saying yes without thinking!

[gemmacole]

hey guys,
I am very new to this as some of you may know. only has my camera a few weeks now but my mum has asked me to take pictures at a big party she is organising. i am completely terrified by the idea- i said yes without really thinking about it. it is gonna be pretty dark in the main room i imagine but she is setting up a room with a borrowed backdrop for me to take portrait shots. she says "there is no need to worry about it cos if i dont do it some guy with a compact was gonna take them so yours will definately be better than that!"
So basically im haveing a nrevouse breakdown-but rather excited too...i jsut hoped you may have words of wisdom and advice for me. any help will be VERY VERY much appreciated.

Thank you so much

[vjack]

I recommend you list your gear so that we can give you some tips based on what you have.

[gemmacole]

umm i have a 350D with the 18-55 kit lense and a sigma 70-300mm f4-5.6 apo dg.
canon 580ex speedlite and a borrowed collapsable background. thank you
do u think im mad?!

[tim]

You'll do better than someone with a P&S camera for sure. Borrow a tripod if you can, use the kit lens at about F8 & ISO200, and make sure not too much light reflects back at the lens because it'll flare. I'd probably try and find a way to bounce the flash off a wall or large white surface which you put to one side of the people, so you get more light on one side of their faces than the other - that always makes for good pictures - look at any pro studio photo and you'll see what I mean. The cheap way might be to put a large white sheet of cardboard to one side of them, reasonably close but out of the frame, and point the flash head mostly towards it. If that doesn't work you can always shoot straight on.

Make sure you have spare flash batteries, and maybe a spare camera battery. http://www.sterlingtek.com sell good batteries very cheaply, I use them and they work well.

[tweatherred]

How long do you have before the big party? There are a bunch of tutorials here and elsewhere on portrait techniques as well as a variety of images. Do some research and then practiice on anyone you can convince to sit still long enough. Then post some pictures here for constructive criticism. Finally, since lighting is key, you may want to consider buying/renting some additional light. I just bought my second 580 and am already jonesing for a third with some reflectors; perhaps your mother could help out with the cost of another flash as payment for your services. Take your time and plan what you are doing and you should make your mother proud.

[bolantej]

http://www.theflashcentre.com/guidetobetterpics.htm
not the only online tutorial, but I think it'll do. do you have an off camera shoe cord 2?

I was recently asked to do something similar, and and terrified right along with you. Just be strong and tough it out.

[gemmacole]

thank you guys so much for your help. these forums are fabulous!! i have until the 11th march so i have this weekend to "play". i like the idea of using the sheet of white card...i am completely out of money for the moment so buying any substantial bits of kit right now isnt likely so thats a nice cheap solution.
i forgot to mention the tripod actually i have been loaned that too. i dont have a off camera shoe cord? what is that?
thanks again. as soon as i have any i will put the pictures up for some much needed constructive critism and ideas of what i need to do to make them better!
thank you again

[SkipD]

One valuable tip - shoot in RAW mode. It will make it much easier to make adjustments after the fact such as white balance (to correct for colors that didn't come out right the first time).

[tim]

Only shoot in RAW if you have enough CF cards to last the number of photos you think you'll take. And you'll take more than you expect.

[Tee Why]

For formal portrait type stuff I'd probably use the 70-300 wide open, maybe ISO 400, with bounce flash. Since you have a tripod, shutter speed will not matter too much. For group/candid moments, you may hav to use the kit. I prefer high ISO and wide open aperatures vs. a flash as I hate the flash as main light look (meaning a deer caught in the headlight look). But if it's dark, you may have to use the flash, just turn down the FEC if needed so you don't blow out faces. I'd probaly shoot in Av mode, ISO probably 400-1600 (depending on light), pretty open aperature (f3.5 or 4), bounce flash if needed. Shooting in RAW would be nice, but if you are not familiar with it, shooting in JPEG will be fine. I prefer to set my own with high contrast, sharpness, saturation. But this is a more personal taste issue.
Good luck and have fun for God sakes.