Okay... let me have it...

Okay.. Working on my "people skills"....
Some friends wanted some "candid style" shots of themselves around town. The poses weren't completely posed, just them naturally interacting with each other. I think they turned out pretty well, but welcome your thoughts, critiques, OR... if your feeling generous - your "at-a-boys".

This is something I'm considering getting into and want more than the "snapshot" type of photo.

Fire Away......

IMAGE LINK: https://jamescullop.sm​ugmug.com …o/Krist-Amity/i-dst4BVC/A

IMAGE LINK: https://jamescullop.sm​ugmug.com …o/Krist-Amity/i-Jh94Zq5/A

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Concerning the color version, one thing I really love is the well-thought-out matching tee shirt choice! . The colors of the tee shirts work wonderfully with the colors of the wall, and show that this was well thought out. . Such preparation does not go unnoticed.

I know that things are "off" as far as the lighting is concerned, and I suspect that you tried to just use the ambient light. . I don't know much of anything about using flashes or strobes or reflectors or any artificial light, but I just know that the images could probably look better if you took control of the light instead of trying to work with ambient.

I'm sure that some folks will come along that have some great suggestions about how you could implement artificial light to make even more effective images.

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Tom Reichner wrote in post #18898660
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Concerning the color version, one thing I really love is the well-thought-out matching tee shirt choice! . The colors of the tee shirts work wonderfully with the colors of the wall, and show that this was well thought out. . Such preparation does not go unnoticed.

I know that things are "off" as far as the lighting is concerned, and I suspect that you tried to just use the ambient light. . I don't know much of anything about using flashes or strobes or reflectors or any artificial light, but I just know that the images could probably look better if you took control of the light instead of trying to work with ambient.

I'm sure that some folks will come along that have some great suggestions about how you could implement artificial light to make even more effective images.

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Thanks - You are right about the lighting - it was just ambient light. We were just walking around downtown and I only had my camera and a couple lenses - NO FLASHES (as a matter of fact, I don't own any yet ) Actually as I get the flashes, I will be posting more here, as that is a HUGE weakness of mine and I'm hoping to learn more about lighting. For now - it's trial by fire.

The shirts matching the mural?? Well, that's a happy coincidence. They just got off work (they own a Bourbon Ball candy company) and we were just walking around. I wish I could take credit for thinking this out, but I was basically just following them around.

Thanks,

Jamey

Nice work. If you have the pixels available giving them a bit more room on the right would be nice. They are relaxed (good work models and shooter), but seeing them tight right adds a conflicting sense of tension.

308Shooter wrote in post #18898698
Thanks - You are right about the lighting - it was just ambient light. We were just walking around downtown and I only had my camera and a couple lenses - NO FLASHES (as a matter of fact, I don't own any yet ) Actually as I get the flashes, I will be posting more here, as that is a HUGE weakness of mine and I'm hoping to learn more about lighting. For now - it's trial by fire.

The shirts matching the mural?? Well, that's a happy coincidence. They just got off work (they own a Bourbon Ball candy company) and we were just walking around. I wish I could take credit for thinking this out, but I was basically just following them around.

Thanks,

Jamey

It was just ambient? Ambient light is light. It is very difficult to master seeing it and using it. A great quote by one of the greatest that I partially agree with.
"Today's photographers think differently. Many can't see real light anymore. They think only in terms of strobe - sure, it all looks beautiful but it's not really seeing. If you have the eyes to see it, the nuances of light are already there on the subject's face. If your thinking is confined to strobe light sources, your palette becomes very mean - which is the reason I photograph only in available light." - Alfred Eisenstaedt

I do think that having and learning how to use strobes is very important and I have an extensive background in using them both studio and portable strobes only use them when available light will not give me my desired finished image. In fact when I use them I try to emulate natural or available light but I do agree with Eisenstadt that many today can't see light.

I agree with the statements about the color. That is the better of the two in my opinion because I agree with Tom's comments about color.

AZGeorge wrote in post #18899105
Nice work. If you have the pixels available giving them a bit more room on the right would be nice. They are relaxed (good work models and shooter), but seeing them tight right adds a conflicting sense of tension.

Yes, the right side is tight, but I was constrained by the building's drain pipes on both sides. I may have had a little more room but didn't want to get the pipes in the shot. I guess I could have shot wider and cropped out the pipes afterwards. That would have given me more room.

