 Malin Wittig |
Studio Portrait Tips On Saturday I'm doing a studio photo shoot w friends. They want family photos w an edge - simple, artistic "clean" photos. Their little girl is 18 months. Does anyone have any good ideas on poses, lighting? Very grateful for tips. Also wondering about tips for doing family photos where the mother is pregnant and the child is 4 years old and VERY camera shy!!
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Debbie Del Tejo |
WEll the only tip I can help with is the camera child....gain her trust by getting down to her level and being at first very soft and gentle. try breaking the ice with a magic trick...I used to have magic coloring book when I had the studo...kids love magic and then I used to tell them I'd show them the trick again after we got done....(I almost always had to do the trick twice at first) Take your time with her if you can...play soft and I NEVER EVER turned my lights off. Call her by her name....I wish you luck. If you can quack like a duck behind the camera and then tell her to stop that........as if she made that noice....that worked for me 100% of the time....they smile or laugh and deny they made that noice.
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Alan N. Marcus |
Hi Marlin, Assuming your studio has the usual arsenal of lighting equipment: Seek a 3:1 lighting ratio considered ideal for portraiture. Set one lamp (main) high (simulates the sun) and off to the right or left of an imaginary line between subject and camera. Check nose shadow as you move main lamp. Do not allow nose shadow to touch lips. Round faces – more to the side. Oval faces more frontal. Long nose make nose shadow short, short nose make nose shadow long. Measure exposure and note f/number indicated. For this measurement, all other lamps are turned off. Won’t hurt if you measure and record lamp to subject distance. Set one lamp (fill) as close to the imaginary line described above as possible. Height is even with camera. Avoid this lamp casing a shadow on subject. This lamp fills harsh shadows caused by the main from the cameras prospective. It is a mistake to place this lamp too far off camera-subject axis. Measure exposure produced by this lamp with all other lamps turned off. This lamp is to be subordinate to the main by one f/stop. i.e. ½ power as measured at the subject plane. Intensity adjustments are preformed by power settings or via distance, lamp to subject. If you lack the ability to measure exposure differences using a meter, use distance method. Set main and fill to same power and place the fill further back. Placement (subject to fill lamp distance) is determined by measuring main to subject distance and multiplying this distance by 1.4. Example main at 8 feet fill distance is the product of 8 x 1.4 = 11 feet. This math set the fill to ½ power provided both are equal in wattage. Set camera exposure (if ratio is 3:1) set by measuring with a meter with the fill on, all other lamps off. This fill only reading works like a charm. It causes human skin to be rendered at a desirable tone provided subject has fair complexion. Darker complexion, open up one more f/stop. Photography is an art and a science, you need not follow my advise. Good luck, Alan Marcus
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Malin Wittig |
I am so grateful for your help Alan and Debbie! Thank you for the detailed tips, I will definetely bring those with me! Look at for the results on my page here ;-) Have a nice weekend!
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