c&c

paigew · Dec 11, 2011

I have had my camera for three days now and I did a 'photo session' tonight of my baby (which consisted of quickly tossing a white blanket over my bed). These were my two faves. I love them (of course its probably just because its my baby :er

. I showed them to my husband and he said "yeah, there nice....but they just look like normal photos, they could be better"....gee thanks hun :lol:

. So what could be better? Looking forward to advice. I know the lighting situation could be better but unfortunately I don't have the funds to buy any equipment since I just spend 1000 on a camera setup.

They seem to have a red tint to me (his hair is a rich brown with no red) but I'm not sure how to fix that.

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rexbobcat · Dec 11, 2011

The shadows were destroyed by your flash. The light is very flat and...well....boring.

The colors aren't really very appealing either. Because of your overhead light, the baby's face is a completely different tone when compared to the white sheet (which looks a bit yellow.)

paigew · Dec 11, 2011

rexbobcat said:
The shadows were destroyed by your flash. The light is very flat and...well....boring.

The colors aren't really very appealing either. Because of your overhead light, the baby's face is a completely different tone when compared to the white sheet (which looks a bit yellow.)

Thank you, I see what you mean about the light being boring. I took these when it was dark outside and my light isn't that great...guess I should have known. One thing I don't understand is "the shadows being destroyed by the flash". What does that mean?

paigew · Dec 12, 2011

I'm taking the lack of cc as a hint that they aren't that great haha. I will try again soon with natural lighting.

ManhattanShutterBug · Dec 12, 2011

Cute baby.

The lighting isn't great and they look yellow. The first one I would have gotten rid of the extra space above his head, second one I would have zoomed in more.

paigew · Dec 12, 2011

thank you! should I not use my flash? It seems as if it usually causes more harm than good.....Also about zooming in, I have a few that are zoomed in but that makes the arms cut of (which I thought was a no-no....)

o hey tyler · Dec 12, 2011

The reason your sheets and baby have a yellow tinge to them is that the white balance is off. Do you shoot in RAW? And if so, what program do you use to process the raw files? If you don't shoot raw, you pretty much have to get the WB correct in camera. Which can be done with a custom white balance and a grey card.

Other than that, the composition, the angle, and the on camera flash ruin these. Your husband is right, they do look like 'normal photos' or snapshots. Buying a DSLR does not automatically grant you the ability to take outstanding portraits. Yes, it will give you better overall image quality, ISO handling, and full manual controls. But that will do you no good if you don't know how to effectively use the camera. That comes with time and practice. Lots of it.

paigew · Dec 12, 2011

Thank you tyler. I am not pretending to be an outstanding photographer or anything. But I do want to learn. I did not shoot in raw and really I probably won't at this point I am not able to devote a lot of time towards major editing. I would rather learn to take the photos correctly when I shoot them, and I am not shooting professionally anyway. (although I am aware some editing is usually needed). You really think the coposition and angle that are bad that it ruins the photo? What could I do to improve? I am learning how to use my camera, I have only had it 4 days now and have never once used 'auto'. Trial and error is how we learn right? Anyway, I'm bummed that my pics are crap :lol:

hope to be able to post better ones soon if someone can give me some comp/angle tips.

redessa · Dec 12, 2011

First off, yes, these are lovely snapshots of a very cute baby.

But portraits.... not so much. White balance and lighting have already been mentioned so let me address some of the more basic things. Don't have a wrinkled backdrop. That blanket desperately needed to be ironed before you used it in your pictures. Also, did you dress the baby for his photo session or is that just what he happened to have on? What I'm saying is that it doesn't look deliberate. It looks like any kid in any house laying on mom's bed in his jammies.

The first pic you posted is not in focus, I'm assuming motion blur as it looks to me like he's about to roll over. That's fine, it happens. Kids are active and move between the time you set the focus and when the shutter fires. But while you may love it well enough for his scrapbook, it's not something you show people as evidence of your photography skills.

And I know it's about impossible to pose a baby this age, but try different angles. Both of these are straight on, from the same height. If you'd moved a little to one side so he had to turn his head to see you, or if he were on the floor and you laid down on your belly to get the shot. Get on his eye level and get a few from a higher angle where he has to look up a bit.... try it all and anything else you come up with.

Fortunately you have a very cute model to work with so keep at it.

redessa · Dec 12, 2011

paigew said:
thank you! should I not use my flash? It seems as if it usually causes more harm than good.....Also about zooming in, I have a few that are zoomed in but that makes the arms cut of (which I thought was a no-no....)

And in answer to this. Cutting arms off (so to speak) is perfectly fine, you just want to be careful not to crop at the joints. Hit between the shoulder and elbow, not right at the elbow for example. Don't clip fingers and toes but otherwise no, not all pictures have to include all 4 limbs in their entirety.

I should address your question about flash too. In general, you want to avoid using the flash straight on. If you don't have the ability to use you flash off camera and place it at a more pleasing angle, then try to work with the available lighting. If you must use the on camera flash for fill, dial it down to as little as you can get away with - just a kiss of light. What you've done in these has eliminated all the shadows from his face. This is called flat lighting. Flat lighting has it's purposes but for general portraiture you want to see some shadows. It's more natural and gives depth to the image.

paigew · Dec 12, 2011

Ha! yeah, it was kind of 'spur of the moment'...yes they were jammies. Thanks so much for the critique. I will try to really make a good set up next time with non wrinkled sheets and no jammies

. And thanks for the angle suggestions! So is it okay to 'cut off' arms? at what point?? I love this photo too (I'm going crazy experimenting...and man, he is ALWAYS in jammies :lol:

). But the head and arms are cut. Obviously the head is not really 'acceptable'...but the arms? Is it okay to cut them if its a close face shot?

paigew · Dec 12, 2011

redessa said:
paigew said:

thank you! should I not use my flash? It seems as if it usually causes more harm than good.....Also about zooming in, I have a few that are zoomed in but that makes the arms cut of (which I thought was a no-no....)

Click to expand...

And in answer to this. Cutting arms off (so to speak) is perfectly fine, you just want to be careful not to crop at the joints. Hit between the shoulder and elbow, not right at the elbow for example. Don't clip fingers and toes but otherwise no, not all pictures have to include all 4 limbs in their entirety.

I should address your question about flash too. In general, you want to avoid using the flash straight on. If you don't have the ability to use you flash off camera and place it at a more pleasing angle, then try to work with the available lighting. If you must use the on camera flash for fill, dial it down to as little as you can get away with - just a kiss of light. What you've done in these has eliminated all the shadows from his face. This is called flat lighting. Flat lighting has it's purposes but for general portraiture you want to see some shadows. It's more natural and gives depth to the image.