My turn for CC at one of mmy fav places to shoot!

[tirediron]

Here's my general Lightroom workflow:
Level/straighten and crop (if I know for certain the required final image/print size).

Set WB (I use the XRite Colour Passport and/or Exposdisc so this is easy).

Adjust exposure - start with the overall brightness of the image, and pick a point (face, clothing, sidewalk, whatever) and adjust the exposure slider 'til it LOOKS right, then adjust your highlight and shadow sliders, and finally your white and black sliders.

Adjust colours

Bunch of other stuff as required....

When you're adjusting your exposure, as Derrel mentioned with WB, don't worry about the number, slider-position, curve, etc, but get it to look the way you want it. As you do each successive image in the set, choose the same point(s) to use when making the different adjustments, so that if the child's hair has just a hint of blown highlight on the crown, you adjust it so that it has that in each image.

Work on always doing the same things in the same order, and basing them off of the same (or as nearly the same as possible) points in each image. This will help you acheive a much more consistant and professional look to your finished product.

 

[tirediron]

That last set is much better.

 

[RebeccaAPhotography]

Here's my general Lightroom workflow:
Level/straighten and crop (if I know for certain the required final image/print size).

Set WB (I use the XRite Colour Passport and/or Exposdisc so this is easy).

Adjust exposure - start with the overall brightness of the image, and pick a point (face, clothing, sidewalk, whatever) and adjust the exposure slider 'til it LOOKS right, then adjust your highlight and shadow sliders, and finally your white and black sliders.

Adjust colours

Bunch of other stuff as required....

When you're adjusting your exposure, as Derrel mentioned with WB, don't worry about the number, slider-position, curve, etc, but get it to look the way you want it. As you do each successive image in the set, choose the same point(s) to use when making the different adjustments, so that if the child's hair has just a hint of blown highlight on the crown, you adjust it so that it has that in each image.

Work on always doing the same things in the same order, and basing them off of the same (or as nearly the same as possible) points in each image. This will help you acheive a much more consistant and professional look to your finished product.

Thanks! I'm def finding my work process order is not the best and am trying to do things differently. I normally look at a photo like it and start to edit complete a-z and call it a day. I think it was big mike who gave me a process that sounded better to how I do things. What i was going to do was go thru the whole set rate them, what ever doesn't get rated, gone. Keep only the 4-5 stars. Now go thru and crop straighten ALL, WB ALL, Exposure ALL.

I see that my process of how I do things currently is not right bc this is where im discovering that my white balance is off, exposure is off between different photos, if I had ONLY the photos Im editing or EDITED in a row it will be much easier to see if they are more uniform.

 

[Derrel]

There is a somewhat easier method as far as white balance and exposure. And that involves shooting the images at a pre-set white balance, and also keeping the exposure very close to the same, as you shoot sequences of pictures. If you keep the same WB and the same exposure across say, 25-frame sequences of shots, the processing is easier. You can adjust one key picture in Lightroom or ACR, and then hit COPY>SETTINGS, and then select the "similars", and then PASTE SETTINGS, and can "equalize" or "synchronize" the settings for groups of similar images, all very quickly. Shooting with the exposure in Manual mode is an easy way to make sure that the exposure stays the same across sequences of shots.

As you have surmised, if you have ONLY the "selected pictures" in a row,the above task of equalizing white balance and exposure DOES become much,much easier than when there are culls in between the selected good shots!

The whole idea when making the pictures (MAKING,not "taking"!) is to determine the optimal way to expose a scene. Take a minute or two to do that if you need to, but figure out the best way to expose each scene, and ONLY once you have the right exposure figured out, only then begin to SHOOT "real" pictures, and not just "test exposures". Shooting your posing sequences with the white balance set to a pre-set or custom white balance, and the exposure set identically will make editing much less of a chore.

If you want to be able to have consistent image processing, you need to take a couple of steps to ensure that the exposures are consistent, when making the pictures!

 

[amolitor]

Like Derrel says, don't overthink the white balance.

When you're presenting a "set" the white balance and overall look should be consistent -- at least within specific groups. The ones taken "at the lake" should all look about the same, and the ones taken "inside the studio" should all look about the same. This goes for white balance, contrast, sharpening, saturation, all the technical stuff. This will help the set cohere as a set, the photographs will feel good together. You're seeing white balance (lots of people literally can't or don't see it) which is the main thing.

When I saw the first lot you posted, I didn't consider them as a "set" at all -- largely because you'd made different choices for white balance in the color ones, and contrast in the b&w's -- and that's fine. I assumed you'd done a bunch of different things trying ideas and wanted to run them past us. I got no problem whatsoever with that.

Overall I think you've got a pretty good eye!

I like all the photos in here pretty well. I'm not in love with the "kids from above" look, but it's probably good to have a few of those in a set. Kids DO look cute looking up at you. Shooting mom from down low, so you could get on the kid's level -- not sure that was a great idea. Compromise and shoot from a little higher? Or have mom get down with her kids?

 

[RebeccaAPhotography]

You know what this just goes to show.... I need to come back on here more to get CC. I love love love to get CC, I learn SO SO SO much thru you guys and appreciate everything I get from yal! I dont see why folks get so so so defensive and dont take what you guys say seriously and learn from it! Once again Im def grateful