Newbie, Ideas for photoshoot?

[madmumof2]

Hi. I'm new to the forum and pretty new to photography too. I've asked for help in the equipment section, and thought I would get some ideas from you here?

My friends are coming round mine on Saturday for an informal photo shoot. One is small and chubby and wants to dress up a bit, the other is tall and thin and wants to do sexier shots. Particularly the one backwards in the chair?

I wondered if there are any angles I shouldn't take a photo from, and if there are any cheap ways to get better lighting?

One of my friends has been ot the charity shop and bought some material so we can hang in against a wall, but that's about the only props we have sorted.

Has anyone got any ideas for any poses or basically ways to get great photos.

Thanks!

 

[puyjapin]

ive not done stuff like that b4 but if it was me id do the sexier shots with low light maybe and longer shutter speeds....maybe even use a few candles. Depending how still your subject can keep.... imho
looking forward to seeing the shots tho

 

[puyjapin]

on a tripod of course if u have one

 

[madmumof2]

I have a little tripod, I could put stand it up on a table. I'm still learning all the technical details. Low shutter speed will make the background slightly blurry won't it? And she will have to keep very still if she doesn't want to be a blur. High shutter speed will enable me to take sports photos with no blur. Is that right?

I'm still confused about Apeture. I have it on my camera but I don't notice any difference when I change it.

I'd love to post some of my favourite photos if I'm allowed?

 

[puyjapin]

lol, course your allowed...what camea do you use? Im quite new to it too. As far as aperture i concerned the lower the f stop the bigger the hole in the lens. If your focusing on say an apple sitting on a garden table with a low f stop the apple should be sharp and the background a blur, then try upping the f stop a couple of stops a re take the photo. You should notice the background will be less of a blur each time you up the f stop. This is i assume if u have a SLR? Basically te lower f stop gives a shallower depth of field( less of the shot in focus), higher stops bring the background into focus etc. not that im an expert

 

[madmumof2]

Aahh, right. I wish I'd known that earlier when I took close up shots of my kids. I love those kind of photos with th background out of focus. Now I know how to do it on purpose lol. What is ISO? I think I can change it on my camera but not sure how. It looks like it can be changed. It's set at 200 at the minute.

I have a Cosina C1 SLR one with a Chicon (I think) zoom lens. I don't think that's very good? It was cheap anyway so I assume not lol.

I'll add some of my favourite here then. These were taken on a plain old compact camera, finepix something with no features at all, so I'm surprised I managed to get these shots! lol

 

[puyjapin]

You have taken some nice shots. Im not familiar with the camera you are using, some of the other guys on here maybe??? The ISO is the sensetivity of the sensor or film in old cameras. The overall exposure is a combination of ISO, Shutter and Aperture. You would normally use a higher iso with smaller aperture (higher fstop) or much faster shutter. (as less light is coming in) higer iso's will result in a grainy effect called noise. Hopefully some one on here will give a better explanation. I have ordered a book called understanding exposure which I have been advised is very good. Im sort of at a stage where my knowledge is limiting me from progressing as is my kit lens as well. It may be worth practicing your aperture settings on things that you know are stationery, like an apple or something....imho There is also a book i found quite useful called digital photography by scott kelby, he explains things in a straightforward manner but he as got a bit of a lame sense of humour!
Ive just set up my redbubble account, check it out.

 

[madmumof2]

Thank you for that. My camera is a film one though, so that book wouldn't help lol. I've not used a film camera for years, I'm trying to get used to it again.

 

[puyjapin]

oh, didnt realise that. Some of the same principles apply though. Some of your pics have got good composition imo even if they might not be perfectly exposed. I like the one of the kid looking through the fence and the b&w one.

 

[madmumof2]

Those two are my favourite! The b+w one is just lovely for me to see them getting on for a change! And the fence one with my daughter just screams autumn to me and love it. Completey spur of the moment photo that one.

what would you have done differently to get a better shot re what you said about exposure? I couldn't really change anything on that camera, so I'd love to re-create a couple of these shots with the right settings this time.

I need a critic really lol. Everyone who's seen them just say they're good, but I want to know what's wrong with them too so I can improve. Thanks for your help.

 

[puyjapin]

mostly they are all a bit overexposed, which may be you were shooting in very bright sun. Have you tried any of the free photo post processing software?

 

[madmumof2]

I can see that now, thanks. They were all on a very hot day you're right.

I've downloaded GIMP but have only managed to do a couple of things, still learning how to use it and what it can do lol.

 

[puyjapin]

may be worth trying picasa before gimp, its limited but user friendly

 

[Katier]

Considering you were using a simple compact those pictures are very good. You certainly have the eye. They have technical faults, especially with exposure, but all things considered you did excellent.

