need help with this photo...

[ns134]

I took this pic to practice my lighting technique. I'm new to studio lighting and have been working with natural light up until now (been shooting for 6 years).

Anyways...my main concern right now is how do I get that dark rich background in a photo? I have a pic attached that I just shot (don't bother critiqueing the composition, lol, its hard to work with my two year old).

I used ambient light from the window (through blinds) and two continuous lights (daylight balanced) diffused by an umbrella. And then there is also a background light which you can clearly tell where I had placed it. I am working on upgrading my lighting to some alienbees. so these contiuous lights are only temporary.

Oh and the backdrop is vinyl....I am working on getting the creases out. The lady at hobby lobby folded it up. Right now i have it rolled around a foam noodle.

Another issue with this image that i am aware of is the lack of sharpness. I am working on that too.

Thanks for looking.

[micajoy]

By dark background, I assume you mean low key? For that effect, you need to have the background significantly darker than your subject - like 2-3 stops. I don't shoot low key so I don't remember exactly how many stops difference you need - I'm sure someone else here can chime in with that.

Instead of lighting the background, I would suggest using it as a hairlight on your subject to give some separation and let the background go black.

[DEMDeepEllumMusic]

Also the wrinkles ephasize the lighting on the vinyl.
You may also want to shift the lights closer to the vinyl but angle them more so that the light is glancing off of it more.

Also got a tip from another photographer that he sometimes lightly goes over vinyl with 0000 steel wool, can be gotten at home depot or any hardware store, and takes some of the sheen off of it.

Also as mentioned above don't light the backdrop at all, or minimally.

[ns134]

thanks for the tips guys

ns134 added 482 Minutes and 56 Seconds later...Double Post Merged Below

my other question would be, how do I fix this in post processing?

[toverman]

As for the image sharpness, were you shooting on a tripod? I could not obtain the EXIF data from the photo, but my guess is possibly a shutter speed that was too low, introducing camera shake.

[ns134]

Originally Posted by toverman

As for the image sharpness, were you shooting on a tripod? I could not obtain the EXIF data from the photo, but my guess is possibly a shutter speed that was too low, introducing camera shake.

yup, thats exactly what it was.
I didnt use my tripod.

[humminboid]

The exposure looks good, and you might try moving him a little further from the background.

That plus a wide apreture will minimize any background creases, and let you use a higher shutter speed. Wiggly? BRIBE him with candy or something else he likes.

Tripod, if you got it!

[L Stegall]

Abel posted a multi-part tutorial by Zack Arias in the Lighting Section. I highly recommend it. It is dealing mainly with high key shots (on white background), but he walks you through getting that background darker as well. I think it is one of the most informative tutorials out there and he talks you through it and shows you pictures of it, which really helps to work it all out. Good luck.

[ns134]

Originally Posted by humminboid

The exposure looks good, and you might try moving him a little further from the background.

That plus a wide apreture will minimize any background creases, and let you use a higher shutter speed. Wiggly? BRIBE him with candy or something else he likes.

Tripod, if you got it!

Here are the specs.
40 mm
f4.0
1/20sec
ISO400

ns134 added 0 Minutes and 25 Seconds later...Double Post Merged Below

Originally Posted by L Stegall

Abel posted a multi-part tutorial by Zack Arias in the Lighting Section. I highly recommend it. It is dealing mainly with high key shots (on white background), but he walks you through getting that background darker as well. I think it is one of the most informative tutorials out there and he talks you through it and shows you pictures of it, which really helps to work it all out. Good luck.

I will definitely take a look at it. Thanks

[hitek_man_vn]

the focus a lil bit fuzzy, i don't know if you used a tripod ?

[Cajungaltx]

I used (and still use) in alot of my sessions when I want to have a black backdrop.

Like this:



and this:



Felt doesn't have ANY reflection on it - and it doesn't show wrinkles... it DOES however attract dog hair, so keep your animals off of it! ;-)

[ns134]

I think my problem was that I tried high key lighting on what is supposed to be a low key backdrop (I learned a lot from last week's westscott seminar). This is probably a mistake I would not have committed had I attended the seminar before this shoot. As for the other problem (lack of sharpness) I have been having a big problem with that. I am trying hard to figure out why I am having this problem and hope to get it resolved before I go out and try to shoot for my portfolio. I have shots that I have taken out in bright sunlight that lack sharpness in the subject. I think I am having problems with focusing technique. I am trying to impove on that now. Any suggestions on focusing technique is appreciated.

[semperaggie]

How close were you to your little boy when you took that picture? If you were really close your DOF might have been razor thin.

I think this was my problem, at least, when taking my first newborn pictures :)

[The Philos]

Originally Posted by ns134

Here are the specs.
40 mm
f4.0
1/20sec
ISO400

Your camera shake is caused by your lights not being bright enough, which is causing you to have to use 1/20 @ ISO400. Even on a tripod 1/20 is still slow enough to catch some movement if he's not perfectly still. 40mm is ok for portraiture, but a longer focal length would compress the image more.

You need more light or to crank your ISO higher (or a combination of both) to get sharper results.

[texastanya]

For the wrinkled vinyl, you might try going over it with a hair dryer. The heat should relax the wrinkles. Especially, if you can roll it from noodle to noodle like a scroll. But be careful not to be too vigorous, or you could end up melting it. :)