Senior Prom Test Shoot Advice Needed

[PixelRabbit]

Hey all, I'm really hoping this thread doesn't land me under fire but I'm going to brave it!

My daughter's senior prom is on Saturday and I'm going to take some pics of her and a couple friends before they go.
I do not have OCF nor can I get any before then, no reflectors etc... but could probably put together a homemade reflector if it is extremely important.

Working with Canon 60D and 18-200 lens and OCF.

Time of day will be late afternoon approx 3-5pm /weather unknown.

Setting is woods/river/natural.

I am doing a test shoot with the girls this afternoon so I can play a bit with locations and light directions before the day.

Are there any suggestions you can give me? Major things to avoid or look for with light?
I'm more of a wildlife kinda gal so I was going to approach it as I would a wildlife shot having the light behind me etc but beyond that I'm not sure.

Any and all suggestions (other than let someone else do it/buy a bunch of stuff) are appreciated!

 

[kundalini]

My daughter's senior prom is on Saturday and I'm going to take some pics of her and a couple friends before they go.
I do not have OCF nor can I get any before then, no reflectors etc... but could probably put together a homemade reflector if it is extremely important.

Working with Canon 60D and 18-200 lens and OCF.

on the bolded text.

Time of day will be late afternoon approx 3-5pm /weather unknown.

weather.com

Setting is woods/river/natural. <<snip>> Are there any suggestions you can give me? Major things to avoid or look for with light?

Avoid having a huge assed tree growing outta their heads.
Avoid dappled light from under the trees. Some type of difusser (white bedsheet) could be used to combat this, as well as an assistant.
I would suggest using the longer end of your focal length to help with separation from the background.
A couple of good fart jokes will always help break the tension.
If you shoot a frame in landscape orientation, turn the camera 90° and take another shot before you move on with a different pose.

Have fun and good luck.

 

[DiskoJoe]

My daughter's senior prom is on Saturday and I'm going to take some pics of her and a couple friends before they go.
I do not have OCF nor can I get any before then, no reflectors etc... but could probably put together a homemade reflector if it is extremely important.

Working with Canon 60D and 18-200 lens and OCF.

on the bolded text.

Time of day will be late afternoon approx 3-5pm /weather unknown.

weather.com

Setting is woods/river/natural. <<snip>> Are there any suggestions you can give me? Major things to avoid or look for with light?

Avoid having a huge assed tree growing outta their heads.
Avoid dappled light from under the trees. Some type of difusser (white bedsheet) could be used to combat this, as well as an assistant.
I would suggest using the longer end of your focal length to help with separation from the background.
A couple of good fart jokes will always help break the tension.
If you shoot a frame in landscape orientation, turn the camera 90° and take another shot before you move on with a different pose.

Have fun and good luck.

Solid advice. He said everything I was going to mention and a couple extras. Really be careful about spotty light under the trees. And get a flash. This can never really be stressed enough. Or at least a reflector. White poster board work okay if you need to save money. Its better then nothing.

 

[PixelRabbit]

Thank you Kundalini and Disko!

Oops, was typing fast while the girls waited to go shoe shopping *blush* I have ON camera flash but not off.

I've checked the weather forecast, mix of sun and cloud with a chance of thundershowers, so maybe sun, maybe cloud, maybe rain lol not sure what I'll be dealing with. In the case of rain we will be probably shooting in a sun room or a greenhouse.

Fantastic suggestions, I'm sure I would have tried in dappled shade, my hubby will be hanging around so I will have an assistant if necessary. I'm going to shoot a few today with the girls in their dresses to get an idea how they react to the light also (lots of sparkly bits!). Hopefully I will get some to post so I can iron out some rough points before Saturday

Wish me luck!

 

[Mike_E]

https://www.google.com/search?aq=f&sugexp=chrome,mod=1&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=using+reflectors+outdoors

diy photo reflectors

[URL="https://www.google.com/search?aq=f&sugexp=chrome,mod=1&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=diy+photo+reflectors#sclient=psy-ab&hl=en&q=subtractive+lighting+techniques&oq=ssubtractive+lighting&aq=1l&aqi=g-l2g-lK2&aql=&gs_l=serp.1.1.0i13l2j0i13i30l2.0.0.1.413.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0..0.0...0.0.7HMyQX57fXg&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.,cf.osb&fp=da95dbe318423eff&biw=1120&bih=611"]https://www.google.com/search?aq=f&sugexp=chrome,mod=1&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=diy+photo+reflectors#sclient=psy-ab&hl=en&q=subtractive+lighting+techniques&oq=ssubtractive+lighting&aq=1l&aqi=g-l2g-lK2&aql=&gs_l=serp.1.1.0i13l2j0i13i30l2.0.0.1.413.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0..0.0...0.0.7HMyQX57fXg&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.,cf.osb&fp=da95dbe318423eff&biw=1120&bih=611

Th[/URL]ere is a lot of reading here but it will help immensely.

 

[PixelRabbit]

Thanks so much for the links Mike. I have done many google searches but I keep searching specifically "prom" and I was getting nowhere (even for inspiration!) , should have broken it down like you did.

I shot a few and discovered a couple potential issues with reflections. My daughter wears glasses and I'm getting a reflection of the on camera flash in them when I used it as well as a reflection of other things even when I don't, I was also getting reflections of her necklace and the gems on her dress on her neck and arms.

