Available light high key shots... C+C

[GeneralBenson]

What do you guys think of these shots? They were shot with just natural sunlight and a little DIY rig from home depot.

 

[chrisburke]

DIY,, we love DIY around here, post pics of whatever that is too

 

[50two]

the whole blown out white background doesnt work for me, but that could just be me, i mean a bit of ambience could be nice maybe there was too much light, all the people are squinting

 

[DRATOM]

Blowing out the back ground is not what makes "High Key", in fact it is some times better if you don't blow out the background. High Key is an image that produces tones that fall mostly between white and gray, with very little dark-gray or black tonalities. Nice looking kids though

 

[Photog]

Yeah I agree, I'd like some colour in the background. Also, they all look like they've been cropped a bit too narrow.

 

[Early]

... Also, they all look like they've been cropped a bit too narrow.

At least #3.

 

[Chewbecca]

I agree with what the others have said.
I'd also like to see some eye detail in the first one.
The eyes are important in a shot like that.

 

[ANDS!]

Ha. Blowing out the background. And if the background is a large white sheet?

However this really isn't high key as they have said, and you can quickly tell that by just looking at a histogram. I say good job on the background, but some work is needed on the fore; maybe its me but it really looks like I'm looking at these through plastic, or a glass - slightly flat appearance. Has any photochoppin' been done on these?

 

[Alex_B]

The faces are all very dark and flat... some stronger fill flashes could help maybe.

 

[GeneralBenson]

No fill flash was used, since I had no of camera lighting. These were just taken with a 11am sun on the subjects backs, and an opaque plastic painters sheet behind them so the sun was coming through it. The were definitely cropped tight because that's as big as the sheet was, but I thought it was a cool way to get fun pictures in harsh sunlight. I like the backlighting, but definitely agree that some fill would have been nice from one side of the other. But straight on would have just flattened it more, right? Thanks for the comments.

 

[Alex_B]

probably a frontal flash would not have been to goo. Maybe reflectors for their faces would have been sufficient.