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Commercial and Industrial Photography
Need help stepping up my game
Sep 8, 2019 21:34:15   #
Kbose
 
I'm a hair stylist & I'm wanting to step up my photo game.
Currently, I've been taking pics of my clients on my Samsung Galaxy S7.
I have trouble with shadows when I have to take pictures inside. I use a ring light & it still creates shadows.
I've been looking into getting a Canon M50.
I do not like editing my pictures. I usually crop them to get the unwanted stuff off the sides.
I do a lot of color & am looking to capture the tones of the color.
I'd love to hear your tips on techniques & cameras. I'm looking to spend around $800.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read my post & educate me!

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Sep 9, 2019 08:35:13   #
E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada
 
Hi, and welcome theo the Commercial Section!

Please post some images that you have already made of of your clients. This will give me some idea of where you are at and what you are upto. This will help me advice you on setting up a simple but effective system for consistent results.

Flat ring lighting is not the best solution. There is nothing wrong with "shadows" providing they are placed properly. A good lighing system should render texture and color in the hair and also show how your styling flatters the facial structure. Lighting the hair itself is an important factor in bringing out highlights and brilliance and color.

Some of the principles of portrait photography factor in as well, so lens choice, focal length and working distance is important to avoid distortion. Camera angle is very crucial in hairstyling illustration.

Tell me where you will be shooting- at your salon or location or at a locations where portabel gear is needed? If it is at your premises, a permanent and easy to use set up can be placed in a corner of the room where the client can easily take a seat and pose for a few minutes.

If you have not as yet purchased a new camera, perhaps hold off until you gather all the information.

If you shoot correctly, frame carefully and light and expose accurately, you should not require massive editing. Believe it or not, many photographers tend to shoot sloppily and edit their heads off to correct issue that coud have been avoided by careful shooting.

Also- tell me what end use of the image will be- display prints in your salon, a portfolio, Internet ads, screen images- a slideshow- wahtever? This will help in creating and designing a system.

The best tip I can offer you now is that any decent DSLR or mirrorless camera should do the job with the correct lens. The technique is more importat than the gear and you need to invest in a simple but reliable lighting system. Most importantly, don't forget to post some images- if there are any problems or issues they can be worked out!

I am shooting all day today- so if you post something soon, I will get back to you by Tuesday or Wednesday at the latest.

Sound like a cool project! Ed

Reply
Sep 9, 2019 08:51:05   #
Kbose
 
E.L.. Shapiro wrote:
Hi, and welcome theo the Commercial Section!

Please post some images that you have already made of of your clients. This will give me some idea of where you are at and what you are upto. This will help me advice you on setting up a simple but effective system for consistent results.

Flat ring lighting is not the best solution. There is nothing wrong with "shadows" providing they are placed properly. A good lighing system should render texture and color in the hair and also show how your styling flatters the facial structure. Lighting the hair itself is an important factor in bringing out highlights and brilliance and color.

Some of the principles of portrait photography factor in as well, so lens choice, focal length and working distance is important to avoid distortion. Camera angle is very crucial in hairstyling illustration.

Tell me where you will be shooting- at your salon or location or at a locations where portabel gear is needed? If it is at your premises, a permanent and easy to use set up can be placed in a corner of the room where the client can easily take a seat and pose for a few minutes.

If you have not as yet purchased a new camera, perhaps hold off until you gather all the information.

If you shoot correctly, frame carefully and light and expose accurately, you should not require massive editing. Believe it or not, many photographers tend to shoot sloppily and edit their heads off to correct issue that coud have been avoided by careful shooting.

Also- tell me what end use of the image will be- display prints in your salon, a portfolio, Internet ads, screen images- a slideshow- wahtever? This will help in creating and designing a system.

The best tip I can offer you now is that any decent DSLR or mirrorless camera should do the job with the correct lens. The technique is more importat than the gear and you need to invest in a simple but reliable lighting system. Most importantly, don't forget to post some images- if there are any problems or issues they can be worked out!

