Need Tips for Outdoor Portraits

[barefoot]

A friend of mine would like me to take some family portraits in a local park for her holiday greetings. I am just getting my feet wet and have virtually no equipment to speak of and so much yet to learn. I live in Central Florida, which is mostly bright and sunny and have discussed with her the possibility of taking the photos under the cover of trees?

Can anyone give me a few tips on how to make these shots come off as nicely as possible? While I know my way around Photoshop on an intermediate level, obviously we want them as nice as I can manage SOOC.

I have a Nikon D3000, no additional flash and have really only one lens to work with (other than the kit lens) - 55-200 1.4-5.6G. I have a tripod, can pick up a gray card if you think I need it for this and can probably manage a white reflector before the date she'd like to do this. Like I said, virtually no equipment to speak of.

Help! LOL

We are dealing with kiddos in this, with that in mind, what time of day would be best?

How would I set up a reflector under the cover of trees?

Distance and aperature?

Anything else you might find helpful would be nice. Sorry for the total noob questions.

Thanks in advance!

 

[tirediron]

First of all, I probably wouldn't shoot under the cover of trees unless the canopy was solid. One thing you DON'T want is the dappled light that you get from the sun shining through branches and leaves.

The way I would approach this would be to find a nice, quiet open area with an appropriate background (look for something homogenous such as a hedge) and position your subjects well in front (ideally 15 - 20') and then place the camera at an appropriate distance in front of the subjects.

I would go with a focal length in the ~100mm range, and select an aperture that will ensure sharp focus (Search "depth of field table") for all of the subjects.

Ideally, I would use the morning golden hour (probably starting about 45-60 minutes after sunrise), but if that doesn't work, than go for evening light.
Good luck.

 

[Big Mike]

Getting your subjects out of the sun and into some shade, is a very good idea. Under trees can be great, but watch out for areas of dappled sunlight peeking through the trees, that can ruin your shot.

Try to find a place that is shady, but is also fairly open to an area of sky that doesn't have the sun in it. That sky will be your light source.

Using a reflector can be a good idea, but you'd need a really large reflector for group shots. If you can find an area with good enough light, you may not need the reflector. If you do use a reflector, you'll need someone to hold it for you.

If you don't understand how to out-think your camera's light meter to get proper exposure, then getting a grey card would probably be a good idea.

 

[MLeeK]

Shoot about an hour before sunset when the light is getting soft and the sun is not over head. That will help immensely with your sun problems.
A piece of that foam core board that kids use for science fair projects can make a great reflector if you need to push some more light into faces. Cheap and easy!
Aperture equal to or greater than the number of subjects in the scene. 6 people=f/7.1...
Shutter speed of at least 1/125 if the kids sit still and pose. If they don't then at least 1/250.
That combined and shooting in the soft evening light will push your ISO up. Don't be afraid to use a higher ISO, but make SURE you are exposing properly or JUST SLIGHTLY overexposing. If you raise exposure in any way in post it will cause noise. If you reduce it will hide noise issues.

 

[barefoot]

Thank you for everything so far. You have given me a couple of things to read up on and get a better understanding of (tirediron - depth of field table, Big Mike - out-thinking the camera's light meter, MLeek - just a bit more understanding of aperature, shutter speed and ISO) before going forward.

I am grateful to be able to pull from your experience and knowledge Cheers!

 

[gsgary]

Try using your popup flash for fill light because that is about all it is good for

 

[momo3boys]

I'm still learning about photography but I know a lot about kiddos. Sunset may be great for lighting, (minus the off color cast you may get from the sky), but if you are dealing with younger children, not so much. Mid-morning is best for children. They are fresh, clean(er), and not so tired and crabby. Just from experience.

 

[MLeeK]

Try using your popup flash for fill light because that is about all it is good for

Gary has a good point there. As long as your family isn't against something for a backdrop (against a wall or a bush or something that a shadow can fall on) the pop up flash makes a pretty darned good fill.
You will PROBABLY want to put in a "flash exposure compensation" of -1/2 stop or so just to tame it down. You can also soften it by putting a layer or two of white tissue over it.
Take your time. If you must shoot in the harsher light look for open shade-like the back side of a large building, where it isn't mottled. Use your pop up flash so you don't get raccoon eyes. Let your friend know you are experimenting and if today doesn't work out could they do over a few times to get perfect?
You'll do best if you are sure you have time, you talk with them and relax instead of WORRYING about what you can or can't do. They will also do best if you talk with them and relax. You will get more of THEM instead of that posed perfect shot that doesn't show who they and their children really are.
Have fun doing it. Get silly and enjoy your friends. The pictures will be INFINITELY better because of it!

 

[KmH]

How would I set up a reflector under the cover of trees?

You don't.

You have your subjects just inside solid open shade. You, the camera, and the reflector(s) are out in the direct sunlight.

The open sky is used as your main light. Be careful, open sky tends to add a slight blue cast to your photos, since it's blue.

Using the popup flash is a viable solution for some fill light. You can fix any 'red eye' it produces post process. In your D3000 camera menus you can set the flash to less than full power. The open sky is your main light source, not the popup.
I'd start with 1/8 power.

 

[photo guy]

I would also think late afternoon just for a good time for the nice angle of natural light. Sunsets also make for nice shots with people shown in the photo looking at them.