My Girlfriend. Come check out 1st shoot (No 56k)

SkWeEkiE · Sep 29, 2006

Hey everyone, i am brand new here (as you can see) and just recently got into the world of DSLR's. This was my first time shooting "Portraits" so please keep that in mind. I'd like to encourage everyone to be EXTREMELY critical because it is the only way i'll learn!

Setup: Front yard of my girlfriends house. I used two Home Depot construction lights to light the subject and background. No filters were used (because i didn't have them when the pics were taken), and the flash was used @ random, but i do not remember which pics used it.

Enjoy:
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8. (I stole this idea from another member here) hehe

Hyperion · Sep 29, 2006

Overall I think the shots are quite good. One thing that is putting me off though is that she has the same pose in 6 of the 8 shots. That could just be me thouh.

rp1600 · Sep 29, 2006

Nice shots for the first time out. in #4 I might have liked to have seen a little more light in her chest area. There's a harsh flash cutting across her neck. What did she think of the shots. That's the important thing

SkWeEkiE · Sep 29, 2006

Hyperion said:
Overall I think the shots are quite good. One thing that is putting me off though is that she has the same pose in 6 of the 8 shots. That could just be me thouh.

You know i honestly never really noticed until now. I guess it is a bit redundant huh? for next time i'll be sure to catch that!
Thanks for the comment!

rp1600 said:
Nice shots for the first time out. in #4 I might have liked to have seen a little more light in her chest area. There's a harsh flash cutting across her neck. What did she think of the shots. That's the important thing

She was glad when i was finally DONE shooting! haha, she was somewhat preturbed(sp?) with me taking SO MANY shots.
-She's not really happy with me and my camera right now because she says i spend too much time with it, so her comments about the shots were not directed towards "the outcome" but more on ARE YOU FINALLY DONE NOW?? :lol:

Thanks!

Big Mike · Sep 29, 2006

You are lucky to have such a lovely and willing model.

ARE YOU FINALLY DONE NOW

Remember, those halogen construction lights get really hot...I sure wouldn't want to be standing in front of them for too long.

I think you are off to a great start. Realizing that getting the light source off of the camera is something that most people never figure out. The light you are using is harsh or hard. It's coming directly from the rather small light source. Often, soft or diffused light looks better and won't give you such harsh shadows. There are plenty of ways of softening the light (try a search for soft box, diffusion panel etc.)...here is a great D.I.Y. site for that kind of stuff. http://www.diyphotography.net/ but again, remember that those lights get hot and you don't want to close them in or put them too close to anything.

SkWeEkiE · Sep 29, 2006

Big Mike said:
You are lucky to have such a lovely and willing model.

Remember, those halogen construction lights get really hot...I sure wouldn't want to be standing in front of them for too long.

I think you are off to a great start. Realizing that getting the light source off of the camera is something that most people never figure out. The light you are using is harsh or hard. It's coming directly from the rather small light source. Often, soft or diffused light looks better and won't give you such harsh shadows. There are plenty of ways of softening the light (try a search for soft box, diffusion panel etc.)...here is a great D.I.Y. site for that kind of stuff. http://www.diyphotography.net/ but again, remember that those lights get hot and you don't want to close them in or put them too close to anything.

Haha, excelent link! and about the light, i was aware of that, however, luckey for me she was actually cold that night, so the light provided her with all the heat she needed!
-But a true fact!

oldnavy170 · Sep 29, 2006

I think your shots are great but I am not fond of the poses!! I do however like the pose in #4. Its more natural. Keep up the good work!!!

df3photo · Sep 29, 2006

the only things i would say is to play with the posses a bit. the more you can get a girl to put curves into a pose the more feminen it looks... turn the hips turn the shoulders, curve her rist back (no fists, to masculan). and watch low lighting and harsh shadows, thats what they did in monster movies to make the monsters scarry....

zombiekilla · Sep 30, 2006

nice shots and a beautiful woman! its a good thing shaved her arm pits! :lmao:

mysteryscribe · Sep 30, 2006

Personally I like them all... For a first effort they are extremely well done. Overall your composition is very good. You did something most new to digital photographers don't do, you cropped, or shot them, in the correct verticle format.

She is a very nice looking young woman. which sure as heck doesn't hurt at all. The light is harsh but I like it. I am a fan of strong lighting, not everyone is. The heat thing indoors is absolutly correct, it is the only reason I never used direct lighting inside the stuido. I alway used stobe but only because it gave maximum light without the subject cringing.

Keep shooting and keep shooting her, Really good portraits are about more than light and dark. They are about how people feel when they see the portaits hanging on a wall. It is a Search for understanding of the person in the few minutes you have with them before you pull the trigger. Look for a familier expression or a pleasing, to your eye, body line. All of you portraits show a mood of the young woman not just a pretty smile.

Keep up the work it only gets better and these are already good.