HS Senior Session

Hey POTN - 1st post here in a long long time. Did a Senior session for a local student last week and would love some hard, true CC. Shoot was held at 6PM hoping for some golden light but received overcast skies that created flat, unflattering light.

If I were the client, I would be happy with these. An overcast sky is not necessarily a bad thing in my opinion.

It's a nit... but last shot is a few degrees off of level. Those fail rail ties tell the story... and unfortunately for me there is so many of them, it just makes the image slightly off. A few degrees back to the left and call it good. I know there were naturally lit, but too back you don't have something to create a bit of catch light in the eyes. Again, another nit after the fact. I have a buddy that sets his flash on its lowest power, aimed stringy up, just to create the light.... and you see the difference. That said... I am being really picky here... so feel free to ignore.

joedlh wrote in post #18696445
If I were the client, I would be happy with these. An overcast sky is not necessarily a bad thing in my opinion.

Thanks Joe, I think the mom had her expectations on some nice orange glow so the feedback was a bit mixed. The overcast sky created some dark shadows in the eyes especially on the rail tracks. Tried using a reflector for some fill but it wasn't really working for me.

Croasdail wrote in post #18696601
It's a nit... but last shot is a few degrees off of level. Those fail rail ties tell the story... and unfortunately for me there is so many of them, it just makes the image slightly off. A few degrees back to the left and call it good. I know there were naturally lit, but too back you don't have something to create a bit of catch light in the eyes. Again, another nit after the fact. I have a buddy that sets his flash on its lowest power, aimed stringy up, just to create the light.... and you see the difference. That said... I am being really picky here... so feel free to ignore.

Great feedback! I totally missed the rail ties. With no horizon visible I wasn't even thinking about getting it perfectly level. His eyes are quite dark, agree. I believe the flat light that night didnt help but great tip on creating some simple catch light.
- Pete

what unflattering light?!! i'd be happy with these photos if I was the client.
in my opinion they are beautifully and naturally lit. I like them

The lighting is a bit flat but it is outdoors and overcast. A reflector will not work as well with the sun behind clouds. You need some off camera flash ideally. I typically like to use a strobe with a brolly box for this kind of shoot. This will lighten up the face and also give a good catch light in the eyes. The other thing you can do is find an area that creates moody light naturally, but you're out in the open outdoors, this is not easy to find there.

Overall the pictures aren't bad but IMO if you're charging for this as a professional, then you should have the equipment I mentioned and be able to use it. You can't guarantee a sunset with red clouds filling the sky, so you have to be able to shoot in any conditions and still come out with great photos.

OK, hard, true CC. The poses could be greatly improved. Sitting with hands out in front of the face is distracting. Have him do something more interesting. Were you handholding a 135mm using 1/250sec shutter. I'm struggling to determine the color of his shirt in 2 and 3.

I think they're lit fine. If you want some orange, why not just add some to the highlights in post? Overall, I'd say that it's a decent set.

They look like you know what you're doing, but I agree with the comments above about a (subtle) off camera flash.

For the image at the tracks, there might be some room in post to brighten it and add a tad of clarity/saturation/vib​rance.

All in all. I like the natural look of the images.

Hi Larry, greatly appreciate the tough CC. Poses are where I'm struggle most right now! I find it extremely challenging to get pull a pose from memory during a shoot, so much remember & pay attention to. I've tried writing poses down and referencing pinterest but need more practice. Hopefully this will become easier over time.

Yes I was hand holding the 135.. probably pushing the limit without any type of IS. Shirt was a lightish blue - WB is definitely a bit warm in the 2nd photo

Thanks again - Pete

Hey AS_Photo

Thanks for the feedback, I have an Ad200 setup with 36" octa. Wasn't confident enough to pull it out during the shot though, need a bit more practice outdoors. Time was also tight and the flash setup would really slow things down. Tough balance!

Not charging for photos at this time. Threw a facebook post up on a local neighbors site asking for senior/family model volunteers.. So far so good, I get all the practice I can handle and hopefully the models take home some decent images.

- Pete

Light is fine and compositions look good, but id mix it up more with the posing and model direction. All sitting and face to camera with neutral expression. I'm sure you have other perspectives in the shoot but id recommend pushing the variety even more.