Good idea, poor execution - HOW DO I IMPROVE THIS?

[jfrabat]

Here's the deal; I wanted to get a picture of my office staff that would capture a bit of what we do everyday (personalities and such). So we all agreed to do this. And while I think the result is not HORRIBLE, I am not happy at all with the illumination. I was using 2 off camera speed lights (which is what I have as far as illumination equipment goes) plus natural light, but I still got too many shadows...

Any tips on (1) how Ii could have taken this shot better and (2) how to salvage what I did manage to get are greatly appreciated!

Some details about the shot:

Camera: Sony SLT-A77V
Lens: 18-80mm Zeiss SAL1680Z
Focal Length: 16mm
ISO 160
Shutter Speed: 1/60 sec
Apperture: f/16
Exposure Compensation +1
Tripod used
Two speedlights hanging from the ceiling



Please let me know what I SHOULD HAVE DONE and what I CAN do to salvage! you can critique the composition as well if you feel like it, by the way!

Felipe

 

[MLeeK]

You need to light each set of people evenly. It's salvageable with editing. Send it to me and I'll play!

 

[Derrel]

The issue is that it was shot with TOO SHORT of a focal length!!! That created the odd distortion in the corners, and the steep fall-off in the size of the people farther back. Those at more distance are much smaller than those who are closer. The cute girl with the purse, and the woman with the yellow hat and vest dominate, due to closeness, and the lens distortion makes the woman in yellow appear a bit odd. To salvage it??? Punch it up, a bit, like this. OR, maybe go wildly over-the-top, and make the colors REALLY strange! (Hay que sacar una foto come este de una distancia mas grande!)



here, in this sample, I adjusted the original, lightening up the blacks, and increasing the contrast thru a tone curve adjustment, then boosted the overall saturation 12 points, and applied an sRGB profile for web viewing.

 

[jfrabat]

Guys,

Thanks for your comments; as for the distance, unfortunately, the tripod is already se inside a closet, so that's as far back as it was gonna go... I do not mind so much having the two girls taking prominent positions (it kind of helps fill up the frame with people), but I do see what you mean (a telephoto would compress, bringing everything closer, which, in this case, it's good to keep scale). Anyway, I will take up MLeeK (my new TPF best friend!) up on her offer ONCE AGAIN! YOU ARE THE BEST!

I really appreciate all comments, as it is a learning experience for me! Thanks to both!

By the way, I posted straight from the camera, so I have done nothing to the pic yet... Will do so tonight when I get home!

Now, just wondering, what would happen if I get 3 shots from the same RAW and do a basic HDR merge from those 3 shots? Would it help even out the lighting? Or would it make everything look like crap?

Felipe

 

[jfrabat]

OK, how about something a bit m ore like this (a single RAW HDR with some other stuff done for good measure)?



Felipe