Cynthia, my first shoot! (Pic Heavy/Need CC!)

Austin Greene · May 30, 2012

UPDATE: Better edits posted at bottom of this page thanks to some great suggestions!

So as many of you from the other parts of TPF know, up to now my game has exclusively been wildlife/nature photography. Recently, however, I thought I'd give portraits a go, more out of curiosity then anything else. So I put out some flyers asking for volunteer models, and I had my first legitimate shoot yesterday (TFP basis). It was also my first time getting to experiment with OCF/reflectors outdoors in a portraiture setup. It was a great experience overall, though I ended up having to ditch the area I scouted ahead of time and shoot in an unfamiliar location since the model got lost, that threw me a bit off guard. Also the model brought multiple outfits, something I was not expecting! The shoot ended up lasting three hours, and there are about 40 acceptable photos, of which I've chosen my top 8. Hardly any editing has been done, so there is room for correction. The theme was "Summer."

Any CC you could offer would be greatly appreciated, I know its a bit heavy image wise, but this is a whole new ball-game for me so every bit counts :lol:

If you don't feel like giving any CC, at least let me know if you have a favorite! Right off the bat I know some of the backgrounds are distracting, which wouldn't have been a problem with my original location. Luckily I have two more shoots in the next two weeks to test out my previous location.

Hope you enjoy them! How did I do?

1. My CC: Background is a bit distracting, particularly the bright patch to the left. Creeper leaf in the top right. I do like the overall pose and the eyes.

Cynthia8 by TogaLive, on Flickr

2. My CC: Horizon could be higher. Undecided on if I like the foot position. I do like the eyes and coy smile.

Cynthia7 by TogaLive, on Flickr

3. Not my favorite shot, but one the model wanted. I enjoy the eyes, and the half smile, but think the overall composition could be better.

Cynthia6 by TogaLive, on Flickr

4. Probably one of my favorite shots, and one I knew I wanted from the start. Could have used a wider aperture to smooth the background some. I like the flow of her body ending with the bright heels.

Cynthia5 by TogaLive, on Flickr

5. My biggest issue with this shot is the tree, its just incredibly annoying. Besides that, I like it. Maybe should have brought in a reflector for her lower legs.

Cynthia4 by TogaLive, on Flickr

6. Taken between setups, its more of a candid moment. The background top right is a tad distracting to my eyes.

Cynthia3 by TogaLive, on Flickr

7. My favorite of the shoot! I wanted this shot from the start and went for it. My only issue is the tiny clump of clovers to the top right, and maybe I should have had her thumb higher up or on the rim of the suit.

Cynthia2 by TogaLive, on Flickr

8. Golden hour! Another favorite. Its quite warm, but I wanted a summery-shot. I might clone out those stray hairs sometime.

Cynthia1 by TogaLive, on Flickr

Thanks, and keep shootin'!

Toga

Designer · May 30, 2012

#1 I'm not keen on the direction of the model's eyes, and you should probably think about using a touch-up software to smooth out some imperfections, and you can simply crop out the stray leaf.
#2 Very good as it is. I can't think of anything to do here, and it is a very good example of a horizontal format working perfectly.
#3 Probably should have been in portrait format, and you can help this shot by cropping the right side.
#4 Pretty good, but if you want to crop, then crop the right side.
#5 Crop the tree
#6 Very nice! Crop the right to a point midway between her left elbow and the current edge, then clone out the red spot.
#7 A little too much grass above her right hand, bring the crop down some.
#8 Also very good. Clone out a few hairs, bring the top crop down halfway (just below the center bright spot), and use your new touchup software again.

michael9000000 · May 30, 2012

Hi Cynthia!

I did my own edit of this photo... For comparison, my edit is on top, and your original is on the bottom...

For photo #1, I made the following adjustments:

- I used the clone stamp tool to get rid of the dark underarm razor stubble.

- I made a slight color correction because I felt the photo was just too warm.

- I also de-saturated the photo to take away the heavy green glare of the background.

- I bumped up the brightness and contrast to highlight the model's skin tones.

