Been a good week - child potraits (C&C)

divamum

These are a buddy of Minidiva's - a while back I spoke to her mom about perhaps doing some shots for them which I could use as portfolio fodder for myself (so I have some children who aren't actually mine up there!) and they willingly agreed.

Boy, did I ask the right kid! The camera absolutely LOVES her, and virtually everything we tried worked at some level.

I'm most proud of the "outdoor" ones. In point of fact, it was pouring with rain this afternoon, but I had the idea to put her on the porch, shooting out towards the yard with the trees behind her, and lighting her with fill through my 45" umbrella - SCORE! At one point the sun eve came out through the rain to make everything glow - it was lucky beyond belief

Sorry there are so many, but it was a good session - I have loads more to go through (mixed blessing :rolleyes), but here are the first ones to grab me. C&C absolutely welcomed - these are just the first preliminary edits on the first pass through!

1



2


3


4a


4


5 The breeze came along at just the right moment


6 Totally silly, but I loved it anyway!



7 This was right at the end - she wanted some shots in her Halloween costume (she's going as an 80's rocker, hence the makeup etc etc). This one is a triumph of cloning over lighting, truth be told. I actually have a 3rd flash, a really old one that I want to use as a bg light, but it needs an optical slave which I don't have yet, so I was limited to just the two Canon flashes, which isn't quite enough for a real high key set up. I didn't have enough of a floor cloth to cover the in-frame area for a full-body shot, and I also (DUHHHH) forgot to flag the bg light so got terrible flare (eg camera left foot), but they loved the jump shots and begged me to work them up anyway. This one needs some more attention, I fear, but fwiw....

Elaine

Number five! Number five! Number five!!!!! clap

blaser321

4&5 for me very nice

jeffreaux2

I say 3 and 5 though they...as well as the rest could use a dose of warmth.

jethibod

I love 4a and 5 - the lighting in 5 is great and the bokeh is wonderful!!


BTW I've been reading your posts, and your photos just keep getting better and better!! (I hope I can 'get' it soon, too!!) And your new avatar is grrrreeeat!!

divamum

Thanks. Yeah, 5 is the one that when I saw the breeze go I just pushed the shutter and snapped as many as I could, and when I looked at the LCD I nearly started squealing. It is SO satisfying to feel at least a little bit in charge of how things are running. This kid was easy because she just sparkles for the camera but I REALLY have to start concentrating on posing now - I've been so preoccupied with basics like, yanno EXPOSURE, that I've kind of ignored that and just hoped for the best....

@Jeff - warmer? Hmmm... they looked too warm sooc so I tweaked the WB ever so slightly down. I've been using the Wow "dayllight+" preset a lot recently since I got it, but since people are generally commenting that things are cool, perhaps I need to rethink that. Thanks!

@jethibod - Thanks so much! This week has been one of those quantum leaps, it seems. I have no idea WHY things came together, but I'm very happy they did! (And thanks re the avatar )

angevin1

I think the warmer thing is just a personal thingy~~I like em just like this..or even a bit cooler and light (too often maybe)...Whats not to like...though 4 has a strangish shadow...in truth, they're pretty darned pristine.....and the jump type shots are just fun! WB seems dead-on!

D'Buggs

I've scanned through your shots several times and 6 keeps me interested the most.

kidzmom

I like 3 and 5 and the jump shot is fun too although there seem to be some big heaps of cloth in the lower left corner.. The wrinkles don't look bad at all, it just caught my eye before the jump did though. FUN shots and that was super nice of you to take pictures for your dd's friend!

ivar

It's not very original, but I too prefer #5. Very nicely done on all of them, though

adbsgicom

Diva here's my take on a great set (I'm confident that both child and parents are totally thrilled).

1. I like this one a lot. I know sometimes the hair fading too fast into the black background is an issue, but I like this one.
2. I love how she looks. The white parts of her far arm is a bit funky as it isn't clear that it is her arm forming that black triangle. You may want to clone it out completely (??). The desat on her isn't my favorite technique -- makes her look a bit too wan.
3. Pretty pic. She looks a little tired, though. The shadows from her hair are a bit hard. I do this with my kid all the time....
4a. Not grooving on her eyes here. She looks kinda condescending.
4. Sweet, pretty shot. A bit blue, but I like the composition a lot.
5. As has been said, this is the total best of the bunch, and just wonderful.
6. I think this one is great. Not a framer, but really a great personality pic.
7. I like the idea and all, but it isn't a polished as so much of your work.

Hope that helps some.

divamum

Thanks everybody - I sure appreciate the props!! I'm happier with this set than just about any I've done for somebody outside the family, but I can't deny it's nice to hear it confirme by y'all and I really appreciate the input, feedback and attagirls

Andrew, it's funny you should comment on the one with the glasses - it's perhaps not a flattering look, but it IS an expression anybody who knows her has seen! I actually only included that one because she prefers shots with glasses - her mom doesn't, but the kid does, so I felt I had to include some. Sadly, they sit RIGHT across her iris most of the time - I tried to vary my height etc etc, but still - the frame would be through her eye. Still working on processing those in the hope I can come up with some that are both pleasing and let us see the eyes.

