Family Shoot

kdotaylor

I'm looking for some feedback on this family shoot--parents, grandparents and kids. Any critique is welcome and appreciated! Thank you

#1


#2


#3


#4


#5


#6


#7


#8


#9


#10

Foques

I think camera height could be lower for most of the shots..
I'm also a bit confused by the exif and ISO jumping all over the board, Are you shooting in auto?
what is happening in the top part of the picture in #9?
How come some of the shots are shot as slow as 1/125th and high ISO (feels like aperture was set too low)?

dad has striking facial features.

Mitchell

I like #3. Great shot with sharp focus and good composition.

Something funky is going on with the upper 20% of #9. I'm not sure if this is your effort to blur out the distracting fence using photoshop, but the result is very distracting to my eye. This should be a very good shot.

The rest look like average shots with no real punch or great posing. Your shady locations were a good choice, but a few of these still have distracting bright spots in the backgrounds.

kdotaylor

Foques wrote: »

I think camera height could be lower for most of the shots..
I'm also a bit confused by the exif and ISO jumping all over the board, Are you shooting in auto?
what is happening in the top part of the picture in #9?
How come some of the shots are shot as slow as 1/125th and high ISO (feels like aperture was set too low)?

dad has striking facial features.

Thank you for your comments!
I agree, top of #9, now that I look at it again, is weird...will go back and re-edit.
I had two cameras, both auto ISO, one with a 50 mm 1.4 lens, and one with a 35-70, 2.8. Maybe because I had the ISO on auto, that's what caused the jumping?

kdotaylor

Mitchell wrote: »

I like #3. Great shot with sharp focus and good composition.

Something funky is going on with the upper 20% of #9. I'm not sure if this is your effort to blur out the distracting fence using photoshop, but the result is very distracting to my eye. This should be a very good shot.

The rest look like average shots with no real punch or great posing. Your shady locations were a good choice, but a few of these still have distracting bright spots in the backgrounds.

Thank you for commenting! Any tips on how to pose a family when there are two young, uncooperative kids, one crying most of the time? I feel like it's all I can do to get them in the frame and not crying! They chose the location and time, which was mid-day in a sunny area. Maybe I need to be firmer in re-directing an earlier timeframe.

Mitchell

kdotaylor wrote: »

Thank you for commenting! Any tips on how to pose a family when there are two young, uncooperative kids, one crying most of the time? I feel like it's all I can do to get them in the frame and not crying! They chose the location and time, which was mid-day in a sunny area. Maybe I need to be firmer in re-directing an earlier timeframe.

I'm certainly not an expert poser, but I think you could have utilized a bench or the chair in #7 as a central focal point and then built around that instead of what you did on #10. You did use the bench on #5 but it looks a bit unbalanced.

Of course anything is tough with young, crying kids! :cry

Examples?

kdotaylor

Mitchell wrote: »

I'm certainly not an expert poser, but I think you could have utilized a bench or the chair in #7 as a central focal point and then built around that instead of what you did on #10. You did use the bench on #5 but it looks a bit unbalanced.

Of course anything is tough with young, crying kids! :cry

Examples?

Those are gorgeous shots, Mitchell!

kdog

Pretty solid set. Sometimes lightening shadows a bit really brings out the details in dark skinned persons. Photo 1 would be a good candidate for that, as well as most of the shots with the grandpa.

puzzledpaul

kdotaylor wrote: »

... // They chose the location and time, which was mid-day in a sunny area. Maybe I need to be firmer in re-directing an earlier timeframe.

This is the comment that jumped out at me in this thread.

I'm in no position to offer advice re posing tips, but, to me. the backgrounds in all these pics are less than ideal - whether it's because of the 'spotty / speckled' look or just general stuff that detracts.
(for w/life pics, I generally try to avoid back lit tree bgs like the plague, since it's well nigh impossible (imo) to avoid 'spottiness' - irrespective of comparative distances / aperture / focal length)

I suspect you shot from the height you did (for some frames) in order to try and remove some of this bg clutter from the frame?

Since, imo, you've captured some good expressions, this bg aspect lets the overall pics down a little - although, in many pics, a tighter crop* could be used to your advantage?

Returning to the quoted bit, I'd suggest you've definitely (as noted) got to be a bit more forceful re location and time - if at all possible?

Decent bgs are the deciding factor for pics, imo - and whether wire mesh fences or lampposts / trees etc sticking out of heads, they deserve full consideration - especially in shots that are essentially setups.

pp

*1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10

kdotaylor

Decent bgs are the deciding factor for pics, imo - and whether wire mesh fences or lampposts / trees etc sticking out of heads, they deserve full consideration - especially in shots that are essentially setups.

pp


Thank you, Paul....definitely something to think about for future!

kdotaylor

kdog wrote: »

Pretty solid set. Sometimes lightening shadows a bit really brings out the details in dark skinned persons. Photo 1 would be a good candidate for that, as well as most of the shots with the grandpa.

Thanks! I'll try that

reyvee61

Mitchell wrote: »

I'm certainly not an expert poser, but I think you could have utilized a bench or the chair in #7 as a central focal point and then built around that instead of what you did on #10. You did use the bench on #5 but it looks a bit unbalanced.

Of course anything is tough with young, crying kids! :cry

Examples?

I've often wondered if putting something such as chair out of context (in a wooded environment) would work but in this case it's barely noticeable and paid off well with the balanced posing.
Well done

reyvee61

kdotaylor wrote: »

Thank you for your comments!
I agree, top of #9, now that I look at it again, is weird...will go back and re-edit.
I had two cameras, both auto ISO, one with a 50 mm 1.4 lens, and one with a 35-70, 2.8. Maybe because I had the ISO on auto, that's what caused the jumping?

