My first try with people as the subject: My sister wanted me to take pics of her girls and their animals for their Christmas card. Of course the girls wouldn't get up and ready when...

usetobe

My sister wanted me to take pics of her girls and their animals for their Christmas card. Of course the girls wouldn't get up and ready when the light would have been better.

WeeBGB Loc: Arizona

LOVE #2 AND #3!!!!

I really like the backlighting on the poodle's fur in #2! You have some really beautiful nieces! :O)

usetobe

WeeBGB wrote:

LOVE #2 AND #3!!!!

I really like the backlighting on the poodle's fur in #2! You have some really beautiful nieces! :O)

Thanks. The other little dog is deaf and it was very hard to get her to look my way.

SQUIRL033 Loc: Chehalis, WA

backlighting may work for animals' fur, but it's not good for "people shots" as a rule... makes the faces too dark, and you lose too much detail in the shadows. you could probably compensate a bit in PP, but it'd be better still to shoot with more favorable lighting conditions - not backlit, and not in the harsh sun...

MWAC Loc: Somewhere East Of Crazy

For a first time taking images of people they aren't to shabby and in two dogs (one deaf to boot) and they aren't to bad.

You do need to watch your backgrounds, they are a little busy. In #1 the dark haired young lady has a ledge runnnig thru her head and as well as what looks like a lamp growing out of her head.

#2 both young ladies have trees growing out of their heads.

#3 looks a little underexposed to me.

All in all they are great shots for a first time out.

joe west Loc: Taylor, Michigan

#3 thats the pic

English_Wolf Loc: Near Pensacola, FL

For info the best light to shoot outdoor is overcast, otherwise you need fill light(s), reflectors and all that jazz.

Never use the sky as a background unless you use a flash (we are not talking fill anymore here)

Other than that? Never expect teens (of any sex) to do anything, it is like herding cats smarter than we are!!! :evil:

Tip for the deaf dog (or two tips, even three)
1, get its favorite toy, work fast
2, make a loud noise (he will get the vibrations if not the sound, I know mine is deaf as can be)
3, show him a piece of meat... He will look at a juicy steak all dead long if you want to!

Tips for the girls?
1, work fast
2, keep them interested (good luck). :shock:
3, forget the steak tip for the girls, it won't work :mrgreen:

usetobe

SQUIRL033 wrote:

backlighting may work for animals' fur, but it's not good for "people shots" as a rule... makes the faces too dark, and you lose too much detail in the shadows. you could probably compensate a bit in PP, but it'd be better still to shoot with more favorable lighting conditions - not backlit, and not in the harsh sun...

Thanks squirl033, but getting girls that age to get up early just wasn't happening, but thanks for the tip.

usetobe

MWAC wrote:

For a first time taking images of people they aren't to shabby and in two dogs (one deaf to boot) and they aren't to bad.

You do need to watch your backgrounds, they are a little busy. In #1 the dark haired young lady has a ledge runnnig thru her head and as well as what looks like a lamp growing out of her head.

#2 both young ladies have trees growing out of their heads.

#3 looks a little underexposed to me.

All in all they are great shots for a first time out.

Thanks MWAC. I didn't notice the bar or the trees in these. There were others that I did notice an urn coming out of the head. LOL.

usetobe

English_Wolf wrote:

For info the best light to shoot outdoor is overca... (show quote)

Thanks. The steak might work on the girls.

Julieb Loc: LaSalle, Colorado

Great first attempt. I LOVE backlighting, but a fill flash will bring light to the faces--preferably one on your hot shoe or mounted on a stand. Open up your apeture too-- with a group of four, an f-stop of 3.5 or 4.0 will blurr your background. Really like the close together heads on the last shot. The closer the better.

Wahawk Loc: NE IA

usetobe wrote:

My sister wanted me to take pics of her girls and their animals for their Christmas card. Of course the girls wouldn't get up and ready when the light would have been better.

Nice pictures. I would much rather see backlighting than seeing them squinting in the bright lite. Maybe a small fill flash would have brightened them up, but they should be very pleased with the results, I know I would be!

rpavich Loc: West Virginia

As everyone said...the backlighting is good, it just needs to be balanced with flash to expose their front sides correctly.

Good start!

bobmcculloch Loc: NYC, NY

usetobe wrote:

My sister wanted me to take pics of her girls and their animals for their Christmas card. Of course the girls wouldn't get up and ready when the light would have been better.

#1 nice snapshot, good for getting them comfortable
#2, blur the background next time, get the dog and girl head closer, the one on the right is too much span, consider dogs people in a portrait.
#3, I like, but are there multiple highlights in the eyes,?