Redoing my professional head shots. Need lighting advice.

[vegasrealtor]

Hello everyone, I have been a long time lurker and finally decided to make an account. I am a very novice photographer. I would say the avenues I have enjoyed so far are landscape photos, family pictures, and sports photos.
Now my question is for redoing what I would maybe consider a botched attempt at getting new business head shots done. I wanted some outdoor photos just from the chest up. I ended up with a lot of photos that had little to no bokeh and a lot of exposure problems the background and myself.
The equipment I have available currently is my Canon SL1, 50mm 1.8II, 18-55STM, 75-300III, and a SunPak tripod. I am editing with Lightroom 5.
I am hoping to redo these photos this week on my own and plan on using my 50mm lens on a tripod so that my assistant (girlfriend) can operate a reflector if one is needed. I am going to be doing these most likely early in the morning because my understanding is that is the best time to use natural light.
I am hoping for some tips and trips or maybe even some links to videos on what I should be prepared with on the day of. I have been watching some videos of using a flash during the day, so if thats the case I would most likely make a DIY diffuser for my pop-up flash.
Also, I noticed most of the photos he sent me were shot in aperture F8 when I imported them into Lightroom. It's my understanding I should be using 2.2-5.6 on a lens like my own to get good sharpness. Can anyone advise on that? I plan to shoot in Aperture Priority mode.
Thank you in advance!

 

[tirediron]

I have to ask first, did you actually review this photographer's portfolio?

That aside; I do a fair number of headshots for realtors and other business professionals. I'm really not a fan of doing them outside because there are too many variables. If there's a specific reason, say you've just sold a nice house, and you want a shot of you leaning against a company sign, outside of it, perhaps, but normally headshots are just shoulders up, with a plain background. Going out of doors tends to make for busier, more distracting backgrounds which don't always lend themselves to all uses.

This is a recent session I did, in the clients home, single speedlight in a 30" Ezybox camera right, 48" white reflector close in camera left. We were in very tight confines, but total setup time was about 5 minutes, and it produces an image which can be used on almost any colour background.

In summary, reconsider shooting outside; an indoor shot with a single speedlight and reflector is quick, easy, and likely much more versatile.

 

[vegasrealtor]

I have to ask first, did you actually review this photographer's portfolio?

That aside; I do a fair number of headshots for realtors and other business professionals. I'm really not a fan of doing them outside because there are too many variables. If there's a specific reason, say you've just sold a nice house, and you want a shot of you leaning against a company sign, outside of it, perhaps, but normally headshots are just shoulders up, with a plain background. Going out of doors tends to make for busier, more distracting backgrounds which don't always lend themselves to all uses.

This is a recent session I did, in the clients home, single speedlight in a 30" Ezybox camera right, 48" white reflector close in camera left. We were in very tight confines, but total setup time was about 5 minutes, and it produces an image which can be used on almost any colour background.

In summary, reconsider shooting outside; an indoor shot with a single speedlight and reflector is quick, easy, and likely much more versatile.

Thank you for the quick reply. I guess the best way to explain it would be to relate it to professional photographers. If you run a google search in your area you will most likely find hundreds of photographers just like you will with looking for a Realtor online. My idea is to separate myself in anyway possible and I think this is a start at that. It seems like most agents have the equivalent to an school yearbook photo for grownups. I will include a link to a site where I first saw the idea I am going after.
Individual Corporate Headshots | Jimmy America - Melbourne Photographer

 

[tirediron]

Okay, so you don't actually want a headshot proper then, fair enough. Bear in mind that in the same way you wouldn't advocate I sell my home without the assistance of a professional, I would recommend that you engage a professional photographer, but this time perhaps do a little more research and find one whose portfolio includes the sort of images you want. Doing your own basic headshot isn't difficult, but something along the lines of the images you posted may not be achievable without some lighting gear and more experience.

 

[vegasrealtor]

That completely answers my question. I am in no way suggesting I am better than someone who does this as a career. However after trying the professional route I thought it would not hurt to see if I can do it myself with similar results. If it was just a matter of dialing in my settings correctly and going at the right time of day I was going to give it a shot before shopping around for another photographer.

