Indoor family Christmas photoshoot?

[ababysean]

oh the ceilings are 12 foot tall and the walls are blood red! effing hell.
Why did I even agree to this?

oh and their house is not large at all, maybe 1000 sq foot. grrrrrrrrrrr!

 

[ababysean]

so this was a bigger disaster then I thought.
Her house was NOT well suited for photos AT.ALL.

We tried outside but all I saw were the rooftops and neighbors pool ladders over the fence, along with some power lines and other crap.

It was bad.

Then the kids started going NUTS! lol
I'm used to kids, usually I can get a few good pictures even if the kid is going crazy. But now I also had the background issue to deal with, poor lighting, and clutter everywhere.

blah. enjoy the laugh.

I tried to save a few by putting them together and sort of making a Christmas card out of a few photos...

This is after a 20 minute meltdown.

and the only one that could LISTEN was the oldest boy. What part of "Mom, Dad, just look up and smile, let me handle the kids" is not clear??? Every picture either mom or dad was trying to correct a child. That is MY job. I tell them this. Just look at me and smile until I tell you not to! lol

this is the best one. sigh

this was the look. in 99% of the pictures.

come on kid, give me something!

and why are they all in black and white? see that table? it is RED, and reflective. color casts like a #@% oh and their walls, painted DARK RED NEON... WTF?? I could not get away from the RED!

 

[NikonNewbie]

oh you poor girl...:hug::
I know what you mean...asking people just to look at you while you get everyone else on the same page...for me it's the damn kids..they are always looking at each other to make sure everyone else is smiling...I want to patent a new pill...like a non narcotic xanax and I want to call it "SITTHEHELLSTILLYALITTLE****" and market it to photographers to add to sippy cups. wanna buy some?
lol

 

[Geaux]

For the situation, I think you did REALLY well. Most of them are overexposed, but I've noticed that's your style after some posts of yours.

I'm sure the parents will be happy with them

 

[gsgary]

I must have posted this about 3-4 times already in thread similar to this so if anyone is tired of it, I'm sorry lol.

This was at 1/10 shutter speed on a tri pod. Indoor shots are doable without a flash, I just had to shot A LOT to get a shot where no one moved even a little. With your flash you could just bounce it and get nice even lighting. Or if you want to do off camera lighting and have time you could order the impact 60" umbrella from BH for $30. A lot of people will say that it's too big for a sb600, but regardless it will still throw a big soft light.

This one is soft

 

[gsgary]

oh the ceilings are 12 foot tall and the walls are blood red! effing hell.
Why did I even agree to this?

oh and their house is not large at all, maybe 1000 sq foot. grrrrrrrrrrr!

If your charging you should know straight away how to shoot it

 

[ababysean]

I did charge, but I usually shoot outside. I was not even going to agree to shooting in her house, but she gave me a guilt trip about how it is cold and she has the baby, blah blah blah.....
I worked with what I had, but I'm not agreeing to shooting in a situation like this ever again.

 

[NikonNewbie]

I did charge, but I usually shoot outside. I was not even going to agree to shooting in her house, but she gave me a guilt trip about how it is cold and she has the baby, blah blah blah.....
I worked with what I had, but I'm not agreeing to shooting in a situation like this ever again.

did you ever end up taking any of them indoors? or are the ones with the brick wall indoors? they look outdoors

 

[Tbini87]

Hey man I know how you feel and have been there before. Looks like you might have been able to get enough good shots to make them happy. I have also started realizing that people who aren't willing to make much effort in helping you may not necessarily be too picky with the end results of the pics. They are usually happy with a few usable pictures of the whole fam that they would not have been able to get on their own. Glad you got that behind you... now back to shooting outside in your comfort zone!

 

[ababysean]

none inside, well one.

The inside of the house was horrible. Not dirty, but not clean and there was junk everywhere. The walls were MIRRORED! so really almost anywhere I stood you'd be able to see me in the photo.... lol

 

[NikonNewbie]

none inside, well one.

The inside of the house was horrible. Not dirty, but not clean and there was junk everywhere. The walls were MIRRORED! so really almost anywhere I stood you'd be able to see me in the photo.... lol

oh no!!!
didn't mirrored walls go out in the 80's? lol
that really stinks...but for what you got they look ok, I know by seeing your previous posts that this wasnt your best...no offense...but you were clearly stressed about it too, tell them to put layers on and go outside. lol

 

[mrpink]

I'm sure the parents will be happy with them

Really?

Not bashing your work here ababy, I know what this type of situation is like.

But... really?







p!nK

 

[gsgary]

I wouldn't charge for them

 

[ababysean]

what? you wouldnt?
I drove 40+ mins out of my way, took time away from my family (husband just got back from Afghanistan after a year deployment on Tuesday) because she BEGGED me to get pictures for her family.
After I told her that I would suggest going to a local park, with pleasing backgrounds and places for kids to run free, she begged me to shoot them in her yard, which I was told was free and clear of distractions... um no.

If she doesnt want/like them, I won't get anything, but if she wants to use them, I am charging a very LOW fee of 5 dollars per digital file, with reproduction rights up to 8*10. FIVE BUCKS.

If she wants prints the pricing is as follows
4*6 3 bux
5*7 3.50
8*10 5.00

so while I did not charge a session fee, or creative fee, I sure as hell am going to charge if she thinks they are good enough for her to print/use for christmas cards.

I could have went without this experience.

I've changed my prices to as follows, if I ask you (newborns I'm asking for now) equals free, if you contact me, equals charge. And as you can see I'm charging basically NOTHING....

 

[Benjhouston]

Your price sounds right to me. And I sure hope she buys them because some would look just right for christmas cards or wall photos.