Dominic - 4 years old

[samanthajolson]

My first outdoor shoot of this summer! This was also my first time using a reflector, gold - opposite the light (obviously!). Please CC! I've got more shoots like this coming up and want them to turn out even better. Thanks in advance!!

1
http://lh6.ggpht.com/_4ii5I-f20sk/S983M81_BMI/AAAAAAAAEvg/J0rB27_zRDI/s800/DSC_0035.jpg

2 does the blown out hair look completely terrible and distracting? Anything I can do about it in post?
http://lh3.ggpht.com/_4ii5I-f20sk/S983V994pLI/AAAAAAAAEvk/PJkEjPzqY04/s800/DSC_0050.jpg

3
http://lh4.ggpht.com/_4ii5I-f20sk/S983lAK4ZSI/AAAAAAAAEvs/4xyu5RP6zsc/s800/DSC_0059.jpg

4
http://lh3.ggpht.com/_4ii5I-f20sk/S984J1nUv8I/AAAAAAAAEv4/-16HVITfFHQ/s800/DSC_0125.jpg

5
http://lh5.ggpht.com/_4ii5I-f20sk/S985HH05ElI/AAAAAAAAEwQ/HQeCoa75DYE/s800/DSC_0243.jpg

6
http://lh5.ggpht.com/_4ii5I-f20sk/S985YVfkmtI/AAAAAAAAEwc/1RDUcF1QZ-Q/s800/DSC_0310.jpg

7
http://lh5.ggpht.com/_4ii5I-f20sk/S986yPIx4PI/AAAAAAAAExI/LLKZSVSPdMM/s800/DSC_0051bw.jpg

8
http://lh3.ggpht.com/_4ii5I-f20sk/S988wiq1v5I/AAAAAAAAExw/JW9HJmuPFSE/s800/DSC_0599bwblk.jpg

[Sam]

I think you hit the right balance in #3 for my taste.

The others are too bright for me.

[roman_t]

i like 4 and 7 most

[GregAlmo]

the last two are AWESOME!

[Kristy]

Looks pretty good for just learning.. the light is a little harsh... Even when you are using a reflector, you can feather the light across the subject.. just let it lightly skim over him enough to illuminate and fill the shadows, but not so much as to blast him with light... does that make any sense at all?

#7 looks about right to me.. but since it's B&W, it can be hard to judge.. ;)

[samanthajolson]

Thanks for the comments everyone!

Kristy- I agree! This may sound like a dumb question (and I'm ok with that!) - how do I go about "feathering" the light? There were some VERY tall trees behind him, with the sun just at the very top of them. There was a small space we could have the reflector that it actually caught sun, and even at that it would come and go as the trees moved in the breeze! Do I just need to find a spot with more sun close to the shaded area? Or hold the reflector more towards the side of him? Or smaller reflector (I believe mine is 42 inches)? Or maybe white side, so it's less light being reflected? - in regards to that, I used gold because of how much light it reflected. My photos aren't as sharp as I'd like usually, and I think it has to do with lack of light (and therefore, slower shutter speed) - so I wanted as much light as possible. Maybe this was wrong though (I'm ok with that too - I'm learning!)... Any advice?

Here is #7 in color:
http://lh3.ggpht.com/_4ii5I-f20sk/S986g8A8fHI/AAAAAAAAExA/aTHwZWuzgDU/s800/DSC_0051.jpg

[MikePrattPhotography]

too cute!! nice rim light!!!

[HillHey]

Great pics! I especially love the first picture as well as the first black and white one. And the colors are so crisp.

[HillHey]

It's gorgeous in colour, too!!!

[digitalphotocandy]

The black and white is STUNNING. I am not a fan of the gold reflector, it changes the skin tone too much for me. There is a yellowy tone to the ones with a lot of reflector use. 5 and 7 are my absolute favorites. That black and white just captures him so beautifully!

[obfuscate]

Love #7 - both versions!

[amature_but_learning]

I love the Black and White with the Color Blocks! he has such a cute smile!

[stripdshirt]

#3 is nice not too overexposed. Selective color is good on #8.