And yeah, the jumpshot is a bit rough, but they like it for fun so I'll have another stab at it - hopefully I can clean it up a little better if I work at it> I still can't believe I didn't remember to flag the bg light - talk about BASIC . (note to self: particularly when tired at the end of a session, slow down and think before pressing shutter.....)

divamum

Can't...
stop...
sharing...


I totally missed this one on my first pass yesterday, but I love it! (for its flaws as much as anything, especially since it's almost SOOC). Yeah, arty instead of portrait-y, but I still love it. It makes a cool BW too




Kind of on the fence about the desat (your points are noted, Andrew), but I kinda like the effect in this. Can't wait to set up the new monitor tomorrow and see how everything looks on that - I have a feeling it may be a slight shock to the system...

ChatKat

Diva - this one below is the best of all of them in my opinion - although her shirt is blown and missing detail. The nit I have for this is that her hair is separated at the bangs (or fringe if you are from across the pond). None of the other images would make the cut and would be on the edit floor.

[/quote]

1. The Minnie Mouse detracts from the image and the flash/strobe is bounced off of her forehead
2. The over shoulder doesn't work - it actually distorts her and makes her look a bit fluffy and wide
4a The glasses are angled and make her eyes look to be two different sizes with the close eye looking too small
4 b The pink plaid against the fall color are not a color match. No plaid for portraits is a rule of mine. Too distracting
5 is the best of this batch but i told you my favorite is above
6. Looks too fake for my taste
The other image you added in the subsequent post where her eyes are closed looks like a blinker and doesn't do any thing for me.

Diva, the other images I have seen from you are better than this batch - just my opinion but the color is off as Jeff stated. I love your enthusiasm and I think you way capable of really shining. These are't there yet.

saurora

#3 and#5 for me, and yes, the camera does love her! #3 she has a distinctive shadow under her left eye, it appears she has it in all the photos, but it shows up more so in this one. Is it something they would mind if you touched up slightly? I know one of my great-nieces has really bad shadows under her eyes due to a heart condition....it is a part of who she is. I love the background in #5. I wish she had been wearing a different shirt as the colors seem to fight with those of the BG. I agree w/Jeffreaux about needing a little warmth (just a little!) on some of these. Nice set, and you should definitely shoot her again!

adbsgicom

Diva, the new desat works for me. Go figure.... I was trying to figure out why, and it may be because the eyes carry the picture so strongly in the second.

FWIW, on the other one, I don't get blinking, but more 'deep breath'.

fredjclaus

What beautiful little girls they are. I love number 6. I can just see my daughter doing the same thing when she forgets her homework at school.

divamum

Thanks for the further comments folks - you've given me more to think about, which I really appreciate.

Kat, on the one you like I can easily recover blown detail - I pushed exposure in processing, so it's all there. Thanks for the heads up.

I'd agree about both the Minnie Mouse and the plaid (although since it's a small plaid it doesn't bother me that much), but unfortunately, that's what she had with her and was determined to wear. Which begs the question....

....what's the best way of going about conflicts between wardrobe choices and photographic suitability? I felt like it was my job to try and work with what she had and make it look the best I could (Minnie was a challenge - I've actually cloned it out in a few places where just a little bit of it was left - they'll never know, and it looks WAY better, IMO)

I'll address wb and colour on all of these once we get the new monitor set up; I'm very interested to see how they look on a monitor more suitable for photo editing than this one. I haven't posted to their gallery yet, so I can still tweak.

Thanks again!

ChatKat

Pay me for what?
They pay me to take a good photo so that includes what to wear advice. I give a lot of detail in that regard. I tell them to bring several choices and I tell them long sleeves, no plaids, loud prints etc with solid rich colors making the nicest of images in most cases. I tell them that we're making the whole scene fit in with wardrobe choices and that I get to pick what they wear. That includes the styling on my set.

adbsgicom

I understand your point Kat, but just to be DA here, what about a kid who never, or almost nevers, wears the kind of clothes you would want? Do you shoot them in clothes they are less than pleased with, or try to capture them best you can with the styles that define them? Or, with your policy, do you end up self-selecting such that this isn't an issue? Since I'm not in the biz, I'm curious in a purely academic way.

lilmomma

i like 5 a lot! and the artsy one you recently posted is pretty cool, sort of dreamy. I can't offer advice on how to tell people to dress, but for the shoot I had on Saturday I just suggested for them to stay within complementing colors, no white, and nothing "busy." I told them that although it may not seem like it, it really does make a difference in the pictures. This was something I would never have thought of 6 months ago.

