Card Magic (1st Attempt with Soft Box)

[jeytee]

Hey guys, just looking for some CC on this set I did with a friend that does card magics. First attempt that I've done using a soft box so I was just looking for some more tips with a single lighting set up. I know a hair light/ light to fill in the background wall would have been nice, but I didn't' have one on hand. (The hair in 3/4 should have more light in it probably too). Also, I know the temperature isn't consistent throughout, but I liked the first 2 images cooler rather than warmer.

1.


2.


3.


4.


PS: I felt like this one would be good in B&W (thoughts?)
5.

 

[Derrel]

You did pretty well for the first time!

 

[Designer]

That shot #1 is outstanding!

 

[Braineack]

That shot #1 is outstanding!

agreed. #1 is the winner here. A touch more processing and it should be a portfolio staple. I'd adjust the crop a bit, and if you keep it in color: add warmth.

since you spilled light on the BG the rim light isn't as necessary--there's plenty of separation form the BG. But you should invest in a cheap stool for the next shoot and then move it a bit further away from the wall (you can still see the wall's texture and imperfections)

you have a dust speck on your sensor.

 

[smoke665]

Overall really good for 1st time. Of the set, I feel like the last is the best of the set. To me the B&W adds to the image. In #3 I find the inclusion of part of the chair distracting, and #4 seems to be to tight of a crop.

 

[zombiesniper]

As stated above this is a great overall first set.

Just a couple of things to keep an eye out for with this lighting setup.

The light fall off of the background in the first image is perfect. Many photographers emulate this background with another light but since your model was close enough to it, you didn't have to. Well done.

Image 3 and 4 suffer from the light angle. Number 3 isn't as noticeable but the card in #4 is not within the path of the light resulting in it being darker.
If you were to attempt this shot again there are a couple of ways to correct this.
1. When the card is tossed. Angle the face of the card 20-30deg towards the light source.
2. Bring the light source closer to the camera. Reducing the angle of light and providing more light to the card.
3. Have the card further back. More beside the model. (This may not look as natural)

Personally I would try them in the order I presented as I believe them to be in the order of ease and this order is also what I believe will have the least impact on the rest of the image.

Good job.
Keep them coming.

 

[jeytee]

You did pretty well for the first time!

Thanks Derrel! You've helped me alot through your advice and critques for a while now (although I might have been on a different account). I really appreciate it.

 

[jeytee]

That shot #1 is outstanding!

Thank you!! I put it at the top because I thought it was the best of the set as well

 

[jeytee]

That shot #1 is outstanding!

agreed. #1 is the winner here. A touch more processing and it should be a portfolio staple. I'd adjust the crop a bit, and if you keep it in color: add warmth.

since you spilled light on the BG the rim light isn't as necessary--there's plenty of separation form the BG. But you should invest in a cheap stool for the next shoot and then move it a bit further away from the wall (you can still see the wall's texture and imperfections)


View attachment 146782

View attachment 146783


you have a dust speck on your sensor.

Thanks for the feedback! Means alot to me to hear that its portfolio worthy. And y eah I'll definitely look for a stool haha.

 

[jeytee]

Overall really good for 1st time. Of the set, I feel like the last is the best of the set. To me the B&W adds to the image. In #3 I find the inclusion of part of the chair distracting, and #4 seems to be to tight of a crop.

Same for me. The angling and position of the hand looked really good to me in that particular picture (since showing the palm is generally not pleasing looking).
Thanks for the critique!

 

[jeytee]

As stated above this is a great overall first set.

Just a couple of things to keep an eye out for with this lighting setup.

The light fall off of the background in the first image is perfect. Many photographers emulate this background with another light but since your model was close enough to it, you didn't have to. Well done.

Image 3 and 4 suffer from the light angle. Number 3 isn't as noticeable but the card in #4 is not within the path of the light resulting in it being darker.
If you were to attempt this shot again there are a couple of ways to correct this.
1. When the card is tossed. Angle the face of the card 20-30deg towards the light source.
2. Bring the light source closer to the camera. Reducing the angle of light and providing more light to the card.
3. Have the card further back. More beside the model. (This may not look as natural)

Personally I would try them in the order I presented as I believe them to be in the order of ease and this order is also what I believe will have the least impact on the rest of the image.

Good job.
Keep them coming.

Thank you! I was worried the lighting wasn't strong enough since I was only using a speedlight with a relatively small octobox. Hearing that I got the lighting done well on one of the pictures is really great.

I'll definitely have to try to do a reshoot with some more card shenanigans. I noticed that alot of the card shots the cards were just distracting dark figures so decided to exclude them so I'll try your solution next time.

 

[Designer]

I've nominated #1 for POTM, September, 2017.