As for your camera, for film SLR's the actual 'body' of your camera doesn't matter too much. It's the choice of film and quality of the lens that really matters. For your shoot it would be nice if you could get a 35mm or 50mm prime lens as they tend to be a lot better for low light shots. BUT it's not critical and you should be able to be successful with your camera/lens for now.

What I would invest in is a flashgun or two because what IS important for this kind of work is lighting. I use a pair of second hand Nikon SB20's for lighting and they do the job pretty well. Also get a remote shutter release.

Read up a little on lighting too, find out what a reflecter and a softbox are and why you'd use them. (strobist is a good place to start) Both these devices can be home made. A piece of white card and/or card covered in foil will work as a cheap reflector and shooting through paper or fabric can soften light.

Because your working on film, and it's your first time, bracket to hell and back.. what this means is say you think with the flashes you need F22@1/60th of a second ( probably quite typical starting setting ) then also shoot at 1/125th ( if your camera will synch that low ), F16, F11 and also play with the power of the flashes and/or move them to and from the target. The faster exposure gives less light on the subject, F16 and F11 more light. For tripod work you aren't worried about movement too much.

Write down your settings for each frame then you'll be able to learn when you get the films back. If your doing the idea about the candles the exposure will be longer. Because you'll be on a tripod your camera won't move but obviously the target COULD so you'd be shooting that at much wider aperture. F1.7 is wide, F22 narrow ( smaller number = bigger hole = more light ).

 

[madmumof2]

Considering you were using a simple compact those pictures are very good. You certainly have the eye. They have technical faults, especially with exposure, but all things considered you did excellent.

Thank you.

As for your camera, for film SLR's the actual 'body' of your camera doesn't matter too much. It's the choice of film and quality of the lens that really matters. For your shoot it would be nice if you could get a 35mm or 50mm prime lens as they tend to be a lot better for low light shots. BUT it's not critical and you should be able to be successful with your camera/lens for now.

I couldn't get one before saturday, but I know how important lenses are, so as long as they're not too much money (single parent, not much money) I'll be getting different sorts of lens that will work better in different situations. I don't know which ones yet, lol.

What I would invest in is a flashgun or two because what IS important for this kind of work is lighting. I use a pair of second hand Nikon SB20's for lighting and they do the job pretty well. Also get a remote shutter release.

How does a flash gun work? Would I have to take the shot and the flash at the same time or do they link up somehow? Sorry if that's a dumb question! lol

Read up a little on lighting too, find out what a reflecter and a softbox are and why you'd use them. (strobist is a good place to start) Both these devices can be home made. A piece of white card and/or card covered in foil will work as a cheap reflector and shooting through paper or fabric can soften light.

I've actually made a reflector but it's not much good without a flash really lol. I've looked at softboxs and will definitely make one of those. Would normal uplighters or bendy desk lamps do for lighting for now until I can get some decent ones? And will getting high powered bulbs help (I have energy saving ones!) or am I being daft? lol

Because your working on film, and it's your first time, bracket to hell and back.. what this means is say you think with the flashes you need F22@1/60th of a second ( probably quite typical starting setting ) then also shoot at 1/125th ( if your camera will synch that low ), F16, F11 and also play with the power of the flashes and/or move them to and from the target. The faster exposure gives less light on the subject, F16 and F11 more light. For tripod work you aren't worried about movement too much.

Write down your settings for each frame then you'll be able to learn when you get the films back. If your doing the idea about the candles the exposure will be longer. Because you'll be on a tripod your camera won't move but obviously the target COULD so you'd be shooting that at much wider aperture. F1.7 is wide, F22 narrow ( smaller number = bigger hole = more light ).

:er: lol I've read that a few times and I think I've got it. So many numbers and names!

So you mean if I want to make the most of the light I've got, I should set the aperture to the highest (highest number means less in focus and less light?) and the shutter speed at around 1/125?

I understand shutter speed completely so it's just aperture and all it's numbers and ISO I need to learn there. lol

What do you mean by faster/slower exposure? Do you mean shutter speed? 1/1 will expose the picture for a second?

Sorry, it's just a hell of a lot to learn, I'm still trying to get my head round it all. I will get there. If I'm anything it's determined and I tend to become slightly obsessed when I start something new lol.

After seeing photos on here though I feel, at the minute, that I'll never be that good. I can't afford expensive lenses or anything, but hopefully I'll get the best out of what I've got at the least!

Thank you everyone for your help. I can't wait to develop the photos so I can post them. Or not if they're crap lol.