Truck + Driver for Transportation company - C&C please

I got to do some shots for a Transportation Company that specializes in just special transports.

Had very limited time with both of the drivers/trucks.

Here are two of the images they use on their Website.

Any C&C are welcome, since this was my firts of this kind of job!

The left hand side is very distorted - as if you used a very wide lens (guessing its 16-20mm ff equivalent)

Echo63 wrote in post #18240869
The left hand side is very distorted - as if you used a very wide lens (guessing its 16-20mm ff equivalent)

Had to use my 17-40, was a little bit lack of space
(And the customer did not give me any time to prepare/scout locations and was in a hurry..)

(Edit: But could propably have stepped back a couple of steps on the smaller truck)


/Jocce

Jocce wrote in post #18240918
Had to use my 17-40, was a little bit lack of space
(And the customer did not give me any time to prepare/scout locations and was in a hurry..)

(Edit: But could propably have stepped back a couple of steps on the smaller truck)

/Jocce

Not much you can do about it now - but you will keep an eye out for it next time.

Last minute, no location scouting jobs were the norm when i was working for a newspaper, after a while you get used to it, and can pull good pictures out of a poor situation.

Echo63 wrote in post #18240923
Not much you can do about it now - but you will keep an eye out for it next time.

Last minute, no location scouting jobs were the norm when i was working for a newspaper, after a while you get used to it, and can pull good pictures out of a poor situation.

Yes, that is exactly why I am posting C&C like this, to be able to learn for the future


/Jocce

As these are akin to 'hero' shots and we get to monday morning quarter back.. here are my thoughts.

Your lighting is great on the equipment, sucks on the people. The lighting on the people sucks because having them turn into the sunlight so they were at a 45* to you, and have them fold their arms, legs apart at shoulder width would have both of them look 'stronger' more in line with the job and the equipment behind them. AND/OR used some strategic fill flash on the shadow side of the people to fill the light in a bit, bare flash will work if balanced right.

Her shadow is covering the nose of that little truck, and it bothers me. Would have moved her around a bit to compensate. Also would have had her holding helmet, tool, something as an alternate.

His placement is just a bit off, IMHO, I would have moved him over the rear tire a bit more, that boom is a cool compositional element that could have been used a bit better.

I do like the pink/green balance you went for here, I do think that was a good way to go.

So I think you did very well for a short 'walk in and shoot this in 5 minutes' and I'm not saying I'd have done any better, other than fill flash, and better posing of the people. The gal in particular I wish would have looked more confident. Hindsight is always a goodthing/badthing.

I do think processing is great, love the color enhancement.

ksbal wrote in post #18240942
As these are akin to 'hero' shots and we get to monday morning quarter back.. here are my thoughts.

Your lighting is great on the equipment, sucks on the people. The lighting on the people sucks because having them turn into the sunlight so they were at a 45* to you, and have them fold their arms, legs apart at shoulder width would have both of them look 'stronger' more in line with the job and the equipment behind them. AND/OR used some strategic fill flash on the shadow side of the people to fill the light in a bit, bare flash will work if balanced right.

Her shadow is covering the nose of that little truck, and it bothers me. Would have moved her around a bit to compensate. Also would have had her holding helmet, tool, something as an alternate.

His placement is just a bit off, IMHO, I would have moved him over the rear tire a bit more, that boom is a cool compositional element that could have been used a bit better.

I do like the pink/green balance you went for here, I do think that was a good way to go.

So I think you did very well for a short 'walk in and shoot this in 5 minutes' and I'm not saying I'd have done any better, other than used of fill flash, and better posing of the people. The gal in particular I wish would have looked more confident. Hindsight is always a goodthing/badthing.

I do think processing is great, love the color enhancement.

Thanks, this is exactly what I am looking for in a C&C post Taking it all in and will bring it to the next shoot!

Regarding flash, I HAD a flash, BUT did nog get it close enough


/Jocce

Good, I do want to impress that I don't think you did bad, and not sure I'd do better under the time constraints, but some things to think about for next time.

May need a strobe on a battery if you do this regularly, I know it is on my list to get.

