Thread Rating:
  • 0 Vote(s) - 0 Average
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5

Self Portraits for Lighting Practice (9 pics)
#1

Had a bit of a play around with lighting yesterday, experimenting with flashes in different positions and using different light shapers. I was concentrating mainly on practicing with fill flash; the main light used in most of these was sunlight through a window. The first 2 are with no flash at all, and with the last one, the sun had gone down so I used a flash reflected off a car sunvisor hung on the window. These are my favourites out of 50.

#1

[Image: selfportrait469x700.jpg]


#2 (personal favourite)

[Image: selfportrait2469x700.jpg]


#3

[Image: selfportrait3516x700.jpg]


#4

[Image: selfportrait4469x700.jpg]


#5

[Image: selfportrait5506x700.jpg]


#6

[Image: selfportrait6469x700.jpg]


#7

[Image: selfportrait7469x700.jpg]


#8

[Image: selfportrait8469x700.jpg]


#9

[Image: selfportrait9469x700.jpg]


I really want to improve my lighting skills, so feedback would be appreciated.

Sony A700/ 16-80mm / 70-300mm / 11-18 mm / 100mm macro

My Flickr page
Reply
#2

I was working in the same yesterday... Smile

Please, take my comment more like a personal taste than to say good or wrong, I am also learning...

I find them a bit flat and not too interesting ...
#4 and #6 I think the light is too much and you don't have interesting shadows.

I like your idea in #1 and #2 both are great.
I don't know if a bit of detail in the shadow area would be fine just to give a hint. I like the result as it is anyway.

You are working with a light above in the left side, and this makes very nice work. I didn't do it with mine and I have a hard shadow.

I like very much the lighting in #9 because the light lines nicely the left side. But I think a little less light in the left would be nicer so you don't have the hard shadow line in your nose.

A work of art which did not begin in emotion is not art.
Paul Cezanne
Reply
#3

I totally know what you mean about them being flat and uninteresting. They're pretty much all just standard mugshots. That really wasn't the goal though, the whole point was just playing with lighting to see what results I could get.

I think thing i need most is more space, so I can put lights further away so they're less harsh. Following that I would really like a 3rd strobe, and some proper lighting stands and umbrellas. But, that won't happen for at least a year unfortunately.

But thanks for the honest feedback. I reckon I much prefer shooting landscapes etc than doing studio photography.Smile

Sony A700/ 16-80mm / 70-300mm / 11-18 mm / 100mm macro

My Flickr page
Reply
#4

The point you've just made anout preferring landscapes can be a good way in here..I say this, as i have the same aversion to controlled conditions: do a few outside in natural light, using just fill-flash yet experimenting with rear-curtain synch for different effects? I wonder if too that you might go the other way as regards lighting: to begin with, go less rather than more perhaps? A lot can be done with positioning the model/subject in natutal light/composition, then just using onboard camera flash as fill. Something effective is shooting at twilight using rear-curtain fill-flash...you're reducing the variables too rather than juggling a a whole lot of new ones.

All my stuff is here: www.doverow.com
(Just click on the TOP RIGHT buttons to take you to my Image Galleries or Music Rooms!)
My band TRASHVILLE, in which I'm lead guitarist: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6mU6qaNx08
Reply


Possibly Related Threads…
Thread / Author Replies Views Last Post
Last Post by Jeffbridge
Sep 3, 2015, 08:55
Last Post by alessya
Feb 12, 2013, 03:19

Forum Jump:


Users browsing this thread: 1 Guest(s)