Nic was firing off some snapshots after dinner testing out he likes the 135mm focal length (hmmm…I wonder why he would be doing that…[cough–UPS man come soon–cough]) while I was giving Will his usual “Baby Needs Kisses” kisses. When going through the shots I couldn’t believe he caught this one–Will couldn’t have posed it better if he had tried!
I think it sums Will up perfectly–a little boy who loves kisses and is just the tiniest bit fancy. ;)
Posted in Toddler Photographer
Mar 14, 2008
I had a serious tip/explanation planned for today, but this fit so well into last week’s theme that this week is a simple reminder that even the pros abuse Photoshop:
My favorite is the one where the girl has three hands.
Posted in Photoshop Tips
Mar 10, 2008
Last week I debuted our new Tuesday feature: (photography) Tip Tuesdays. For the first month we’ll be covering two snapshot portraits and what makes one good and the other bad.
This week? Lighting, part one.
For your viewing pleasure…we have, the bad photo:
And the good one:
The Basics
It’s easy to look at the top photo and see that a flash fired when I used my on-camera flash when I took the picture. The second picture appears to use natural light or at least more skillful flash use (natural light).
The Bad photo has Nic much brighter than his background, with white areas on his forehead and cheek. The flash has cast a shadow on the back wall (we’ll return to this next week) and all in all, it’s not pretty.
One of the most basic pieces of advice when it comes to lighting for snapshots: turn off your flash whenever possible. There are many cameras that fire a flash in almost any indoor setting, and many times it isn’t needed. Turn off your flash and see what happens. Your indoor evening photos will probably look warmer (more yellow/orangey), but that can be welcome, since it is more likely how you remember the scene.
Flash light is harsh and unflattering. When you can control it, it’s better to have more even lighting for your family pictures (near a window, under shade, or outside on a cloudy day).
Step it Up
This is the part where we say that even the good photo sucks a little. The light was even and flattering, but I failed to capture any of it in Nic’s eyes. Great catchlights (the highlights in your subject’s eyes) are at the heart of an engaging portrait. I’ll let adorable Eli from this weekend’s session be my catchlights model:
So what could I have done differently in Nic’s picture to put some catchlights in those eyes? I could have turned him in different directions to see what would happen, but on this flat super cloudy day, I would probably have better luck with a reflector. I have a 5-in-1 reflector that I adore. By holding it angled up toward his face, even on a cloudy day I most likely would have been able to shine some light back into his eyes. (of course, then I would have to contend with glare on his glasses, but it would have been easy enough to ask him to take them off)
As for the lighting on extra adorable Eli, I took his portrait in front of a window. I could have spent all day playing with him and his amazing blue eyes!
Posted in Photographer Tips
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