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Portraits (Take 2) - Happy with the D30!

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BryanS

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Some of you may remember that I bought some really inexpensive studio lights and a background for taking photos of the kids. I got really frustrated with my last visit to the Sears studio assembly line, and figured I could do better myself. So now I'm experimenting.

Got everything all set up, and built the background stand out of PVC as someone here recommended. I've got 2 Britek HS-1000 strobes, 48" umbrellas, and stands. Also have a small, low-power background light.

Here's my latest experiment... all these are unaltered (cropped slightly), converted from RAW with no sharpening. I used the Canon 85mm 1.8 lens at f11, 1/100 sec. I shoot a white card so I'll have something to get a white balance when I have BreezeBrowser do the RAW conversion.

Some friends were coming over today after church for lunch, so that's why I set the stuff up today. Took the following test shot of my son which blew me away! For laughs, I pointed the background light at his back, for a kinda not so good backlight effect, but oh well... it kinda works.



Full image:



; (big 1.5MB image)

After lunch, it was time to try my friends' girls...



Full image: http://www.siverly.net/d30/gin1.jpg

Something was missing, so I pointed the background light off to the side and back at her for a hairlight effect. Might need a barndoor or snout, but I like it.



Full image: http://www.siverly.net/d30/gin2.jpg

Now, their other daughter got her shot, using the same hairlight effect... this time on a brunette...



Full image: http://www.siverly.net/d30/nat.jpg

Finally, I shot them both together. My neighbors were so pleased, I printed up a couple for them and they looked great.



Full image: http://www.siverly.net/d30/nat-gin.jpg

Later this afternoon, I printed the original shot of my son using Q-Image Pro on my Deskjet 1220C at 13-19" and was blown away at the quality.

I have to say that I had sold my D30 in anticipation of buying the D60, but the deal fell through. I had resubmitted the Ebay listing, but took it off after playing with my Disney shots and these today.

I know there's a lot of excitement about the D60 now, but it was going to cost me at least an extra $400-500, and I just can't justify the expense now. I won't want prints larger than 13x19 and the quality of the D30 is like nothing I've seen before. I think I'll buy some more backgrounds, maybe a lens or two. Who knows... maybe another vacation with my wife alone this time?

Anyway, I can think of other things to spend money on after some more happiness with the D30, and it was a struggle deciding... my D30 was almost a gonner. But I do want that new rubber flap... wonder if I can buy it for my D30? ;)

Can't wait for you guys to get the D60, but I'm staying put... for now.--Bryan
http://www.siverly.net
 
The lack of any AF improvement has cooled off my ethusiasm for the D60 right now.

The image quality of the D60 is definitely better, but most of the time any image quality problems I experiance are not because of the D30. I do get the occasional moire problems though.
 
I will keep my D30 also. With my 70-200mm L IS lens I am truly amazed at
the quality and enjoyment of this combination. The D60 is a better camera
but my D30 is only 4 months old and I could not stand a $1000 fee to
upgrade ($2400 D30 purchase price with $1400 going ebay price).

I will wait 12 months and then reconsider.

Don
Bryan Siverly said:
Andrew Grant said:
The lack of any AF improvement has cooled off my ethusiasm for the
D60 right now.
Click to expand...
Wasn't enough new for me that I wasn't already getting. Was
tempted right to the edge, however. Maybe I'll get the D60 refurb.
:)
--
Bryan
http://www.siverly.net
Click to expand...
 
...i'd stick with it too. Great camera. But I'll be jumping from the E-10. Ohhhh do I miss my Canon glass when I'm shooting digital.
Don D30 said:
I will wait 12 months and then reconsider.

Don
Bryan Siverly said:
Andrew Grant said:
The lack of any AF improvement has cooled off my ethusiasm for the
D60 right now.
Click to expand...
Wasn't enough new for me that I wasn't already getting. Was
tempted right to the edge, however. Maybe I'll get the D60 refurb.
:)
--
Bryan
http://www.siverly.net
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
Very nice job for an early try Bryan. Very cute kids although I think I might see a little devil in the youger girl's eyes :) Just teasing!

If you are open to some suggestions to make them even better, I might suggest two:

First, watch the camera height. For head and shoulders or slightly longer images, I like to raise the camera height about 4"-6" above the eyes. This creates a more pleasing perspective. What do you think? The only time I don't use this placement is when the subject has a very long nose and I am trying to minimize it.

Second, try reversing your lights. What you have here is broad lighting which is OK, but most do not consider it the most flattering light. If you were to draw a vertical line down the face through the nose, the face would be divided into two parts of unequal size. One broader than the other. If the main light comes from the broader side of the face, the lighting is broad lighting. If the main light comes from the short side of the face, the lighting is short lighting.

