Which do you prefer?

The_Traveler · Jul 23, 2015

Before you get off onto sharpening for proofs, the color balance of this print looks wayyyy off to me.
The facial tones are completely blanched and there is no texture at all to her skin.

jmtonkin · Jul 23, 2015

The_Traveler said:
Before you get off onto sharpening for proofs, the color balance of this print looks wayyyy off to me.
The facial tones are completely blanched and there is no texture at all to her skin.

Perhaps we have different tastes, but I don't think the tones are way off. Could you maybe show me what you would consider to be "better"?

The_Traveler · Jul 24, 2015

How do I correct skin tones SmugMug

jmtonkin · Jul 24, 2015

The_Traveler said:
View attachment 105461 View attachment 105460

How do I correct skin tones SmugMug

So if I am understanding this correctly, my cyan level is 23% of the magenta level, and this is what's giving the shot an "off" color balance? I read through the link you posted, but I can't seem to figure out how to adjust it.

jmtonkin · Jul 24, 2015

Well, I met with this senior and her mother this evening to give them the proof book. They absolutely loved the pictures, and her mom even reared up a little!

We can discuss all the technicalities all we want, but ultimately, it's up to the clients to decide what they love. Seeing her tear up reminded me of this and of why I enjoy photography so much!

The_Traveler · Jul 25, 2015

jmtonkin said:
Well, I met with this senior and her mother this evening to give them the proof book. They absolutely loved the pictures, and her mom even reared up a little!

We can discuss all the technicalities all we want, but ultimately, it's up to the clients to decide what they love. Seeing her tear up reminded me of this and of why I enjoy photography so much!

This is quite a good and typical rationalization but ultimately and absolutely wrong.

The client usually doesn't know crap and their judgement is completely clouded by the fact that it is a picture of someone they love.

What will you do when the next client says that the color looks horrible and unreal - and you have no idea what you have done wrong and no idea how to fix it?
Your first goal is to be able to control the light and color so that you can produce a good, well exposed image with a good enough color balance SOOC that you are able to edit to the end point that will look great.

You might look into something like this X-Rite ColorChecker Passport X-Rite Photo X-Rite Passport

jmtonkin · Jul 25, 2015

The_Traveler said:
This is quite a good and typical rationalization but ultimately and absolutely wrong.

The client usually doesn't know crap and their judgement is completely clouded by the fact that it is a picture of someone they love.

What will you do when the next client says that the color looks horrible and unreal - and you have no idea what you have done wrong and no idea how to fix it?
Your first goal is to be able to control the light and color so that you can produce a good, well exposed image with a good enough color balance SOOC that you are able to edit to the end point that will look great.

You might look into something like this X-Rite ColorChecker Passport X-Rite Photo X-Rite Passport

I, in no way, meant to imply complacency. I like how this shot turned out, but to find out that it is "technically" incorrect bothers me. I want to lean how to fix it, so that I may grow and become better.

I often find that the shots I like least are the shots that my clients like the most. In talking to close friends about this phenomenon, they have pointed out that as a photographer, I notice much more than my clients notice. If the shot isn't at the level I strive for, all I see is the negatives. My clients don't necessarily see those flaws, and they love that shot. Even if it not perfect in my eyes, or the eyes of fellow photographers, it is in their eyes.

Again, I do not mean to imply complacency. With every shoot, I learn more. I might try a new pose, and it definitely doesn't work; I might try a new lighting technique, and decide that it isn't very flattering; I might try a new location, and decide the lighting is horrible. For my tastes, I thought the above shot looked great, but "technically", it isn't. I want to learn how to fix that. I want to learn how to master the colors, so my clients get accurate and consistent shots.

In the shot above, the client had almost no color - dare I say, "white as a ghost"? She spends almost all her time indoors, so she was extremely light. This is a situation I have not encountered. I felt that these shots accurately reflected her skin tone, but perhaps not.

In the interest of learning, how do people deal with situations involving exceptionally fair-skinned clients? What can I do in post to improve this shot? I've read the article on SmugMug that was posted, but I don't understand how to correct that issue.

The_Traveler · Jul 25, 2015

What the camera sees is the light reflected off the subject.
If the subject is very pale and the skin delicately colored, then strong light, even indirect, can almost convert the surface into a mirror.
Look at pictures of babies that are shot with an on-camera flash from reasonably close up.
The skin is blanched, the color balance may be off because of the color of the incident light but there is so much of it that we can't see the color.

In shooting a fair skinned subject, I would try for a neutrally colored environment, a slightly directional and not very strong light.

I don't how how far the #1 picture is from the original but her face looks almost mirror-like and there is a large whitish blush on the wall next to her.

I would start with a better more neutral environment, ask the subject to stay away from white or black clothing and expose for her skin tones,

The_Traveler · Jul 25, 2015

Photographing a girl with very fair skin Studio and Lighting Technique Forum Digital Photography Review

Designer · Jul 25, 2015

jmtonkin said:
My clients don't necessarily see those flaws, and they love that shot. Even if it not perfect in my eyes, or the eyes of fellow photographers, it is in their eyes.

They're looking at it through "mom eyes" or "dad eyes", but I think you know most people are not practiced at evaluating art.

When you get to the point that not only can you make good photographs consistently, but also be able to tell your clients what is good about them, then you will have arrived at professional status.

jmtonkin · Jul 26, 2015

Designer said:
They're looking at it through "mom eyes" or "dad eyes", but I think you know most people are not practiced at evaluating art.

When you get to the point that not only can you make good photographs consistently, but also be able to tell your clients what is good about them, then you will have arrived at professional status.

I agree, they are not practiced at evaluating. Furthermore, like you said with the "mom eyes" and "dad eyes", they are not subjective. They see their son or daughter, and that's all they see.

I can tell you what I like about the shot, and I have touched on a couple of them on them in earlier posts. Until pointed out, I did not see anything wrong with the skin tones. I am aware of this, and will keep it in mind for my next shoot; this was a learning experience for me. I don't want to go re-edit their pictures now, because they've already gotten the proof book, and loved what they got. That said, I have been practicing re-editing these shots, but only for my sake.