new photographer seeking advise!

bostoncowgirl · Jul 18, 2011

Hi all!

I am very new (very) to the photography world. I don't have the money to buy alot of equipment, but have a pretty decent camera (canon rebel). My question is: what is the mandatory equipment you all think I need for mostly portraits and outdoor photography? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Also- I took a few aspiring models out last week for a quick shoot. It was my first time shooting in anything other than auto setting (lame, I know). Most of the pics came out blurry- is this maybe because my apeture was too low? (I shot most of them at f2.8).

Thanks again!

tirediron · Jul 18, 2011

Mandatory equipment? Camera, lens, memory card and a way to process & display the images. Everything else is a bonus. Nice to have things include reflectors and lights for better exposure, filters such as polarizing and neutral-density/graduated neutral density, a tripod.

With respect to your question on the blurry images, without seeing them, it's really very difficult to say. It could have been a focus/depth-of-field issue, a shutter-speed issue, or... please post a couple with the EXIF data intact.

DiskoJoe · Jul 18, 2011

pics? whats the style of your motor and what other lens do you have? And if you are out with models and have lens that open to f2.8 why are you asking for advice? Seriously. This does not sound like beginner talk.

jgooz · Jul 18, 2011

i'd like to see some photo's cuz im intrigued now. like tired says could be a few different things. as far as gear goes, its pretty simple. just go out and experiment with what you have. train the eye before you get into the technical crap imo. better composition leads to more room on your hard drive

KmH · Jul 18, 2011

What you need for portraits is lighting, and posing knowledge.

For lighting outside you don't need much equipment. In fact, you can use some pretty simple reflectors (like white foamboard) for fill lighting, diffusers for creating open shade, and maybe some black foamboard for subtractive lighting.

They make relatively inexpensive 5-in-1 reflectors. ePhoto Photography Studio Photo & Video Light Accessories 5 in 1 Collapsible Multi Photography Oval Disc Studio Reflector

bostoncowgirl · Jul 18, 2011

Thanks for the advice!

I tried uploading a couple, but for some reason it isnt working. I keep getting a "!" circle that says "undefined"...???? This is the only way I was able to upload them. Thanks again.

http://i151.photobucket.com/albums/s136/bostoncowgirl/Picture249.jpg

http://i151.photobucket.com/albums/s136/bostoncowgirl/Picture514.jpg

http://i151.photobucket.com/albums/s136/bostoncowgirl/Picture163.jpg

http://i151.photobucket.com/albums/s136/bostoncowgirl/Picture587.jpg

tirediron · Jul 18, 2011

bostoncowgirl said:
Thanks for the advice!

I tried uploading a couple, but for some reason it isnt working. I keep getting a "!" circle that says "undefined"...???? This is the only way I was able to upload them. Thanks again.

There

tirediron · Jul 18, 2011

These are missed focus; look carefully and in each one you'll see a sharp area. In #1, it's the leaves, lower right foreground, in #4, it's the tire-tread. F2.8 gives very shallow DoF; ensure your focused on the eyes.

jgooz · Jul 19, 2011

what he said, also the blonde doesn't look very relaxed, try talking a little bit while you shoot a few test shots for light and comp etc..., a very relaxed subject will make an amazing difference.

MichelleP · Jul 19, 2011

I like #2.
#1, #3, &#4 are out of focus and underexposed and awkwardly posed.
I'm new too but just my 2 cents

Good job venturing out of auto though...I know its more complicated than I thought at first and Im thankful for a place like this to learn. Keep shooting...not a bad start

jgooz · Jul 19, 2011

i like the stage of #1, would seem like a cool place to shoot. old stone structures rock!

bostoncowgirl · Jul 19, 2011

Thanks Tirediron!

I know they are all out of focus. We are going out again tomorrow to reshoot. Thanks everyone for your advice, stay tooned for some more (hopefully improved) shots!

Thanks again!

mjhoward · Jul 19, 2011

bostoncowgirl said:
Thanks Tirediron!

I know they are all out of focus. We are going out again tomorrow to reshoot. Thanks everyone for your advice, stay tooned for some more (hopefully improved) shots!

Thanks again!

Don't forget to bump the ISO up past 200 when you decrease the aperture or you'll have dark pics.

kundalini · Jul 19, 2011

One posing suggestion for your next outing. All the photos posted above have their shoulders square to the lens one way (0°) or the other (90°). Find the happy middle ground at ~30-45°. Think lines and how to create them for a more dynamic pose. This can also be interpreted as the models should have a forward shoulder, a rearward shoulder, a higher shoulder and a lower shoulder all in the same pose to the camera. In order to accomplish this, start with the feet. Have a look at this tutorial.

The Rules Of Good Portraiture

Derrel · Jul 19, 2011

kundalini said:
One posing suggestion for your next outing. All the photos posted above have their shoulders square to the lens one way (0°) or the other (90°). Find the happy middle ground at ~30-45°. Think lines and how to create them for a more dynamic pose. This can also be interpreted as the models should have a forward shoulder, a rearward shoulder, a higher shoulder and a lower shoulder all in the same pose to the camera. In order to accomplish this, start with the feet. Have a look at this tutorial.

The Rules Of Good Portraiture

What do you mean "The Rules of Good Portraiture"? There are no rules. She ought not to read anything like that! She's a beginner,and reading about "rules" and "portraiture" is just stupid. All those rules are old-fashioned, stupid, pointless, idiotic codification of visual ideas that only stereotype women, and men, and make every single reader's portraits look JUST LIKE THE AUTHOR'S work! If she reads The Rules of Good Portraiture, she will be selling out to The Establishment, and losing her identity as a self-taught, woman-with-a-camera, who learned everything she knows all on her own, without reading about rules, and concepts, and ideas, and design elements and other useless chit like that.

No, do not read The Rules of Good Portraiture, because reading it would constitute reading a formal, written treatise, and one written by an old,angry white male who has training in photography. If you read too many articles like that one, you'll risk your status as a hobby photographer, and might begin to approach the status of the true amateur photographer. Ask around here on TPF--there are a lot of people here who will tell you that articles about "rules" and "design ideas" in portraiture are just a bunch of Bull Chit.