First portrait shots and post...Baby, sorry ;(

[kidchill]

So, I want to get into portraits and setup a little ghetto studio. I decided to first practice on my gf's kid....NOT a good idea!! Apparently 8 month olds don't like to sit still and love to play warrior while you're trying to shoot. CnC is welcome AND needed!!!


#1

#2

#3

#4

#5 (I love the high-key thing!!)

Let me know what works and what doesn't!! I was trying a one light setup, until it became obvious that he WASN'T gonna sit in one spot! I noticed some shadowing in some of the pics, but honestly, it's damn near unavoidable with this little guy!! Thanks for the time...

 

[Jedo_03]

Hi Chris...
Well - even when they're asleep, 8m young babies can't be still for long...
The shots you posted are good poses... "typical" but good...
pic 1 shows the little feller's personality - bloke needs a refill here..!!
Unsure whether your images have degraded in upload but you need to look at focus... esp 2 and 5... With moving kids (unavoidable) you perhaps should consider a smaller aperture to gain some DOF...
3, 4, 5 - consider reflecting some light subtly under his chin
Friend of mine has a toddler-size mannequin he found in a rubbish bin back of our local shopping centre - he practises his lighting with that: I use a large doll that belongs to my grandaughter.
Hope that helps
Jedo

 

[boogaguy]

#2 is the winner here!
The last one makes him look like an alien.
With high key only the background needs to be white the kids face doesn't.
What happens is you lose all detail. If you cut some of the light to his face it could have preserved a lot of detail
and the photo would worked. With the face devoid of detail and washed out it brings too much emphasis to the eyes and well makes him look like the alien..... which isnt necessarily bad its just probably not the aesthetic you were going for!

 

[TrickyRic]

The first shot looks like a professional studio shoot. Shot 3 is pretty cool too, but isn't as 'lively'. I'd certainly focus more on the black background shoots for this project.

 

[maytay20]

#3 is my favorite! But the high key one is too much he looks like he is missing part of his head.

 

[boogaguy]

In #1 I think the light is too harsh.A light is need behind him or too the left of him.. Im not a studio portraiture guy but I can still tell a little..
He looks almost two dimensional with that harsh light which is a little too close to him I believe.

there is no shadow on his face.

From what Ive seen from good studio work there is some shadows needed on the face. Too many people I see think washing the person in light and removing shadows from the face is what makes studio lighting good.
Like I said i know nothing about lighting accept what I see in good vs. bad examples.

 

[Emerana]

I am going to have to agree to the alien comment on that last one.

I think over all you need more light. Your wb is off. Are you shooting raw? I find that the easiest to adjust wb whe developing raw.

With this age range, I really like to get them in a well lit (I am into natural light) area and use a narrow DOF and shoot them being theirselves. I think they are much easier that way (making babies/toddlers sit still and pose is really no fun and you often end up with odd expressions) and the parents tend to enjoy the photo more as it shows more of their personality.

 

[kellylindseyphotography]

The joys of doing child photography

The last one is bad, man. I agree with the above comments. Look at it again in a few days (with fresh eyes) and you will agree.

I like 1 and 3, though.