Black dog-first attempt with AB400

[jnbradley]

Is there a better way to light this? Not sure if I like the shiny look on her head. Or is black fur always going to have that sheen?

I had the Ab and a shoot-thru umbrella above and to the right, and a 580ex straight ahead- just above the camera.

1/180, f6.7, iso200
http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w110/jnbradley3/Charlie2-3.jpg

[NeutronBoy]

the eyes are a bit cloudy to me ... fur looks fine

[Flo]

Dogs have hair:D and with the black sheen, it will show different in lights all the time.the BG color is not working for me in this one.too much, it overpowers the dog. A neutral color would help with the look. You can dodge the eyes with edit..I love photos of dogs outside , just me.

[jetcode]

The secret to getting good lighting for portraiture is to study eyeballs and shadows. Eyeballs show the source of the light and shadows show the position. Check out your favorite portraits and try to determine where the light source is located. Then try to recreate. This lighting is flat and the image is slightly overexposed. IMO the backdrop needs to support the story.

[jnbradley]

the eyes are a bit cloudy to me ... fur looks fine

I agree- try as I might(and I am always attempting to put the focus point on the eye) it's almost always not sharp. Oh- cloudy- do you mean the position of the light has made the pupil and iris cloudy rather that black and brown?

the BG color is not working for me in this one.too much, it overpowers the dog. A neutral color would help with the look. You can dodge the eyes with edit..I love photos of dogs outside , just me.

I totally agree with the background color objection(I hate it myself), but the cust.......er wife demands all the dog shots have the purple background. I am able to insert an occassional outdoor shot- if my excuse is good enough!

Can you elaborate on "dodge the eyes"? Do you mean make them darker brown and black instead of "cloudy"?

The secret to getting good lighting for portraiture is to study eyeballs and shadows. Eyeballs show the source of the light and shadows show the position. Check out your favorite portraits and try to determine where the light source is located. Then try to recreate. This lighting is flat and the image is slightly overexposed. IMO the backdrop needs to support the story.

You mention the source of the light- what part of the eye should the source appear in to be better? And that brings up another point- what do you do with the obvious umbrella shapes reflected in the eyes?

"The light is flat"- I'm not 100% sure I know what this means- I'm thinking that shadows in the right places or directions might create the depth you're looking for?

"Overexposed".......when I bring the exposure down I lose a lot of black detail- just big black areas. I don't disagree with you- I just couldn't balance it all- not skilled enough in PP to make it right.


Thanks for all of your responses- exactly what I was looking for!

Jim

[Flo]

I totally agree with the background color objection(I hate it myself), but the cust.......er wife demands all the dog shots have the purple background. I am able to insert an occassional outdoor shot- if my excuse is good enough!

Can you elaborate on "dodge the eyes"? Do you mean make them darker brown and black instead of "cloudy"?
------------------------------

Do one photo session without the purple BG, and then show your wife how wonderful the dog looks..sometimes you have to make the decision to stand by what works for you;)

Yes, thats what I meant by dodge, when dogs get older they tend to get the opaque look, and dodging will alleviate the effect.

[Flo]

Super quick edit, but so you can see what I was getting at..reduce the color, get the eyes brighter.with the original, you can do a proper edit.You can see shadows near the rump of the dog,.pull the dog further away from the BG next time.
http://macymae.smugmug.com/Animals/Animals/Charlie2-3/800865084_qE4gv-M.jpg

[recrisp]

I agree with Gail, the color is way too bright for a background.
Personally, I'd go a little less than the correction she has made, that is one powerful color for a background. :)

Also, I'd like to just mention, it's called, "dodging", when you lighten a light area, and "burning" when you darken a dark area.
If you were dodging a dark area, it would become lighter. :D
That's from the days of when it was done in the darkroom and we'd use a 'wand-like' object to keep light from being exposed too much in one area.
We'd use an opaque sheet with a small hole in it to burn areas we wanted darker.

I like the dog shot by the way, very nice job, especially with Gail's edits.

Randy

[deathcake]

^^ Good work on the eyes, Flo.

Not sure if the purple works either it's a nice colour but distracting here, maybe even try black and white on this one... hm.

[jnbradley]

Yes, thats what I meant by dodge, when dogs get older they tend to get the opaque look, and dodging will alleviate the effect.

Thanks.

Super quick edit, but so you can see what I was getting at..reduce the color, get the eyes brighter.with the original, you can do a proper edit.You can see shadows near the rump of the dog,.pull the dog further away from the BG next time.
http://macymae.smugmug.com/Animals/Animals/Charlie2-3/800865084_qE4gv-M.jpg

Thank-you for the excellent fix! ....away from BG-copy that.

I agree with Gail, the color is way too bright for a background.
Personally, I'd go a little less than the correction she has made, that is one powerful color for a background. :)

Also, I'd like to just mention, it's called, "dodging", when you lighten a light area, and "burning" when you darken a dark area.
If you were dodging a dark area, it would become lighter. :D
That's from the days of when it was done in the darkroom and we'd use a 'wand-like' object to keep light from being exposed too much in one area.
We'd use an opaque sheet with a small hole in it to burn areas we wanted darker.

I like the dog shot by the way, very nice job, especially with Gail's edits.

Randy

Thanks for the dodge/burn explanation- I was more able to understand what to do with those tools.

Here's my attempt at doing what Gail did:

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w110/jnbradley3/Charlie2-5.jpg

Thank- you all so much for the pointers! And let me know please if I bungled this? Where/how.......

[recrisp]

It looks better, but it 'may be' too dark, it's hard to tell really.

Since I am not sure what you use, I have Photoshop, and when I do this, I use a 'Soft Brush' that fits the pupil, I make sure the 'Burn tool' is set really low so I don't burn it too fast, because it sure can.
Usually I'd use a strength of around 10 or so, you don't want to use 100%...

I think you did O.K. from what I see, you just don't want it looking too dark, if you don't match it exactly, it'll look fake. :)

Randy

[jnbradley]

Thanks, I'll try it your way when I can get back to it tomorrow. Mine does look fake compared to Gails. I knew I was having a hard time duplicating hers!

Thanks,
Jim

[Flo]

Thanks, I'll try it your way when I can get back to it tomorrow. Mine does look fake compared to Gails. I knew I was having a hard time duplicating hers!

Thanks,
Jim

Never duplicate.just reshoot!;) I am looking forward to another great session outside!( tough to find a purple BG);)