Jackie..pretty senior.

zoomer · February 24, 2008

Jackie is a friend of my nephews. A very pretty young lady, she is 18 and a senior in high school.
We had a fun shoot in the park this last weekend.

RBrogen · February 24, 2008

Very pretty young lady. Consider yourself lucky to have such a photogenic subject that makes it so much easier to get great shots.

jayegirl · February 24, 2008

These are great. You didn't ask for comments but I hope you don't mind. The one nail that is showing in the first two photos looks like it has chipped polish. Other than that, I like all of them. Number 3 is my favorite.

evoryware · February 25, 2008

Very nice. My favorite is #4. Were you using a reflector?

jeffreaux2 · February 25, 2008

jayegirl wrote:

These are great. You didn't ask for comments but I hope you don't mind. The one nail that is showing in the first two photos looks like it has chipped polish. Other than that, I like all of them. Number 3 is my favorite.

I agree on the nail polish.

Nice set of photos, I am sure she will be pleased!

photodoug · February 25, 2008

very pretty, nice comp although a bit awkward, excellent exposure. does she have teeth?....would have made them POP if we could see her pearlies!

CarnalSigh · February 25, 2008

I shot a girl last night who held her mouth the same exact way. Reason? her teeth were not perfect and she was self conscious about it. I'd bet a buck this lovely lady has the same issue. Tis hard to get good portraits like this if they refuse to smile, but I like these shots anyway. Great lighting.

BeamCatcher · February 25, 2008

Hola mate!
She is a keeper! :-)

I honestly did not even think about the nails and teeth until others mentioned it! That said... I also do believe they are right. My better half, who I think is the pretties in the world I might add... ;-) doesn't have 110% even teeth at the bottom, but at the same time a BLINDING smile (not that I am biased.... yeah right!!) and truthfully... even if I have to fight tooth (no pun intended) and nail.. to get a SMALL smile showing some teeth... it REALLY DOES make a difference! :-)

Number 4 is coolest, and has most potential in my eyes!

Cheers mate!

Ivar :-)

DavidS · February 25, 2008

Beautiful subject and beautiful shots. I love the lighting. Teeth are nice, but she has a lovely smile in her eyes.

zoomer · February 25, 2008

Thanks to all who took a look and took the time to comment.
Actually Jackie has perfect teeth..she was pretty nervous the entire shoot.
She has a crush on my nephew and having him there watching her pose made her quite nervous...it was kind of funny to watch.
There are plenty of pictures of her smiling from the shoot. My own preference is the non smiling photos.

BeamCatcher · February 25, 2008

Hi again!
Nothing better when I am proven "wrong"! :-)

I really would have liked to see some of the smiling shots as well. -I know it's a matter of taste... but I am only trying to learn... and to me (In My Humble Opinion) her posture is looking constrained. But hey... the taste is like we all know... VERY different! I still think you have a FAB set of hots mate!

Cheers from Dublin / Ireland

Ivar

SitterS · February 25, 2008

I think these are really nice and she is a beautiful girl. Nice to have great looking subjects pose for you. Would you mind sharing some information about the shoot. The lighting looks very warm so I am wondering if a reflector (gold side) was used, lens, etc. Would appreciate it as I am always interested in seeing how others shoot and achieve great results.

Shane

zoomer · February 25, 2008

Ok upon request ...here are a couple with her smiling.
Thanks for taking a look.

zoomer · February 25, 2008

SitterS wrote:

I think these are really nice and she is a beautiful girl. Nice to have great looking subjects pose for you. Would you mind sharing some information about the shoot. The lighting looks very warm so I am wondering if a reflector (gold side) was used, lens, etc. Would appreciate it as I am always interested in seeing how others shoot and achieve great results.

Shane

Hi Shane,
Late afternoon light, a couple were with a gold reflector.
Most with a sb800 and a small softbox for lighting.
Lens was 70-200 f2.8 ..all shot at f4.

Hary · February 25, 2008

Grea series. I have a question ? Did you PP the eyes so that they appear brighter ? When I do eyes I lightn them (example below) or are the lights you used (I use single SB-800) enough?
before

after

I had a gold gel on so it seems a bit too yellow.

Thanks!

zoomer · February 25, 2008

Hi Hary,
I used to brighten the eyes and teeth but I don't do that anymore unless their teeth are really bad then I will fix them a bit. I do make sure the eyes have a catchlight from the flash and make them good and sharp.
I did not brighten her eyes but I did make them good and sharp which brings out the catchlights more.
A lot of the girls I have been photographing have had their teeth whitened and they are VERY white to start with.

eL eSs Vee · March 1, 2008

Great work, Zoomer!

Makes me miss the days when I worked with models.

Personally, I like closed-mouth shots. They give a feel of calm, pleasant confidence. One of my best shots (from 23 years ago) was of a lovely long-haired lady wearing a mild, closed-mouth, almost imperceptible smile. I still love the shot.

But that's not to say teeth are bad. No way! A nice, exuberant smile shows a lot of personality, and your young lady has plenty of that.

Of the second set, my favorites are the second and fourth. In the first of these, her smile looks slightly forced: I'm guessing it was early in the shoot. She looks more relaxed and her smile more genuine in the other three. It looks, to me, like you and Jackie had a good rapport during the shoot.

Great shots all: Sharp, good DOF, lighting and contrast. I look forward to seeing more of your work.

msurdin · March 1, 2008

Did you use a flash for fill? If so, did you manually adjust the flash output?
... and if so, was it on-camera flash? Thanks. Great pictures ... trying to learn.

BeamCatcher · March 3, 2008

Hi Zoomer!
Thanks for posting some with smile as well!

I do understand what you said with the choice of shots! For the record... she's a keeper to work with! Looking forward to see more mate!

Cheers! Ivar :ivar

CarnalSigh · March 3, 2008

The problem with smiles in portraits are that many peeps have a hard time giving a good natural genuine smile. They usually, as with this young lady, seem a bit forced....and I nix any photos in a session with forced-looking smiles. Most of my subjects are neutral....and that allows me to capture the actual shape of their face and look in their eye, rather than the happiness we hope she has within her. Then you have the problem with peeps who have the wrong type of teeth for closed mouth shots. If their teeth protrude any, then the closed mouth looks forced as well. It's always something lol