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Professional and Advanced Portraiture
An Introduction
May 19, 2019 23:47:18   #
Zachary Welch Loc: Minneapolis
 
Hello all

My name is Zachary, I am fairly new the the forums and very new to posting! Ed Shapiro invited me to come by for some thoughtful feedback, and for the wealth of knowledge in this sub forum. I have taken photos for many year, but had avoided taking photo of people until recently. I had also avoided using flash until the last couple years, but have slowly learned to love it, to the point that I am now often upset with my pictures unless I use flash! Recently I started trying to learn the nuances of various lighting modifiers with a test dummy I have named Buddy. I still think “he” is a good way to ingrain knowledge of how flash power, Aperture, and light placement intersect, However with Ed’s encouragement, I think I will rely more on friends and my lovely girlfriend VeeElle as model so I can start working on engagement with the subjects

I will include three shots that I have made with a single umbrella. Two were done indoors, with a single umbrella that was partial closed as key light. And then I have a photo that I did of her and her business partner for an advertisement in a regional magazine. I have adjusted exposure slightly in the outdoor shot. I was using a 60inch umbrella with a single Godox AD200 at near full power with the sun setting to camera right, at about a 45 degree angle to the people. I was very proud of how I balanced the shot, though I know it is still not perfect. After about an hour of shooting they were ready to be done.


I look forward to comments on that photo, and am including the other two as a baseline for future criticism!


Thanks much for reading what turned to a long post

Zachary. Formally “SolXRex







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May 20, 2019 14:57:54   #
E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada
 
Zachary Welch wrote:
Hello all

My name is Zachary, I am fairly new the the forums and very new to posting! Ed Shapiro invited me to come by for some thoughtful feedback, and for the wealth of knowledge in this sub forum. I have taken photos for many year, but had avoided taking photo of people until recently. I had also avoided using flash until the last couple years, but have slowly learned to love it, to the point that I am now often upset with my pictures unless I use flash! Recently I started trying to learn the nuances of various lighting modifiers with a test dummy I have named Buddy. I still think “he” is a good way to ingrain knowledge of how flash power, Aperture, and light placement intersect, However with Ed’s encouragement, I think I will rely more on friends and my lovely girlfriend VeeElle as model so I can start working on engagement with the subjects

I will include three shots that I have made with a single umbrella. Two were done indoors, with a single umbrella that was partial closed as key light. And then I have a photo that I did of her and her business partner for an advertisement in a regional magazine. I have adjusted exposure slightly in the outdoor shot. I was using a 60inch umbrella with a single Godox AD200 at near full power with the sun setting to camera right, at about a 45 degree angle to the people. I was very proud of how I balanced the shot, though I know it is still not perfect. After about an hour of shooting they were ready to be done.


I look forward to comments on that photo, and am including the other two as a baseline for future criticism!


Thanks much for reading what turned to a long post

Zachary. Formally “SolXRex
Hello all br br My name is Zachary, I am fairly ... (show quote)


Hey, Zack! Welcome to this section. I hope you will find it a good learning resource in your portraiture.

I have some information pertaining to your last image of the two doctors. Here's my critique- I hope you find it useful.

Firstly, I like the expressions you have captured, they are straightforward with good eye contact and friendly- some folks feel that medical professionals are somewhat scary- ask your girlfriend about "white coat syndrome"! They are professional looking but show a warm and understanding attitude. Good business and professional portraits should always bring out approachable personalities.

The urban background is OK as well- it tells of geographic location. It is out of focus but recognizable and that is good.

You have handled the eyeglasses nicely but the eyes in the subject with the glasses are slightly under illuminated- it difficult to raise the main light enough to avoid reflections and still get adequate illumination in the eyes- that is a very finite adjustment. Sometimes, slight downward tilting of the eyeglasses will address this issue. In a full face shot- you won't see that the temples of the eyeglass frames are tilted. Sometimes a smaller light source will minimize the size and aid in the controllability of the reflections.

Details- The open jacket is somewhat problematic. A casual manner of dress is not bad but so much of the white shirt showing tends to dominate the image- it becomes the most prevalent highlight in the composition. The high collar on your girlfriend's blouse shortens here neckline slightly. So...if you have a chance to pre-plan a session you can advise on some of these clothing issues- neckline, color, tone, style, etc. Sometimes I get them to borrow a pair of identical or similar BLANK frames from their optometrist or optician to use during the session. Certain prescription lenses can magnify or de-magnify the eyes to a great extent, and/or cause other interferences due to bifocal, progressive or tinted lenses. Other times, blank frames will not work because the subject will stare, squint, go cross-eyed, or be extremely uncomfortable without their lenses so we need to be able to contend with the reflections. Folks who where eyeglaas all the time shod be photographed with their glasses in place, otherwise their images may seem unnatural or uncharacteristic.