A taletell sign of which you have is the placement of the nose shadow. if the nose shadow is on the side of the face away from the camera, you have broad lighting. If the nose shadow is on the side of the face towards the camera, you have short lighting. Another way to recognize short lighting is to determine whether or not you are shooting into the shadow side of the face. If you are, then you have short lighting.

To create short lighting, set the fill light near the camera and the main light approximately 45 degrees to either side. The fill light should be adjusted about 1-2 stops lower than the main light. If your lights are not adjustable, then place the main about 1/2 the distance from the subject as the fill.

Try it out and see if you don't like the results even better.

Take care!

Tom
 
BryanS said:
Anyway, I can think of other things to spend money on after some
more happiness with the D30, and it was a struggle deciding... my
D30 was almost a gonner. But I do want that new rubber flap...
wonder if I can buy it for my D30? ;)

Can't wait for you guys to get the D60, but I'm staying put... for
now.
--
Bryan
http://www.siverly.net
Click to expand...
Bryan you did a very hard thing. When that digital bug bites its very hard to back off. Its almost like smoking your whole life and stopping cold turkey. I do agree with you the D30 is all you really need and if you wait a while the other DSLRs will be out and there should be a good price drop again.

Bryan One question. I also have the 1220c printer and I have some Epson 13x19 coated paper which doesnt work very well. What paper do you use?--Steven
 
Steven said:
Bryan One question. I also have the 1220c printer and I have some
Epson 13x19 coated paper which doesnt work very well. What paper do
you use?
Click to expand...
I use what I've seen it said many times to be the BEST inkjet paper available, but it's hard to find. It's Konika QC paper, and you have to make sure you put it under glass, because inks fade fast on it. HP Premium Plus is a close second, and it doesn't fade at all, but I've never seen it in 13x19 sizes.

I found the Konica 13x19 paper at Costco.com, and I bought about 10 packs, so I have enough for awhile. :)--Bryan http://www.siverly.net
 
Tom Maxwell said:
Try it out and see if you don't like the results even better.
Click to expand...
Tom, these are the very tips I was hoping to hear. I know something of photography, but very little about lighting. I know that "female lighting" has the subject facing the main, while "male lighting" is the opposite, but that's about all I know so far. I do need to get some books and read up on it.

I'm going to follow your post in detail and experiment more. I wasn't trying to do much here but get a start. Your tips and others will go a long way.--Bryan http://www.siverly.net
 
Nice pictures Bryan! Your home-made setup is improving rapidly. Glad the PVC idea worked for you!

I think one way to improve this studio setup is to move your subjects farther from the background and shoot with a larger aperture to create some separation from the background and add depth to your subjects. I like portraits where the only part of the picture that is in sharp focus is from the tip of the nose to the back of the ears! POP!

You might want to also try some inexpensive colored gels on your lights. You can clip them on with clothes pins. Get creative - it's your own studio - break the rules - shoot from very low or climb a small ladder - use harsh lighting - bounce your lights off different colored pieces of poster board - be creative and experiment!

PS - I have to comment that I'm surprised, after the grief you gave me for wanting a D60, that you now want a D60. Hmmmmmm? I guess you don't think I deserve to have a DSLR. Is that it? I find it too funny that you now are thinking of getting a D60. Are you doing this just to be able to say nah nah na na nah? Isn't that what you said to me when I was just excited to be ordering my first DSLR? Don't worry! I won't hold it against you. I'd just suggest that "green with envy" is not your best color and maybe you can spend less time worrying what others want for themselves and more time playing with your new studio setup and your kids!

In the mean time I'll continue to give you positive suggestions and support - even if you get a D60 before I have any kind of DSLR!
 
David Hickey said:
PS - I have to comment that I'm surprised, after the grief you gave
me for wanting a D60, that you now want a D60.
Click to expand...
I thought I wanted more resolution for my studio portraits. After taking these and blowing them up to 13x19, I changed my mind and figured my money was better spent elsewhere. The newest and best is always tempting, isn't it? ;)--Bryan http://www.siverly.net
 
Bryan,
You did a very good job

I just begin to be interested by portrait. I have a lot of natural light coming in the room, so I will experiment with reflectors. Could you tell me the pvc trick? I missed it
Thanks for sharing
Nicole
 
Hi Nicole,

I was the one who suggested the PVC trick to Bryan so I will pass it along to you. PVC is cheap and available at your local Home Depot and can be used for many things in your homemade studio. It's great for making a stand for your backgrounds as the background rolls can slide over the PVC. Put a double 45 degree tee at the top of your stand so the bar can be taken off easily and still be supported safely and change backgrounds on the fly.

Use PVC stands to stretch material over or clip reflectors to the PVC by putting tee's near the top and bottom and using clothes pins to fasten. The possibilities are endless and it's fun and inexpensive.

