Thanks for all the helpful advice, Larry!
I actually don't have a mono-pod, but I suppose I could use the tripod,
collapsed, as a makeshift one. My buddy Dan will probably be happy to
help me out with the reflector, so that'll help me quite a bit.
As for getting the model to smile, that shouldn't be a problem at all.
My biggest challenge will most likely be keeping her from smiling in
some shots. I'm going to try to get some emotive, somewhat gritty shots
from her. My overall vision (as of now) is to be somewhat quirky. Not
typical studio portraiture -- senior photos, family pictures, etc. I'm
actually looking to get a very modern look from the model to contrast
against the rustic look of the setting ... at least in some shots. I've
also told her to bring whatever she feels most comfortable in, as well
as some clothes that will actually go right along with the setting
(cowboy hat, boots, old jeans, denim work shirt) just in case I make a
complete hash of the concept I have.
Again, thanks for the guidance! I'll do my best, and if I screw it up,
at least I will have been educated.
Best,
Walt
On 10/13/2010 1:52 PM, Larry Colen wrote:
On Oct 13, 2010, at 10:47 AM, Walter Gilbert wrote:
Thanks, William. Those were fairly short exposures. In aperture priority
with an auto-ISO of 1600, the shutter speed set at 1/50. Didn't even think
about using the tripod, but that would obviously be a good idea. Thanks for
mentioning it!
I'm a big fan of monopods for shots under about 1/2 second.
Shoot in raw it'll compensate for a world of problems.
Every time you change the setup, take another grey card shot. Weird color from
the lights isn't a problem with modern gear, however a weird mixture of light
temperatures is. If you have sunlight coming in the window and tungsten light
in the room, you can get some weird mixtures where it's impossible to color
balance the whole scene. Likewise with flash and tungsten, that's why I have
straw filters for my flashes, to help bring things into line.
If you can get someone to help, possibly holding a 3x5 foot white foamcore
board for fill light, that could make your life a lot easier.
If you can bring a computer to look at your pictures do so. Shoot for a while,
take a break to download and look at what you got. Learn from what you see,
then do it again. That keeps both of you from getting too tired, and helps you
find out about mistakes while there is still a chance to correct them.
Treat the first couple of rounds of shooting and correcting as a warm-up, and
make sure your model knows this. Anything that you can get from them will be
bonus, but that'll take the pressure off until you're both used to working with
each other.
Don't try to force smiles. If someone doesn't smile naturally a forced smile
won't look any better. Occasional jokes may help, playing comedy albums in the
back ground may help. I find that one of the most important things is to get
the model to relax.
I get some of my best shots when I get my model to "play act", or "make
believe".
--
Larry Colen [email protected] sent from i4est
--
PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List
[email protected]
http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow
the directions.
