Bored around the House. 1st try at portraits.

[Tulsa]

Interesting. Carry on.

 

[TylerF]

I dont mind someone telling me my stuff if bad, but only if they provide a reason as to why they think so. Today wasn't my best valentines ever, so i was a bit on edge. Just got home from the gym and am feeling better. i apologize for the jab.

as for lighting, i used a cheap garage clamp light behind the subjects(hate the color of the bulb, 100% different than my flash lol) and my sb600 on camera. i plan on getting 2 vivitar 285h flashes, soft boxes ect. soon.

thanks for the comments

 

[TylerF]

And I noticed a little red dot on the first and last picture at the top center looks like a stuck pixel would on a monitor, any idea what that is from?

uh oh, what is that? should i be concerned? i looked through all the pics from tonight and its in all of them. same exact spot. should i return my camera?

 

[bigtwinky]

I dont like them.

But for what you had to work with, they are passable.

I find they are very dark on one side (camera right) and could use a second light or even some sort of relfective material to bounce some light back into the face. I'm all for contrast and shadows, but I find its a bit too much.

The background isn't so bad in the last image, mainly because it looks more like a gradient than a spot. The photos of the kid show where the light was shining onto the background.

The first image definately has too much head space and the hair is pretty much each image doesn't sharp or is a tad blurry which is annoying on the eyes. And while it probably was in the back of your mind, watch what the models wear as it can be distracting. I know you probably just asked whomever to just stand there and smile, but just something to think about.

 

[TylerF]

thanks. i agree with everything you said. I wish i had more lighting equipment. soon though. I just asked my mom and brother to stand there for me. it was like 10 at night and I wasn't going to ask them to change clothes lol. but thank you for the comments. any suggestions as to what to do about the red dot?

 

[bazooka]

Concerning the hot pixel, I just found a lot on mine and posted about it. Some quick googling shows that it's normal for all dslr's. You just have to edit it out in post if they show up. Try taking a RAW shot with your lenscap on (try different settings too if you want)... then look at the shot at full size. You'll probably find that you have many hot pixels.

 

[TJ K]

I dont mind someone telling me my stuff if bad, but only if they provide a reason as to why they think so. Today wasn't my best valentines ever, so i was a bit on edge. Just got home from the gym and am feeling better. i apologize for the jab.

as for lighting, i used a cheap garage clamp light behind the subjects(hate the color of the bulb, 100% different than my flash lol) and my sb600 on camera. i plan on getting 2 vivitar 285h flashes, soft boxes ect. soon.

thanks for the comments

You might want to look into some color correction gels for your sb600. They might help with that different colored clamp light. GL
I bought [ame="http://www.amazon.com/Rosco-Strobist-Collection-Cinegel-Strobes/dp/B002SWIOOM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1266258590&sr=8-1"]this[/ame] gel pack. It's 9.95 on amazon from adorama but on adorama's website it's 20.00 so basically a steal on amazon.
TJ

 

[transformed]

ok- so they aren't great. But- we all start somewhere! And frankly just the act of trying is better than doing nothing at all. I guarantee you'll learn something from this round of practice that will help you the next try. I am including an edit to show a couple of points.

First- the choice of background color is maybe less than advantageous. It has too many similarities to the skin tone, and so everything just sort of runs together. Especially using incandescent light. However, don't let anyone tell you bedsheets can't be a great background. They certainly can! Especially black- works like a champ. In my edit- I changed to a lightly toned B&W to accentuate the subject instead of the coloring.

Second- Wardrobe for portraits can be really important. Half of a Mickey Mouse head can be really distracting. I edited it out so you could see the difference.

Good luck!

 

[camhabib]

Not bad for a first time. Portraits can be difficult, as you really want the person to be the main, and only, subject of focus, while still maintaining an interesting and pleasing surrounding. I'm personally not a fan of the glowing background, but everyone has their own style. I would have taken it in a more interesting setting and used a large aperture, or even applied a simulation in PS, to blur out the background a bit.

 

[The_Traveler]

thanks. i agree with everything you said. I wish i had more lighting equipment. soon though.

Before you start sinking more money in 'stuff', you should work at photography. Take more pictures, learn how to recognize when your pictures are good/bad/uggh, learn how to post-process to correct some of the uggh-ness.

 

[kundalini]

I looked at your portraits and then looked at mine again that was posted around the same time. Congratz on getting so many responses.

 

[TylerF]

I think i do know how to post process pretty well. I love art/design so i am pretty familiar with photoshop. The original of my mom is actually a lot worse lol. But i know i could benefit from another flash or 2. I want to get color gels as well. but hopefully i can toss the garage light lol. thanks again everyone. the hot pixel is bothering me a lot. its an easy fix in pp but know that it's there is annoying. i have only had my camera since xmas

 

[TylerF]

I looked at your portraits and then looked at mine again that was posted around the same time. Congratz on getting so many responses.

haha maybe it was the controversy i caused. i will look at yours!

 

[The_Traveler]

I think i do know how to post process pretty well. I love art/design so i am pretty familiar with photoshop. The original of my mom is actually a lot worse lol. But i know i could benefit from another flash or 2. I want to get color gels as well. but hopefully i can toss the garage light lol. thanks again everyone. the hot pixel is bothering me a lot. its an easy fix in pp but know that it's there is annoying. i have only had my camera since xmas

Let me say again that extra equipment and more flashes isn't going to help you nearly as much as taking a lot more pictures and actually looking at them to see if they are any good.

Exercise some judgment in what you post and post only your best.

 

[bigtwinky]

I looked at your portraits and then looked at mine again that was posted around the same time. Congratz on getting so many responses.

I commented on the other place you posted them. Want me to copy/paste here?