 BetterPhoto Member |
Portraits I have two Nikon FM2n's, a 50mm Nikon lens and 2x teleconverter, a Quantray 35mm to 70mm zoom that will do macro, and a Quantray 70mm to 300mm. I also have diffusion filters for all. I have one flash, a Phoenix 80 and one cheap slave unit. No matter what I do, my attempts to generate professional looking portraits seem to fail. I can take the pictures but I always seem to bring out the subjects worst features. For example, I have tried to shoot some shots of my wife who is 56 years old. No matter what I do, the thing that stands out are her wrinkles which is not at all flattering. My pictures all tend to look very harsh. Even with the defusion filters, my pics all look disgustingly harsh, sharp, and not at all flattering as opposed to many I see done in studios that flatter the subject. I have a few done at - of all places - Sears, of my wife that are better than mine. Can I get the right results with my gear. I am using a black background. Thanks very much. By the way, an other problem I seem to have is computing the correct exposure when using both my regular flash and the slave. I seem to go brain dead. Help. Again, thanks much
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BetterPhotoJim.com - Jim Miotke  Contact Jim Miotke Jim Miotke's Gallery |
Your equipment is good but, not being familiar with a Phoenix 80, I assume it is an on-camera flash unit. If so, this would probably be the culprit. Even when these are good, they do not do as well as two or more professional studio lights. Hitting your subject with one flash will produce harsh results. For a nice soft effect - without spending the money on a professional studio lighting set - try leaving the flash off and working with window light or overcast light. Use your diffusion filters only sparingly.
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BetterPhotoJim.com - Jim Miotke Contact Jim Miotke Jim Miotke's Gallery |
(cont) If you can beg, borrow, rent, or buy lights, try using three lights - one behind your wife as a hairlight and a one from each side. Place the two on each side at about a 45 degree angle and balance them so that they cancel out each others' shadows. Lastly, overexposure a bit - this will help eliminate wrinkles. There are no failures; only experiments that help you grow.
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