Portrait photography, whats the minimum requirements?

[Yella Fella]

I have my 20D with 17-85mm lens for the time being, i want to be doing some family portraits and single people in say living room/bedroom environment.

Whats the minimum equipment will i need? do i have to get say light boxes, reflectors etc? if possible i want to shoot with the ambient light, and i will use my standard internal flash if need be?

As regards to settings on my camera, is iso400 enough for standard living room bulbs and in house lighting? i have seen some peoples pictures in standard in house and the quality is amazing with standard equipment, im not sure what im doing wrong but i guess i can keep practing.

Thanks.

[SkipD]

The worst thing you could do is use the built-in flash. Well, maybe not. The worst thing you could do is mix that with incandescent lighting. Anyhow, the built-in flash is in an extremely poor position where it is, and it can't be aimed at off-axis reflectors.

Standard living-room lighting is usually way too dim for portrait work.

If you have large windows, especially north-facing windows, use the light from them along with some home-made white reflectors. The reflectors could be made from foamcore board (available at office supply places as poster board), white sheets, etc. You'll have much less flexibility in your lighting than if you had some proper lights, but what the heck - the light is free.

Another possibility is to use shop lights (the clip-on type with aluminum reflectors), aimed at home-made reflectors for softening of the light. You'd have to set the white balance in the camera to match the light source - probably the "tungsten" setting, but that's easy. "Hot" lights (continuous lighting) that are bright enough are usually quite hot, so be careful and provide some ventilation to keep yourself and your subject(s) cooler.

The 17-85 should be fine for portrait work, at least for now. You'll likely use focal lengths in the range of 40mm to 60mm or so.

[Yella Fella]

will have to give this a shot, my friend will hopefully allow me to take some test shots next weds.

Guess i will have to invest in a proper flash somewhere down the line :)

[madferrit]

If you're keen in this area, it might be worth investing in a single flash (for now) and some reflectors. Initially i bought a 550EX with a circular reflector with different coloured covers (silver, white and gold). The difference is great and makes it all more worth while.

Recently invested in a 430EX and ST-E2 transmitter so i can have both flashes away from the camera. It isn't a perfect studio but its a good start.

[Citizensmith]

I'd say the minimum requirement for portraits is a 50 f/1.8.

Basically, you'd be a lot better of with a lens with a wide maximum appeture as it allows for tighter focus and better isolating the subject. The 50 1.8 just happens to be cheap and is better, quality wise, as your 17-85. Of course its not a zoom, or an IS, but it is a great lens for portrait work.

[Robert_Lay]

I'd say that Skip was correct before he corrected himself - no flash!

I would like to suggest my Tutorial on Studio Portrail Lighting Using Two Lights, with Emphasis on Rembrandt Lighting:
http://www.zaffora.com/W9DMK/PortraitLighting.htm

You really don't need to buy a lot of lighting until you first play around with existing lamps to see what the problems are relative to diffuse lighting versus harsh lighting.

I would also recommend a focal length for portrait work as being whatever focal length provides a medium telephoto field of view. With all the confusion about sensor dimensions in relation to standard 35 mm frame sizes and lenses, it gets confusing. However, the last thing you want for portraits is a lens that requires you to get in close, because then you get some horrible distortions.

[Citizensmith]

Robert, thanks for the link, nice intro. Reminds me why I've been tidying my garage and trying to find some cheap alternatives to studio lights.

[Yella Fella]

thanks for the advice guys, well funds as of current, is quite limiting, so i need to becareful of what to get at each step of the time. My next purchase will be a carbon fibre tripod and remote shutter release. Wasnt planning on a prime lens until march time, but deciding between the 85mm f1.8 and 50mm f1.4 to begin with. Want it to be as flexible as possible until i get my next purchase in. Want something thats good for low light and possible to be used at gigs, my thoughts are with the 85mm :)

[roli_bark]

See this amazing link...[new]
http://www.rpallagi.hu/Articles/BPL/BPL.htm

[JumpJtfp]

Robert_Lay,
I have been searching and searching for an online resource for lighting that includes visuals (since I'm a visual person). Google turned up all kinds of tutorials that were visual-free. Your tutorial is extremely helpful. Thank you for creating this.

[Robert_Lay]

Robert_Lay,
I have been searching and searching for an online resource for lighting that includes visuals (since I'm a visual person). Google turned up all kinds of tutorials that were visual-free. Your tutorial is extremely helpful. Thank your for creating this.
You're quite welcome. It's always nice to hear that someone finds these things helpful.

[claudermilk]

Great tutorial! I've been in much the same boat, many articles & books on the subject, but nothing that breaks it down quite like you have. I'm bookmarking & printing the parge for future reference. Thanks!

[Yella Fella]

about to read this now :) thanks

[malcolmp]

Thanks for the tutorial Robert, very helpful. I always wondered why those lighting stands went up so high :-)

[neil_r]

To take your question literally the basic answer is a model and a camera. ;)

N

[md_129]

See this amazing link...[new]
http://www.rpallagi.hu/Articles/BPL/BPL.htm


Wow, this truly is an amazing tutorial, Thanx

[PhotosGuy]

I'd say the minimum requirement for portraits is a 50 f/1.8. OTOH, the 70-200 f/4 works well, too.
More on "Minimum Requirements" for single people:
VERY simple "outdoor studio" (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=122297)
Simple 2 Light Portrait Set-up (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=128857)