Thanks for the thoughts.

308Shooter wrote in post #18899124
Yes, the right side is tight, but I was constrained by the building's drain pipes on both sides. I may have had a little more room but didn't want to get the pipes in the shot. I guess I could have shot wider and cropped out the pipes afterwards. That would have given me more room.

Thanks for the thoughts.

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I, too, run into situations where there is something on one side of the composition that I do not want in the final image. . What I usually try do is to include just a slight piece of the unwanted item along the extreme edge of the frame, and then crop it out when editing. . This ensures that I get all of the "good space" in the final image.

I can be much more exacting when sitting at a computer than I can when shooting, where my mind is on so many other things.


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I like the composition.

I wonder what it would have looked like if you were down below them just a bit and the shot upward would have pulled more of the wall art? I love the wall for sure as a backdrop, that is pretty awesome.

Tom Reichner wrote in post #18899134
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I, too, run into situations where there is something on one side of the composition that I do not want in the final image. . What I usually try do is to include just a slight piece of the unwanted item along the extreme edge of the frame, and then crop it out when editing. . This ensures that I get all of the "good space" in the final image.

I can be much more exacting when sitting at a computer than I can when shooting, where my mind is on so many other things.

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Yep... That's exactly the kind of thing I need to hear... Makes me look at it through a different perspective.

TeamSpeed wrote in post #18899159
I wonder what it would have looked like if you were down below them just a bit and the shot upward would have pulled more of the wall art? I love the wall for sure as a backdrop, that is pretty awesome.

I thought about doing that as well. There was actually some other people/photogs there and they were doing that exact thing. Wish I had given it a go.....

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TeamSpeed wrote in post #18899159
I wonder what it would have looked like if you were down below them just a bit .....

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As a general rule (not necessarily specific to this image), if a photographer takes most of his photos from a comfortable, "standing up" position, then he is doing it wrong most of the time.

One thing to consciously think about is, "from what height can this scene be best captured". . Sure, there are times when the best perspective to shoot something from will be a normal standing height, but this is the exception rather than the rule.

If, during the course of a day of shooting, you find yourself alternatively lying prone on the ground, standing up comfortably, kneeling, standing but crouched uncomfortably, and standing on picnic tables or car roofs, then you are doing it right.

Knowing exactly what position to shoot from in order to achieve the most compelling composition is a really big part of photography, and many times the best perspective will not be an easy or comfortable one. Nor will the best perspective always be easy to identify ..... often you will have to work a scene from many different perspectives, and see things from many different points of view, in order to figure it out .

Another thing to be conscious of, and to experiment with, is subject-to-background distance. . Did you think about having your subjects stand a foot and a half out away from the wall for a few shots? . What about two and a half feet out from the wall? . Four feet? . You could even have them stand 10 or 12 feet from the wall, get further back yourself, and shoot with a longer focal length.

There are several main factors to consider when it comes to perspective and distance:
- camera to subject distance
- subject to background distance
- camera to background distance
- the ratios between these different distances
- field of view (determined by focal length and sensor size)
- depth of field

So, there are so many different combinations of these different factors available to you that you can achieve an infinite variety of different looking images, just by using different distance/field of view combinations. . The more you experiment with changing these different variables, the easier it will be for you to quickly identify the best combination for any given scenario.

I guess the important thing is that whatever you do in a shoot - every single tiny little detail - do it for a reason. . Be conscious of everything and do everything intentionally and for a specific purpose.

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Tom Reichner wrote in post #18899210
.As a general rule (not necessarily specific to this image), if a photographer takes most of his photos from a comfortable, "standing up" position, then he is doing it wrong most of the time.
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I do NOT like reading this but agree it's right on. Most of us find moving right, left, closer or further natural but forget about the verticals.

Thanks, Tom.

This is just my opinion but I like what you've done

• I like the leading lines to the people
  
• May just move them to viewer left a little (their right) so the lightning complements the energy they seem to be exuding. That would also open the space others have mentioned.
  
• The interaction between the people are good.
  

I think the first one is marvelous. One always can be picky, but that's not needed here. Good job.

olafs osh wrote in post #18899628
I think the first one is marvelous. One always can be picky, but that's not needed here. Good job.

Thanks for the kind words... Much appreciated.