first family shoot...CC

[hapa mamma]

Some friends and their two kids...

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y69/sbmarkham/18x10.jpg

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y69/sbmarkham/48x10.jpg

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y69/sbmarkham/28x10.jpg

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y69/sbmarkham/38x10.jpg

[BCRose]

These are really nice, I am about to do some family shoots myself next weekend. Did you think about using an adjustment layer to whiten the background?

[hapa mamma]

These are really nice, I am about to do some family shoots myself next weekend. Did you think about using an adjustment layer to whiten the background?

how? I only have PS elements. Can anyone walk me through it? please? Also, what can I do during shooting to get my background whiter?

[KayakPhotos]

First things first. I believe that with this type of shooting, you should have the subjects atleast 8' away from the background. It looks like they are very close and this can be problematic. Also make sure that you have a separate flash or lighting source specifically used for the background and a separate one for the family. If you are only using flash on camera, you might experiment with off camera flash positions to find what works. If you are only using one flash, it is going to be pretty hard to get the lighting just right.

Adjustment Layer directions:
1. Go into the layers palette(bottom right of screen in full edit mode that shows all the layers) and click on the little circle that is half black and half white.
2. choose whichever setting you want. You might try adding a solid color layer and using the eye dropper tool to select the best lit part of your background.

I am not experienced with studio shooting, so you will probably get better advice from someone else. I would recommend purchasing Photoshop Elements 6: The Missing Manual by: Barbara Brundage.

[BCRose]

There are a lot of tutorials on the Internet regarding how to light a white BG. They would probably be a great place to begin.

Same goes for the adjustment layers techniques.

Check this out

http://www.zarias.com/?p=71

[videochicke]

In the second shot, the dad's head looks enormous and the mom has a little bitty head. Shooting from father back could have evened them out a bit.

[FocalPrincess]

I'm going to respectfully disagree w/40Driggs on the 8' thing...its just not always possible. However, you can still get a 2-3' distance, maybe 4' from the background and have good separation. I'd try to shoot with a smaller aperature so that your depth of field will be larger.

Definitely check out the zarius tutorial that someone linked you to a bit ago...its wonderfully helpful. And then, even if you have to use a teddy bear or something, give it a shot...just practice a bit until you get your lighting tweaked for your space.

I don't love the angle of the 4th one, just because its sort of "looking down" Mom's shirt...its not a BAD picture, its just got a bit of room for creativity.

Overall, you've got a good first start.

[BCRose]

Gotta watch Dad's feet in #4 as well...looks a bit like Mickey Mouse :)

[Dermit]

Ok. The one problem I would place on the top of the list is this... the background used is a poor choice given the clothes they are wearing... or... the clothes they are wearing is a poor choice given the background used.

One key rule I learned early on is this... you should try and match the background and clothes to be the same key. If the background is high key (bright/white, etc) then the clothes should be high key.

Here is the reasoning. When you shoot people you want the viewer of the image to be drawn to the faces first and foremost. Our eyes are drawn to the highest point of contrast first. When you shoot dark clothes (low key) on white background (high key) our eyes go to the clothes and never lock onto the faces.

You fix this out of key mix and 80% of your problems with this shoot go away for me. other things need work, but this one is big.

In the first image.... try not to position heads directly over heads. Stagger them whenever possible. In the second shot it's OK where it happened because dad is staggered over in between.

[hapa mamma]

Thank you all so much! I was able to learn how to do some layer adjustments and whiten up the background...much better!

I wish that 8 feet was possible, but it's not. My 'studio' is my dining room. Table out, lighting in, viola, ghetto studio! lol.

Dermit, thanks for the insight about the high key, low key. I have a black blackground that may have been better.

Thanks again all!