 

[tirediron]

It's generally a little more than just dialing on some settings. One of the biggest challenges would actually be the posing. For a basic headhshot, it's easy, but when you want a full body shot with background, it's very difficult to do without a LOT of trial and error. By all means, give it a whirl!

 

[Derrel]

Well...if your GF is behind the camera, let her use the zoom lens, so she can get a narrow-angle background, by shooting from about 20 feet away, and using the lens in the telephoto range. Use the tripod, so that she can "lock down" the camera, and thus get control, and repeatability over her framing, and you on the posing. For the person who does not shoot regularly, a tripod is a huge asset to composition, especially if it is "locked down tight", and that repeatable composition/framing is carefully evaluated and the modified as-needed.

Hold your own reflector at waist level, or prop it on a stool or chair back in front of you, and bounce some light onto yourself. Morning light is fine, as is afternoon light. I prefer afternoon light, actually, but either can work. Who knows what the chances are of ending up with the desired results; this might be very tricky, then again, you might luck into a good session where things just click right. One never can tell for certain.

Aperture-wise, yes, f/5.6 to f/8 is normally a good aperture for sharpness, and it gives a little bit of a depth of field cushion, especially when shooting with a telephoto zoom in the 70-300 mm focal length range. Just make sure the shutter speed is high enough to keep things nice and crisp.

 

[Designer]

Now my question is for redoing what I would maybe consider a botched attempt at getting new business head shots done.

No offense, but are you sure you want to do this yourself? I mean; there are professional photographers who would be willing and able to do this for you, probably giving you the type of shot you want. If you are claiming it as a business expense, then the cost would be somewhat offset by the tax reduction.

Now, if it is just a thing you want to do, partly for fun, and partly to show off your new skill, then that's different, and I understand completely.

Using sunlight as your key light CAN work, but you have to be prepared to deal with variables. The first is the background. Select a spot where there are some distant mountains, no tall trees, no power lines, no signs, etc. This is how you get the background sufficiently blurry; keep everything well off into the distance.

Secondly; the low sunlight of early morning can be a very flattering, warmish light, and you can easily face the sun without squinting. This is one valuable part for your GF; she is to watch for a smiling you, without any squinting, head erect and straight, shoulders back, etc. Any flaws in your pose can be corrected with a bit of coaching from her.

She can also verify the frame by looking through the viewfinder. If she is not already a photographer, I wouldn't expect her to make adjustments to the camera, unless you think she can do that without making anything totally out of whack. She can definitely verify the focus point, which should be on your eyes.

If she is going to position the reflector, then don't ask her to trip the shutter too. You can do that yourself using an IR remote.

I would not use the built-in flash for this. If the reflector is on the side of the lens opposite the sun, and very near the lens, that should be good light. She should be able to see the effect of reflected light on your face as she positions the reflector.

 

[soufiej]

Hello everyone, I have been a long time lurker and finally decided to make an account. I am a very novice photographer. I would say the avenues I have enjoyed so far are landscape photos, family pictures, and sports photos.
Now my question is for redoing what I would maybe consider a botched attempt at getting new business head shots done. I wanted some outdoor photos just from the chest up. I ended up with a lot of photos that had little to no bokeh and a lot of exposure problems the background and myself.
The equipment I have available currently is my Canon SL1, 50mm 1.8II, 18-55STM, 75-300III, and a SunPak tripod. I am editing with Lightroom 5.
I am hoping to redo these photos this week on my own and plan on using my 50mm lens on a tripod so that my assistant (girlfriend) can operate a reflector if one is needed. I am going to be doing these most likely early in the morning because my understanding is that is the best time to use natural light.
I am hoping for some tips and trips or maybe even some links to videos on what I should be prepared with on the day of. I have been watching some videos of using a flash during the day, so if thats the case I would most likely make a DIY diffuser for my pop-up flash.
Also, I noticed most of the photos he sent me were shot in aperture F8 when I imported them into Lightroom. It's my understanding I should be using 2.2-5.6 on a lens like my own to get good sharpness. Can anyone advise on that? I plan to shoot in Aperture Priority mode.
Thank you in advance!