This is just an example of the reflections, pretty much sooc and cropped. The reflections of the necklace and dress mostly went away when we were in the shade but not the reflections in her glasses. Will this be helped with the use of a reflector? (sorry I'm totally a noob to this, feel kinda like a fish out of water!)


After this test shoot I know why I prefer to work with animals! I have also gained a even greater respect for people who shoot people! This is certainly going to be a huge challenge not only from a technical point of view but almost moreso from a posing/composition point of view.

 

[Mike_E]

be sure to read from the third link. If something is giving you trouble, try and minimize it. A black sheet here (or better a 5-1 reflector with the black) can subtract the harsh light and soften the hard reflections (specular highlights- https://www.google.com/search?sugexp=chrome,mod=0&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=specular+highlights) or remove them altogether depending on how big you gobo is (go between).

You'll see in one of the links how to do this. In harsh light you can even mimic a full studio with reflectors and gobos alone.

 

[KmH]

Shooting pool helps to understand reflections. Both are all about the angles.

If you want to learn the fundamentals of photographic lighting, get the inexpensive book - Light Science and Magic, Fourth Edition: An Introduction to Photographic Lighting

For on camera flash get - On-Camera Flash Techniques for Digital Wedding and Portrait Photography and the authors web site : http://neilvn.com/tangents/flash-photography-techniques/

For off camera flash get - Off-Camera Flash Techniques for Digital Photographers and if you haven't already add this site to your bookmarks: Strobist: Lighting 101

 

[kundalini]

I shot a few and discovered a couple potential issues with reflections. My daughter wears glasses and I'm getting a reflection of the on camera flash in them when I used it as well as a reflection of other things even when I don't, I was also getting reflections of her necklace and the gems on her dress on her neck and arms.

Your issue with reflections on eyewear is one of the shortcomings of the built-in flash because it will fire almost at the same level as your lens. There are a few tactics you can employ to help minimize this. 1) Have your camera position slightly higher than your subject's eye level. 2) Have your subject to lower their chin slightly. 3) Have your subject to raise the ear pieces slightly off their ear. BUT and this is a big but, make sure the frames of the eyewaer do not cross or cover the eye itself. If they have a strong persrciption, this may become problematic at the edges of the glass causing the eye to go wonky with distortion.

As you found out, the reflections from the jewelry are quite pronounced because of your Main light, the sun. A difusser (remember the bedsheet?) is really needed here between the sun and your subject. Even the difusser from an el cheapo 5-N-1 will be a great help. Getting into open shade and using a reflector to bounce the Main light onto your subject will probably be more pleasing.

Two more comments, if you don't mind. 1) If at all possible, try to have at least 6 feet of distance between your subject and the background and open up your aperture some to to help isolate her. This will make her pop more and be the center of attention. If you can get 12 feet away, even better. 2) With the posing, have your subject to have one foot forward of the other and tell them to place the majority of their weight on the rearward heel. And as shown in your example, have them to open up their shoulders. The rolled forward shoulder look is not flattering. You'll want to create a line between the shoulders and this will be easier if the foot positions are as previously mentioned.

Lovely daughter, BTW. Thanks for sharing.

 

[PixelRabbit]

Thank you Mike, Keith and Kundalini, you guys are saving me here! I really tried to prepare for this much earlier than at the last minute but alas life snuck up on me.

I'm more of a hands on learner and that has been mostly how I've approached photography so far (other than still working through my manual).

Focusing on nature and wildlife I "look for the light" instead of "creating, directing and controlling it" myself. I'm going to be doing a lot of reading today! I really hope that even a small fraction of it stays with me for tomorrow but I know that whatever does stick right away will translate into good things for all of my future shots.

Mike, awesome, I will improvising for any reflectors I need, we are in a rural area and the closest place to find real equipment is 1.5 hours away, on the upside I have black sheets

Keith, love the pool analogy, I'm a bit of a pool player so it helps visualize it!

Kundalini, Thank you for the tips on the glasses and posing! I don't mind at all! I've asked the girls to pick out some poses/pictures that they would love to have taken so hopefully we can use them as reference to help us out.

Question.... "open shade" I've seen this term used a lot and it kinda makes me go hmmm, didn't realize there was different kinds of shade lol. Does this mean shade under a tree surrounded by light as opposed to the shade in the woods?

Again, thanks guys for all your help

 

[KmH]

Question.... "open shade" I've seen this term used a lot and it kinda makes me go hmmm, didn't realize there was different kinds of shade lol. Does this mean shade under a tree surrounded by light as opposed to the shade in the woods?

Again, thanks guys for all your help

Open shade is solid shade, as opposed to dappled shade which has bright beams of light mixed in with the shady bits. Avoid dappled sunlight like the plague. You also want the background to be in shade, so light from the sky comes from only one direction.

When you use open shade the sky becomes your 'main' light. It's an apparently big light source, way bigger than just the sun but not as bright, so the klight is softer, and it produces diffuse shadows that don't have sharp edges. You and your camera can be out in the direct sunlight, and you can use reflectors for fill or accent light, but your sujecy has to be completely in the shade.

By having the background also in shade, a little bit more light reflected (or strobed) onto your subject helps separate the subject from the background, because of the different lighting ratios.

 

[PixelRabbit]

Guys, I have to say a HUGE thank you again!!
Here is the result of your help

http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/people-photography/287337-ready-senior-prom.html#post2615157