Thread on Tips for Portraiture??

[annnewjerz]

The search button refuses to work for me. Anyone know of a link to a good thread regarding shooting portraits? Tips...what lenses....equipment needed, etc.? If not, here is my situation.

In October, I took pictures of a co-worker's child (and a few of the family) at an apple orchard. (See photos below). I was recommended to a friend of theirs with a child under 2 years old. They would like me to take some shots for a Christmas card. While they are okay with the approach I used with the previous family (follow the kid around, take pictures I think are cute...more photojournalistic in style I guess) I am worried that without the vibrant fall colors or even if the weather is supposed to be cruddy, we may have to move indoors and do more formal portraits. Having never done these before, I need some tips and some cute ideas to help the photos be Christmas-y without being too cheesy and posed.

1. These were all taken with my Nikon 18-200mm VR. The only other lens options I have right now are my 50 f/1.8 (that I have to manually focus) and my 18-55mm VR...would either of these be better for taking portraits? The pictures with my 18-200mm look sharp to me (especially the ones outdoors) but I didn't know if another lens would do better.

2. What are some good indoor set-ups for a Christmas card look, without looking stiff and posed? I bought some cheap props...some tinsel garland to spread out on the floor for the kid to play with, a large plastic sparkly Christmas ornament for him to hold, a candy-cane lollipop for him to eat (I figure when there is a kid about to throw a tantrum, sugar works...right?? ) Any other suggestions?

3. If the weather is nice, I plan to see if they would like to go to a Christmas tree farm for a few hours to walk around. They could wear solid Christmas colors (red, green, white, whatever) and maybe a scarf and some gloves and take some pictures with the trees in the background. Any other suggestions for good outdoor setups? In the fall we went to an orchard but with everything being so bleak and sad looking here in NJ in the winter...the choices seem limited.

Thanks in advance for all of the help, you guys are the best!
Ann

 

[Chikabowa]

Just a few quick tips....
1) Get down on the child's level - I was looking at your smug mug galleries yesterday and I noticed quite a few are taken with the child looking up. Getting down on their level is important.
2) Shoot for light... not for backgrounds. Make sure your lighting (either flash - on or off camera - or natural light) is hitting the subjects face in a pleasing way without harsh shadowing. Avoid dappled sunlight (first picture) or harsh shadows (second picture) .
3) Fill your frame and avoid distracting elements (third picture).
4) Monitor your white balance - in the first picture is way cyan/blue due to the shade. If you are on a color-calibrated monitor, look at the white of her eyes... it's very blue; as is her hair).

The younger the child, the less control you will have of the situation. With 18 month olds to about 3, there is little you can actually do with them other than snap as quickly as possible, create situations and opportunities, and give rewards when they listen. With older children, I get them into a situation, pose, place, where I want them, then I make up opportunities to get their natural reactions. Sometimes a joke, a toy, silly face, etc.

With the young children, I also limit the amount of time we do pictures. I just did xmas pics with a 27 month old little girl and I did a full session in 17 minutes. After that, she was done and uncooperative, so it was important that I worked quickly, efficiently, and effectively. 3-5 year olds can last anywhere between 45-60 minutes. 6-10 year olds are good for about 60-90 minutes.

ETA... lenses...
For children's sessions I almost exclusively use my 50 f1.4 or my 85 f1.4 on a full frame sensor. Your 50 f1.8 on either a full frame or crop sensor would work perfectly. I shoot wide open, or at the very least just down a couple of stops (my sweet spot is usually f2.8 with the littlest of children - my dd is 2 and that's usually where I shoot - with adults I'll open up all the way). When you shoot with a prime though, realize you do all your movement with your feet... so you get a good workout!

 

[annnewjerz]

Just a few quick tips....
1) Get down on the child's level - I was looking at your smug mug galleries yesterday and I noticed quite a few are taken with the child looking up. Getting down on their level is important.

What can I say, it was muddy in some spots that day and I had to visit the in-laws right after. I'm hoping for firmer ground this time if we do it outdoors.

4) Monitor your white balance - in the first picture is way cyan/blue due to the shade. If you are on a color-calibrated monitor, look at the white of her eyes... it's very blue; as is her hair).

