A Recital Portrait

cajun angel · Apr 30, 2007

Well, I'm a BIG CHICKEN! I wasn't going to post simply because of the backdrop issue. We couldn't find a steamer and I just didn't have the time to get down on my knees on the floor and iron the thing! I may end up going to green paper and digital backgrounds!

Anyway, the recital was beautiful! I enjoyed every piece of music, every sour note (not very many!) and despite everything, I think I was fairly relaxed and tried hard to remember DETAIL! I had 9 out of 13 get portraits done and they'll all be getting a 4x6 "proof" before committing to buy. I just can't bring myself to sell photos that people will hate! So, whether I get buyers or not, it was a fun experience and an eye opener too. I have an even higher respect for those who do portraiture for a living! Okay, I'm gonna shut up and post the photo - It's Nancy, Jimmy's clarinet teacher. Be gentle on me - well no baseball bats! LOL

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Gale · Apr 30, 2007

That is a very LOVELY image.
Tha background can be delt with in PS. Give Frank a hollar and he will tell you how. Not hard really.

VERY VERY good Dianne

SamIAM · Apr 30, 2007

Very Nice Dianne. The progress you made over a small period of time makes me envious. You are a quick learner.

rustyfingers · Apr 30, 2007

Very Nice !

background cleanup ...

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cajun angel · Apr 30, 2007

Gale said:
That is a very LOVELY image.
Tha background can be delt with in PS. Give Frank a hollar and he will tell you how. Not hard really.

VERY VERY good Dianne

SamIAM said:
Very Nice Dianne. The progress you made over a small period of time makes me envious. You are a quick learner.

Geee Thanks ya'll! :redface: I guess since I was the photographer perhaps I'm too critical of my own work?

izzy: Sam, I've worked my fingers to the bone for the past 2 weeks practicing, practicing, and more practicing! I know I'm not a pro and don't know that I want to be one, but I had fun, it was quite an experience, and I have a higher respect for those who make their living at portraiture!

hey Gale, if it's cloning, I got that down almost pat! :wink:

rustyfingers · Apr 30, 2007

cajun angel said:
Dennis! What did you do?! I wanna know! I like it!

VERY EASY

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Dupe the original.
Set blending mode of copy to multiply.
Create a mask for copy.
Paint black in the mask for her face and body.
Blur the mask (to taste)
Touch of paint with light on the eyes (very conservative)
edit add: Little bit of the blur tool on the background.
edit add: Slight Crop

Like I said before this is a great image you did a wonderful job.

Dennis

Dave Dickerson · Apr 30, 2007

Way to go, Dianne! Very nice job! :biggrin:

If you have Photoshop, the cloning/rubber stamp tool will work for obscuring the wrinkles in the BG, but the healing brush in replace mode might be a little better-works just like the clone tool but does a nicer job with textures, IMO.

Gale · Apr 30, 2007

Rusty
Nice work:>)))))

nuccifamily · Apr 30, 2007

Excellent Diane! Great improvement over the first ones. I would rather clone or blur those wrinkles out than use a green screen and mask and replace the background. Heck, even with the wrinkles, this is a great shot.

cajun angel · Apr 30, 2007

Dave Dickerson said:
Way to go, Dianne! Very nice job! :biggrin:

If you have Photoshop, the cloning/rubber stamp tool will work for obscuring the wrinkles in the BG, but the healing brush in replace mode might be a little better-works just like the clone tool but does a nicer job with textures, IMO.

Thanks Dave! I do have photo shop elements 5! I'll be playing with it tonight for sure! LOL, I had each subject put on a dreamy look, like they're standing on their most favorite orchestra's stage, about to be "1rst Chair" - that worked!

Gale said:
Rusty
Nice work:>)))))

That's a beautiful job for sure!

nuccifamily said:
Excellent Diane! Great improvement over the first ones. I would rather clone or blur those wrinkles out than use a green screen and mask and replace the background. Heck, even with the wrinkles, this is a great shot.

