Lori in Black & White

[YosemiteJunkie]

With my limited lighting and makeshift back drop, I'm trying to learn more about doing Black and White and portraiture as well. The main light was a regular flood light with a 60w household bulb aprox. 45 degree to the left of the model and above. my 420Ex flash on camera. Lens was an EF 28-135 set to ISO 400 at 35mm, f/4.5 at 1/250 sec. on a tripod. Please give me some constructive C&C and help me learn to do this better with what I have to work with. Thanks for looking
http://photography.dunnnet.com/gallery/displayimage.php?pos=-306

[Benji]

YK,

I hope ya got thick skin :-) The head and shoulders portrait is HARD to do isn't it. Most people think it has to be the easiest shot of all to do, that is until they try it!!! After all, all that shows in the head and a little bit of the shoulders so what is the big deal. Sit her down and shoot her. Then they look at the image and say "it isn't very good" but they can't put their finger on it. The camera sees things considerably different than how our eyes sees things, so you must train your eye to see things like a camera does.

I have written several free tutorials that you may be interested in. Here is one on how to do the head and shoulders portrait http://www.photocamel.com/index.php/topic,14989.0.html
and here is another on the rules of portraiture http://www.photocamel.com/index.php/topic,16842.0.html
and here is an image from those tutorials!

Benji

[thrumyeye]

Wow Benji! I've read through about half of your tutorial on rules of portraiture (where was that link a year ago when I started!?!?) VERY good information - something a "self-made" photographer could use. It's hard to know where the good info out there lies - I can search on DVDs, books, etc, endlessly and spend days poring over choice after choice to order. But you never know which would be the best to spend the dough on.

Your tutorial is great and I'm glad I stumbled upon it!
I will pick up where I left off on it after the holiday!

[YosemiteJunkie]

Benji, never mind the thick skin. :) I am here to learn after all. After going through most of your tutorial (got them both book marked) and going back to look at Lori I see where a lot could have been done different, Some was on the right track (some by desighn and admittedly some by accident)). You are right though in that head and shoulder portraits are a bear to do. Your tutorial did give me a way around one of my models dress. She's a beautiful young lady but tattooed all up her arms and chest. I've been trying to figure out how to tell her I wanted the focus on her gorgous eyes and not her tats. No sleeveless dress covers that for me :wink
Thanks so much for your tutorials. You've given me a lot to work with..

[gkuenning]

Amazing tutorial, Benji. I never would have known about masculine and feminine head tilts, yet it's so clear in your examples. That tip alone is worth the cost of entry.

(Oh, wait. It was free. Well maybe you should turn it into a book!)

[Benji]

Glad to be of assistance. Nearly 5000 people have looked at my tutorial on the rules and over 10,000 have checked out all of my tutorials there. I am amazed.

(Cut and Paste) "Well maybe you should turn it into a book!" The book would not sell. Few of today's image makers seem to be interested in the rules. I believe we have a crop of "lone rangers" that think they can dispense with the rules and go it alone. They can learn them the easy way, or the hard way but if they expect to make a living at portraiture they WILL learn them.

Benji

[Alissa Morris]

Too much "out front" lighting, in her face. Use more subtle lighting techniques.

[condyk]

Man, that is a wonderful tutorial.

Thanks for the massive effort it must have taken. It's a real contribution ... and I don't even shoot portraits :-) Bookmarked for when I do!

[YosemiteJunkie]

Too much "out front" lighting, in her face. Use more subtle lighting techniques.
I can see it on her forhead in particular. The ceiling is orange so bouncing the light there is out, unless I can find some white board to put up there for that purpose. Hmm. Not a bad idea. This make shift, so called studio is actually on the back yard patio with a large covered area and the whole shootin' match is painted orange. I have a black felt material stapled up at one end to serve as a backdrop for now.
Thanks for the thoughts and input. It gives me more to think and work on.
Happy New Year.

[Alissa Morris]

Nice work, Benji.

[1rushfan]

All of this is why I don't think I can be a studio photographer. :) Nice work!

[JayKitty]

it's very flat lighting. try to have you models turn their head a little, looking straight into the camera makes their faces look fatter. i think a nice loop would compliment her face very well too.