If you had brought in your main light in from the other direction the lighting aesthetics on both subjects would be better. It would have provided a"shorter" lighting pattern on the young lady which would be more flattering to her facial structure.


So...to illustrate some of my points, as we do here, I did a quick and dirty edit of our image. I tried to close the jacket to bring more attention to gentlemen's face and I brightened his eyes. I cropped in a bit tighter as there was a bit too much negative space. Also- these kinds of business headshot are often published in smaller sizes and you need more emphasis on the faces. I added a slight vignette as well.

Most lighting issues cannot be solved in post-processing- the need to be addressed in the shooting. Some clothing problems can be somewhat modified or corrected in post but again, it is better and more realistic to look after these details while shooting. My edit, by no means, is a complete finished product- it is only to illustrate some of my critiques.

Any questions, feedback and/or comments are invited and appreciated. Long and detail post with supporting stories are welcome here. Portraiture has much to do with people, their stories, requirements, likes and dislikes and all things human, and the photographer's approach as it has to do with gear and technical details.



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May 20, 2019 17:14:27   #
Zachary Welch Loc: Minneapolis
 
Ed,

Thank you for all the suggestions. I have to submit the final shot to the agency that is doing the page layout tonight. I will try and incorporate some of your suggestions and will share them when I am done. We are lucky that we have a 2/3 page space to work with, so the photo will be good size. There were some other photos from the shoot that I preferred more in terms of aesthetic, but they looked more like a fashion editorial.


I know I have to learn about lighting two people (and much more about even lighting one person) but as much as I could, I tried to make sure she had the better light 😆.

As a quick aside, this was the photo from the last magazine ad they used, while my work will never be “perfect” I think I got them more relaxed, and as you said, approachable looking than their old one.

I was also smart enough to have a bottle of wine handy!


Thanks so much yet again.



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May 20, 2019 18:44:22   #
E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada
 
Zachary Welch wrote:
Ed,

Thank you for all the suggestions. I have to submit the final shot to the agency that is doing the page layout tonight. I will try and incorporate some of your suggestions and will share them when I am done. We are lucky that we have a 2/3 page space to work with, so the photo will be good size. There were some other photos from the shoot that I preferred more in terms of aesthetic, but they looked more like a fashion editorial.


I know I have to learn about lighting two people (and much more about even lighting one person) but as much as I could, I tried to make sure she had the better light 😆.

As a quick aside, this was the photo from the last magazine ad they used, while my work will never be “perfect” I think I got them more relaxed, and as you said, approachable looking than their old one.

I was also smart enough to have a bottle of wine handy!


Thanks so much yet again.
Ed, br br Thank you for all the suggestions. I h... (show quote)


Nice layout! Keep up the practice. The more you do, the better you will get! Post as you practice. Thanks for your participation. Ed👍

Reply
May 21, 2019 09:41:07   #
Zachary Welch Loc: Minneapolis
 
Ed,

I didn’t dare to go too far in editing last night, but I did crop and add some vignetting as suggested. As I am sure you already would know, I am very please with the results.

Thank you again. I wish you were In Minneapolis so I could take a workshop with you. 🙂


Zak


(Download)

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May 21, 2019 15:56:01   #
Zachary Welch Loc: Minneapolis
 
Final version!



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May 23, 2019 08:21:17   #
bkyser Loc: Fly over country in Indiana
 
Zach, All I can say is that I can only imagine how excited she is about how much better she looks in your version than the previous one. Very nice job indeed.

I agree with Ed about the white shirt dominating the image, and it frustrates me when I make wardrobe suggestions, and people completely ignore it. I think he mentioned, in this case (for next time) if you see something like that, closing the jacket, and maybe adding a tie would make him look more formal than he may want to look, but it would be a way to distract from the large white blob (shirt, not his belly) jumping out at you.

Often, I end up employing some psychology (My day job is at a mental hospital, so I get experience) and let the person know that buttoning his jacket will make him appear approachable, or whatever term you think will make him want to look like that. I tend to shy away from telling someone it will make them look "slimmer" because that can be taken wrong.) Even if closing the jacket doesn't make people seem approachable, you are the professional, and they should listen to your opinion.