I would go for 3/4 inch schedule 40 pipe so it can handle the weight. Glue is optional but may be the way to go if you are using big heavy roles of background material.
Nicole said:
Bryan,
You did a very good job
I just begin to be interested by portrait. I have a lot of natural
light coming in the room, so I will experiment with reflectors.
Could you tell me the pvc trick? I missed it
Thanks for sharing
Nicole
Click to expand...
 
Lovely! I'm thinking of buying the 85mmf1.8. What are your thoughts on it? Do you like it and if so why?

Thanks,

Ralph
Bryan Siverly said:
Some of you may remember that I bought some really inexpensive
studio lights and a background for taking photos of the kids. I got
really frustrated with my last visit to the Sears studio assembly
line, and figured I could do better myself. So now I'm
experimenting.

Got everything all set up, and built the background stand out of
PVC as someone here recommended. I've got 2 Britek HS-1000 strobes,
48" umbrellas, and stands. Also have a small, low-power background
light.

Here's my latest experiment... all these are unaltered (cropped
slightly), converted from RAW with no sharpening. I used the Canon
85mm 1.8 lens at f11, 1/100 sec. I shoot a white card so I'll have
something to get a white balance when I have BreezeBrowser do the
RAW conversion.

Some friends were coming over today after church for lunch, so
that's why I set the stuff up today. Took the following test shot
of my son which blew me away! For laughs, I pointed the background
light at his back, for a kinda not so good backlight effect, but oh
well... it kinda works.



Full image:



; (big 1.5MB image)

After lunch, it was time to try my friends' girls...



Full image: http://www.siverly.net/d30/gin1.jpg

Something was missing, so I pointed the background light off to the
side and back at her for a hairlight effect. Might need a barndoor
or snout, but I like it.



Full image: http://www.siverly.net/d30/gin2.jpg

Now, their other daughter got her shot, using the same hairlight
effect... this time on a brunette...



Full image: http://www.siverly.net/d30/nat.jpg

Finally, I shot them both together. My neighbors were so pleased, I
printed up a couple for them and they looked great.



Full image: http://www.siverly.net/d30/nat-gin.jpg

Later this afternoon, I printed the original shot of my son using
Q-Image Pro on my Deskjet 1220C at 13-19" and was blown away at the
quality.

I have to say that I had sold my D30 in anticipation of buying the
D60, but the deal fell through. I had resubmitted the Ebay listing,
but took it off after playing with my Disney shots and these today.

I know there's a lot of excitement about the D60 now, but it was
going to cost me at least an extra $400-500, and I just can't
justify the expense now. I won't want prints larger than 13x19 and
the quality of the D30 is like nothing I've seen before. I think
I'll buy some more backgrounds, maybe a lens or two. Who knows...
maybe another vacation with my wife alone this time?

Anyway, I can think of other things to spend money on after some
more happiness with the D30, and it was a struggle deciding... my
D30 was almost a gonner. But I do want that new rubber flap...
wonder if I can buy it for my D30? ;)

Can't wait for you guys to get the D60, but I'm staying put... for
now.
--
Bryan
http://www.siverly.net
Click to expand...
--A signature?!?! Geeee, what should I put down?!?!? Oh, gosh, the pressure, the pressure . . .
 
Seminole1986 said:
Lovely! I'm thinking of buying the 85mmf1.8. What are your
thoughts on it? Do you like it and if so why?
Click to expand...
The 85mm 1.8 is probably my favorite lens. It's beautiful and quiet, and wonderful even at full aperture. The only knock I've seen on it is that it's not quite as contrasty as other lenses, but I'd much rather add the contrast myself in Photoshop.
--Bryan http://www.siverly.net
 
Thanks!
Bryan Siverly said:
Seminole1986 said:
Lovely! I'm thinking of buying the 85mmf1.8. What are your
thoughts on it? Do you like it and if so why?
Click to expand...
The 85mm 1.8 is probably my favorite lens. It's beautiful and
quiet, and wonderful even at full aperture. The only knock I've
seen on it is that it's not quite as contrasty as other lenses, but
I'd much rather add the contrast myself in Photoshop.

--
Bryan
http://www.siverly.net
Click to expand...
--A signature?!?! Geeee, what should I put down?!?!? Oh, gosh, the pressure, the pressure . . .
 
You are backwards on the lighting. Generally the masculine or basic pose has the main light shooting into the persons chest. Therefore the person is seated facing the main light and tips his/her head to towards the main light. This pose can be used with both men and women.

The feminine pose has the head tilted to the high shoulder. Because women wear more ornate clothing than men, we like to shoot the main light across the fabric to show the detail. Therefore, for the feminine pose we typically seat the woman facing away from the main light and then have her turn her face back towards the main light and the higher shoulder.

There is more to it than this but you don't have to purchase books to learn it. Check out Monte Zucker's and Gary Bernstein's web site at http://www.zuga . com. Go to the articles section and read about this basic formal posing. There is tons of good information there. Good luck!

Here are a couple of bridal images I did over the weekend.

 
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