Just a another quick note to everyone that my “HDR, Beyond the Single Exposure” talk is coming up soon. If you can, come by the Highlands Ranch library on March 9, 2010. Details about time and location are available on the HR Photo Club web site here.
Don’t forget, we also have an amazing product giveaway as well!
When I was first starting out in photography, I read everything I could about lighting and illuminating a subject–studio lighting, fancy light setups, light ratios, and such. Those are all important aspects of photography and something everyone should read, study, and fully understand. However, there’s an element to portraiture and subject illumination that I certainly wished I’d grasped earlier in my career. And that is the reason I’ve written up this post.
Recently I’ve been working on more children’s portraiture, and kids are unique to the realm of studio-lit photographs. For one, kids’ personalities and cheer-factor will show best when their in the most comfortable environment–most of the time that’s in their home. Setting up strobes and hoping to keep the subject within the “zone” of the lighting setup is sometimes just not going to happen–the running about, the jumping on the sofa, etc.
For the best success at capturing natural, but fleeting, expressions, it comes down to relying on available light and having an eye for where what will work best. If you’re photographing kids in a house, have a look around and visually judge the quality of light room to room. Is there a window light that just has that perfect glow? Maybe there’s a lamp that sufficiently illuminates a sofa and wall. All these are element to take into consideration and determine which available light is going to make for great photos.
The photo to the above is one of those circumstances. This was shot with available light from a ceiling-mounted chandelier. The wall behind her was beige, and the surfaces to either side were dark. The dark surfaces on either side served as gobos to suck up light and increase shadow definition–ensuring better separations of the face and cheeks from the ears and light colored wall. Best of all, the overhead chandelier was just above and behind the camera, allowing for some reflection in the eyes and getting the specular highlights that add that extra sparkle to the portrait.
So always keep an eye out for unexpected uses of available light. Sometimes the best light is unplanned, but the photographer always has to keep both the eyes and the mind open to exploit it to the best of creative uses.
Wrapped up the week photographing a recent kitchen remodel and captured some amazing shots during this early morning session. Denver just had a snowstorm, so the details outside, including the trees and foliage were rather bright, but this just amplified the flood of gorgeous natural light into the room. Check out this one shot from the session.
Today I had the opportunity to photograph some kids–and in this case, twins! During the session, it came down to capturing the kiddos in soft, diffused window light.
Well, these guys were quick, so setting up a full strobe-lit scenario wouldn’t provide the flexible and comfortable environment for capturing them in action. Additionally, a photographer with a big scary looking camera and chasing them about from grown-up height just wasn’t going to get it!
So here’s a tip for anyone capturing pictures of kids–come down to their level and the whole scenario changes. If that means crawling on the floor, playing peek-a-boo with the camera around the sofa–whatever it takes–the more fun it is for the subject, the better the expressions and final images are going to be. And most of all, the expressions will be authentic and show the personality of the model.
Quick post of something that continually comes up as a question from photographers that see some of my studio work. “How can an economy-minded photographer setup an ‘isolated on white’ studio setting?”
All you need is…
I won’t get into lighting gear right now, because that truly is more involved and whether your a Strobist follower or have an entire studio lighting setup. However, the answer for the starting studio photographer looking to capture objects on pure white backgrounds need look no further than the local hobby store. With a budget of $5 to $10, pick up and many of those smooth, white foam core boards you can. These things are great, and they’re more handy that you might initially think!
The Setup
In addition to providing a base white platform, three panels surrounding a small object enclose everything in white (assuming the light is overhead) and you’ve got the makings of your very first and quite effective white background setup.
Alternative Uses
Another use for the foam core boards when not in use for small product/object photography is for portraiture reflectors. Within all reason, the foam core board’s reflectance isn’t as great as say, a Photoflex LiteDisc, but in a pinch or on a budget, they certainly work!
More to come, and some example setup photos as well. Stay tuned!
Was busy this weekend with a property shoot at an absolutely amazing home. The kitchen was gorgeous and just sparkled in-person and in the photographs. Here’s a capture that turned out to be one of my favorites.
To all of those planning to attend my HDR (High Dynamic Range) talk at the Highlands Ranch Photo Club on March 9th, you’re in for a special treat. I’ll be giving away an HDR software package at the end of the talk.
Stay tuned for more info!
I’ll be speaking about HDR at the Highlands Ranch Photography Club. The one hour talk will include an introduction to the techniques, overview of available software, and more. If you’re free March 9th, be sure to come by!