"Now my question is for redoing what I would maybe consider a botched attempt at getting new business head shots done. I wanted some outdoor photos just from the chest up. I ended up with a lot of photos that had little to no bokeh and a lot of exposure problems the background and myself.
The equipment I have available currently is my Canon SL1, 50mm 1.8II, 18-55STM, 75-300III, and a SunPak tripod."



Why not try this yourself? Unless you're paying your assistant the hourly wage of a professional photographer, what's to lose?

It's not like you're asking how to repaint a 150 year old three story house all by yourself. That would be completely foolish. (Believe me, I know.)



The main issue with a head shot done outside is the variability of the light source(s).

Yes, the "Golden Hour" is typically a good choice for any photography since you will have a rather low angle to the sunlight which naturally provides some dimension to any object you photograph. Light and shadow are the photographer's main tools and the Golden Hour hones them to a fine edge.

Though, you also must realize the available light at this time of day changes quite rapidly and may not remain consistent from one shot to the next depending on how rapidly you can work. Certainly, day to day consistency at this time of year may be unpredictable.

As a photographer, you would always prefer to minimize variables where ever and whenever possible. Studio lighting is consistent and predictable. Therefore, it is those values which make studio portraiture more favorable to good results.

External lighting for either studio or outdoor use need not be expensive to buy and can even be rented for a single use.



You need to do some basic homework on portrait style photography and, if you decide to shoot outdoors, on portraits done with the use of natural light.

Here are two tutorials on portraits; Butterfly

Introduction to Portrait Lighting

Both deal with fixed position, studio lighting though the effects of several styles can be simulated with natural light and minimal accessories.

First, decide which style you prefer and then determine whether it can be accomplished with outdoor light and, say, a reflector. If not, what can you do? You can select a different style, you can add more light sources or you can go to studio lighting.

Keep in mind when making this decision, your lighting angles change rapidly during the Golden Hour and you might easily run out of preferred light in a short while if you depend solely on natural light and a reflector alone.

Light shade and slightly overcast days are also good choices for outdoor portraits.

outdoor portrait photography - Google Search

In most cases, you'll need supplemental light sources and a fairly good understanding of how to meter the exterior scenes for best results.

Until you decide which style of portrait and which type of supplemental light source you prefer; built in flash, external flash, off camera flash, one light source vs two light sources, stand-mounted with a reflector, etc. we cannot provide anything more specific regarding set up.

Read the tutorials, they should give fairly good guidance.

And don't think you can do this in one try. Go out in advance with your camera and some subject you can use to stand in for yourself and practice before you count on getting a shot.

outdoor portrait photography - Google Search

Then - on the day of - take several shots of each style/pose/scene to make sure you have a selection to work with when it comes to editing. Shoot in Raw Capture to provide the greatest amount of flexibility in your post production.


"Bokeh"?

Or, simply blurred background?

"Bokeh" rather infers you want a specific style of image. To achieve that style you will need somewhat specific backgrounds. This seems a bit much for a headshot style photo.

Are you going for glamour or high society images? If not, it's probably best to forgo "bokeh" at this time.

Most areas have some "high end" magazines which show the expected headshot style for realtors/business people. Take a look at those and determine whether your selected style fits theirs. I doubt you'll see much "bokeh" in those shots. How much do you wish to stand out from the norm?

Your Canon 50mm lens, while not bad for portraits, is not the best for the bokeh style IMO and you would really want to rent a superior lens if that is truly your objective.

Your Canon 50mm can though provide very good blurred backgrounds. In fact, if you properly set up the scene, most any lens with decent resolution can manage blurred backgrounds.

Here are some shots taken with a Canon SX50 bridge camera with a fixed lens that most photographers would consider to be quite "slow".

tonybritton

The backgrounds are blurred not so much by the f-stop of the lens but by the relative distance between the lens and the background subject(s).

Therefore, the concept should be rather apparent, put a lot of distance between you and your background and you will blur the background.

You must, of course, understand the single plane of in-focus (depth of field) and not-in-focus when doing portraits.

Go too shallow with your depth of field (aperture and distance) and you will have results which may place one eye in sharp focus and your ears somewhat out of focus.