Thanks! I know I have a lot to learn yet! I'll be playing with photo shop tonight for sure!

Steve S said:
Good job Diane! The exp and the wb is really spot on!
A couple things I'd like to suggest would be to crop a little tighter, esp at the top and bottom, (cut off that trace of skirt), and I would also suggest instead of actually giving them physical prints, you upload small, (480 high), low res, 40-50KB files to your usual site, then leave your contact info for them to order prints in any size they wish. The reason I say this, is if you give the a 4x6, they might just keep that one pic, and not order any prints at all. You DO want to be rewarded for all your efforts, don't you? :tongue:

Thanks Steve! I don't have an account online for photos yet. Since I know all the people, I'm not too worried about the buying issues. I know in time, I'm gonna have to get something set up for online sales, but until then, I'm gonna do it the old fashioned way. Thanks too for the tips on cropping, I'll be doing more and paying more attention to everything. Thanks!

THANKS YA'LL! :redface: :biggrin:

Schlitz · Apr 30, 2007

Great job Dianne! All of your hard work and practice has really paid off. If this picture is any indication of how the rest turned out, you are well on your way to getting repeat customers. As the other folks are saying, cleaning up the background is not a big deal. (note to self: don't be so worried about getting a "perfect" background - get out there and learn how to shoot some portraits!)

cajun angel · Apr 30, 2007

Schlitz said:
Great job Dianne! All of your hard work and practice has really paid off. If this picture is any indication of how the rest turned out, you are well on your way to getting repeat customers. As the other folks are saying, cleaning up the background is not a big deal. (note to self: don't be so worried about getting a "perfect" background - get out there and learn how to shoot some portraits!)

Thanks Dave! They all turned out like this one! I'm guessing because I'm the photographer, I'm being overly critical of my own work. As for what you put in the "gray" LOL, don't think portraits are like shootin critters - it's a whole new ball game! As for me, I ain't quitin my day job! LOL!

Clix Pix · Apr 30, 2007

Y'know......this is a successful portrait because the young woman looks comfortable, at ease and relaxed -- and that's not always easy to achieve! OK, so the backdrop needs a bit of work, but that is really fixable and minor. The important thing here is that you got the lighting right and you were able to put the subject at ease so that she is smiling and relaxed. Way to go!!!

Frits · May 1, 2007

OK Dianne, what were you worried about?? - this looks great!!
Agreed on cropping it a bit, especially from the bottom.
You're off to the races with this!!

rbsmith · May 1, 2007

You did great, Dianne. I have been watching your progress and listening to what others have told you. Alice and I are going to start taking portraits of our church members and families next week. We are trying to help the church put together a directory of sorts. These threads have been a help to us.

cajun angel · May 1, 2007

Frits said:
OK Dianne, what were you worried about?? - this looks great!!
Agreed on cropping it a bit, especially from the bottom.
You're off to the races with this!!

LOL, Thanks Frits! Guess I worry about anything new I end up doing! Now, I have a party to shoot on May 10th! That could get me more jobs as it's with a bunch of realitors. I think the parents and 2 adults will be pleased with their photos!

rbsmith said:
You did great, Dianne. I have been watching your progress and listening to what others have told you. Alice and I are going to start taking portraits of our church members and families next week. We are trying to help the church put together a directory of sorts. These threads have been a help to us.

Thanks Rex! All I used was my sb800 and my Gary Fong Cloud sphere. I didn't even use the little thingie that goes on top! I had ordered the Fong set and got everything except the chrome dome. I may be doing another recital at my church this month and then I will be doing VBS again this year. If you use a background, be sure to get the wrinkles out! And I'm glad these threads have helped you too! This cafe is definitely the best!

Terri French · May 1, 2007

Diane,
You did a great job. I've ironed and ironed my new backdrops and wrinkles still show up. Looks like you've had some great suggestions here on how to get rid of them. I've done a lot of cloning myself. I am going to try Dennis's technique.

I agree that doing portraits is VERY hard. We'll just have to learn together!