First time with portrait shots!

[CanonLaw]

I posted a thread a week or so ago asking for tips on taking portraits for my friends graduation announcements. I think I did ok for myself... Her parents paid me $100 which is cool with me seeing as how i would have done them for free, but I just wanted your critique on some of my favorite ones...

10D, 75-300mm IS

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v462/AmishThug/heather26.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v462/AmishThug/heather32.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v462/AmishThug/heather14.jpghttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v462/AmishThug/heather19.jpghttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v462/AmishThug/heather31.jpghttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v462/AmishThug/heather18.jpghttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v462/AmishThug/heather4.jpg

[CanonLaw]

oh, and these have been shrunk significantly for the web....they are only about 35-70kb a piece...the full-res versions are sharper

[cargo123]

Well I am not the expert, but I will tell you what I like and don't like. In the first picture the people in the background are distracting. I am not sure about the lighting. Seems a little dark on the face. Maybe fill flash would help. I like the BW composition and expression. Number four is nice also. Maybe crop it a little more. Nice job on the paid gig! Keep sharing. MIke

[CanonLaw]

Well I am not the expert, but I will tell you what I like and don't like. In the first picture the people in the background are distracting. I am not sure about the lighting. Seems a little dark on the face. Maybe fill flash would help. I like the BW composition and expression. Number four is nice also. Maybe crop it a little more. Nice job on the paid gig! Keep sharing. MIke

Well, picture one, I wanted to take the people out of the background, but I am not that good with photoshop.

You know its interesting how much of a difference a monitor can make. I am typing this and looking at the pics on my friends Viewsonic 19" CRT and it looks quite different than my 19" LCD....the colors are different and much brighter on the LCD....hmmmm

[wagonwheel]

Here are some things I keep in mind when I am shooting females: If they are posed head on into the camera, they will look larger (especially around the hips). Have them turn their hips slightly away from the camera and then turn their body (rotate at the waste) back toward the camera; this will make them appear a little slimmer. Next you may want to tell them to “stand up straight” or “pull your shoulders back a little,” this will make them stick their chest out some. Do not tell them why you are posing them this way. The ladies will not tell you they appreciate this, but most of them will. Notice these things when you look at photographs of women in magazines. Of course these are just guidelines which I do not always follow. I really like the black and white image; it is a nice candid capture.

http://pic3.picturetrail.com/VOL18/596446/920348/22656956.jpg

[kenyc]

Here are some things I keep in mind when I am shooting females: If they are posed head on into the camera, they will look larger (especially around the hips). Have them turn their hips slightly away from the camera and then turn their body (rotate at the waste) back toward the camera; this will make them appear a little slimmer. Next you may want to tell them to “stand up straight” or “pull your shoulders back a little,” this will make them stick their chest out some. Do not tell them why you are posing them this way. The ladies will not tell you they appreciate this, but most of them will. Notice these things when you look at photographs of women in magazines. Of course these are just guidelines which I do not always follow. I really like the black and white image; it is a nice candid capture.



Great tips wagonwheel thanks. I'm awful with portraits, but want to learn to do better.

As far as the original posting, I agree with the above comments about backgrounds, darkness, etc. The thing that struck me upon first seeing these is that she seems to be leaning in each shot. Much better if she were standing straight IMO.

Nice shots. Good to get paid a bit, eh?

KAC

[Bad Iron]

I agree with the posts. My first impression was the lack of fill flash. Second would be tighter crops. Not bad shots.

[CanonLaw]

I guess the main goal of this was not to look overly posed. She wanted it to look as natural as possible. Thanks for the tips though. It is actually pretty tough to take pictures of people and tell them to stand a certain way or whatever since I dont really know how to tell them to stand. Anyways. Thanks! It is nice to get a little money here and there.

[malla1962]

Here are some things I keep in mind when I am shooting females: If they are posed head on into the camera, they will look larger (especially around the hips). Have them turn their hips slightly away from the camera and then turn their body (rotate at the waste) back toward the camera; this will make them appear a little slimmer. Next you may want to tell them to “stand up straight” or “pull your shoulders back a little,” this will make them stick their chest out some. Do not tell them why you are posing them this way. The ladies will not tell you they appreciate this, but most of them will. Notice these things when you look at photographs of women in magazines. Of course these are just guidelines which I do not always follow. I really like the black and white image; it is a nice candid capture.

http://pic3.picturetrail.com/VOL18/596446/920348/22656956.jpgThanks the those great tips,I will give them a try.:D