A stopped down aperture will have more background subjects in close to or even fairly good focus than will a fairly opened up aperture.

And, of course, your lens to subject distance (the distance your camera is away from you) once again plays into the acceptable degree of in-focus area for your headshot.

best lens for portraits - Google Search

best lens for portraits - Google Search


So, a few days of studying and a few days of practicing and there's not that much to this headshot stuff. You make your plans and you remain flexible. This isn't rocekt science. Errr, ... rocket science.


Or you can just spend the money for a pro.

Good luck.

 

[Derrel]

Designer and soufiej have given you some good things to things to consider. I will say this: when you shoot during the golden hour, with the sun low in the sky, place the sun behind the subject and off to one side. That acts as a rim-light. The shadowed side of the face will be facing the camera, and the pop-up flash or a flash right in the hotshoe, on the lens axis, will provide "eye-sparkle", and the flash does NOT need to be very powerful to do that. If the exposure for the face is appropriate, say f/3.5 at 1/200 second at ISO 200 late in the afternoon/early evening, then a tiny little squirt of flash, like say 1/8 power from a full-size SB 800, or maybe 1/4 power from the pop-up flash in manual mode, will give a pretty good overall look; soft, non-squinty light, warm light from the low sun, and eye-sparkle with catchlights that bring attention to the eyes.

This is just a little bit tricky, because it's a balancing act of ISO, shutter speed, f/stop, and flash output level. It's not "that" complex, but it can be daunting or confusing to somebody that's not experienced. This is where a professional portrait shooter might be a wise investment, but hey, this is a photography forum. You asked, and you've been given a lot of great information by the two posters above! Good luck, and if you are successful, I know we'd love to see some pics!

 

[vegasrealtor]

Hey everyone, sorry for not replying sooner. I thought my thread was dead in the water since I didn't get email notifications anymore. However prior to reading the replies above I decided I would take a few quick shots this afternoon just inside of the house using an IR remote. I didn't end up with anything useable mainly because I was fiddling with the IR remote and never captured an actual smile. If I would have read this earlier I would have realized I started off on the wrong foot. I dropped my aperture down to 1.8 for all of the photos and ended up with a fairly good blurred background but I noticed I do not have much sharpness at all. Can any of you advise me on how to find a good point of sharpness with my lens?
I used a tripod as discussed before and shot in aperture priority mode so that my shutter speed could be controlled automatically. I also shot in ISO 100 to maintain as much detail as possible. However, after reading above I am guessing I would get better sharpness with a smaller aperture, and higher ISO to keep my shutter speed relatively fast.

Designer touched on a point that I believe to be true and didn't mention before. Part of the reason for doing it myself is the fun aspect. I am still going to be using the professional pictures for my website for the time-being but I did think it would be fun to take my own camera and add some more content on secondary pages of my website.

It looks like I have a lot of reading to do from soufiej so I will study up on that. I am thinking I will try this same scenario a few more times within the house before I venture to trying it during the "golden" hours outside. In the mean time if someone could advise me on a good aperture for my nifty fifty that would be great. I assume there is maybe a way to blur the background more in lightroom 5 during editing but I haven't figured that part out yet.

Thanks again!

 

[Designer]

Kind of a poor background, IMO.

Needs better light.

You can check out the reviews or do some tests to find the "sweet spot" of your lens. Same with the ISO, for that matter.

As you begin to prepare for the portrait, you might want to consider either a vertical format, or if horizontal, then an uncluttered background to one side which can be used to superimpose text.

 

[soufiej]

Hey everyone, sorry for not replying sooner. I thought my thread was dead in the water since I didn't get email notifications anymore. However prior to reading the replies above I decided I would take a few quick shots this afternoon just inside of the house using an IR remote. I didn't end up with anything useable mainly because I was fiddling with the IR remote and never captured an actual smile. If I would have read this earlier I would have realized I started off on the wrong foot. I dropped my aperture down to 1.8 for all of the photos and ended up with a fairly good blurred background but I noticed I do not have much sharpness at all. Can any of you advise me on how to find a good point of sharpness with my lens?
I used a tripod as discussed before and shot in aperture priority mode so that my shutter speed could be controlled automatically. I also shot in ISO 100 to maintain as much detail as possible. However, after reading above I am guessing I would get better sharpness with a smaller aperture, and higher ISO to keep my shutter speed relatively fast.

