Rookie E: Session - Harsh Critique Appreciated!

[jonney]

I posted these on another board also but I figured my Houston locals would recognize the venue.

This was my first "real" time shooting people. I was nervous at first and every idea I had ahead of time got lost in my brain. I got more comfortable as we went along and the people we really cool and easy to work with. If you have time please critique my composition, exposure, processing or whatever you want. I can take it!

All shot with 40D 24L/85 1.8 - No flash

1.


2.


3.


4.


5.


6.


7.


8.


9.


10.


and one action shot :)



Thanks for looking!

jf

[dracula02]

I think you're in the wrong section of the forum

[jonney]

my bad, where do the engagement sessions go?

jf

[dracula02]

I think they're usually in the showcase section under weddings or people. I think you'll find a lot more critics there. I'll give you a little c&c anyways:

The first one, I really can't see their faces.
The second, I usually like to focus on the bride to be
Three looks awkward
I like the composition of 4 & 5 even though she has a flag coming out of her shoulder.
Six, she should have been posed more 45 degrees, not flat to the camera, but good comp not getting the lines of the windows to come out of their heads
Seven, I would have preferred one or both looking at each other
Eight, I think it needs to be leveled, or the building does... Also, pose seems to be a bit awkward here to, maybe have them closer, or holding one hand and angle more 45 degrees
Nine, again with the faces, I can't connect with them
Ten, good comp, not a personal fan of these, they make the fingers look fat.
Last one, hope you didn't fall in the water for any of these...

I can't complain about the overall lighting, except number 7 seems to be hot (might be my monitor) A lot of this is just practice and practice. I'm not perfect at it yet, but I hope that I've given you a good springboard for your next shoot. Don't mean to overload you.

[AllenAyres]

I take images where I can't see their faces too, not all of them but a few. I tell my couples something like:

"Now we're gonna start with a few images for the grandparents - you'll both be smiling and looking straight into the camera. After that, pretty much for the rest of the session I want you looking either at each other or somewhere else but the camera. There will be sometimes where I ask one of you to look at me and the other to look either at the other person or elsewhere and then we'll switch, but I won't be asking you both to do it at the same time."

IOW, it's a different style, a little more contemporary. Sometimes I cut their heads off on purpose, maybe focusing just on the hands, their arms around each other, just their feet, etc.. Other times I have them walking away from me. Lots of times I don't see their faces, and I book clients that like that style. :)

Back to the images:

#3 has an odd, almost "what's that smell" expression. I wouldn't show that one to them unless I didn't have many to show (starting out) and I wouldn't show it regardless now. I catch them between expressions often and just delete once I see it.

A lot of the others look like they may have been over-exposed and pulled back, especially on the girl's face - she seems to have an odd tint to her face. Be sure you are nailing exposure in-camera, it makes your images many times better overall and they're much easier to work with in post processing. Maybe the white balance is off, his skin looks a little ruddy in some. If you are shooting in broad daylight go ahead and set the WB to daylight, just don't forget to change it back when you move to shade or inside. Color is off some too, the shirts are black in some photos and midnight blue in others. Some look like they really could have benefitted from a touch of flash.

Quick note on something I learned last year: to nail exposure quickly without using a handheld meter, set your camera to manual, get close enough or zoom in enough to fill the frame with their face, focus on a spot on the cheek that is in the light you are wanting. Using the in-camera meter spin the shutter speed or aperture until the in-camera meter is one-third stop over neutral. I prefer to shoot wide-open so I adjust shutter speed to get to the correct exposure. Unless there are moving clouds overhead, that setting should work for all images shot in that location. My exposure/images improved tremendously and it only takes a few seconds to set it and go.

[jonney]

Thanks for all the comments so far. I was having a difficult time with exposure. I was shooting in AV as I'm not comfy in M yet. I was going back and forth between spot metering and center weighted average off the faces. I would them chimp and use exposure compensation based on any blinking highlights.

Let's talk about #3 for example. If I went full manual, I would ask them to stand still in the light, get close enough to meter off the face, set my shutter speed to get my exposure +1/3 (assuming I know what fstop I want to shoot at) then get back to my shooting position and fire away on the focus point I want? What metering mode would you use for this? Spot? Pattern? Center weighted?

How about on number 8? Same thing? Get up close and meter off the face then back up and shoot?

What metering mode in general do you use for these types of shoots?

As far as WB, It was cloudy outside, but the cloudy preset was producing images too warm, so I stuck with AWB. I didn't have a gray card with me.

Thanks so much!

jf

[Brooks]

One of the best things you can do is tell them to wear better clothes...something they are comfortable in, but not TOO comfy....if that makes sense...

~brooks

[AllenAyres]

Yes, get up close, get your settings then back away and shoot. If you've set things manually and the couple remains in the same lighting situation those settings aren't going to need to change. I use my 135/2 for 90+% of my engagement sessions, the side benefit is I don't have to get in their face to set exposure.

I always use spot metering when shooting my engagement couples - I am most concerned with the girl looking her best so I nearly always focus on her (eye), re-compose and fire. AWB tends to give me orange skin like you see in #8 (I used a 40D for a couple years). It's correctable in post processing, especially if you shoot RAW, but is a pain. Setting a good exposure seemed to help the WB too, tho good exposure possibly just makes for a better all-around image.

Going full manual isn't as difficult as it sounds, especially if you are shooting in pretty good light or better. Once you get the settings done for exposure your images will much more consistent. Practice until it clicks. Engagement sessions are fairly controlled environments without a lot of the pressure of an actual wedding day, take your time, have fun with the clients, and it will show in your finished product.

Caveat about setting exposure using shutter speed: You may need to adjust ISO to keep your shutter speed fast enough to keep motion blur out of the image.

[jonney]

Great advice guys, I really appreciate it. I'm shooting some couples shots for some friends Thursday and will try shooting in Manual some.

jf

[DanielSeth]

Jonney,

I generally do spot metering on what I want to expose/focus the most and then re-frame. If using a standard lens, I wouldn't walk in close to your subject to meter as that would likely change the lighting. I believe Allen was referring to if you're using a long zoom lens in that case, which is something you'll see on televised sports when they accidentally cut to a camera who is zoomed way in on a player's eyebrow. They're always popping in to grab focus.

Anyway, set your iso & aperture, spot meter, set your shutter, fire a shot, take a quick peak at your display and tweak your shutter to your liking.

Regarding faces, I agree a little bit with the other comments... I would like to have seen a bit more of his face in #1, a bit more of hers in #2, and a bit more of his in #5.

I like the idea of #8, however I have a few comments...
--The weedy bushes aren't exactly pleasing to the eye
--The image looks slightly tilted due to the sagging siding
--It might be more interesting if they were off-center in the frame
--This couple probably won't be competing in any fitness championships and it shows at this angle. Perhaps having them angle their bodies in a bit (3/4?) would make them look better.

And try to remember that many times a pose that would look weird in every day life will look natural in a photo. When shooting everyday folks, I have found it best to start out by letting the couple pose naturally so I can see what's comfortable for them, and then making adjustments to actually make the photo work. "Try putting your arm over here... let me see a little more of your face... lean in toward each other a bit..." Stuff like that.

Thanks for reading,
dan

[ldelacruz]

Jonney,
Just in case you didn't know. If you use AV and meter off the face you must lock the exposure or the exposure will change when you recompose.

[jonney]

Thanks for taking the time to comment Dan. I will try to keep your advice on posing in mind next time I'm shooting.

I gotcha on the exposure lock button Lonnie. Me and the * button are best friends :)

Thanks again,

jf