite grainy for a Pentax. I think the problem lies in the scan. If you take digital images directly the resolution will definitely be better. As it is an A4 size enlargement might be too grainy for a pleasant portrait shot. Try using at least 300dpi and below 100 ISO when shooting. F stop will not influence the exposure if the lighting is strong enough. It will only change the DOF. For portraiture sometimes a shallow DOF enhances the main features of the model. (See some examples in my family portraits).

She seams a bit to low in the frame for me ... this is a grand first atempt you must have done a great job making them feel comfortable. Keep working at it !

I agree! I will need to put something under the stool to raise it up higher next time. Thanks for your nice comments.

I think both are successful portraits, especially considering they are your first attempts. The other is more unique, but the expressions here make this one better. Slightly darker background with a more focused spot directly behind them would work better, creating a similar effect to the suggestion above.

I think you did a very good job with your lighting. Glad to see your interests here on this site. Ther is so much to learn from others -- especially "how to see". I will be watching to see your progrssion. My compliments...

Thanks for the encouragement! I am looking forward to my next attempts. I visit this site daily now, it really makes a difference when you have something to upload, it makes one feel part of "the family" and not just a looker!

Nice portraits. The other pose looks more spontaneous, but the expressions on this one look more natural. I agree: raise the seat, adjust background lighting so you can open up to get some more detail in the blacks, and crop tighter (as I, a beginner, often seem to suggest :) ).

Christopher, good job on the lighting. Do you plan on using a more vivid backdrop? Do you have access to Photoshop?

The lighting is great(that's the hard part). You just have try harder on getting both subjects to look in the same direction. Your on your way!

Good color,and a nice pose with both being relaxed.

but a couple of pointers with a white background!! You need the lighting on the background to be a stop more than the subject lighting. So....when you take your readings (you'll need to take one for background and one for the subject), if its f11 for the subjects then you'll need to turn the lighting up on the background so that the flash meter reads f16. Then you set your camera to f11 and the background is overexposed by 1 stop but your subjects are correctly exposed. It basically blows out the detail in the background and whitens it. The ideal set up is 2 background lights at 45 deg angles so that the lighting criss crosses - this makes it shadowless (do I make sense)? I actually point to my lens and tell my sitters - not to look at me or anyone else but to look straight down the barrel of the lense. Its great for direct eyecontact. If they look off camera then I'll set something there for them to look at so that they look together in the right place. But nevertheless, this is a sterling effort - you'll become very good if you keep at it.

I like the "Formal" but "relaxed" look about the subjects. Keep it up!

I agree with Lissa. Keep up the good work.