Honestly, I wouldn't have even noticed this. These pictures were taken before I started shooting in RAW and attempting to adjust the white balance on my own, but now that I know what to look for I will definitely keep a closer eye on it.

With the young children, I also limit the amount of time we do pictures. I just did xmas pics with a 27 month old little girl and I did a full session in 17 minutes. After that, she was done and uncooperative, so it was important that I worked quickly, efficiently, and effectively. 3-5 year olds can last anywhere between 45-60 minutes. 6-10 year olds are good for about 60-90 minutes.

From what I hear, this is a very well behaved child, otherwise (to be honest) I wouldn't be taking his picture. The little girl above I shot for 3 hours (about 450 pics) and didn't have any problems other than one time she fell and almost started crying. I think she might be the exception to the rule though.

ETA... lenses...
For children's sessions I almost exclusively use my 50 f1.4 or my 85 f1.4 on a full frame sensor. Your 50 f1.8 on either a full frame or crop sensor would work perfectly. I shoot wide open, or at the very least just down a couple of stops (my sweet spot is usually f2.8 with the littlest of children - my dd is 2 and that's usually where I shoot - with adults I'll open up all the way). When you shoot with a prime though, realize you do all your movement with your feet... so you get a good workout!

I don't mind doing "zooming on my feet"...but the one reason I was wondering whether the 50 f/1.8 would be best is just because, while I am getting much better at quickly manually focusing, I'm still not GREAT at it. With such a limited time with the kid behaving...I'm worried that I may end up with too many throw aways, many more than if I just shot with an autofocusing lens. Do I just need to get over it?

Thank you so much for the advice.

While I was extremely happy with the pictures I took of my co-worker's daughter (as were they), they were taken only a few weeks after getting my first SLR, so I'm hoping I can do better this time around now that I've had it for a couple months.

 

[Chikabowa]

Why are you doing manual focus? Are you using a D40/D60?
Honestly... the way I learned to nail my focus is by doing a strict manual focus on my 50mm 100% of the time. My autofocus broke and I didn't want to buy a new camera yet (since I knew I was going to upgrade within 6 months) so I just worked on manual. Of course, I wasn't taking on client work at all... just skill building... but it really does teach you some awesome tricks!!

You were lucky... 2 year olds are really hard. Really hard. Even the most cooperative kids will become uncooperative when there is a big black camera in the mix. My dd totally ignores me and the camera anymore... but when I hired another photographer to do family pics, the little devil showed a side that I never usually see.

 

[annnewjerz]

Why are you doing manual focus? Are you using a D40/D60?
Honestly... the way I learned to nail my focus is by doing a strict manual focus on my 50mm 100% of the time. My autofocus broke and I didn't want to buy a new camera yet (since I knew I was going to upgrade within 6 months) so I just worked on manual. Of course, I wasn't taking on client work at all... just skill building... but it really does teach you some awesome tricks!!

You were lucky... 2 year olds are really hard. Really hard. Even the most cooperative kids will become uncooperative when there is a big black camera in the mix. My dd totally ignores me and the camera anymore... but when I hired another photographer to do family pics, the little devil showed a side that I never usually see.

Yup...I've got the D60. I practice manually focusing on my animals and on the Hubby but like you said...that's just for my own practice. I'm sure if I practice more over the upcoming week I'll get a better handle on it and I'll bring along the 18-200 and even the 18-55 just to me safe.

Thanks again for the tips, they are very appreciated and hopefully I can put them to good use

 

[spinetnglr]

The Learning Curve Thread found here http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1794070 has a section for tips and helps on taking portraits. The section you want is on page 5 about the third post on that page. If you have the time to do a little reading before you have to take the pictures you might find some help there.

 

[annnewjerz]

The Learning Curve Thread found here http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1794070 has a section for tips and helps on taking portraits. The section you want is on page 5 about the third post on that page. If you have the time to do a little reading before you have to take the pictures you might find some help there.

Thanks - I'm actually subscribed to that thread but never noticed that section. I definitely have time and will take a look.

