Maternity Photo Shoot

[Teresa]

This is another photo shoot I did.
This of course was back in June 07 when she was 8 months pregnant. All again before they were edited
CC welcome

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.This one I did in black and white (I have original somewhere! LOL)

 

[wildmaven]

I like #5 the best, as it seems to be telling a story.

Someone has GOT to come up with something else for women to wear during pregnancy photos!! I just find it so silly to see a mom in the sheet, while everyone else is in street clothes. And the sheet is flattering to very few women.

 

[Sweetsomedays]

Eek on the harsh shadows. Are you just shooting the flash right at her? Not sure what you are working with but I use my SB800 off camera threw a white umbrella and my SB600 off camera and bounce it. I am new so that could be totally wrong but it helps me avoid those shadows.

 

[SpeedTrap]

Put some distace between the subject and the backdrop, it will improve the look.

 

[Teresa]

if you have read any of my other posts, you will find that i am a mobile photographer. i take my studio to the client and sometimes you only have a little room to work with and these again are all UNEDITED. I got the shadows off the backdrop and i got them off the faces of the people...plus the mom was wearing no make up and she hadn't gotten a lot of sleep the few nights before.

 

[Sweetsomedays]

I take my studio to the client to. I guarantee you that you can reduce the wrinkling with a shallower DOF and the harsh shadows are just because of using your light source incorrectly.
BTW I also use sheets for the time being.

 

[Teresa]

what is DOF if you dont mind me asking?

that was one of my first shoots and i had nothing.

i have 2 slave lights
slave lights:
AC slave lights are more akin to a shoe-mount strobe, being very basic in construction. They plug into an outlet, or table lamp and come with few, if any, controls to speak of and routinely lack a modeling light. AC slave-flash units are, however, very economical as fill or accent lights. They’re great for little nooks and crannies.

 

[Sweetsomedays]

So get soft boxes or use them threw white umbrellas? Arent you supposed to at least be able to control them in camera? I can control my flash's off camera by adjusting them in commander mode.

DOF=Depth of field
I have no idea what your camera is capable of bit if I had to guess that would be where some of these control issues are starting. If it's just not capable of some things then it's just not possible.

 

[emogirl]

dof...depth of field...
you need a shallower depth of field and the back ground will naturally blur,

-same thing with your other shoot, the subject is too close to the background....taking a studio to a location means challenges and you as a professional must find a way to get around the challenges - that may mean not using the background at all or working with what you have

-watch your exposure...good exposure is key to any photo...pictures should look great out of the camera, not perfect, but great! most pros take a great picture and make it awesome by getting rid of blemishes/brightening eyse/removing distractions that we couldnt 'shoot' and get rid of...but they all start with a great photo to begin with


-use your camera in manual mode so you can control the exposure, are you using it in programme or auto right now?

- be careful on low angles on big people....she is not a 'big person'...but she is pregnant and she wont appreciate the double chin....shoot straight on or from a higher angle

-all your photos needs more contrast, which can be adjusted with levels or curves

-keep working at it...and btw, you will get much more positive feedback if you edit your pictures first

 

[Teresa]

here is a link to my camera
http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/H5/H5A.HTM

i can probably put a soft box on my slave lights but i am not sure if they make any for them as they were not mine to begin with. the girl that gave them to me only used them for a few shoots before buying new real studio lights but i have no money for that..that is why she is giving me all her stuff she doesn't need anymore

 

[Teresa]

I did look it up and online it said N/A for my shutter speed meaning i dont have a control for that

i do use my camera in manual mode but i doesn't give me a lot to choose

white balance

flash level --goes all the way to +2.0 OEV

sharpness level

contrast level

ISO

but i have to put it all the way to 1000 (not sure what that is but it is a number from NR30" all the way to 1000 and i guess i have the F stop all the way to 8.0 or else the picture will be too bright

 

[Sweetsomedays]

f/whatever is your aperture and I can only assume the 1000 is in fact your ss. You should lower the aperture to create a shallower DOF which will YES make it brighter so either bump your ss, I believe the specs said it was capable of 2000 or lower your ISO.

 

[dpolston]

here is a link to my camera
http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/H5/H5A.HTM

i can probably put a soft box on my slave lights but i am not sure if they make any for them as they were not mine to begin with. the girl that gave them to me only used them for a few shoots before buying new real studio lights but i have no money for that..that is why she is giving me all her stuff she doesn't need anymore

http://store.garyfonginc.com/puf-01.html Try this out

 

[Johnboy2978]

In each of these, you need more space between the subject and the background. #1 is very overexposed. The lighing that you are using is causing a very hard shadow. Try diffusing it or bouncing it. Check out some posing books from amazon.com to improve that aspect of your images.

 

[Teresa]

f/whatever is your aperture and I can only assume the 1000 is in fact your ss. You should lower the aperture to create a shallower DOF which will YES make it brighter so either bump your ss, I believe the specs said it was capable of 2000 or lower your ISO.

i dont know where you read that at but my camera is in fact only capable of going to 1000 so if i lower my aperture, the photo will still be too bright (brighter than they already are now)