First time in the studio

schmoo

... for me, not the models, I mean.

A friend was kind enough to introduce me to the basics of studio lighting. Which was very very interesting, as I haven't even got myself a 430X yet! But I think my biggest nitpick would be the difficulty of getting pleasing skin tones, especially with such a bold-colored background.

jdryan3

I like the second one best. Lighting is good, composition is great. The way she is looking over her shoulder into the empty space is very good. Makes you wonder what is in the upper right corner, just out of the frame.

Photosbychuck

Hi, schmooo

Great photos

I would like to see her smile in the #3 pose.

Take Care,
Charles Cassidy,
http://www.modellocate.com/action/goto/uid=4447

imax

Hey Schmooo,

Great opportunity for you, take advantage of it. I wish I had a friend with a studio, I'm currently looking for a spot to work with someone without spending an arm and a leg, and not having much luck I might add.

I like the first picture the best. especially the white jacket against the red background. Very Nice.........

What kind of lights were you using if you do't mind me asking?

schmoo

Thanks everyone! I do agree that smiling may have helped in the third, but there were three of us shooting at the same time so I consider myself lucky that I got even one photo of a girl looking at me!

For lights I can't remember the specifics but we had two umbrellas, one on each side and I had a 430X pointed up to the ceiling. Additionally, since it was a regular room converted to a studio, all the normal house lights were on as well. But I think the nice soft light from the umbrellas made the biggest difference.

I understand that there's much much more to lighting, so I better get to studying and digging a bit deeper in these forums.

binghott

these are good! i like the 3rd picture the best, i like the lighting, but i wish the eyes were a little lighter.

i actually think these all might be a tad underexposed.

schmoo

They were a bit underexposed, which surprised me as they looked much brighter than my usual shots when I checked them on the LCD. I'm not sure if it was something as a result of not being used to using flash and other artificial lighting or what.

But now I know... and knowing is half the battle!

Scott_Quier

schmooo wrote:

They were a bit underexposed, which surprised me as they looked much brighter than my usual shots when I checked them on the LCD. I'm not sure if it was something as a result of not being used to using flash and other artificial lighting or what.

But now I know... and knowing is half the battle!

That's why I have a light meter that will handle both ambient and flash lighting. Then, I use the histogram for the first couple of shots with any new lighting setup and shoot the exposure to the right just a touch. I don't let anything blow, but it may be a tad OE, then I back it off that tad in PP. Works for me, I don't loose highlights, and I don't, usually get any hot spots (though there have been enough exceptions that help to make this a valid rule of thumb!).

schmoo

Thanks Scott, that's a great tip! I've never used a light meter before but I always have to remember the importance of the in-camera histogram. Duh! So many tools, not enough grey matter to keep them all out on the table when I'm flustered and shooting.

Scott_Quier

schmooo wrote:

Thanks Scott, that's a great tip! I've never used a light meter before but I always have to remember the importance of the in-camera histogram. Duh! So many tools, not enough grey matter to keep them all out on the table when I'm flustered and shooting.

Yeah, me too. But, I keep trying.

primedigital

schmooo wrote:

Thanks everyone! I do agree that smiling may have helped in the third, but there were three of us shooting at the same time so I consider myself lucky that I got even one photo of a girl looking at me!

For lights I can't remember the specifics but we had two umbrellas, one on each side and I had a 430X pointed up to the ceiling. Additionally, since it was a regular room converted to a studio, all the normal house lights were on as well. But I think the nice soft light from the umbrellas made the biggest difference.

I understand that there's much much more to lighting, so I better get to studying and digging a bit deeper in these forums.

Hey Smooo, great shots for a first time. If you are shooting raw (recommended) you can over expose to the point where you are getting blinky lights on your image review and still bring down the exposure (without loosing highlights) in post and end up with a much cleaner file with less noise. Plus you can adjust the white balance after you shoot. Win-Win situation!