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View Full Version : Focus - newbie question.

sn4il
15th of May 2005 (Sun), 12:25
Hi.
I am pretty new to photography. Today I will try to shoot some portraits (head shots). I will be using home made lights with umbrellas, window light and maybe 580 EX. I will use 50mm 1.4.
I wondered which focus mode do You guys use for this kind of shots? Manual/AF/OneShot?
I would appreciate all tips and suggestions.
mAx
PhotosGuy
15th of May 2005 (Sun), 19:18
I'd use M & focus on the eyes.
LadyHawk
15th of May 2005 (Sun), 21:07
I focus on the eyes too, using various creative modes and automatic focus. Make sure to set your camera for a single (usually central) focus point. My first shots were with all the focus points on, and you can't focus on just the eyes that way!
sn4il
16th of May 2005 (Mon), 00:55
Ok... I did it...... Personally i think that my light setup sux. What do You think about this shot??
http://www.thoro.net/an.jpg

mAx
grego
16th of May 2005 (Mon), 01:19
It's pretty good. Be creative with the flash though, but good start. I've done lighting with a 550 flash and a piece of white paper to bounce off and diffuse through.
tim
16th of May 2005 (Mon), 02:59
I like it. Her face and eyes are in good focus, nice narrow DOF but not too narrow, and there are no hot spots.
PhotosGuy
16th of May 2005 (Mon), 08:23
Nice shot! With her round face, I'd try "Short lighting" her. Have her turn her head a bit more to the left,leave the main light to the left side & tone down the fill on the right. See:
http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=008bWl
sn4il
16th of May 2005 (Mon), 10:43
Thank You for tips!!! Next time I will have SP-Systems Excalibur Pro 6400 3 Light Kit and I will experiment some more. Last night I had a lot of overexposed shots like this one:
http://www.thoro.net/ann.jpg

I was shooting in RAW so maybe there is a way to fix it a little bit.

mAx
PhotosGuy
16th of May 2005 (Mon), 11:32
Last night I had a lot of overexposed shots like this one: Pros NEVER get overexposed shots. They're called "High Key"! :D:D:D She looks much better in that shot. It's a better focal length for her. You were probably at a wider angle & closer in the 1st one?
sn4il
16th of May 2005 (Mon), 11:49
Pros NEVER get overexposed shots. They're called "High Key"! :D:D:D She looks much better in that shot. It's a better focal length for her. You were probably at a wider angle & closer in the 1st one? Hehe, I like this one :)
All shots were taken with 50mm and same distance. The first shot is just cropped that way.
Here is original shot:

http://www.thoro.net/an2.jpg

mAx
Ken Fong
16th of May 2005 (Mon), 12:16
I like all the shots...you've accomplished a lot with a simple setup! The 'high key' shots add facial 'concealer', which most would say looks more appealing...the purists would probably disagree, but I like it. Also, very good shadow management.
LadyHawk
16th of May 2005 (Mon), 21:58
I don't know much about lighting, but think you've done well. Your model is very pretty, too.