First try at people!

[MTphoto]

Hello all, recently got back into photography after many years and armed with a new camera, I took some test shots. By no means an expert and definitely looking to improve! Here are some shots.

All taken with a Canon R6 Mark II and a 50mm 1.4 VCM. My main thoughts are over exposure on the hair and maybe not quite tack sharp? This was my first time with the 50mm 1.4 and absolutely love the results.. sharp (when I get it right!) and amazing bokeh. Just need to find more opportunities to use it.

 

[DanOstergren]

Really, really good for a first try. Had you not said it was your first try, I would have assumed you had some experience with portraits.

Some things to note for the next try: Since she has such light hair, I would take care to position her or yourself in a way that puts something darker behind her head, such as how you did with the second shot. This will ensure that her hair doesn't disappear into the background like it does in the first shot. That said, you did a good job managing the exposure to retain that detail in the third shot, despite the background also being bright like her hair.
In terms of color/white balance, the skin tones are perhaps a little too orange for my liking, and I might adjust the white balance so it's not so orange if these were my photos.
Regarding her posture, for portraits you want to pay attention to make sure your subject isn't slouching, which can be a bit unflattering in a portrait.
You also want to watch how you frame/crop your shots. For example, in the last shot her hand is cut off, and her wrist is covering her fingers. In the future be aware of how you're framing things in order to avoid cropping things at an awkward point, and for that pose in the last shot I'd suggest directing her to place her left hand over her right wrist, instead of blocking her fingers with that wrist. You also want to pay attention to things like what's in her hands; in the second image it looks like she's holding what appears to be a key fob.

All in all, a great start. I hope you keep at it with portraits. If you like 50mm, I would also suggest looking into getting an 85mm lens. It's my favorite portrait focal length in a prime lens.

 

[MTphoto]

Really, really good for a first try. Had you not said it was your first try, I would have assumed you had some experience with portraits.

Some things to note for the next try: Since she has such light hair, I would take care to position her or yourself in a way that puts something darker behind her head, such as how you did with the second shot. This will ensure that her hair doesn't disappear into the background like it does in the first shot. That said, you did a good job managing the exposure to retain that detail in the third shot, despite the background also being bright like her hair.
In terms of color/white balance, the skin tones are perhaps a little too orange for my liking, and I might adjust the white balance so it's not so orange if these were my photos.
Regarding her posture, for portraits you want to pay attention to make sure your subject isn't slouching, which can be a bit unflattering in a portrait.
You also want to watch how you frame/crop your shots. For example, in the last shot her hand is cut off, and her wrist is covering her fingers. In the future be aware of how you're framing things in order to avoid cropping things at an awkward point, and for that pose in the last shot I'd suggest directing her to place her left hand over her right wrist, instead of blocking her fingers with that wrist. You also want to pay attention to things like what's in her hands; in the second image it looks like she's holding what appears to be a key fob.

All in all, a great start. I hope you keep at it with portraits. If you like 50mm, I would also suggest looking into getting an 85mm lens. It's my favorite portrait focal length in a prime lens.

Thanks so much for this. Yes my first time properly with portraits but probably aided by a little bit of past photography experience!

Everything you said makes sense... on the orange-ness.. yes I can absolutely see that. It's funny how things look so much more exaggerated when you re-look at things in the morning...! I used a lightroom preset and I think I tweaked the white balance too much.. I was going for a rustic sort of feel but probably over done it slightly.

Ah the 85mm...I did a lot of research before opting for the 50mm. I was very close to picking up the Canon 85mm 1.2 L lens but couldn't justify spending that money on a first portrait lens. There were probably cheaper options though! All of the comparison videos I watched comparing a 35mm, 50mm, and 85mm lens for this type of work I really preferred the 85mm results. Having said that, I did settle on a 24-105mm F4 L lens from Canon too. Mainly for my travel photography and general use, but I might try that one out for some portraits next and see what happens.

 

[DanOstergren]

Thanks so much for this. Yes my first time properly with portraits but probably aided by a little bit of past photography experience!

Everything you said makes sense... on the orange-ness.. yes I can absolutely see that. It's funny how things look so much more exaggerated when you re-look at things in the morning...! I used a lightroom preset and I think I tweaked the white balance too much.. I was going for a rustic sort of feel but probably over done it slightly.

Ah the 85mm...I did a lot of research before opting for the 50mm. I was very close to picking up the Canon 85mm 1.2 L lens but couldn't justify spending that money on a first portrait lens. There were probably cheaper options though! All of the comparison videos I watched comparing a 35mm, 50mm, and 85mm lens for this type of work I really preferred the 85mm results. Having said that, I did settle on a 24-105mm F4 L lens from Canon too. Mainly for my travel photography and general use, but I might try that one out for some portraits next and see what happens.

If you can't justify the f/1.2 version, the f/1.8 is still an excellent lens. You can't go wrong with it for portraits.

 

[smoke665]

Dan O pretty well summed it up above. I would agree these were excellent first time shots. You have a very good base to start from.

Adding to his comments, a quote often attributed to Shakespeare and biblical text, "the eyes are the windows to the soul". In portrait photography if you get the eyes right everything else falls in place. Shooting wide open creates challenges in catching eyes in sharp focus, and most glass is generally not the sharpest at either extreme of aperture. Nothing wrong with doing it, just be aware of the challenges. DOF is a function of aperture, distance to subject and focal length. Going to an 85mm or longer focal length allows you to achieve an equivalent FOV at a greater distance with more DOF. Also dont be afraid to use additional light, (flash or reflector) to get light into the eyes.

I prefer your 3rd shot (excluding the negatives already mentioned), because the lady is engaging the camera. Also, when posing, it is the photographer's job to pose/light the subject in the most flattering way. Posing a woman in a 3/4 view minimizes weight, as does posing against something like the fence in the third shot. Posture is something else to be aware of, back straight, no slouching.