ClickinMoms Class Starts Monday!!

[alotofyarn]

We bought two of our lenses used, off of fredmiranda.com, I think (hubby was in charge).

[alotofyarn]

Metering on the same subject in 3 different settings... E didn't quite cooperate today, so there are only 3 of her.











I think I need to get more creative in my different settings though.

[JDAZ11]

I know nothing about photography, but I love the one of her yawning!! So cute!

[Ladybug]

I think the second E is a tad overexposed and you blew out some details on her face. The first still is perfectly exposed and the colors look very true! The second is dark and the third is a tricky shot because of the bright highlights. I don't think you could avoid blowing those highlights with that subjects surface and back
Iighting scenario.

Good work! Try a less reflective surface for still to make it an easier shot. I'm so excited for you

[alotofyarn]

I think the second E is a tad overexposed and you blew out some details on her face. The first still is perfectly exposed and the colors look very true! The second is dark and the third is a tricky shot because of the bright highlights. I don't think you could avoid blowing those highlights with that subjects surface and back
Iighting scenario.

Good work! Try a less reflective surface for still to make it an easier shot. I'm so excited for you

Thanks! I actually got the same feedback on the E shot from the instructors, and looking at it now, I agree. This was at the end of her limit with modeling, so I didn't get much of a chance to keep working on it. I'm going to try to get more settings with natural light the rest of the week, because the indoor light is tough.

[Ladybug]

Nailing exposure is really hard. I'm five years into it and still stuggle with exposure. I keep meaning to read up on the zone system which is a way of assessing your scenes dynamic range (brightest highlights to darkest shadows) and identifying your middle tone to exposure for. Most professional photographers expose (spot meter) for their subject's highlights on their face so that they avoid blowing them out because you can't get those details back digitally once they are blown. Plus each camera is a little different and needs to be learned. Exposure is tricky, but probably the most important thing to master. It's a lot easier to practive on nonmoving subjects I like that you're willing to try a variety of light settings! Don't give up on indoor Have they had you study your different indoor light areas at different times of day? Take notes to remember where to shoot when in your house for direct light, backlight, soft light, etc.

ETA: another way to soften the light on her face is to move her further away from the light source, tack some sheers up to filter the light. The larger the light and further away the subject is the softer the light and less likely to blow highlights. Smaller, closer sources of light create dramatic shadow effects on the face which are fun too.

[alotofyarn]

We learned a bit about the zones! This week we're recommend to practice in natural light, though we did get some pointers on finding that indoors. E's room has the best natural light inside, with two windows with curtains. The living room does ok, but it's trickier to work with, obviously with the yawning picture.

[alotofyarn]

I got 100% on my first quiz! We were given an image and a choice of 3 histograms and had to choose the correct one.

[TulipsAndSunscreen]

I'm learning so much even from this thread! Keep posting and you too Ladybug!

[alotofyarn]

I redid the stills (well, 2 of them) and submitted those for my official mid-week assignment:

[alotofyarn]

And I took this one. Her bow is a little blown out, but her face was underexposed when I changed my settings.

[TulipsAndSunscreen]

Obviously I'm an amateur but I think it's better to blow out the bow than the kid. It shows directional light overheard and to the right. I feel like it could be a little warmer (white balance) but I would do that in post processing since I never adjust off of auto white balance.

[alotofyarn]

I agree with you, T&S, and I did warm it up afterward for my own purposes. I kept it mostly SOOC for the purposes of the assignment. I think we work more on white balance later in the class.

[alotofyarn]

I got really positive feedback about my mid-week homework, from both the instructor and TA! It's been helpful to read the feedback on the other participants' submissions too, and the answers to the questions they're asking, although I'm really glad I'm doing this as FP instead of SA, because I've asked a lot of questions and gotten helpful answers too. It's also really interesting to see the varying skill levels of the other participants, ranging from pros who have really great composition and just never really QUITE mastered manual mode to people who barely know how to use their camera or computer. I think I'm probably middle of the road.

[Ladybug]

I think that looks great SOOC. Another trick is to avoid white clothes and accessories for now. The white dresses and delicate details make wedding photography tricky!