Designer touched on a point that I believe to be true and didn't mention before. Part of the reason for doing it myself is the fun aspect. I am still going to be using the professional pictures for my website for the time-being but I did think it would be fun to take my own camera and add some more content on secondary pages of my website.

It looks like I have a lot of reading to do from soufiej so I will study up on that. I am thinking I will try this same scenario a few more times within the house before I venture to trying it during the "golden" hours outside. In the mean time if someone could advise me on a good aperture for my nifty fifty that would be great. I assume there is maybe a way to blur the background more in lightroom 5 during editing but I haven't figured that part out yet.

Thanks again!

The uploaded photo was taken at 1/15 of a second with my 50mm lens at 1.8 aperture using ISO 100. It is untouched and was taken in RAW.View attachment 107574

The 50mm is pretty sharp at any aperture. Though almost any lens will attain slightly higher resolution at about 2.8 or so. Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II Review

A shutter speed of less than 1/60 second will result in blur due to subject movement if the camera is tripod mounted.

Once you step inside, the available light diminishes dramatically. Try it, take a shot indoors and then step outside to see the difference.

IMO it's best to stick to aperture priority but don't be afraid to raise the ISO. None of your shots will be enlarged beyond a few inches so, with the SL1, you have a fair amount of latitude in ISO before digital noise becomes a problem.

Ignore what you see on your monitor during processing, you are not going to enlarge these shots to that size. "Detail" isn't that important in these shots.

Again, you're not going to enlarge these shots and detail is just not that important in this style of photography. Fill the frame with the subject while leaving sufficient room to crop or alter aspect ratio in post production and you'll do fine with this camera/lens combo.

IMO, you'll find it easier to simply place some distance between the lens and the background than to add blur in editing. You need to draw attention to the subject, that's all. What you have in your recent shot is sufficient IMO.

Your background is pretty distracting though and the lines of the shot are taking the viewer's eye away from the subject. You're dissecting your head and the staircase is best left out.

Unless there is something which is useful to your photo - say, a house you've sold - blur is relative. Again, take a look at the shots in your local high end business magazine for guidance on how your shots should look.

Once you step outside, even during the fading light of day, the difference in available light vs indoor light without additional light sources will be obvious. Don't be afraid to use the available light but add some fill flash.

 

[Derrel]

Well, you got part of the Jimmy America horizontal portrait method in there. Good advice above from designer and soufiej. This web site has some info on distances and depth of field and the size of the area of a human subject covered at various distances with various lens lengths. Depth of Field, Angle and Field of View, and Equivalent Lens Calculator - Points in Focus Photography

Go for a lightly colored shirt next time, not a white dress shirt. If this is the first try, you will likely do better on a second try with better light. Thanks for posting!

 

[vegasrealtor]

Thank you for the quick replies everyone. I am reading up on the articles quoted above now. This photo certainly isn't something I would post on my website but at least a starting point to learn some more on portraits.

Well, you got part of the Jimmy America horizontal portrait method in there. Good advice above from designer and soufiej. This web site has some info on distances and depth of field and the size of the area of a human subject covered at various distances with various lens lengths. Depth of Field, Angle and Field of View, and Equivalent Lens Calculator - Points in Focus Photography

Gi for a lightly colored shirt next time, not a white dress shirt. If this is the first try, you will likely do better on a second try with better light. Thanks for posting!

Derrel, I'm curious why you mention to not wear the white dress shirt. I am planning on certainly wearing a white dress shirt in my eventual pictures so if I somehow need to compensate I would love to know in advance.

As far as the actual photos I want to produce I am thinking of going to an area with nicer shops in town and that is where the blur would come in handy. The architecture is great there but at the same time I don'y want people able to recognize exactly where I am standing.


Also, I sold the 75-300 today because I wasn't that impressed with it. I am considering buying the 55-250 IS would that be considered an upgrade? I don't really need the long reach but the IS seems useful.