I am shooting all day today- so if you post something soon, I will get back to you by Tuesday or Wednesday at the latest.

Sound like a cool project! Ed
Hi, and welcome theo the Commercial Section! br b... (show quote)


Thank you! I'm shooting at the salon. I'll be using the pictures on my social media. The salon lighting isnt the best for pictures. I'm sure my technique isn't great. These pictures were taken inside. I will post more & of some outside. I also want to be able to take branding pictures as well. And pictures of products. I know these pictures probably won't look as great as a professional- but I know they will look better than on my phone. I'm definitely going to have a professional take pictures of me in a couple of months.
Yeah, I don't want to edit anything other than cropping. I want the pictures to capture my work so clients & potential clients can see my work & not some heavily edited picture.
The lighting setup will have to be easy to set up & put back quickly. Space is limited for now. I do have 2 umbrella lights I can use. Because of space the lights have to be out of the way until use... So up against the wall/corner until ready to use.
Do mirrorless cameras need lenses like DSLRs?
I'm thinking the Canon M50 will be a great little starter camera since I'm looking to only shoot my work. I figured I'll start there & then work my way up. Also, I may be doing some videos on it as well.
I know a lot of stylists use ring lights for photos of clients. But it just hasnt been working out for me... I'm guessing it's all the other lighting issues. The lighting in the salon is for seeing color... Not for pictures.
My clients don't always like their faces in pictures so I take pictures of the back or sides often as well. I'll post more pictures.
Thank you so much!

Reply
 
 
Sep 9, 2019 08:53:56   #
Kbose
 
I will upload more from my computer soon both of these were inside.





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Sep 9, 2019 09:37:24   #
Kbose
 
I feel like the inside pictures are very dark on top of the head. I've tried raising the ring light, dimming the ring light.... There are not any type of ceiling lights where I usually take pictures inside. The outside ones I feel are ok... But I'm pretty certain they can be better. I've also noticed outside that the siding of the house disappears because the picture is so light... I hope that makes sense.

outside
outside...

same women, different appointment inside
same women, different appointment inside...

inside
inside...

outside
outside...

inside
inside...

Reply
Sep 10, 2019 09:47:28   #
E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada
 
In order to feature the hair as to style, color and texture, you need to maintain exact control over the lighting. This requires a "hair light", that is a separate lighting unit that is suspended overhead and slightly to the back of the subject to specifically illuminate the hair.

The shots of the back of the subject are OK to show the style but a frontal shot should show the total effect and how the hairstyle enhances the facial structure.

Sometimes a high camera positions helps to show the style.

The background can be white, but you can also use color to compliment the hair coloring. A blue or green background brings out red, blond or light brown hair.

I don't know how much money you want to invest in lighting gear. I recommend a 3 or 4 light system: A main light which is placed at 25 to 40 degrees off camera, A fill light who is place behind the camera, a hair light which is suspended over the subject, and a small light to illuminate the background. A few medium size softboxes or umbrellas would be good.

The ring ligh is not the best tool for the job.

Tell me what you thoughts are and if you decide to creat a system, I can get into the specifics.



Reply
Sep 10, 2019 10:27:53   #
Kbose
 
This is my current set up that I set up this morning. We don't have a lot of options and room. There's one more option I might be able to do... And that will involve removing the mirror... I'd have to talk to the boss lady about that and get it approved.

Current
Current...

Possible
Possible...

Reply
 
 
Sep 11, 2019 07:04:44   #
Kbose
 
I took these pictures in my current set up... The room is darker but the photos came out good (in my non-professional opinion). They look a million times better than what I've been taking on my phone. I'm very impressed with how light (idk if that's the right term) the photos turned out being taken in a dark room.
.
I believe the boss lady will be taking down the one mirror, painting and bringing in her lights ( so I can take my lights home) & we will have better & more lighting there.
Any tips or critiques?









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