portrait photography
ski...@juno.com
I am looking for pointers on taking a good portrait photo. Here is a
link to some attempts:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/78281283@N00/
I can post more if anyone is interested.
Bob
dadiOH
> Let's try this again.
>
> I am looking for pointers on taking a good portrait photo. Here is
> a link to some attempts:
>
> http://www.flickr.com/photos/78281283@N00/
There are no portraits there, merely some snapshots of children.
Here's a link to some photos that may help you understand the
difference a bit.
http://www.montezucker.com/portfolio.html
--
dadiOH
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ski...@juno.com
I can certainly see the differnce, mine are shapshots and the ones
yoou showed me are quite different, I can see the difference, but I
don't know how to achieve what you did.
So, at least I can see the difference, but now what do I do? Is there
somewhere I can learn to take good photograpsh instead of snapshots?
Bob
On Thu, 28 Sep 2006 20:40:15 GMT, "dadiOH" <dad...@guesswhere.com>
wrote:
ski...@juno.com
portraits? The lad with the orange sweatshirt was relaxed and
patient, he seemed to know how to pose, but I must have missed the
opportinuty; what should I do differently? Let's say I have the same
situation again, what should i do?
These were not taken in a studio, but outside, in the evening.
bob
On Thu, 28 Sep 2006 20:40:15 GMT, "dadiOH" <dad...@guesswhere.com>
wrote:
>ski...@juno.com wrote:
PeteH
--
<ski...@juno.com> wrote in message
news:breoh2pa73tvpcmg7...@4ax.com...
>
> I can certainly see the differnce, mine are shapshots and the ones
> yoou showed me are quite different, I can see the difference, but I
> don't know how to achieve what you did.
>
> So, at least I can see the difference, but now what do I do? Is there
> somewhere I can learn to take good photograpsh instead of snapshots?
==================
It's called learning the craft.
Some devote a lifetime to it..Many never stop learning; as it should be.
To simply copy or mimic anothers work is not learning..You (could) copy
others, but then you will be left with giant gaps in your understanding of
photography.
1) Get a book on lighting, natural AND strobe.
2) Take a ton of photos and ask yourself what happened?
3) Keep notes on your setups.
I believe you said you do not have any studio equipment.
Many fine shots can be made outdoors, but you need to learn WHEN to shoot
AND at a minimum, have a way to bounce light onto your subject to fill
shadows.
All the best,
Pete
ski...@juno.com
I have a nkon D50; I am guessing this camera is more than adequate;
the art is in eye.
I looked at the website you provided, and must say i'm impressed. I
hope someday I can do as well
Bob
Dirty Harry
<ski...@juno.com> wrote in message
news:3sfoh2thojp92a4ka...@4ax.com...
The flash is killing the shot and making the background way to dark. Its to
late in the evening, you want to try about 2 hours earlier. Just go with
natural light to start with.
ski...@juno.com
wrote:
I see what you mean, I should have had him in more light, there was
light, we were in a shaded area. Thank you.
dadiOH
> I can certainly see the differnce, mine are shapshots and the ones
> yoou showed me are quite different, I can see the difference, but I
> don't know how to achieve what you did.
The site to which I pointed you is not mine. The photographer had
been recently mentioned in another thread and was fresh in my mind.
_______________
> So, at least I can see the difference, but now what do I do?
1. Look at photos and try to determine what makes them good/bad.
-------------
2. Learn to see light so that you can understand it and thereby use
and control it. Your hand is your friend...
Make a loose fist. Stand close to a window and *look* at way the
light hits it. Rotate and watch the changes. Move closer to/farther
from the window and watch the changes. Move parallel to the window
and watch the changes.
Do the same outside...in the sun...in the shade of a tree or
building...in the open under a cloudy sky...at various times of day.
When doing it outside (or - sometimes - inside) you may notice
multiple highlights on different parts of your hand. Try to figure
out the light source for each.
In all cases, you are looking for changes to the highlight and shadow
areas of your fist. There are usually two types of highlights;
always, there will be a diffuse highlight; there may also be specular
highlights. Specular highlights are actual reflections of the light
source - whatever it may be - and depend upon both the reflectivity of
the illuminated object and the angle between that object and light
source.
There are two basic types of shadows: hard and soft. A hard shadow
has clearly defined edges, soft ones are less so. Whether shadows are
hard or soft depends solely upon the size of the light source relative
to the subject...small light source = hard shadows. A large light
source becomes smaller (relative to the subject) with distance...the
sun is very large but it is also far away; therefore, shadows from it
are hard. Here's a site (mentioned in another thread) showing
portraits made when hard lighting was in vogue...
http://www.lafterhall.com/hurrell.html
Additionally, watch what happens to a shadow on your fist from a
finger of your other hand when that finger is close to the fist and as
you move it farther away.