- I cropped the photo from the bottom right to the top left, keeping the watermark while eliminating the creeper leaf. I think this also balanced out the framing a little bit, but that's a matter of opinion.

I hope you like this edit! You did a great job overall!

Robin Usagani · May 30, 2012

OK, here is my CC as you requested. I hope you understand what im saying. To start, I am almost never a fan of putting the subject in the shade WHILE your background is in the full sun. Maybe for photojournalism is fine. Since you are shooting a model, you can direct them. Lets start with the first one. If i am not mistaken, the sun is probably on your back right. Remember, when the sun is not right above you, you have 2 sides of trees. The sunny side or the shadow side. Pick the shadow side tree as your background. That way your subject will be the bright spot. Use this method when you shoot without a flash too. Remember, you are trying your best not to have neon green from bright sun on the tree. Below your image is a sample of what im talking about. Also, personally when I flash it, I rather the subject be hit by the sun (or the sun dappled by the tree) from the back. This way the sun will wrap around the subject and it makes the WB mixed with the flash so your WB on your subject is not super different than your background.

2. Same CC as 1

Cynthia7 by TogaLive, on Flickr

3: Same as 1. I can really see the distortion of the 50mm.

Cynthia6 by TogaLive, on Flickr

4. You almost have mostly shadow part of the tree in the background... just not quite. If the subject is hit by the sun from the back, it will be better.

Cynthia5 by TogaLive, on Flickr

5. Much better. I think the direction of the sun is from her back, which is typically what you want. It will be nicer if the sun hits her from the back.

Cynthia4 by TogaLive, on Flickr

6. A little soft. Could be warmer.

Cynthia3 by TogaLive, on Flickr

7. My favorite. All the color looks natural. It is not like other shots where you flash the subject in the shadow and your background is a lot warmer.

Cynthia2 by TogaLive, on Flickr

8. Perfect placement of the sun. Maybe ask your subject to move back even more so instead of getting hit by full sun, you get dappled sun so it is not as intense. Find where you see the edge of the shadows of the leafs. Put the shadow right on her head so you have softer sun.

Cynthia1 by TogaLive, on Flickr

I hope you understood what I was saying. Go here for more samples of what I am talking about.
USAGANI PHOTOGRAPHY: Beautiful Courtney

michael9000000 · May 30, 2012

Hi Cynthia!

I did my own edit of this photo... For comparison, my edit is on top, and your original is on the bottom...

Photo #2 was pretty amazing, straight out of the camera. I made the following (VERY) minor adjustments:

- I made a slight color correction because I felt the photo was a tiny bit too warm.

- I de-saturated the photo slightly to reduce to background glare.

- I bumped up the brightness and contrast to highlight the model's skin tones.

- I bumped up the shadows slightly to add a little bit of extra texture to the model's hair.

- In my humble opinion, I thought that the model and background were tilted a little too much to the right, so I cropped the photo diagonally to change the horizon. The cropping schewed the watermark, so I eliminated it with the clone stamp tool. I hope you don't mind. You can just add another watermark to this edit if you choose.

I hope you like what I did! Great job!

Austin Greene · May 31, 2012

Thanks for all the wonderful CC! I wasn't expecting to see edits, but man is it a welcome surprise. Also Schwetty I really appreciate the detailed critique on each image, especially the comparisons with your images. I feel like I've got a clear idea of how and what I need to do for my next shoot this Saturday.

As for these images, I've posted my edits below. Didn't mess with the crops, mainly cloning and adjusting the color. What do you all think? A simple, "better" or "worse" would suffice if your not feeling detailed

P.S: I also included another image which wasn't in the original post, its at the bottom of the post.

1.

IMG_4741-Final by TogaLive, on Flickr

2.

IMG_4764-Final by TogaLive, on Flickr

3.

IMG_4831-Final by TogaLive, on Flickr

4.

IMG_4891-Final by TogaLive, on Flickr

5.

IMG_4897-Final by TogaLive, on Flickr

6.

IMG_4908-Final by TogaLive, on Flickr

7. Flickr is complaining, I can't upload anymore until Friday :/

IMG_4921-Final by TogaLive, on Flickr

8.

