Portraits in the Park

[TheShutterHappyBaker]

Today my girlfriend and I ventured down to a local park so I could practice a bit.



Camera Model Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XS
Shooting Mode Aperture-Priority AE
Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1/125
Av( Aperture Value ) 5.6
Metering Mode Partial Metering
Exposure Compensation -1
ISO Speed 100
Lens EF-S18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS
Focal Length 55.0mm
Flash On
Flash Type Built-In Flash
White Balance Mode Auto

This was my first real attempt at portrait work, and I know that I have a long way to go. Please let me know what you think!

[candleman]

I think you need to read the rules and post one image for critique.. Not link to a blog with a dozen.
each image has their own individual faults.. so pick one and we'll look into it.

generaly speaking, you need to work on your lighting and background selection.

[SusanH1970]

Originally Posted by candleman

I think you need to read the rules and post one image for critique.. Not link to a blog with a dozen.
each image has their own individual faults.. so pick one and we'll look into it.

generaly speaking, you need to work on your lighting and background selection.

Agreed. And I'll add posing, as well - many of the poses are less than flattering. She's an attractive lady but some of the poses do her no justice (up the nose, straight on "mug shot", etc.)

Please do post one photo with EXIF for more detailed CC per the rules candleman posted, you'll find you learn so much!

[TheShutterHappyBaker]

Sorry, I apologize for my first post. I had read the rules some time ago, but it hadn't occurred to me that what I was doing was wrong. In any case...

I had read an article about photographing large people (both my girlfriend and I are big, and neither of us photograph very well when someone else is in control of the camera), about lighting, and posing and so on. However, it was studio related with extra lighting and gadgetry etc, so I didn't know what to do in natural light. Today was partially cloudy, so we stuck to the shade, or shooting anytime the sun was behind a cloud.

As for posing, I'm not even quite sure what I'm looking for in a pose, so I had no idea how to direct her.

And about the choice of background. i thought the park would be a nice place to shoot (aesthetically speaking), where did I go wrong?

I appreciate the feedback.

[ShannonKG]

OT but I just checked out your blog and you live in my city!
I don't have a lot to critique (as I'm still very new to photography). As far as backgrounds go, O'Dell park is pretty, but I feel like it's been "done". One place I really enjoy is the Garrison District (by officers Square). I find just driving around gives me a lot of great ideas. We live in a beautiful city!

[TheShutterHappyBaker]

Originally Posted by ShannonKG

OT but I just checked out your blog and you live in my city!
I don't have a lot to critique (as I'm still very new to photography). As far as backgrounds go, O'Dell park is pretty, but I feel like it's been "done". One place I really enjoy is the Garrison District (by officers Square). I find just driving around gives me a lot of great ideas. We live in a beautiful city!

I agree, I'm sure it's been done. Every time I think of something or somewhere to shoot though, I feel like it's been done. All of my photographs are cliches lol.

[zona5101]

SO now there is one photo posted to this thread...as a critique I would make the following observations. The back ground is bright, probably too bright and is taking attention away from your subject. I like the pose, an angled pose works best for your model as it is more flattering...however...the direct flash lighting from straight on is countering any benefit from the pose. In this instance you would want to short light her...meaning you go off camera with your lighting and, for this shot, have it camera left so the brightest part of the light is filling the far side of her face. The side of the face closest to the camera would be the shadow side. You would either a) feather the main light b) use a reflector or c) use second light to control the depth of the shadow side. Short lighting would be the more flattering lighting set up in this instance. There are other lighting set ups that may work equally as well but short came to mind as the 'classic approach'.
Keep shooting and have fun!

PS: you can set up the same lighting without going off camera if you don't have off camera gear. You would use a reflector in leiu of the main light camera left and use no on camera flash.

[SusanH1970]

In total agreement with Zona. He hit the nail on the head.

Only thing I want to add is I'm not wild about the dead-center composition. Shooting in portrait orientation rather than landscape might have worked better, putting her eyes on the ROT and eliminating the unnecessary background.

[Niresangwa]

Zona had some good points for lighting, so nothing to add there. As far as the background goes...

I think its a pretty common misconception that foliage and trees make for a beautiful background...natural and with texture. This can be true but there's a few caveats...

The problem is the colours can sometimes be exceptionally overwhelming, and the textures end up being very harsh and distracting. If not lit well, they can also be very very muddy, and everything ends up being exceptionally busy.

If you insist on using them, try and find a background that has strong lines (example, grasses, or many tree trunks) as opposed to a mess of lines and tones going all over the place. Throw in horizontal lines of the ground, horizon, pathways etc and it can be a real tangle. Even putting the subject by one large tree trunk can be a much trickier concept than you think.

While the DoF managed to throw off the detail in the foliage, it didnt dispel it enough to make it negligible.

Unless you're intending to make a very strong feature of the nature-like background, like a selfish kid, it doesn't play well when it has to share the frame with the subject. In order to pull it off you need to control it, which can be much harder to do than most people seem to think.

[TheShutterHappyBaker]

Thank you all for the advice.

On the subject of lighting, I've spent the last day or so reading about using reflectors and the like. I've yet to purchase an external flash, but it's on my wish list.

As for backgrounds... I realize there aren't any set-in-stone rules, but as a basic rule, should I be looking for softer backgrounds and and vertical lines?

Posing I have no concept of either, and I know what works best will vary from subject to subject. More reading and practice is needed. 90% of the photos I took that day were all focused using either of the 2 right most focus points on my Rebel XS, I just cropped most of the left side of that particular photo out, it was just more green. It honestly didn't occur to me to turn the camera sideways.

Thanks again!

Chris