So that was post (lens) blur?
I see it in other images in the set as well.

Mitchell

reyvee61 wrote: »

I've often wondered if putting something such as chair out of context (in a wooded environment)would work but in this case it's barely noticeable and paid off well with the balanced posing.
Well done

Thanks. I've wrestled with pulling a chair out there because it can look out of place. Fortunately, this chair was pretty well hidden An outdoor chair does look a bit better and more natural. Either way, a chair does help a bit with posing the groups.

Haven't we all seen portraits with couches or fancy chairs in the middle of the forest? They seem like such an oddity that it makes the entire photo seem a bit unreal. My favorite could be this shot of a couch outdoors on a railroad track. Double overdone photo cliche in this one.

reyvee61

Putting children or anyone for that matter on a R/R track has always baffled me but throw in a couch and seal the deal.

Hackbone

Haven't read all the post but clothing is a must so as a photographer you need to stress light clothes put on weight as well as come forward to the viewers eye first. Stripes and bold patterns take away from the viewers eye. Earth tones make a good selection for color. Men should have shirts and jackets that fit. As we gain weight we can't get the jacket together. Ladies must not wear sleeveless or straps if they have large arms as they will show and they will blame you. Tell them to dress all the way down to the toes. Can't tell you how many shots were ruined with a great outfit and then sneakers with white socks.

Try to keep all the heads on different levels not in a row and arrange triangles with the heads to make a pleasing arrangement.

With the body always have the weight on the back leg and no locked leg stances. Watch out for fingers popping out from around the front subjects shoulders as they look like a sausage attack. Watch where you crop so limbs are not cut off in an akward fashion. Hope these make sense.

kdotaylor

Hackbone wrote: »

Haven't read all the post but clothing is a must so as a photographer you need to stress light clothes put on weight as well as come forward to the viewers eye first. Stripes and bold patterns take away from the viewers eye. Earth tones make a good selection for color. Men should have shirts and jackets that fit. As we gain weight we can't get the jacket together. Ladies must not wear sleeveless or straps if they have large arms as they will show and they will blame you. Tell them to dress all the way down to the toes. Can't tell you how many shots were ruined with a great outfit and then sneakers with white socks.

Try to keep all the heads on different levels not in a row and arrange triangles with the heads to make a pleasing arrangement.

With the body always have the weight on the back leg and no locked leg stances. Watch out for fingers popping out from around the front subjects shoulders as they look like a sausage attack. Watch where you crop so limbs are not cut off in an akward fashion. Hope these make sense.

Makes total sense...just so much to consider in the moment, and with kids crying trying to catch them in a moment when they're not. Practice. Practice. Practice.

Bountyphotographer

Really like the picture (5 + chair ) looks great and the chair is totally fine.Open shade? What lens did you use for that shot ? Manual mode with fix ISO?

Mitchell wrote: »

I'm certainly not an expert poser, but I think you could have utilized a bench or the chair in #7 as a central focal point and then built around that instead of what you did on #10. You did use the bench on #5 but it looks a bit unbalanced.

Of course anything is tough with young, crying kids! :cry

Examples?

jonh68

kdotaylor wrote: »

They chose the location and time, which was mid-day in a sunny area. Maybe I need to be firmer in re-directing an earlier timeframe.

Unless you can handle mid-day sun with off camera flash or reflectors, you need to be firm on the time of day. You get very limited in your choice of backgrounds. My business model depends on clients buying pics so the more shots that look good, the more money I make.

My bread and butter is beach pictures and from time to time I get clients who want to shoot midday or just before the golden hour before sunset because their babies go to bed early. I tell them go to the beach, take your sunglasses off, wear full makeup, and take your babies out into the sun at the time you want to shoot and tell me how it feels in 90 degree weather at 90% humidity.

If I get a family that wants a midday shoot and that is the only time they want to shoot, they don't get my money-back guarantee.

Mitchell

jonh68 wrote: »

Unless you can handle mid-day sun with off camera flash or reflectors, you need to be firm on the time of day. You get very limited in your choice of backgrounds. My business model depends on clients buying pics so the more shots that look good, the more money I make.

My bread and butter is beach pictures and from time to time I get clients who want to shoot midday or just before the golden hour before sunset because their babies go to bed early. I tell them go to the beach, take your sunglasses off, wear full makeup, and take your babies out into the sun at the time you want to shoot and tell me how it feels in 90 degree weather at 90% humidity.

If I get a family that wants a midday shoot and that is the only time they want to shoot, they don't get my money-back guarantee.

John is very talented with his mix of flash during bright, sunny days. Flash would have given these photos a bit more "pop" and toned down the brighter backgrounds.

kdotaylor

jonh68 wrote: »

Unless you can handle mid-day sun with off camera flash or reflectors, you need to be firm on the time of day. You get very limited in your choice of backgrounds. My business model depends on clients buying pics so the more shots that look good, the more money I make.

My bread and butter is beach pictures and from time to time I get clients who want to shoot midday or just before the golden hour before sunset because their babies go to bed early. I tell them go to the beach, take your sunglasses off, wear full makeup, and take your babies out into the sun at the time you want to shoot and tell me how it feels in 90 degree weather at 90% humidity.

If I get a family that wants a midday shoot and that is the only time they want to shoot, they don't get my money-back guarantee.

Your pictures are lovely...something to keep striving for!

jonh68

kdotaylor wrote: »

Your pictures are lovely...something to keep striving for!

Thanks! Keep practicing and shoot all the time. Every shoot is a learning experience.