Advice would be greatly appreciated

I acquired a Canon 40D about 2 weeks ago. I was a P&S photographer my entire life; therefore, the 40D was a dream come true. I'm still in the process of adjusting to the camera, but I love it so far.

Next week I'll have a photo shoot with a singer. She is not famous at all and I promised her manager (who is my friend) to help with a few pictures for her promotion. I really need help since being new to the whole DSLR thing is pretty overwhelming right now.

1) I don't own a studio or any equipment, besides a 40D and a 50mm 1.8. What do I need to create a home studio (using non-photo equipment?) My friend will lend me a tripod, I have two tall room lamps with neon lights, white bed sheets. Do you think I have a chance to do something acceptable with these tools?

2) The model is very beautiful. She has very dark skin and since I come from Europe, I have never had the opportunity to work with an African American model before. I just want to make sure that the way I use the light and the camera will make her beautiful features stand out. Do you have any dos and don'ts for me?

3) I have pretty good photo editing skills and I hope that they will help me create a professional look (even if the studio is the worst thing ever and poorly improvised).

I usually use Aperture Priority and when shooting portraits, I like to use a 2.8 - 4 aperture. What ISO should I use? (I think 100 would be great, but am not sure). I will definitely avoid AWB as I don't like how the 40D adjusts the WB indoors. I plan on using custom WB and work in MF.

I would really appreciate your advice and I promise to post the photos as soon as I have them.

My idea for these photos is that I want this singer to have an elegant, mature look. Nothing too glam or sexy.

THANK YOU!

Does it have to be indoors? I might opt for an outdoor shoot the first time around.

There are no black folks in Europe? Just kidding, Exposing for dark skin against a white background can be difficult, again I would opt for the great outdoors or at least a very brightly sunlit room and just use other lighting as fill.

Do you have a flash?

gratzi9274 wrote in post #6096647
I have two tall room lamps with neon lights, white bed sheets. Do you think I have a chance to do something acceptable with these tools?

After looking at you page on Deviant Art .. umm, I have faith you'd do better with less ..
Those were all done with a point and shoot? Wow!

I'd agree. Stick with what you're comfortable with. With one exception. Why Av when you have control over the conditions you're shooting under? This shows how the subject can affect the exposure & why manual keeps me worry free:
Post #47

For a good starting point, first set the f-stop & shutter speed you need. Then adjust the ISO.
Need an exposure crutch?

The 40D is really good in low light. Don't be afraid to use ISO 400.

I don't know what sort of mood you're going for, but here's a VERY simple "outdoor studio"

DigiGrin, thank you. Yes, most of my photos were shot with a P&S, but I think that my editing skills saved the day. I love the fact that the 40d allows me to work with RAW files. It is so much easier and more fun!

Skrim17, it actually crossed my mind that I could take the photos outdoors, just a little while before and after sunset.

PhotosGuy, thank you so much for the great advice. I think that an outdoors studio will definitely make my job easier. I will place a white sheet outside, on a wall and thank God I have a wonderful green area in the back of my house which is quite deserted.

I have never worked in full manual before since I just started getting used to the settings of the camera and the technical aspect of photography. I understand perfectly how to adjust ISO and aperture, but I have a hard time setting the right exposure according to different shooting conditions. I read several articles on exposure all over the net, but I find it difficult to understand the numbers. Could you help me with that? I am a fast learner. THANK YOU!

Your 40D has a meter. When you adjust your settings in Manual mode the meter will reflect the exposure. Generally speaking, center it. If the background is a bit brighter than your subject you may want to keep the meter two clicks to the right of center. Look at the histogram after each shot and make sure that it is not climbing up the right side. But you want it as far to the right as possible.
You can fix any white shiny spots on the subjects face in post processing by using the clone tool set on darken at 15% opacity. Encourage her to use some powder to keep reflections to a minimum. Make sure there is plenty of light on her face to avoid "raccoon eyes".

Most of what you need is in the (wordy) "Crutch" thread.
4 to 5.6 to 8 to 11 to 16 to 22 to 32 to 45; there's one stop difference between them.

Look at the Stickys in "Talk About Photography". Start with this one:
Sticky:Ben's Newbie Guide to Digital SLR Photography

This one, too:
Virtual Camera
Notice the background change when you use his "Shutter and Aperture" settings!

Wow, thank you so much. I just started reading the sources that you suggested and I will definitely experiment with what poloman recommended.

You're great. I can't wait to upload the pictures after the photo shoot. Hopefully, they will turn out to be good.

The links PhotosGuy gave will serve you well.
Make sure you do a little practicing prior to the shoot.
Have fun!

Thanks. I'll meet with the model one day before the photo shoot to get to know her better. I will take a few shots of her outdoors in an environment very much similar with the one I have in mind for the photo shoot. I will try all possible settings to see which ones fit her best. I will definitely experiment with exposure.

Shoot RAW.

gratzi9274 wrote in post #6100877
I can't wait to upload the pictures after the photo shoot. Hopefully, they will turn out to be good.

Something tells me uhh, yeah .. they're gonna be just fine ..

I'd strongly consider a flash if you can get one (430 EX would be fine) - read the stickies at the top of the flash forum and use it as fill for outdoors and bounce if indoors.

Unfortunately, a flash is out of the question since I can't afford one just now . I'll try to take photos with what I have available and I'll improvise a lot. My next item on the list is a 85mm 1.8 (I fell in love with it a few months ago when a friend of mine allowed me to use his 400D for a day). The only flash that I have is the one incorporated in the camera (but it sucks and I never use it).

What he recommends, guestimating the exposure, works for him as he knows what he's doing. I wrote "crutch" for people like you, & it takes most of the guestimating out of it.
Read ALL of that thread at least three times, & you'll be OK.