My first strobe portrait shoot

[Weird Girl]

I was pretty happy with my first try but definitely want to use a reflector for the next. I had planned on having some natural window light to help light the other side of her face but we ended up taking these once it was dark out. My question is, is the left side dark enough to where you would trash this picture, or does it help with the mood at all? Also, how do you feel about her skin tone- is it too pinkish or does it look ok? I tried not to over smoothe but sometimes after looking at my own photos for too long, I can't tell if it looks right anymore. One thing I thought was cool is the background was actually grey but I managed to give it a purple tint.

Sorry, I still cannot figure out how to make the picture larger here- anyone?

Camera: Nikon D5000
Lens: 18-55mm
Shutter Speed: 1/250 (sync with strobe)
Aperature: f3
ISO: 100
Edited in Lightroom

[zona5101]

Your light is fine, the shadows are fine. You want shadows. Flat lighting is not good usually. The light fall off in the hair you lose some shadow detail but I don't know that I would lighten it or fill in more light. Sometimes the moody dark thing works - as in this case (of course that's a matter of taste so someone else might think it's too dark). Typically I wouldn't light from under neath but you have here and it works really well (benefits of a beautiful model). I like the light falloff on the background and the strong vignette. The slightly off center composition and tight crop work to make this appealing to me. I think she is too red which is probably why the BG seems purplish. Nice work especially for first time with OCF.

[Weird Girl]

Ok, cool! I will try playing with the coloring to see if I can get her a little less pink/red. I would love for the background to stay purple though... This was a head shot for her Health Coach website and she's a cool, smart, down to earth girl so I was really happy with the mood I captured. Thank you for taking the time to comment!

[ajax_andy]

Originally Posted by Weird Girl

Ok, cool! I will try playing with the coloring to see if I can get her a little less pink/red. I would love for the background to stay purple though... This was a head shot for her Health Coach website and she's a cool, smart, down to earth girl so I was really happy with the mood I captured. Thank you for taking the time to comment!

Its a really nice shot but could possible be a little sharper I feel.

Was there a reason why you shot at f/3? It's quite a shallow DOF when there's nothing in the background that needs to be blurred out.

[Weird Girl]

Um, I think I used f3 to control my strobe and just like the blurred background effect even on a plain wall especially because the paint job on the wall isn't terrific lol but I would definitely be interested in playing with different aperature settings using the same wall and see how it turns out! Thanks!

[ajax_andy]

Originally Posted by Weird Girl

Um, I think I used f3 to control my strobe and just like the blurred background effect even on a plain wall especially because the paint job on the wall isn't terrific lol but I would definitely be interested in playing with different aperature settings using the same wall and see how it turns out! Thanks!

No problem. I always find a smaller aperture keeps things sharper and with a pic like this it's improtant to have the eyes nice and sharp.

With the background you can correct it using a variety of techniques, dodging and burning can work well on a almost solid coloured background, or alternatively cloning out the bad bits works too.

I'd go for sharp eyes over a clean background though if it has to be a trade off when shooting.

Overall though a really good shot

[Weird Girl]

Thank you, I really appreciate it! I am hoping to be able to afford photoshop soon but right now with Lightroom I feel like cloning is not super easy on the background as I can always tell exactly where I did it and cannot seem to blend it very well. I have tried the clone and heal option and just cant seem to make it work. Also, the Tameron 18-200mm lens I used didn't seem like it was giving me as sharp of eyes as my Nikon 18-55mm and I am wondering if it's because of the lens or if there is something I can adjust in my settings. I am trying to find a victim to let me practice this more on soon

[Weird Girl]

I would love more feedback! Also, can someone please help me with how to post my picture larger within the forum? The more I look at this picture, I can't wait to tone down the pink on her face- once I do that, can I upload the newer version as well or is that against the rules?

[sk66]

Very nice pic, particularly for a one light setup.

I did an edit.
Fixed color of eyes (I don't think they are really purple are they?) and reduced redness (levels adjustment and hue/saturation for the eyes). Red could be reduced a little more maybe.
Added a little more blur for her forehead and under eyes.
Sharpened eyes and lips a bit.
I also did a shadows/highlight adjustment to bring her out just a little more....

I personally feel this works very well as a square format.

[zona5101]

Originally Posted by sk66

Very nice pic, particularly for a one light setup.

I did an edit.
Fixed color of eyes (I don't think they are really purple are they?) and reduced redness (levels adjustment and hue/saturation for the eyes). Red could be reduced a little more maybe.
Added a little more blur for her forehead and under eyes.
Sharpened eyes and lips a bit.
I also did a shadows/highlight adjustment to bring her out just a little more....

I personally feel this works very well as a square format.

fantastic tweak. she is stunning.