Get some people to practice poses with, its more about getting comfortable posing them, then about the actual poses... I've been working with models now on TFP basis, and it really helps, along with studying classical ways to pose them.

ksbal wrote in post #18240950
Good, I do want to impress that I don't think you did bad, and not sure I'd do better under the time constraints, but some things to think about for next time.

May need a strobe on a battery if you do this regularly, I know it is on my list to get.

Get some people to practice poses with, its more about getting comfortable posing them, then about the actual poses... I've been working with models now on TFP basis, and it really helps, along with studying classical ways to pose them.

Thank you again!

Yes, I'm looking in to getting some TFP-work done so that I can practice both Lightning-setup and posing!


/Jocce

The technical parts they already exposed them, my serious opinion in the composition; The man gives to the image weakness, overexposed by the strength of the machine, but in the second, weakness is presented by the machine; The woman presents confidence, security, dedication and strength; If we combine the strength of the machine with the image of the woman, the composition would gain strength and express better the image of the company. something like this:

wamvar wrote in post #18245914
The technical parts they already exposed them, my serious opinion in the composition; The man gives to the image weakness, overexposed by the strength of the machine, but in the second, weakness is presented by the machine; The woman presents confidence, security, dedication and strength; If we combine the strength of the machine with the image of the woman, the composition would gain strength and express better the image of the company. something like this:

Hosted photo: posted by wamvar in
./showthread.php?p=182​45914&i=i266074816
forum: Fashion, Editorial & Commercial

Another pose for the male driver would maybe have been better?

Or perhaps some more light on him as well?


/Jocce

yes; Maybe another pose would be better, his hands express insecurity, how to grasp the object he has, maybe he felt some shame in front of the camera; It is part of our job to make people feel comfortable and confident about themselves so they can follow our directions.

wamvar wrote in post #18245926
yes; Maybe another pose would be better, his hands express insecurity, how to grasp the object he has, maybe he felt some shame in front of the camera; It is part of our job to make people feel comfortable and confident about themselves so they can follow our directions.

He is actually holding it exactly like he would be operating the boom

But I do see your point and I am trying to evolve in this kind of photo


/Jocce

Not sure I like that you're looking up at the lady. Wide angle, shot from what appears to be her waist, stretches her and makes the viewer look up her nose.

With regards to your flash, you were clearly in HSS mode since you're shooting at 1/800. For a speedlite to actually have made a difference you'd have had to have it so close it would have been in the frame at 17mm. The pulsing of HSS takes a LOT of the power out. Not sure why you were all the way up at 1/800. Nothing's moving in the image correct? You could have been at ISO 100 and 1/200(sync speed). And being at 17mm, I'm not sure you'd needed to be stopped all the way down to f8 for enough depth of field, f5.6 may have been enough?? All these changes could have made the flash more effective.

But for 5min on your first environmental portrait shoot I'd say it's not bad. Curious what the images would look like if you hit the lens profile correction. I think it'd brighten those corners up quite a bit.

ma11rats wrote in post #18247202
Not sure I like that you're looking up at the lady. Wide angle, shot from what appears to be her waist, stretches her and makes the viewer look up her nose.

With regards to your flash, you were clearly in HSS mode since you're shooting at 1/800. For a speedlite to actually have made a difference you'd have had to have it so close it would have been in the frame at 17mm. The pulsing of HSS takes a LOT of the power out. Not sure why you were all the way up at 1/800. Nothing's moving in the image correct? You could have been at ISO 100 and 1/200(sync speed). And being at 17mm, I'm not sure you'd needed to be stopped all the way down to f8 for enough depth of field, f5.6 may have been enough?? All these changes could have made the flash more effective.

But for 5min on your first environmental portrait shoot I'd say it's not bad. Curious what the images would look like if you hit the lens profile correction. I think it'd brighten those corners up quite a bit.

Thanks for the input! Taking all of these with me for my next shoot! (That hopefully gives me some more time at site )

I have run Lens Correction, but the customer liked the feeling the vignetting gave to the image så I added it in post...


/Jocce