First attempt at Studio portraits

[imagesliveon]

Hi,


I finally completed my studio this week and took some test shots. I'm totally new to studio flash so my initial results were a bit hit and miss!


I have used a pait of Elinchrom heads. I used one of the Lastolite Hilite background putting one head inside the background and the other head supporting a small softbox.


For a first go I must say I'am pleased with my results...


Is there any points or tips you guys could give?


Mu subjects are my wonderful boys Hamish and Oliver

I would love some feedback on these please?




1.

Hamish and Oliver by Simon Clarkson Photography, on Flickr
2.

Cheeky Oliver 2013 by Simon Clarkson Photography, on Flickr
3.

Hamish and Oliver by Simon Clarkson Photography, on Flickr




Kind Regards

 

[shelby16]

I think #1 is my favorite. Very clear!

 

[tirediron]

Not bad at all for a first set, but I'm going to guess you've made a mistake fairly common to all those new to studio work, which is having your lights & modifiers too far from the subjects. I use the size of the modifier as a rough guideline to distance; for instance when I'm shooting with my portable right using a 30" Ezybox, the light is not more than 30" from the subject. The shadows in #1 are just a bit harsh which indicates lights farther away than necessary - the closer the softer.

As well, I would suggest changing the placement slightly. Move your key further left, so that it is say, 20-30 degrees camera right, and have your fill one stop below key 90 degrees camera left. The same applies for #2; note the way the right (camera left) side of his face is almost blown, but the opposite is in dark shadow? Shadow is good; we almost always want shadow, but perhaps not quite this much.

#3 is the best of the lot IMO, 'though I think the light on the hair might be just a touch hot. When shooting dark eyed subjects, it's often good to bring something like a tri-grip in close, just under their chins to bring more light into the eyes.

Just my $00.02 worth - your mileage may vary.

~John

 

[imagesliveon]

Thanks for the response John.

I will be having another go tomorrow and I'll utilise your advice. I'm shooting with twin Elinchrom 500 heads. One has the soft box and the other is pointing inside the Lastolite. If my Key light is at f16, should the light inside the Hilite be f8?

is 1/125 the most ideal shutter for this kind of photography?

kind regards and thanks again!

 

[thebasedsloth]

The shutter speed shouldn't matter at all for these types of photography, unless you bring it over 1/250 or to an extremely long shutter like 1" or something.
The flash becomes your shutter for this, pretty much.
Good job with the photos, by the way. They all came out really clear and strong

 

[tirediron]

Shutter-speed matters only insofar as it allows you to control ambient light in the room. I generally shoot at max sync (1/250 for me) in the studio to ensure that as much as possible, the only light affecting the exposure is that which over I have full control. I generally set my exposures for f8-11 on the key, so assuming that, your fill would be f5.6 -f8 (f8 to f16 is two stops).

 

[Thayli]

So crisp! What lens were you using for this if you don't mind me asking?

 

[imagesliveon]

Sure, it's a Canon 24-105 L f4 USM

 

[Thayli]

I have nothing more to say. To you. Ever.

(Until one day when I too own an L ).




Joking aside, that looks like a helluva lens. Congrats.