Malay Girl with Troublesome Red Head Cover

[ccting]

We organized a 5S activity this afternoon. I brought the following equipments with me for the uninvited photo session.

2 YN560
12 X Eneeloop AA Battery
3 X RF 603 manual flash trigger
1 Camera Bracket
1 X softbox with lightstand
1 X Monica Beauty dish

I measured the exposure with 10 shots.. Immediate after 10 shots, 1 RF 603N Flash trigger, and both YN560 were out of power. I changed the backup battery to one of the flashgun. Here was one of my single light source shot with a distractive Red "Tudung" girl. The wall is white in color



It was taken indoor where I was not sure about the WB. I did no WB preset, leaving it as Flash and I used sync flash speed 1/200s to ignore the indoor lighting.

1/200s, f/5.6, ISO 500, D5100, "kid" lens 18-55mm, 55mm., retouch the eye catchlight with lightroom, and the rest remain original.

a) What is your first glance feel with informer 1st portrait shot with stranger?
b) Do you think the red "tubung" with many "diamonds" on it distractive? Any distractive item that you can tell me?
c) How do you improve the shot?
d) How many batteries do you bring for your shots?
e) Do you find the "Shadow" under the nose bother you?
f) She has upper lips hair, and is the shadow below nose caused by the tiny hair? How to solve this problem with lighting?

Experience: Everyone sees me as alien... Professional photographers were laughing @ me - they used only pop up flash, on-camera flashgun.

Ty

[Roshenk]

I love the headscarf....it is my favorite element of the shot. Don't be afraid of making use of distinctive elements, then give shots interest and life.

This for me is a very good shot, the best I have seen you post. All I would do differently would be maybe zoom out a bit to see a little of the background or more of what she is wearing. Her eyes look just a touch soft to me, so maybe do some pp on them.Her smile, however, is priceless. Don't worry too much about making her face "perfect"...this is not a glamor shot so shoot HER and not some idealized version of her.

As for what the other shooters had to say to you...ignore them. Follow your own road and your own star.

[ccting]

I love the headscarf....it is my favorite element of the shot. Don't be afraid of making use of distinctive elements, then give shots interest and life.

This for me is a very good shot, the best I have seen you post. All I would do differently would be maybe zoom out a bit to see a little of the background or more of what she is wearing. Her eyes look just a touch soft to me, so maybe do some pp on them.Her smile, however, is priceless. Don't worry too much about making her face "perfect"...this is not a glamor shot so shoot HER and not some idealized version of her.

As for what the other shooters had to say to you...ignore them. Follow your own road and your own star.

Ty. i will take note on that.. ..

[ccting]

Anyone notice her wide chin... How to solve that??

[Lolkat]

Anyone notice her wide chin... How to solve that??

uuhhh...seriously? plastic surgery.

[ccting]

uuhhh...seriously? plastic surgery.

Nope, she looks narrow chin on another photo.. with same camera angle.. i wander what happen..

[Mark Engelhart]

This is very good for your first time. I agree with all the things that Roshenk mentioned. What power are you shooting your flashes at? For you to drain batteries that quick I assume near full power. You can bring the lights in nearer to the subject and drop the power accordingly. This will make them not heat up (which is what makes them die very quickly). If you can fire them at 1/16 or around that a set of batteries should last you for a lot longer time.
I am coming to see that we all learn in different ways, my way was repetition. Taking a subject like this and making subtle changes to the same shot not only in lighting but in face angle. I will shoot, study it in the monitor and make adjustments to try and correct. After doing it for a while I would gain a more immediate discernment to what change will correct what is displeasing in the initial shot.

Camera angle...Like in the case of your image if you would have brought her nose slightly more toward the lens (5-7 degrees) a couple of things would have occurred.
1- Her chin would have been slightly more frontal. The symmetry of it would have lost that flat edge on the bottom. This would have made her chin more rounded, less flat.
2- Her eyes would have shown just a little of white on the side facing the camera. When you lose that little piece of white it can make the eyes look out of balance with each other. Like they are crossed or split too wide. White on both sides seem to prevent that from happening

I think also chin up slightly (again just a couple of degrees), to where she is not looking up at the camera but more straight on would have fixed some of your other issue you had mentioned.
1- Lighting under the nose
2- More light to the eyes

This image and your questions does indicates to me that you are more on track with your approach to portrait photography. Keep up the good work.

[ccting]

This is very good for your first time. I agree with all the things that Roshenk mentioned. What power are you shooting your flashes at? For you to drain batteries that quick I assume near full power. You can bring the lights in nearer to the subject and drop the power accordingly. This will make them not heat up (which is what makes them die very quickly). If you can fire them at 1/16 or around that a set of batteries should last you for a lot longer time.

I have charge the 8 batteries for 1 week.. I believe i can't have them charged unless they are discharged below 0.6 Volt..

I am coming to see that we all learn in different ways, my way was repetition. Taking a subject like this and making subtle changes to the same shot not only in lighting but in face angle. I will shoot, study it in the monitor and make adjustments to try and correct. After doing it for a while I would gain a more immediate discernment to what change will correct what is displeasing in the initial shot.

==>Very unfortunately, I don't have time and model to shoot most of the time, except my hyperactive baby.

Camera angle...Like in the case of your image if you would have brought her nose slightly more toward the lens (5-7 degrees) a couple of things would have occurred.
==> I will try when i have opportunity...thanks

1- Her chin would have been slightly more frontal. The symmetry of it would have lost that flat edge on the bottom. This would have made her chin more rounded, less flat.
==>oh..i take note on that

2- Her eyes would have shown just a little of white on the side facing the camera. When you lose that little piece of white it can make the eyes look out of balance with each other. Like they are crossed or split too wide. White on both sides seem to prevent that from happening
==> I thought that is catchlight that we wish to have??


I think also chin up slightly (again just a couple of degrees), to where she is not looking up at the camera but more straight on would have fixed some of your other issue you had mentioned.
1- Lighting under the nose
2- More light to the eyes
==> But this will reveal her nostrils.. ?? I have put reflector (2 X A4 paper) under her chest level, how come the shadow is still there?


This image and your questions does indicates to me that you are more on track with your approach to portrait photography. Keep up the good work.
==.Thanks..

Great to have your detail critiques..

I am waiting the opportunity to do what you have advised..

[Doug Sundseth]

Anyone notice her wide chin... How to solve that??

Tell your model to push her chin towards you. For a practical example, see the video in this post.

[ccting]

Tell your model to push her chin towards you. For a practical example, see the video in this post.

Oh.. thanks very much Doug.. She is not a model anyway.. just pass-by stranger..
Wow.. I try to move my chin, .. quite challenging..