 

[spinetnglr]

I am by no means a professional but I do think one of the most important things in taking portraits would be to get the colors as true as possible. I am taking an online course currently and our second lesson was on white balance. I never realized just how "off" the colors can be using the different white balance preset options as opposed to presetting the white balance with a grey card. Here are my pictures I took to submit for the class in regards to white balance. The first picture of the bobcat I took inside under fluorescent lighting using the camera setting for fluorescent lights. The second picture I took after I preset with a grey card. The same applies to the log house pictures. The first was with the camera setting for overcast skies and the second was my grey card preset. Setting the white balance is not difficult and if you dont have a grey card our instructor told us we could make one using a program like Photoshop and print a solid grey sheet of paper using RGB settings of 128.128.128. That is what I used as my grey card and was amazed with the results. The difference in the outdoor shots is not nearly as dramatic but the colors n the log house are more true with a grey card preset.

 

[mainstreet1997]

How exactly do you use a gray card? Put it in front of your camera and take a picture and then set custom white balance off of that? Flash on or off? Why gray and not white?

Sorry for all the newbie questions!

 

[spinetnglr]

How exactly do you use a gray card? Put it in front of your camera and take a picture and then set custom white balance off of that? Flash on or off? Why gray and not white?

Sorry for all the newbie questions!

Yes, you take a picture of the grey card in the light that you will be taking the photos using no flash and filling the frame with the grey area of the card. Different cameras have different menus to find where you need to do this. Start by manually setting the focus of your lens to infinity. I am using a Nikon D40 and have to go to the shooting menu > to white balance > to preset white balance > measure and then take the shot of the grey card. When choosing the white balance from the list of presets then choose the custom option and the values for the grey card will be applied. Check the manual for your camera model to find where your option for presetting white balance is located within the shooting menu. A grey card is used because its a midtone color and will give a more accurate reading of the light present.

 

[wenrob]

How exactly do you use a gray card? Put it in front of your camera and take a picture and then set custom white balance off of that? Flash on or off? Why gray and not white?

Sorry for all the newbie questions!

It depends on your camera the exact way to do it. Your manual will tell you just what you need to know to do. You can use a gray card or white card (or piece of paper.) You put either in the light you are shooting in and fill the frame with them.

I did pics of my oldest (12) and two little ones (3 in a week) and everything I planned to do went right out the window. It was like trying to pose tornadoes! I tried to use the tripod but that clearly was not working, they were moving way too fast. My pics are not great but I did manage to get a couple decent ones with all three that the family will love but I feel 'eh' about.

My long, rambling point is as prepared as you think you are (I prepared for two weeks) kids have minds of their own. If you don't feel confident enough to use your 50mm then don't. Use the lens you feel most comfortable with. If you want to give the fifty a shot just be clear to the parents that you aren't sure how they'll turn out and definitely shoot a ton with the 18-200. You're sure to get something great.

 

[annnewjerz]

It depends on your camera the exact way to do it. Your manual will tell you just what you need to know to do. You can use a gray card or white card (or piece of paper.) You put either in the light you are shooting in and fill the frame with them.

I did pics of my oldest (12) and two little ones (3 in a week) and everything I planned to do went right out the window. It was like trying to pose tornadoes! I tried to use the tripod but that clearly was not working, they were moving way too fast. My pics are not great but I did manage to get a couple decent ones with all three that the family will love but I feel 'eh' about.

My long, rambling point is as prepared as you think you are (I prepared for two weeks) kids have minds of their own. If you don't feel confident enough to use your 50mm then don't. Use the lens you feel most comfortable with. If you want to give the fifty a shot just be clear to the parents that you aren't sure how they'll turn out and definitely shoot a ton with the 18-200. You're sure to get something great.

Glad to hear that you ended up with some that you liked enough to use (even if they weren't as great as you would have liked). I was actually reading through your thread the other day to see if people gave specific tips, but with your shoot being inside (and mine hopefully being out) I didn't know if there was enough information to keep from having to post my own thread.

Posing the kid is definitely one thing I was going to try to avoid doing at all costs. The kid can't even speak yet (he is about 1 year and 4 months or so)...so I know he won't be able to understand me when I tell him to lower his hand or not slobber on himself so much while he's eating the lollipop. I am definitely going to start shooting with the 50 and if need be, switch a lens that can autofocus and I am a littttle more comfortable with.

Here's hoping that these turn out nicely. The family isn't looking for something that can be hung in a gallery, just some nice shots/more creative shots of their kid and their family to use on a card that is nicer than the cheap portraits you can get taken at Walmart.