Portraits

[morfasie]

Hi everybody, please have a look at my very first attempt at portrait photography on my fiancee Does the light look fine to you guys, any tips?



More on Flickr

Thanks for all the tips and advice!

[wulf]

What was your shooting set-up (lighting, etc)?

I wonder if a darker background might have worked better here, since skin, hair and clothes are all light?

Wulf

[morfasie]

No this is stil very amateruish, I only used the normal flash on my D40x. Will in future make use of a better background thanks Wulf. This was just a white wall that I used as a background.

[Manila_Joe]

I had a look at some pics on your flickr page. It seems that you have a very willing model. You should try experimenting with some of the manual modes on your camera as it seems that all your pictures were shot in auto.

[morfasie]

Thanks Manila, I took them on P, will change to Aperture priority next time. Or what do you think should I use?

Then, do you guys think she looks to white? I think I should have stepped back a bit or must I make use of a bounce on my flash?

[clockdoc]

For portraits you really do need to consider a bounce flash or available light. The onboard flash is too "flat", that is, it provides no modeling of facial features. Also, it is a very harsh light and tends to accentuate any facial blemishes. You seem to be concerned with the correct mode (P or A). Generally speaking, you want the background to be soft and out of focus which would call for a large aperture opening. This also allows you to shoot at a faster shutter speed if you are using available light. Does your camera have a "Portrait" mode? If so, you could experiment with that setting.
For now, I would suggest you concentrate on available light portraits until you can get a bounce flash. You have some nice poses on your flickr site so all you need to do is concentrate on lighting your subject. Try using some large white card stock as reflectors when shooting with available light. I'll be happy to help where I can and look forward to seeing more of your portraits.

[morfasie]

Thanks alot for the comments Clockdoc. I will defintely try my best to improve improve improve

Will also try and get myself a white card stock thanks. Do you mean the reflector(silver) type of stuff of what exactly is a white card stock?

[clockdoc]

To keep costs down while you are still learning, just go with some inexpensive poster board that kids use for their school projects, (22 x 28 inches typically). The thinner stock can be rolled up in a tube when not in use. You can also try the mounting board that has a foam core about 1/4 in. thick. For a silver reflector, the large sunscreens used in automobile windshields work well. A less expensive model would be aluminum foil that has been "crinkled up" and then smoothed out by hand, glued to a large piece of heavy cardboard with the dull side up.
To use the reflectors, hold them close to the subject's face opposite the light source. Some photographers use a reflector on the model's lap to lighten the shadows under the chin. I would suggest you test out using the reflector before trying to take any portraits and study how the reflector enhances the available light. There are no hard and fast rules. Please ask questions if I have confused the issue.

[Manila_Joe]

There is some good information about taking portraits in the blog.
http://digital-photography-school.co...tography-tips/

There is also a lot of good information in the forums.
http://digital-photography-school.co...splay.php?f=18

[morfasie]

Thanks will definitely have a look.