I get women coming in sleeveless shirts all the time, no matter how many times I ask them not to wear sleeveless shirts, they do it anyway. It takes a lot of dodging and burning to make their arms not look HUGE, even if they aren't, because all that skin is a big blob to draw your attention. If they have a jacket, I nicely ask them to take a few with the jacket, or sweater, etc. Then instead of saying "because your arms will look huge" I say, it brings the attention to your beautiful smile, eyes, etc... Always accentuate the positive, not the things that will make them feel self conscious.

I believe that there is as much psychology involved in portraiture as there is actual photographic knowledge. You can't be really good, without knowing both.

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May 23, 2019 10:47:18   #
Zachary Welch Loc: Minneapolis
 
It’s funny, The open jacket/shirt didn’t bother me at all, until you two mentioned it. I am still happy with how it turned out, and yes, both of them are ecstatic about it, which in the end is most important.
They would like me to come in a do portraits of their office staff. I think I will work in a more controlled environment which means I can set the lighting more or less once, and concentrate more on the psychological aspect of the work.

I am sure I will have plenty of questions before and after the shoot, and I am so happy that I have such great resources!!

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Jul 26, 2019 22:24:48   #
GoofyNewfie Loc: Kansas City
 
Zachary Welch wrote:
Final version!


Nice work, Zachary!
Look forward to seeing more sometime.

Reply
Jul 29, 2019 00:10:47   #
Zachary Welch Loc: Minneapolis
 
GoofyNewfie wrote:
Nice work, Zachary!
Look forward to seeing more sometime.


Thank you 🙏

Reply
Aug 6, 2019 19:23:24   #
E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada
 
In professional portraiture, attention to details in clothing and other aesthetics is important for many reasons. I always have my portrait clients in for a pre-sitting consultation on another day prior to the session. At this meeting we go over all the preparations as to clothing, makeup (if required and applicable) hair styling, props- thigs the shod bring along. Most importantly, I want to find out the client's expectations, what the usage of the portraits will be such as a personal gift, professional announcement, advertising, for home or "boardroom" display, a special occasion, or whatever the final disposition of the images will be. Then we can come up with a theme, plan for props or a specific or suggested environment and make sure the images are appropriate for the purposes.

Psychologically, I want to put them at eas, dispel any nervousness or self conscientious so they know I am on their side and will do everything I can to ensure pleasing results. Most folks will confide in me if they have any issues, facial features that they don't want to be emphasized, a weight problem, a receding hairline, a "double chin', dental issues- whatever. I assure them that we have ways of deemphasizing and dealing with all of these things through proper posing and lighting, attention to detail, clothing management, and retouching.

As per clothing, I recommend colors and style that will be flattering, bring out their skin tone, will not be distracting and will be appropriate and thematic for the aforementioned usage. The color, shade, and tone must work with work KEY of the planned images.

So...how do I approach folks about issues about facial structure and body type. I don't want to offend anyone by telling them I am suggesting certain colors or style or buttoning up a jacket to make them appear SLIMMER. I get around this by talks "PHOTOGRAPHY" because that is what I know best and I explain that a good portrait should feature the subject's facial features and expressions and anything that distracts from those elements spoils the impact of the portrait.

With heavyset folks, I usually recommend dark solid colors, long sleeves and to avoid extreme bright color or prints, especially horizontal stripes expanding that strong patterns and color lead the viewer's eye away from the motif of the image.

The problem with open jackets is they expose too much of a white or bright shirt that the dominates the tonal values in the image. The V shape of a closed jacket helps give a base to the head and shoulders and leads the viewer's eye to the faces.

An open collar dress shirt without neckties looked unfinished, whereas a button-down or sports shirt with an open collar looks elegantly casual. An open jacket does not necessarily connote approachability, that impression comes from a welcoming smile and expression and good eye contact in the image.

Long sleeves preclude the upper arms, which are usually slightly lighter than the facial tones and oftentimes closer to the cameras for distracting from the face. and the main ligh source. "V" necklines help "lengthen a short neck. High necklines, scarves, jewelry, and other accessories can remedy a long, very thin or sagging neck or neckline. If some want a more revealing low0cut neckline there is a way to handle "decolletage"

Clothing should always be neat, tucked in and not excessively wrinkled, especially in a formal or business or professional portrait.

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