So how is this post-processing achieved?

[DoshKel]

I started shooting for a nightclub last night, and there are some other photographers in the area that have been doing it a lot longer than me, so I decided to look to their photos as inspiration.

Here is a well established photographer's shot that I really like:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/23562670@N07/3026731760/sizes/m/in/set-72157608992361937/

And here is mine:

What am I missing here? How does he post process like this?

Sorry if this is quite the obtuse question, but I feel like his is so much better than mine haha.

 

[fightin14]

yours has more distaction in the background. Your subjects in the picture are centered. At first the other pic seems centered but if you look at it the women in his pic is not and that is the focal point of the pic. Well it is for me anyhow. Also you may try using a hotshoe mounted flash with a "jug" diffuser. Somebody that knows alittle bit more than me may tell you that I am wrong and I maybe but that is just what I see.

 

[TwoRails]

Looks like he use the "slow" flash mode. Here's an example:

http://www.olympusamerica.com/crm/oneoffpages/crm_e-otherflashmodes.asp

 

[McQueen278]

It's most likely not a post processing effect. It looks to me like a lens around the 28mm variety and a flash bounced off the ceiling. The camera is also looking down on the subject slightly and it is much closer when compared to your shot. Wide angle lenses, when tilted upward or downward can exaggerate perspective exponentially when compared to shooting straight on.

Try holding your camera above the shoulders of your subject angled down slightly and as close as you can get to fill the frame. If you have a off camera flash tilt the head so that it points straight at the ceiling (not just straight up) and if it isn't a fancy TTL flash, experiment with the power output, but I'd say start at 1/2 power and move up or down from there. Also, as suggested before a second curtain flash will probably give the best results.

Post up your pictures so we can see how you are doing too. Good luck!

 

[Garbz]

I'd say he is using a huge flash card to project the flash forward and bouncing it off the ceiling. Also the background in his pictures are closer to his subject, so by inverse square law they cop quite a bit of the flash making the background brighter.

 

[DoshKel]

Thanks for the info guys. It really helps. Heres what I came up with. I would love some C&C on these. This was my first time shooting in a club, so they aren't that good, but i'm sure i'll progress more and more since I'm going to do this every Friday .

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5)

The rest at:
http://flickr.com/photos/doshkel/sets/72157609289549766/

Tell me what you think!