I have decided to start a new segment on my blog called Image of the Week. Each week, I will be taking an image from a previous portrait session and discussing it.
Every week it will vary, but I might discuss the inspiration behind the photos, or something funny/interesting that happened during the shoot, or something I learned from that particular portrait session.
This week, I’m starting off with an image taken several years ago of my sister-in-law, Rachel. She had just graduated from the University of South Carolina graduate school. Currently she is working as a Speech Therapist.
We took this image in the early afternoon, which made for a lot of harsh shadows. (lesson number 1 learned). At the time I really wanted to work on my posing, so we tried a variety of poses and had fun experimenting. Or maybe I had more fun than she did, I’m not sure on that one.
The first image below was taken in the middle of a field. If I could do this shot again, I would have positioned her better in relationship to the lighting. The light is rather harsh across her face, causing a shadow, and by moving her, I could have created a more flattering light across her face.
My settings for this portrait were ISO 200, 84 mm, f/4.5, 1/800 sec. I would also like to mention I took this with my Canon Rebel XSii.
This next photo was taken up by the barn on the property. I love old barns and fields and this barn definitely had a lot of character. I love the weathered look and worn off paint of an old barn. It just gives a lot more texture to a portrait, kind of telling its own story.
Here, Rachel is sporting a pink-toned dress, which flattered her coloring nicely. However, if I could do this one again, I probably wouldn’t put the pink dress up against the red barn. I should have used the dress from the first image, for more of a contrast.
This is where lesson number two was learned. It really doesn’t help to know the area you are shooting to make recommendations on clothing choice. This image really could have popped had we used a different color dress.
But, overall, I still think it’s a nice image. My settings on the Rebel were ISO 200, 90 mm, f/4.5, 1/125 sec.
This has been fun! Tune it next week for the new Image of the Week! Who knows, you just might be the one featured!
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