Outdoors Night Portrait, Beginner

[nijonas]

-Removed-

 

[KBM1016]

Try not to cut off body parts, part of her feet are missing in #1. With #2 it's so dark that her hair blends in with darkness that is the background. #3 looks OOF. Maybe even a little tighter of a crop in #3. I think shooting at night only works when there is something like a city in the background, otherwise, just looks weird.

Hope my comments help. I am sure others will have something to say too.

 

[gsgary]

For shots like this you can treat it like a studio shoot where you have 2 or 3 lights placed to creat nice lighting with seperation from the background, using the pop up flash is not great for this, try again in good day light and have the sun behind your sister and use the pop up flash to fill the shadows because that is about all it is good for

 

[nijonas]

Try not to cut off body parts, part of her feet are missing in #1. With #2 it's so dark that her hair blends in with darkness that is the background. #3 looks OOF. Maybe even a little tighter of a crop in #3. I think shooting at night only works when there is something like a city in the background, otherwise, just looks weird.

The idea of a night outdoor portraits sounds weird, but I sort of liked the results. For future reference, how could I have lit the subject, as well as the background to get separation?

 

[D-B-J]

Assuming the data at the end is for all the shots, you are using too wide of a lens. The ideal focal length is around 80-100mm, as it is a flattering level of "compression." 14mm is way too wide for a portrait shoot of this style. Lighting wise, your best bet is to have your sister be farther away from the background, and light the background a few stops lower, so your subject is a few stops brighter, and then use a wider aperture (say around f3.5 or f4). That way, you will have separation in not only lighting, but in the focal plane.

Goodluck and hope my 2 cents helped!

Regards,
Jake

 

[DiskoJoe]

honestly scrap all of these. Find a place with more light like in a metro area and not a field.

 

[nijonas]

honestly scrap all of these. Find a place with more light like in a metro area and not a field.

Nah, I like them and others do too. Thanks for your opinion tho.

 

[DiskoJoe]

honestly scrap all of these. Find a place with more light like in a metro area and not a field.

Nah, I like them and others do too. Thanks for your opinion tho.

Criticism can be harsh. I know. I dont like to hear negative things about my own work. but You have to learn to deal with it to expand forward. If you like you can check out some of my work to see if I have any position to be giving you advice of this nature.

Jessica Wahlquist - No Flash Photo Shoot - a set on Flickr