The light, the pose, the colors, the patterning, all working together. The choice of wearing that shirt and jacket with the Ace of Spades was brilliant. The man's face and hand form point/counterpoint, which is similarly echoed in the color and pattern of the shirt and jacket working with the same on the card.

 

[Derrel]

I've nominated #1 for POTM, September, 2017.

The light, the pose, the colors, the patterning, all working together. The choice of wearing that shirt and jacket with the Ace of Spades was brilliant. The man's face and hand form point/counterpoint, which is similarly echoed in the color and pattern of the shirt and jacket working with the same on the card.

Well...there you go!! Pretty doggone good for your first time using a softbox. Personally, I LIKE the way using just one softbox or one umbrella can look in smaller, indoor rooms like the one above. Using a plain wall as a background can work wonderfully. As braineack mentioned,the texturing of the drywall and any wall imperfections must always be kept in mind when shooting indoors in a place like the one above; what I have found over the years is that it's important to be aware of the subject-to-background distance and the focal length and f/stop used when a textued interior wall is being used as the background. If the subject is far enough away from the wall, and the f/stop and subject-to-wall distance is all "right", then the wall can look a lot like seamless paper. However, if the subject is pretty close to the wall, or the focal length is short and thus a fairly wide-view of the body is how the shot is framed, or the lens focal length is short (or any combo of these factors exists), then the wall will show its texture or imperfections.

Shooting at 35mm from say 10 feet at f/8 versus shooting at 85mm at longer range at f/4 will make different wall renderings! When you are in-close and short focal length and small f/stops, the wall can "show up" too much at times.

The thing is though, the light fall-off and how the light hits the subject AND how it hits the wall behind; all of these things can be controlled by the photographer, and at times, the fall-off from liht to dark can make for a good 3-D POP! feeling of the subject abaginst the background. So, a hairlight or a separation light or accent light might not be needed at all. Hairlighting often looks "worked" or "strained", or when done badly, a hairlight might scream out "Multiple lights were used for this photo!".

You did pretty well.

 

[jeytee]

I've nominated #1 for POTM, September, 2017.

The light, the pose, the colors, the patterning, all working together. The choice of wearing that shirt and jacket with the Ace of Spades was brilliant. The man's face and hand form point/counterpoint, which is similarly echoed in the color and pattern of the shirt and jacket working with the same on the card.

Wow wow wow. I've always seen you around the forums giving out critiques and comments so for you to think mine is good enough to nominate is an honour to be honest haha. Thank you! I'm not sure if anyone will vote for it, but I really appreciate it.

 

[jeytee]

I've nominated #1 for POTM, September, 2017.

The light, the pose, the colors, the patterning, all working together. The choice of wearing that shirt and jacket with the Ace of Spades was brilliant. The man's face and hand form point/counterpoint, which is similarly echoed in the color and pattern of the shirt and jacket working with the same on the card.

Well...there you go!! Pretty doggone good for your first time using a softbox. Personally, I LIKE the way using just one softbox or one umbrella can look in smaller, indoor rooms like the one above. Using a plain wall as a background can work wonderfully. As braineack mentioned,the texturing of the drywall and any wall imperfections must always be kept in mind when shooting indoors in a place like the one above; what I have found over the years is that it's important to be aware of the subject-to-background distance and the focal length and f/stop used when a textued interior wall is being used as the background. If the subject is far enough away from the wall, and the f/stop and subject-to-wall distance is all "right", then the wall can look a lot like seamless paper. However, if the subject is pretty close to the wall, or the focal length is short and thus a fairly wide-view of the body is how the shot is framed, or the lens focal length is short (or any combo of these factors exists), then the wall will show its texture or imperfections.

Shooting at 35mm from say 10 feet at f/8 versus shooting at 85mm at longer range at f/4 will make different wall renderings! When you are in-close and short focal length and small f/stops, the wall can "show up" too much at times.

The thing is though, the light fall-off and how the light hits the subject AND how it hits the wall behind; all of these things can be controlled by the photographer, and at times, the fall-off from liht to dark can make for a good 3-D POP! feeling of the subject abaginst the background. So, a hairlight or a separation light or accent light might not be needed at all. Hairlighting often looks "worked" or "strained", or when done badly, a hairlight might scream out "Multiple lights were used for this photo!".

You did pretty well.

Thank you again! I kinda cheated and read the book Light Science and Magic beforehand to try to emulate it haha. Yes I noticed the imperfections as well so I guess I would do well to try to further separate the subject and background next time since I do have a 85mm (and hopefully a stool). I'll have to find an area with more space however because the area I was shooting in barely had enough space for to back up with the 35mm never mind the 85mm. Thanks for all the advice btw. I'll try to take all this advice to make a dynamite image next time