help with composition

shutterbugmomma · Mar 11, 2012

I am still working hard on studio shooting (who knew lighting could be so challenging!) Anyway, here are a few shots I would like CC on, please.
All photos were taken with a EF 18-55 IS lens and studio lighting. I am not 100% happy with them, but unsure how to improve them. They were shot in RAW, but when I upload them to photobucket I have to convert to jpg and they lose quality. Thank you for your time and comments!

F/5, 24mm, ISO 400, I don't like the composition of this one....maybe if I had been more at an angle? Also the black background isn't absolute black....lighting error? Can I fix it with PS and keep it looking natural?

F/5.6, 55 mm, ISO 400

F5.6, 51mm, ISO 400

F5.6, 47 mm, ISO 400

gsgary · Mar 11, 2012

They are all a bit soft are you shooting with continuos lighting ? if so your shutter speed is too slow

ann · Mar 11, 2012

A bit too close on most of them, the last one. the circles and the baseboard are very distracting. The point of interest should be the child.

Looking down on a child is generally not very successful imho, There is a sense of distortion

And i agree they have a soft feeling.

KmH · Mar 11, 2012

gsgary said:
They are all a bit soft are you shooting with continuos lighting ? if so your shutter speed is too slow

Yep.
EXIF shows shutter speeds of 1/25, 1/30, and 1/40.

You want to the shutter speed to be quicker, like no longer than 1/100 of a second.

shutterbugmomma · Mar 11, 2012

I am using continuous lighting. I have a slave flash, but I am working on just one thing at a time.

Thank you Keith. I will go back to the studio tomorrow and try that.

Derrel · Mar 11, 2012

ann said:
A bit too close on most of them, the last one. the circles and the baseboard are very distracting. The point of interest should be the child.

Looking down on a child is generally not very successful imho, There is a sense of distortion

And i agree they have a soft feeling.

Ann,
The set design used in the last photo, with the fake baseboard/floor moulding....that is a part of the new "look" popular among new photogs who do child photography...they typically use sections of "fake" flooring, and a "fake" baseboard set at the bottom of a small "fake" wallpapered wall...it's a much newer "method" than you or I were ever exposed to...this has crept into photography since d-slr's hit about the $799 price point, with the huge influx of people looking for cheap sets that are portable, and easily changed out.