Susy and Mondo - First E-session.

So this was my first engagement session that I have ever done, which allowed me to book my first wedding too.

C&C is welcomed please.

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nice, too much sun in that 2nd one for me. all of them are very good, really liked the guitar shot

Thanks for the feed back rick. Anyone else have any pointers?

The girl looks cute in all the photos, but the guy looks bored?? To me they're all very contrasty, some angles don't do much for me (e.g. the one of them on the ground, in the sunset and the one with the guitar - the guy looks very short in those two). I also wish for a more shallow DOF in all the shots, some backgrounds are distracting and could have been eliminated. Nonetheless, a good attempt for your first engagement session, keep shooting and hopefully try and second-shoot with someone before your first wedding. Cheers!

THank you for the feed back Svetlana. I agree on the DOF, I should have used my canon 50mm. But I have to admit that I was scared of not being focused on the eyes or on the face. the lens I used only goes to f3.5. Or maybe I should have used my 70-300mm I've read that because of the length of the lens it has a nice DOF. Any other tips or tricks?

Light is everything. If you find good light you can take photos by the dumpster and the photos will still look great. Try and find even non-spotting light and have your couple facing the light to get those catchlights. Also, interract with them while you're shooting, keep telling them they're doing an amazing job, it will help them relax. I sometimes make a complete clown out of myself but if I see htat helps couple laugh and smile - I keep doing it. )) Not everyone is experienced in posing so they rely on you to tell them what to do. Maybe have a list of poses ready if you feel it will help you and them. Don't be afraid to show them exactly how you want them to pose, not just explain in words.

The good thing about engagement photos is you actually have time to play with focus and everything. Don't be afraid to go to shallow DOF, just check your screen. I've never had a couple who would say no to re-shooting a pose because I got the focus slightly off due to f/1.2. I'd take them out for another session and see what you can do now! Good luck and have fun shooting!

I agree with what Svetlana has pointed out and suggested, especially regarding the guy's lack of interest. Also, even just a little fill flash could have helped on several of these photos to get better exposures on the couple without the overexposed background. You could also use your canon 50 1.8 (guessing that is the 50mm you were referring to, but it isn't in your sig) at 2.0 or 2.2 or so to get the shallow DOF, but still have more of the couple in focus. You don't have to use it wide open.

Hi moeronn, Yeah that was really my fault as this was my first e-session ever. or even a couples shoot at that. I have mostly live music event experience, and some model shooting experience. I looked through this forum for months before the shoot, but when it came time to do the shoot, I guess my nerves got the best of me. So it's something that I have to now work on and gain more experience in as well. As for the flash fill, yes you are right, that is one of the things that I am working on.

Thank you for the reply. It is hard to get anyone to comment on here.

I like your composition but some the backgrounds are very bright. I would meter the background and use a fill flash. Also in these bright situations try high speed sync. You can get some amazing pictures with it. Good thing is unlike wedding shots you get a lot time to try out things. Also try to scout for locations where you get diffused light throug trees and stuff.