IMG_4953-Final by TogaLive, on Flickr

NEW PHOTO:

9.

IMG_4875-FInal by TogaLive, on Flickr

GeorgieGirl · May 31, 2012

Cleaning up the underarm, yes!!!

She's quite a beautful girl and looks like she likes the camera. If you can have another session with her it would be a win for both of you.

#2 is my fav of the set.

yerlem · May 31, 2012

#2 is my favourite, she has a softer expression, and I think that suits her better than the sexy look

DiskoJoe · May 31, 2012

I hate o say it but the bikini shots looks so out of place. Swimsuits need water!!!!!

Also in the first shot you see remnants of armpit hair. Not necessarily the best pose.

On a side note which has nothing to really do with your photography or poses. I really dont think she looks good with the lip ring. Her look seems to cute and mainstream to pull it off.

ChristianGrattan · May 31, 2012

I think you did a great job.

I want to commend you for showing the initiative and putting out flyers and stuff. This will only lead to more good things.

I have a couple of follow up questions:

Did you have source images as a jumping off point? This might have been difficult since you changed the location.

Also how was your rapport with the model? Did you have fun on the shoot? Was she comfortable?

Austin Greene · May 31, 2012

First off I just want to say I'm really enjoying all of the CC! Its full of great critique and comments alike, and I've got a laundry list of things to keep in mind for the next shoot

Keep it coming!

DiskoJoe said:
I hate o say it but the bikini shots looks so out of place. Swimsuits need water!!!!!

Also in the first shot you see remnants of armpit hair. Not necessarily the best pose.

On a side note which has nothing to really do with your photography or poses. I really dont think she looks good with the lip ring. Her look seems to cute and mainstream to pull it off.

I know what you mean! Unfortunately the nearby creek literally is a toxic waste sight (nasty, green, and full of heavy metals), and the nearest beach is 4 hours away. When she said she wanted to do some bikini shots I mentioned that it might look out of place, but we gave it a go regardless. I suppose I was more looking to replicate warm days on campus when ladies head out to tan on the grass then a beach setup. I did let her know at the end of the day that if she wanted more "beach" themed shots I'd be up to do a location shoot.

Did you get to check out the edit of the first shot? Problem solved?

As for the lip ring, I think its more personal opinion than anything. There were a couple shots where she took it out, and I'm in your boat that I think they look better. But it does add a personal touch, giving the photos some of her personality.

ChristianGrattan said:
I think you did a great job.

I want to commend you for showing the initiative and putting out flyers and stuff. This will only lead to more good things.

I have a couple of follow up questions:

Did you have source images as a jumping off point? This might have been difficult since you changed the location.

Also how was your rapport with the model? Did you have fun on the shoot? Was she comfortable?

Thanks Christian! I'm enjoying the new challenges portraiture offers and can't wait for my next shoot on Saturday.

As for your questions:

If I'm correct in thinking by source images you mean other photographer's portraits I wanted to use for a working base, the answer would be yes and no. I did have several lined up for the original location that would have worked out great, but the second location's backgrounds just weren't lining up to accomplish the shots I initially wanted to. Still, I tried to follow some of the general qualities I liked in other shots I'd seen on the net and here in the forums. Numbers 9, 8, 7, and 4 weren't based on any specific examples, but just things I thought of on the spot and rolled with.

As for rapport with the model, initially there was none to speak of. We hadn't ever met before, and had only communicated via email. The start of the shoot was a little slow going as I tried to work out new shots for the new location, but once we got the ball rolling it just kept on going.

I had a blast! It was a learning experience involving a whole new area of shooting, and I especially enjoyed creating those shots that just popped into my head. Initially, I'd say she wasn't very comfortable. Her friend to bring along bailed on her, she was with two complete strangers (assistant and I) and she was obviously stressed from the heat (89F). As the day went on things definitely loosened up and she started to have some fun with the camera right around the bikini shots. I think the best way of putting it would be that the shoot started with handshakes, and ended with smiling hugs all around, something I thought was a pleasant surprise.