Suggestions, Input, Critique

[JTx]

Someone (I think maybe Mr Stutz) made the suggestion of putting up a pic and getting group feedback. So here is one.

Here is a pic from a shoot I did yesterday with Misty Green. She was up from Oregon for the day and we've been wanting to work together for a while. This pic was shot at around 2:30PM in Seattle. The shadows were a bugger but we really wanted some beach shots and mid-day was the only time she had available.

I shot this with my Nikon D50, on auto, Sigma 24-70mm lens.

And a side note, I'm generally a one man show so reflectors or anything like that is difficult to do.


http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h293/jt_truebodies/DSC_0253.jpg

[femalemusclefan]

I'm no expert, but that photo of Misty looks perfectly fine! :)

[Mike]

Forehead has too many shadows but just my $.02. Would prefer the face had fewer shadows on it.

[country]

I go with others that the image was nice, as is.
I did a "quick and dirty" clone of a minute or two, which is best done on output size. I run PS CS so don't know whether earlier versions or other graphics programs have a similar tool.

country

Modified image

[jasons805]

The pic looks good, but as you said you where doing it by yourself. As you see with alot of James pics he uses places with alot of shade to give you better lighting. Bright sunny spaces don't tend to give the best shots.

[BigD]

Forehead has too many shadows but just my $.02. Would prefer the face had fewer shadows on it.

I like the pic. If she would lift her head just slightly it would take some of the shadows off her face.

[John Stutz]

Someone (I think maybe Mr Stutz) made the suggestion of putting up a pic and getting group feedback. So here is one.Please, call me John. And thanks for posting your pic. Like I said, I think this will be a fun topic if people continue to post pics.

Bright sunny spaces don't tend to give the best shots.Yeah, I'll have to agree with Jason on this one. I'm having a heck of a time with all that darn sunlight. My site is full of that pesky direct lighting. If anyone has any good suggestions on how to avoid this, please let me know.

Here is a pic from a shoot I did yesterday with Misty Green. She was up from Oregon for the day and we've been wanting to work together for a while. This pic was shot at around 2:30PM in Seattle. The shadows were a bugger but we really wanted some beach shots and mid-day was the only time she had available.As for your particular shot, well for starters you certainly got the most important thing right -- choosing to work with Misty was a terrific choice, no matter what time of day. I often find myself shooting outside in the middle of the afternoon, and though I've had varying degrees of luck with overhead sunlight, I'm trying to ween myself off it whenever possible, opting for shoots way late in the afternoon.

If you're going to shoot a shot with your model looking into the camera and smiling, it's usually imperative that her face be as evenly lit as the rest of the shot. Otherwise, especially in direct light, the difference in exposure between lights and shadows is WAY too large to overcome. I think it's nearly 8 stops (though I'm probably wrong) which is 256 times less light in your shadows. If my eyes don't deceive me, I'm seeing some digital retouching to lighten her face, but it's still a bit dark.

Even when sun isn't directly shining into the model's eyes, it's still hard for models to keep a relaxed face since the reflected light will still cause eyestrain. In this case, you might have considered turning her head to keep it evenly lit. Or even turning it to be half lit and half in shadow. Then let the shadows go black. As long as there is symmetry to the lighting, having a half-darkened face is ok. Here's an example. (http://www.johnstutz.com/image.asp?fit_girls,maggie_diubaldo,4) Or two. (http://www.johnstutz.com/image.asp?fit_girls,lisa_morton,15) Or three. (http://www.johnstutz.com/image.asp?fit_girls,julie_childs,9)

Here are a few other things I watch for. When simply standing, it's often best to have the model's front leg cross over the back. This is generally taught in Monica Brant Modeling 101. Also, watch your horizons. I see gorgeous blue sky in the background. If you would have shot from down in the sand, even though you'd certainly risk dragging back more of the beach into your car, you'd have a clean background that would allow for amazing b/w effects. Often times on my shoots, I make sure to get several "blue sky" shots that are a slam dunk! Here's an example. (http://www.johnstutz.com/image.asp?fit_girls,shana_martin,3) Or two. (http://www.johnstutz.com/image.asp?fit_girls,sara_clow,10) Or three. (http://www.johnstutz.com/image.asp?fit_girls,autumn_robertson,10)

What would I do with the shot? Well, the color isn't doing anything for me, so I'd convert to b/w. And of course, I'd crop it. Knee bends generally don't do much for me unless I can see down to the foot. I might add some contrast and do a terrible job trying to brighten the face a bit. I'd leave that for PhotoShop experts though. In the end, I might choose to show the shot like so...

[fivegrand]

Hard one to pull out, JT...For that positioning (if you want soft, even lighting) you've gotta have one hell of a fill-flash to overpower the sun.

If the sun is more overhead, an alternate possibility would be to throw a reflector down on the ground in front of her to kick up at her face.

[JTx]

Thanks John. That's the feedback I was hoping for. Good critique, suggestions.

[John Stutz]

You're very welcome. Actually, I also want to point out that Mr. Grand has some alternative good points. There are lots of photographic techniques and various types of equipment that one can use to create a wide variety of terriffic looking images. And while I'm the self-proclaimed worst flash photographer in history, if memory serves me correctly, I'm pretty sure that most any flash will fill in those shadows just fine, even with overpowering direct sunlight.

Like you, JT, I'm a one man show and I tend to shoot with the least complicated setup. This is not necessarily a good thing since I recognize that my imagery suffers from this limitation that I have imposed. You'll notice that my work is practically void of headshots or imagery where the model's eyes are clearly visible -- something that is most prevalent in portrait photography. It's also void of the glossy images with perfect backlighting that I admire quite a bit.

I liken my shooting style to the old phrase, "if life gives you lemons, make lemonade." I can think of one other superb photographer who found a cleverly artistic way to overcome the dilema of shooting in hotel rooms at competitions. The problem is, we're always making lemonade. Every once in a while it might be nice to sip a pina colada. I may need to go to bartending school if I am to improve significantly.

[JTx]

I think "Mr Grand" was typing at the same time I was typing. So. thanks to Mr Grand as well.

Lemonade? Pina Colada... I've always been a scotch (neat) kinda guy...