friends photoshoot, C&C please!!

[Logan2010]

so, after the experiment with my little sister.. i read up on alot of things.. metering, grey cards, alot. anyway. i took my friends ilah and sarah down by the river today and snapped some photos of her, did a bit of touching in photoshop, and i think they look great! compared to my last photoshoot with my sister alteast. let me know what you guys think. what i can do to improve?
the two main things i see that bugs me are..
1. the sky isnt very blue.. im gonna get a filter to help with that hopefully
2. the powerlines in some of them.

great step up from last time though! im getting there guys!
(im very proud of myself right now :)

1
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3192/3614908313_7b6ae15831.jpg?v=0
2
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2450/3614922281_0ca3f13683.jpg?v=0
3
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3639/3615835870_3c8700f94d.jpg?v=0
4
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3592/3615021957_69e21cfeca.jpg?v=0
5
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3339/3615022671_8c255e16a5.jpg?v=0


and a lomo for the artsy side :)
6
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3648/3615025883_4d456f2c31.jpg?v=0

[CJinAustin]

I like number 3... The model just isn't posing so that kind of hurts the shoot.

[Logan2010]

yeah, it bugged me that they didnt really want to smile.. because them being girls.. "they hate there smile" ..

but i have another shoot tomorrow with a different girl.. and another next week with my moms friend and her baby.. (thats gonna be intresting.. never shot a baby)


thanks!!

[gamec0mmander]

When I shoot in overcast (10am to 5pm) i usually place my subjects under a dense shade and use reflectors to bring the sunlight on them from different angles. If that's not enough (it almost always is) i use some speed lights just enough to highlight some facial features (eyes and smile are most important to me). my 0.02

[Logan2010]

When I shoot in overcast (10am to 5pm) i usually place my subjects under a dense shade and use reflectors to bring the sunlight on them from different angles. If that's not enough (it almost always is) i use some speed lights just enough to highlight some facial features (eyes and smile are most important to me). my 0.02


how big is your reflector? i have a smaller one.. maybe 2 1/2 ft diameter..

and how do you reflect the light onto there whole face without blinding them? i have to have it and an extreme angle off to the side so they wont squint at the light.. then that causes part of there face to be lit, but the other part to be underexposed..

i want to see some of yours if i could.. i want to explore this concept.

thanks,

logan

[gamec0mmander]

Before i could afford the canon 430 speedlight, i went to autozone and got those two giant reflectors (emphasis on 2 so you don't get dark spots when positioning reflectors on the side) that you put in the car window ($10). I kept one side silver and the other i painted gold with a $3 spray paint from home depot (that was my setup).

It's best to get more friends of your model so they can help with holding the reflectors (trust me they will want to be involved in the whole shooting process). By doing this, not only do their inhibitions go away and pose more naturally, but you also gain two very good reflector holders.

You have to use the reflectors from a pretty big distance (10 ft) so you don't blind them. At first their eyes will be sensitive, but they adjust fast. It's all about practice I guess.

Unfortunately i can't post my model photos on here because i just shoot for friends like you. Because i didn't make them sign model release forms, i will not risk posting their photos anywhere. I'm mostly a landscape photographer, but i read alot on this forum on how to take portraits so i wont suck when i take family and friends photos. GL

[canonnoob]

your shots are over exposed first of all. the blonde girls hair blens in with the sky on 1,2,4.

The pose in 2 is not flattering to the model because she looks like she is about to go pee..

her hand in 4 is very distracting and next time make sure that she uses her whole hand to push her hair back.

One thing to keep in mind is that YOU are the photographer, they are the models.. YOU ARE IN CHARGE... if you say smile, they need to smile.. so i bet this goes back to your willingness to push them to do what you want.

Nice try... Just keep practicing to get better.

[Logan2010]

thanks guys!

Canon, what do you suggest i do about her hair? her hair is so damn stubbarn.. its the blondest hair i've ever seen.. so if i were to expose her hair right then her face would be slightly underexposed and not very vibrant. number 4 was edited to be over exposed (she wanted it like that)
and she has a thing for doing the hand thing... idk.. she's a "scene" type of girl.. they all do that crap.

[canonnoob]

you have a flash? or just a reflector? If you under expose the sky but keep the reflector you will be good on the exposure of her face and hair..

[Logan2010]

thats what i did.. i have a reflector and a 430ex.. i used the reflector for the right side of her face (our left)
the sky wasnt very blue that day also.. 1 and 2 are pretty much exactly how it looked..

[canonnoob]

power up your flash.. thats the only thing I can think of.. use it as fill as you under expose the sky.

[Logan2010]

alright, i have a shoot tomorrow, i'll try that..
thanks for the advice !!

logan

[semi-fly]

The models seem to be expressionless. In one or more she seems to have a smirk, it doesn't really do anything for me. Even the last photo other than saying "You're number 1" there isn't much to it and the post-processing is a little much.

[canonnoob]

The models seem to be expressionless. In one or more she seems to have a smirk, it doesn't really do anything for me. Even the last photo other than saying "You're number 1" there isn't much to it and the post-processing is a little much.

I dont think they are saying... your number 1 lol

[Logan2010]

of course they are canon.. you know as well as i do that us missour(ah)ians love to say "your number one" that way.. :P