D'Buggs

ChatKat wrote:

They pay me to take a good photo so that includes what to wear advice. I give a lot of detail in that regard. I tell them to bring several choices and I tell them long sleeves, no plaids, loud prints etc with solid rich colors making the nicest of images in most cases. I tell them that we're making the whole scene fit in with wardrobe choices and that I get to pick what they wear. That includes the styling on my set.

... But YET they still show up with everything that was explicitly NOT asked for, thinking that the selections are "cute".

- Take the shots, get paid?
- Retain deposit and cancel the project, due to breech of contract?


Personally, I take the shots and get paid.... It's no longer a portrait session though. More like a documentary of an event - This way, I still get to sleep 'easy'.

ChatKat

adbsgicom wrote:

I understand your point Kat, but just to be DA here, what about a kid who never, or almost nevers, wears the kind of clothes you would want? Do you shoot them in clothes they are less than pleased with, or try to capture them best you can with the styles that define them? Or, with your policy, do you end up self-selecting such that this isn't an issue? Since I'm not in the biz, I'm curious in a purely academic way.

They bring me a selection and I work with what they bring. So if I were shooting fall colors and they bring me all colors that work against it, we might change location if they don't have wardrobe but we talk about what I am shooting beforehand and we talk about what they want to bring. On one shoot I did, I actually sent out my assistant to buy a selection of solid long sleeved T-shirts from Target.

divamum

Interesting discussion - thanks everybody for your input!

ChatKat

D'Buggs wrote:

...
Personally, I take the shots and get paid.... It's no longer a portrait session though. More like a documentary of an event - This way, I still get to sleep 'easy'.

Yes- but maybe the clients I have just listen to what I say. I have only had one session where I sent the assistant to get me shirts. I had two other sessions that they didn't wardrobe as suggested and the clients were happy - I made it work!

D'Buggs

ChatKat wrote:

I had two other sessions that they didn't wardrobe as suggested and the clients were happy - I made it work!

In the end; Ya do what ya hafta do and for me, it revolves around getting the pay-day.

I firmly believe that the client is the boss... If the client doesn't believe that their kids hair should look neat and that plaid is the most favourable attire for a port, so be it! - Mother knows best. The downside of it all is that the time it takes to re-set and/or relocate, comes straight out of the sitting time and this means less choices, or, the *magic* one that never transpires.

So be it.
Crap happens...

divamum

I guess I would hope to strike a happy medium between reasonable artistic control and capturing WHO that person is which includes their wardrobe choices...even if I don't like them.

In the case of the plaid (since that's what prompted this discussion), it actually doesn't particularly bother me in this instance - I'd have preferred which toned/contrasted better with the leaves, but as an outdoor look, plaid actually works for me (workshirts=outdoors=not incongruous). Given the choices on offer, it was for sure the best available. There really wasn't any way to "plan" for those outside shots since the weather was so iffy it was pretty much by chance, and also since the leaves have been changing so fast this year that they're different colours every time you look (24hrs before, that spot had been predominantly green - seriously!). So, I worked with what I had - the results may not please everybody, but I'm happy with what we got out of it, as are they.

I guess I reckon that for this kind of portrait, capturing WHO that kid is at this point in their lives may include some clothing choices which don't float my boat - I can imagine that anybody who does a lot of seniors is sick to death of Ugg boots and baby doll dresses (which make anybody over the age of about 12 look 6 months pregnant no matter how slender they are!), but 20 years from now - however much they may laugh at their fashion taste at age X - it WILL evoke a time and place. And isn't that kind of what we're supposed to be doing, particularly when documenting kids?

All that said, I think I can afford to be a little more specific in my recommendations (I make suggestions, but probably too general), so I'll be throwing that into the mix for next time.

Thanks for all the comments - interesting discussion.

adbsgicom

I wonder if photographers in Scotland tell their clients, "No Plaid"...

Couldn't resist....

divamum

adbsgicom wrote:

I wonder if photographers in Scotland tell their clients, "No Plaid"...

Couldn't resist....

BWAH! GIven that I'm married to a Scot (a real one, born n' bred) this is particularly hilarious.... :giggle

ChatKat

Whatever
We each have to decide what we want to reflect in the portrait work we do and what our style is.

If you search on the web for wardrobe suggestions by some of the high end portrait artists, you can make your own decisions.

Documentary/ environmental photography has a different feel than a close up headshot/portrait in a studio. My bank account and walk in clients from my studio tell me that I must be doing something right.

divamum

ChatKat wrote:

Documentary/ environmental photography has a different feel than a close up headshot/portrait in a studio. My bank account and walk in clients from my studio tell me that I must be doing something right.

Which is why I appreciate the discussion! From the responses above, there's clearly a range of different ways to approach this, and as a n00b I appreciate hearing them all