Hi everyone,
Since I started photography I've been mainly focused on landscapes but, it being Ireland, it's often raining, so I decided to get myself some flashes. It's early days yet, so I'm mainly concerned with exposure and positioning at the moment.
These are photos of my two nephews. I didn't ask them for a particular pose, just which way to angle their heads.
I'm pretty happy with this, but let me know what you think and suggest what I could improve upon. Also, any advice on techniques/challenges that I should be practising would be greatly appreciated!
I really like the first shot, not that I dislike the second - more in a moment. The different colors are all similar enough that they don't get crazy, but different enough to add subtle complexity to the image. The light set-up seems solid. I'm no pixel peeper, but it did seem that maybe his eyes aren't quite sharp?
The second photo isn't as much my style, but I certainly dig the feel of the image. The red gel would be better suited to a street photo, but I think that is what gives it a nice mood. It's like he's supposed to be outside a club waiting for someone or something, yet the background and his youth tell us this likely isn't the case.
Certainly not bad for your foray into strobes!
Thanks James. Really appreciate the constructive feedback. For the first shot, the key light is a shoot through at 45 degrees (above and really close) and the kicker, also a shoot through, but way back at 90 degrees, level with his head and zoomed in. I added a grey (or really light CTB?) to the kicker. I'm guessing that I could have used bare flash with reduced power for the kicker, or is the softness just appropriate for the image?
I take your point for the second image, I could have given more thought to the environment as I went to all the trouble of setting up the lights!
As for the sharpness; I don't know what's going on when I export from LR but all my "JPEGS for web" seem soft. Output sharpening doesn't seem to make any difference apart from increasing the file size. It's really bugging me . I should probably get on to Adobe at this stage.
A grey would essentially just be a Neutral Density. You could definitely play with a hardlight as the kicker. In this instance, the soft light is certainly pleasing. It fades the natural skin tone quite nicely.
Get on to Adobe? When I export from LR, under Image Settings I click "Resize to Fit." Select Long Edge and input something like 2000 pixels. Don't enlarge and the resolution you can play with. Technically screens are 72 dpi, but I don't know if Retina displays and whatnot have higher counts.
I like the second shot. It is edgy and has a more dramatic mood. It is also visually unexpected with the light. You are off to a great start.
Thanks Tim. Much appreciated!