Self Family Portrait - CC Please

Nicely done. I agree with the prior poster on using a rim/hair light. A gridded strip box above is great for that.

You'll get better expressions if you plan out the shot/posing and then shoot it as a composite image and assemble in Photoshop. Shoot lots of frames with your family to get them looking on camera, then shoot a couple shots with yourself in the frame with the self timer or remote release.

I did our own family portrait yesterday with the same approach. This is a composite of three frames:

Nice job! I have no idea how to use photoshop. I use Aperture and apparently need a newer computer as mine is crawling when I use photo editing software.

mckinleypics wrote in post #13465694
Nice job! I have no idea how to use photoshop. I use Aperture and apparently need a newer computer as mine is crawling when I use photo editing software.

You should look into getting photoshop, it can help out a lot. Even an old version or the basic photoshop elements can do this, all you need is the ability to edit in layers. A half hour tutorial once you had it, and you'd be up and running!

I've used this technique for just about every family portrait I've shot the past couple years. No more blinking, everyone is always smiling whether you've got 5 people or 40 people in the image. Just need one good expression from each person, and you're set!

I like the the ones (on Flickr) you did not like best.... Family in action.... But the end result is certainly Christmas-card quality. Just a bit of processing as already suggested (up the exposure a bit and tone done the white dress at the same time. Probably a bit of "fill light" to see if you can get yourself off the background.

I find that to get my dogs attention some treats on a saucer or in a bag dangling under the camera, will help to make her "eager" and watching the lens.

SimpleJack wrote in post #13460983
The dogs need to smile more. Try shaking a plastic bag or something to make them open there eyes and look forward. The family looks pretty good, maybe a little closer together next time? Not allot, just a tiny bit

My very first thought when I looked at the image.....

Frugal wrote in post #13461245
For something that's high degree of difficulty you did well. But to do better you needed a back/hair/rim light. People call it different things but it would have lit the shoulders and hair of your subjects and prevented the black hair and sweater of the man at the right from blending into the black background.

HTH

The second thing I saw - the hair is disappearing into the background. Need some light to separate the hair for the BG.

To get all those folks and the dogs together in one frame and shoot the image is about a super human effort. I would think based on degree of difficulty and execution this shot is a winner.

I think you did a reasonably good job; self-portraits aren't even to do if you don't have a wireless remote or an intervalometer.

The background can be fixed in post with a little masking.

Sheldon N wrote in post #13466258
You should look into getting photoshop, it can help out a lot. Even an old version or the basic photoshop elements can do this, all you need is the ability to edit in layers. A half hour tutorial once you had it, and you'd be up and running!

I've used this technique for just about every family portrait I've shot the past couple years. No more blinking, everyone is always smiling whether you've got 5 people or 40 people in the image. Just need one good expression from each person, and you're set!

Oh I have photoshop elements, I just can't seem to get my head around it. I need to spend some time with it I guess.

Titus213 wrote in post #13466939
My very first thought when I looked at the image.....

The second thing I saw - the hair is disappearing into the background. Need some light to separate the hair for the BG.

To get all those folks and the dogs together in one frame and shoot the image is about a super human effort. I would think based on degree of difficulty and execution this shot is a winner.

Thanks Titus! One of the things I did in Aperture was darken my rapidly balding scalp a little. Photographically, I know my hair shouldn't disappear into the background. However, my vanity overrides a bit and likes that you can't see my thinning hairline.

I like the idea of a strip light though. I think that will be my next purchase, after I upgrade my slow computer so I can do more editing.

I'm constantly overwhelmed at the vast bank of knowledge this forum provides. I came here three years ago not knowing the difference between aperture and shutter speed and now I can walk into a camera store and sling the lingo like a seasoned vet! Thanks guys.

Sheldon N wrote in post #13465531
Nicely done. I agree with the prior poster on using a rim/hair light. A gridded strip box above is great for that.

You'll get better expressions if you plan out the shot/posing and then shoot it as a composite image and assemble in Photoshop. Shoot lots of frames with your family to get them looking on camera, then shoot a couple shots with yourself in the frame with the self timer or remote release.

I did our own family portrait yesterday with the same approach. This is a composite of three frames:

One light on background, stripbox above for hair light and big Octa for key light (all Elinchrom).

So to be clear, you are cutting and pasting people from various photographs together? Or just their heads? Not sure I'm clear on how you did this.

You can take elements for other photos like eyes or smiles and add them to a particular photo you like. Reasonably simple to do in Photoshop or Photoshop Elements.

mckinleypics wrote in post #13467769
So to be clear, you are cutting and pasting people from various photographs together? Or just their heads? Not sure I'm clear on how you did this.

It's sort of like cutting/pasting heads, but just a little more sophisticated.

First, I try to shoot so that the posing doesn't change much between frames. It's much harder to "put the puzzle together" if everything is different between images. Once the images are shot, then my workflow looks like this...

• Open all the images and paste them on top of each other creating a stack of multiple layers.
  
• Using the "eyeball icon" turn off the visibility of unwanted layers so you are only working with one layer at a time.
  
• Use the opacity slider on the top layer to set it at 50% opacity. You will be able to see both images at once.
  
• Move the top layer into position (control + click/drag) so that it lines up with the underlying layer. Think about where you want your seams to be. Zooming to 100% view helps you position it exactly.
  
• Set the opacity back to 100%.
  
• Add a layer mask to the top layer. (See the white box appear next to the layer, this is your layer mask)
  
• Invert the layer mask (Control + I). This will make the layer mask turn black and make the top layer "invisible".
  
• Use a paintbrush with a soft edge (Hardness = 0) and paint on the layer mask (make sure you've clicked on it to highlight it as the active area) using white to "paint in" the top layer image on top of the bottom layer. With a layer mask, painting with white will allow the top layer to show through and cover up the bottom layer. Anything that is black on the layer mask will block the top layer from appearing at all, and shades of gray will partially reveal the top. The quick memory tip is "White reveals, black conceals."
  
• If you make a mistake while painting on the layer mask, hit the "X" key to toggle between painting with white or painting with black. You can paint black over your error and then toggle back to white to paint it in again.
  
• I will usually start out with big brush strokes to get the main subject into the picture, then zoom in with smaller and smaller brushes to touch up the details so the overlap looks natural. Sometimes you need to "fade" the blend in with big soft brush strokes, and other times it needs to be a hard edge line with precise brush work.
  
• Toggle the top layer on and off (eyeball icon) to help you see where any overlap errors might be.
  
• Repeat the above process for the next image layer, until everyone is in the photo and looking how you want them to.

Thanks so much! I have some serious learning to do!

Hey---they are good enough for Christmas cards, now get 'em in the mail!

You should make the 2nd one your Christmas card pic --- most people would relate to it more all things considered the 1st one aint too bad of an accomplishment!