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Just for Fun No C&C will be given: First practice shoot this weekend

S

Sydney Rester

New member
And it was tough! I made a ton of mistakes. We still had full sun at 4:30, I forgot to use fill flash, I forgot to close down my aperture so the pics are soft ... and still, Mom loves them. No charge, of course! She's a friend and agreed to let me practice. I learned a ton from the mistakes I can see, and I bet I'll learn more here. If it's ok, I'd like to post a couple more, but I thought I'd start with this one. It was taken close to 6 PM with the 135L at 2.0. Wish I'd stopped it down for a little more sharpness.

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Asher Kelman

Asher Kelman

OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
Sydney Rester said:
And it was tough! I made a ton of mistakes. We still had full sun at 4:30, I forgot to use fill flash, I forgot to close down my aperture so the pics are soft ... and still, Mom loves them. No charge, of course! She's a friend and agreed to let me practice. I learned a ton from the mistakes I can see, and I bet I'll learn more here. If it's ok, I'd like to post a couple more, but I thought I'd start with this one. It was taken close to 6 PM with the 135L at 2.0. Wish I'd stopped it down for a little more sharpness.
Click to expand...

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Sydney,

Why on earth would you want to change anything. F2.0 is a great choice. Look how you have successfully isolated mother and child from the background. However lovely that is, we need to make choices and making them so crystal clear in front of a nicely soft b.g. is very agreeable.

Now maybe you might go to f 2.8 next time or even f 4.0 but really you are on the good side of God at the moment. Celebrating these friends is a wonderful thing. The placement of the folk works well too. The only real question is this: "Is it too sharp?"

So did you sharpen and if so how?

Asher
 
J

John Angulat

pro member
Darn fine image Sydney!
I wouldn't question the choice of aperature at all.
You nailed the DOF, your subject jumps out at you and she's well placed within the image.
I think it's a wonderful capture!
 
S

Sydney Rester

New member
Thanks guys :)

I should have been clearer. I was pretty happy with this one, but I have many others from the shoot that really shouldn't have been shot wide open. They are just too soft.

I agree. The 135 at f2 is a beautiful thing and looking again, I think it works here. I didn't apply any additional sharpening. I'm mainly beating myself up over some other pictures I didn't post. I added a couple below.

I do like this image but doesn't the blown out sky (at the tops of the trees) bug anyone?

These are some examples of images that mom loves, but I really think could be much better.

4475601694_6e41b97919_o.jpg


4475601670_4a76ecd14e_o.jpg


4475601632_fac33b7851_o.jpg
 
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Asher Kelman

Asher Kelman

OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
Sydney,

These pictures are truly superb for the folk in them and a pleasure for us to enjoy too. They're real life and wonderful at that. The presence of sky is not important for the job these pictures do. If that lack of sky detail bothers you, it's always possible down the road to blend in sky. However it's utterly not needed for this.

Now if you photographed a honeymoon couple in a pristine meadow with flowers some trees and vineyards going back to the skyline, a blown out sky would be a tragedy!

For that you would bracket the exposure or under-expose and use flash!

Asher
 
Asher Kelman

Asher Kelman

OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
Sydney, this 135 mm lens is a gem. Just use this and then for groups a 50 mm, (but step back a lot) and you are set!

You are doing the right things and the pictures look so natural. The last thing you want is uniform detail and focus. Right now it's just about dreamland perfect! Now make them pay for your work! However don't jump in and take on a wedding, LOL!

Asher
 
fahim mohammed

fahim mohammed

Well-known member
Sydney..These are excellent photos and shall be cherished as momentos of the persons, time and place.

I once had the Canon 135mm f/2 L. I still believe that lens and the 35mm f/1.4 L could serve me forever. The 135mm needs ( imho ) to be shot at f/2 in close. And closer still. While these photos
are a beautiful song; try the 135mm in closer still and at f2-2.8 and hear the Opera.

Regards.
 
E

ErikJonas

Banned
Hi Sydney.....

Love the first one...Is that a sweater wrapped around her waist?...Myself i would of had her take that off for the shot...I think the picture would look better without it....But again great image...Erik....
 
S

Sydney Rester

New member
ErikJonas said:
Hi Sydney.....

Love the first one...Is that a sweater wrapped around her waist?...Myself i would of had her take that off for the shot...I think the picture would look better without it....But again great image...Erik....
Click to expand...

Actually, it's a wide black belt over a tunic. I didn't even think about having her remove it. Good catch!
 
Asher Kelman

Asher Kelman

OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
Honesty and Beauty together!

Sydney Rester said:
Actually, it's a wide black belt over a tunic. I didn't even think about having her remove it. Good catch!
Click to expand...

Sydney,

It looks like a support belt for folk lifting weights or working with heavy loads. That lady is so smart having one on as these kids weigh some 20-40 lb (don't push me on the number, I'm not fully awake). I should do the same when hefting my grandson! I have no issue with the belt staying as that's the truth. It comes down to two classes of pictures, I call them "factive" and "fictive", here. One should not, IMHO, avoid honesty and beauty together. Here is works for me!

Asher
 
E

ErikJonas

Banned
Sydney Rester said:
Actually, it's a wide black belt over a tunic. I didn't even think about having her remove it. Good catch!
Click to expand...

Its not as critical for just people images as for model type images...Its a great image and i dont mean to take anything away from it or be too nit picky....Just a small thing that only i would notice..You have some great images i hope to see more from you...Some people will try to cut you down via your image,they do it more with a mean spirit then a helpful one and others just try to point things out to help you out which you will find more of that here..lot of helpful people....

Certain things a person wears or pose they hold can be interpited as the person concealing something IE baggy clothes to hide extra weight...A arm across the stomach a certain way you want to stay away from,in a model shot...

I shot with a girl who was too big to be a model but she had such a amazing look to her so every image i had to shoot from angles that made her look good it was a challenge...She shoots regularly,other photographers do editing to make her look slim....

How long have you been shooting?
 
S

Sydney Rester

New member
ErikJonas said:
Its not as critical for just people images as for model type images...Its a great image and i dont mean to take anything away from it or be too nit picky....Just a small thing that only i would notice..You have some great images i hope to see more from you...Some people will try to cut you down via your image,they do it more with a mean spirit then a helpful one and others just try to point things out to help you out which you will find more of that here..lot of helpful people....

Certain things a person wears or pose they hold can be interpited as the person concealing something IE baggy clothes to hide extra weight...A arm across the stomach a certain way you want to stay away from,in a model shot...

I shot with a girl who was too big to be a model but she had such a amazing look to her so every image i had to shoot from angles that made her look good it was a challenge...She shoots regularly,other photographers do editing to make her look slim....

How long have you been shooting?
Click to expand...

I see your points, Eric, and they are good ones. I've been shooting for a little over 6 months now.
 
L

leonardobarreto.com

pro member
Definition is as relative as every other element in human perception. We want to have tons of focused detail in things that we normally can examine at close range. The classic example is food. You don't want to eat something that is blurry and not defined. With people it is different since you know that they are a moving target. If it is a head shot you probably want some definition in the eyes since to get that eye contact, after that the more shallow depth of field the better (unless you are shooting for the clothes designer)

A lot of fashion photography is normally done with shallow DOF to define the subject and make the background less distracting, more abstract.

Also a long lens gives a flattering effect on people. The opposite happens with wide angular used closed to people.
 
Asher Kelman

Asher Kelman

OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
Well said, Johann!

"Superb candid captures - no pose - just love and joy." What a succinct set of guidelines for making folk smile and appreciate what's good around us!

Well said!
 
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