First Self Portrait....Be Kind

lisasolonynko

Hi all,

Well, I bit the bullet and finally attempted a sp. Sadly, my focus is not as good as I would have liked. Doing a self portrait is much harder than it seems.

I am wondering about the lighting. What do you think. I normally do natural light portraits, but I want to get the hang of indoor portraits. Living in snowy Canada, it is always good to have a plan B.

Feedback would be fantastic....be kind about the subject matter though :rolleyes.

Lisa

kdog

Good effort! You nailed your Rembrandt lighting! I think it needs some fill, possibly from a reflector, on your left-hand side. The shadows are too severe there, IMHO.

Cheers,
-joel

craig_d

kdog wrote:

Good effort! You nailed your Rembrandt lighting! I think it needs some fill, possibly from a reflector, on your left-hand side. The shadows are too severe there, IMHO.

I think the shadows are fine as they are. If you really want a Rembrandt look, you need deep shadows. For a more conventional portrait look, though, yeah, a little bit of reflected light to bring up the shadowed side of the face would be needed. Or maybe a secondary light (possibly colored) coming from behind on that side.

lisasolonynko

Thanks so much for the feedback. I did have a reflector to my left but I don't think it was in the right position.

Now I have somewhere to go forward. Thanks for taking the time to comment and for letting me know that I am on the right track.

Lisa

Qarik

I like it but would like to see a larger version

Snowgirl

Hi Lisa (from a fellow well-chilled Canadian). I like your portrait and the sculpting shadows but I think that a little more light on your left side (a la reflector) would probably be more flattering to any model.

I had a peek at your website. Nice work! Where are you in Canada?

lisasolonynko

Snowgirl wrote:

Hi Lisa (from a fellow well-chilled Canadian). I like your portrait and the sculpting shadows but I think that a little more light on your left side (a la reflector) would probably be more flattering to any model.

I had a peek at your website. Nice work! Where are you in Canada?

Hi Snowgirl,

I am in the bustling metropolis of Petawawa, Ont.

I totally agree with the comments re: more light on my left. I am working on that as we speak.

Thanks so much for your input.

Lisa

D'Buggs

Hi!

I'm a dramatic fall-off kinda guy but without seeing an example, I too would think that more fill would benefit this image.... The deep cuts on the forehead/brow would lessen, and that neck muscle on YOUR left, wouldn't stand out so much.

In all, it would take what is now a shot of a pretty gal,,, UP a few steps on the ladder.
SP's can be a REAL *****. Good luck with yours.

lisasolonynko

D'Buggs wrote:

Hi!

I'm a dramatic fall-off kinda guy but without seeing an example, I too would think that more fill would benefit this image.... The deep cuts on the forehead/brow would lessen, and that neck muscle on YOUR left, wouldn't stand out so much.

In all, it would take what is now a shot of a pretty gal,,, UP a few steps on the ladder.
SP's can be a REAL *****. Good luck with yours.

The fall off was bugging me too. Not to mention the neck muscle and the deep cuts on the forehead/brow (benefits of raising a teenager, lol). I redid it with a reflector and it helped a lot.

While I had my set up together, I decided to try a 3/4 view (almost profile). I know that I am looking out of the frame (I have a wondering eye and it bugs me, so I figured that I would look stage right instead). I also cut off the top of my head more than I would have liked.

What do you think of the lighting though?

I am learning a lot from everyone's feedback. Thanks so much. I am linking to the "medium" size. Is it big enough, or should I post larger?

Lisa

craig_d

I usually post what SmugMug calls "large" size.

In some ways I like your new shot better; I think the angle is more flattering to you. But the lighting doesn't work as well for me. The lighted side of the bridge of your nose disappears into your cheek, and that cheek and your forehead look rather flat and lacking in detail (overexposed, perhaps). And for this shot I think the shadows are too deep; a reflector or a dimmer secondary light behind your left side would help. I also think it might help to edit out the bright points of light reflecting off the center of your eyes.

lisasolonynko

craig_d wrote:

I usually post what SmugMug calls "large" size.

In some ways I like your new shot better; I think the angle is more flattering to you. But the lighting doesn't work as well for me. The lighted side of the bridge of your nose disappears into your cheek, and that cheek and your forehead look rather flat and lacking in detail (overexposed, perhaps). And for this shot I think the shadows are too deep; a reflector or a dimmer secondary light behind your left side would help. I also think it might help to edit out the bright points of light reflecting off the center of your eyes.

Ahhhh, yes. I see everything you pointed out. Thank you! Great information. I will retry tomorrow.

Next time I will also just go ahead with the "large" version.

Thanks so much for taking the time to be so thorough.

Lisa