-----------------
3. Assuming you are talking about portraits, learn to pose people.
The goal is to have them look natural, look good, minimize defects and
avoid positioning them in a way that causes something to become
unattractive. It involves stance, distribution of body weight,
positioning of the head and eyes relative to the body, etc. A couple
of examples...
You want to make a portrait of a middle aged man and provide a bench
for him to sit on. He does so. Chances are he seats himself directly
facing the camera with a hand on each knee. Men sit with their knees
apart so you now have a crotch shot with a bunch of fingers hanging
down. Correct things by turning him toward one side, having him shift
his weight to one side or the other, extending the near leg/foot a bit
and having him rest his wrists on his thighs with the fingers of each
hand loosely curled. He'll probably slump...correct that by poking
him gently in the middle of the back. Suppose he is also heavy. If
his weight is on the near hip, he will naturally lean forward a bit
and lift his chin.
If he faces in the same direction as his body, the result will look
static...have him turn his head toward the camera. Doing that may
cause neck wrinkles...to get rid of them, have him tip his head a bit
toward the far shoulder.
Men and women are posed similarly but differently. Grossly, one wants
a man to appear masculine, a woman feminine. The way that weight is
distributed, the way the head is tipped relative to the body all
contribute to that. An example...
Get a buddy to pose for you. Have him stand facing 45 degrees to one
side or another with his weight on the far leg, near knee "broken".
Next have him turn his head toward the camera, tip his head toward the
near shoulder and place his near hand on his hip with the fingers
forward, thumb back. Now have him tip his head toward the back
shoulder and change the hand on his hip to a fist. See a difference?
Did he look effeminate the first way?
Getting male/female friends to let you pose them is a big help. Try
different positions keeping in mind what I said in the first paragraph
of this section.
Learning to pose isn't easy. Lots of possibilities for one thing.
Additionally (in my mind), it involves how the subject is placed
relative to other objects in the photo. That's really more
composition but other objects can certainly affect the manner of
posing.
----------------
4. When everything else in a portrait is good - or even just
adequate - expression will make it or break it...it is what creates
the humanity in a photo. The photographer can't just say, "Now give
me an XXX look". The photographer has to induce the desired
expression by word and/or action and that ability isn't something that
can be taught.
______________________
> Is there somewhere I can learn to take good photograpsh
> instead of snapshots?
Sure. There are schools everywhere. Lots of thought and practice
help too.
If you live in the US, the Professional Photographer's Association in
Des Plaines, Illinois has short courses (week or two) teaching various
aspects. So does (or did) Brooks Institute in Santa Barbara,
California. Many state associations (PPA too) have conventions which
feature one or more speakers. The PPA also publishes a monthly
magazine that could help a lot...it is free with membership but can be
subscribed to separately.
ski...@juno.com
Thank you very much for this information. I printed it out so I can
read it and keep it.
Is my Nikon D50 going to provide results like those I've seen, once I
understand the techniques? I fully realize that good photography is
not determijned by the camera, but by the skill of the one holding the
camera. What I'm asking is if my camera has the featuers and specs to
do what I want.
Thank you for your suggestions.
Bob
On Fri, 29 Sep 2006 14:02:59 GMT, "dadiOH" <dad...@guesswhere.com>
wrote:
dadiOH
> Thank you very much for this information. I printed it out so I can
> read it and keep it.
>
> Is my Nikon D50 going to provide results like those I've seen, once
> I understand the techniques? I fully realize that good photography
> is not determijned by the camera, but by the skill of the one
> holding the camera. What I'm asking is if my camera has the
> featuers and specs to do what I want.
Yes. I'd suggest you learn to use it manually, however...both focus
and exposure. Also - for portraits - a long focus setting for the
lens (it zooms, right?).
ski...@juno.com
place to try different settings, the animals aren't usually in a hurry
to go anywhere.
On Fri, 29 Sep 2006 14:51:58 GMT, "dadiOH" <dad...@guesswhere.com>
wrote:
Joe Friday
bounced.....is there a way to communicate with you directly rather than with
this group? I'd like to help with what I am able!!
Butch
ski...@juno.com
faune8
>>
>> >ski...@juno.com wrote:
You must have a function to under expose the flash (fill-in flash) This
will correct the problem. As for the pics on your site I would have shot
them portrait instead of landscape and crop in .... or if you still want it
landscape crop in and don't put the subject in the middle rather on the
left side if he looks right and vis versa, but crop in.
Good luck Jean Bouchard