How did he take this portrait?

[djentley]

Vicet, 11 years old ° on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

This is the photograph I am talking about.

I will be volunteeing in Lombok and Bali next month with children, and would like to know how I should go about taking portraits such as this. It would be great to both document the lives of the children and take pictures they want; plus really good portraits are a good way of gaining ongoing support for the organisation.

It looks like he applied some form of post-processing, though I'd guess he had good lighting to start, so what should I aim for in those areas.

Right now I only have a silly kit zoom lens and a 50mm prime on my 450D.

The kid just looks naturally photogenic too, heh.

[tasmo2]

his camera = Sony DSLR-A700
(shutter speed) Exposure: 0.005 sec (1/200)
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 50 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off


Ap priority or it may be A on your camera not sure.

HTH

[tasmo2]

BTW: I got all this info by looking to the right of his photo and clicking on the "more properties"

[Mr Guy]

There doesn't appear to be much in the way of "tricks" for that picture. It looks like it's "just" (used loosely, of course) either good prime or a decent zoom lens that happens to be at 50mm, exactly. Wide aperture for a tight depth of field, close distance from camera to subject, focused very carefully on the eyes, with bright natural light behind the photographer.

Don't knock your silly kit lens and your nifty fifty. They both ought to be fully up to the task of a shot like this. Your kit lens would probably need some adjustment in the distances, because you probably don't have a kit lens than can go to 2.8 at 50mm, but your nifty fifty sure should!

[windrider86]

I gurantee it is not sooc. Looks to me like some sharpening was done, more so in some areas than not and maybe some burning as well

[SusanH1970]

Originally Posted by windrider86

I gurantee it is not sooc. Looks to me like some sharpening was done, more so in some areas than not and maybe some burning as well

I was just gonna say that, LOL. The eyes actually look a little oversharpened to me.

[OsmosisStudios]

Originally Posted by windrider86

I gurantee it is not sooc. Looks to me like some sharpening was done, more so in some areas than not and maybe some burning as well

Quite possible it was done with a fast prime and with minimal processing. I generally jsut apply a high-pass filter to my shots and get similar results with a fast prime in optimal conditions.

[LeeR]

My wife and I were in Cambodia and Vietnam a few years ago and got loads of pictures like this. The kids in that region of the world LOVE to have their picture taken. My wife nearly caused a riot one morning by taking pictures in front of a school just as they were letting out for lunch. Try not to start a riot, but do get all the shots you can.
Now, there is a catch. You are going to have to find good light. That's one of the hallmarks of the image you refer to. It was taken in open shade, not in direct sunlight. Again, you should have no trouble finding loads of places where you can shoot in the shadow of a wall or tree.
When you get back, post a few and we will help you with the post processing. The photographer who took this shot has a couple of tricks up his sleeves and we can help you with that. The main thing you have to do is get the shots and get them home. There are plenty of people here who are more than willing to help.