swimsuit shoot

[wembley]

I shot a triathlete abut a year ago. Last time out was sportraits, but she needed some swimsuit shots this time.

I had a 10 min stint at off camera flash om my son a couple of weeks ago but that was basically it for flash and portraits for me.

What I did realize is that we could not get the flash to fire when lit from 1 side. After thinking it was due to sunlight, towards the end I fathomed out that the flash was not firing when the receiver was faced away from camera. So turning the flash upside down did the trick.

anyway here are a few for critique:
Nikon D700, most with the 80-200 afs, sb 600 off camera (occasionally 2 and some none when we had the flash sensor away from the camera) set for auto FP sync.

1

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2
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3
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4
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5
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6
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7
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8
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9
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cheers
wembley

 

[sambo.]

in 1, 2, 3 and 6, your model needs to roll her shoulders back to avoid that 'humped-over' kind of line.

i like 5, 7 and 9.

in 3, she looks like she's about to belt you over the head.

7 is, perhaps, a little over-flashed (1/3-2/3 stop at most).

all in all, not a bad first attempt.

getting top-notch shots of a hot lass in a swimsuit is a lot harder than most people think, huh?

 

[wembley]

in 1, 2, 3 and 6, your model needs to roll her shoulders back to avoid that 'humped-over' kind of line.

i like 5, 7 and 9.

in 3, she looks like she's about to belt you over the head.

7 is, perhaps, a little over-flashed (1/3-2/3 stop at most).

all in all, not a bad first attempt.

getting top-notch shots of a hot lass in a swimsuit is a lot harder than most people think, huh?

Thanks for the feedback. Trying to get poses that work, different facial expressions and the flash to work when needed (at least i have worked that one out!) and then remembering all the little details, what the fingers are doing, wild hair in the face etc, all at once is a lot. your review will certainly help for future attempts.

cheers
wembley

 

[cbbr]

I like #7 the best. And, keeping in mind that I am a not a pro, but when I have a helper I have an easier time with a reflector at the beach than with flashes. The reflector is WYSIWYG and I don't mind them being out in salt water.

 

[Toivo]

Great first attempt. I like 7 & 9. When using my SB600 off camera i always placd it so the sensor was facing the camera, but never thought about flipping it over for the few situations where I wanted it placed differently. Good idea.

 

[RickW]

I like 7 best also, although I don't think it is "overflashed" at all. In fact, I would actually brighten the subject a tad. What I like best about the shot is the pose and the water at her feet.

I would straighten the horizon though.

I had the same reaction to the early shots that some have mentioned. That is, I find the poses to be unflattering to a woman who is clearly beautiful and in terrific physical shape. While she undoubtedly has -0- body fat, the poses with her belly protruding and her shoulders hunched make her look almost chubby. She is a naturally small busted woman with obvious musculature and the first shots do not pick up on her feminity. Of course they were probably not intended to be "cheescake" shots, the fact is that she looks more attractive to me in #'s 7 and 8. While she may not have been looking for alluring photos, I have yet to meet a woman (or man for that matter) who would not prefer to look physically appealing in a photo - especially a swimsuit photo.

I'd be interested to hear others' reactions - especially from the ladies in our group, lest I be accused of being too "male" in my comments.

Additional thoughts: I would check the white balance and try to whiten up the foaming water at her feet. Appears too blue on the monitor I am using today ( which is NOT calibrated I should add). I also like the display of her well toned arms in #7.


And pic #8 is probably the poster child for my argument about unflattering pose. It accentuates her lack of curves on top and makes her look like she is pregnant. And in comparing #7 and #9 (probably taken moments apart) - in nine she looks thicker in the torso than she does in #7 which generally translates (at least to my eyes) as less flattering.

 

[wembley]

I like 7 best also, although I don't think it is "overflashed" at all. In fact, I would actually brighten the subject a tad. What I like best about the shot is the pose and the water at her feet.

I would straighten the horizon though.

I had the same reaction to the early shots that some have mentioned. That is, I find the poses to be unflattering to a woman who is clearly beautiful and in terrific physical shape. While she undoubtedly has -0- body fat, the poses with her belly protruding and her shoulders hunched make her look almost chubby. She is a naturally small busted woman with obvious musculature and the first shots do not pick up on her feminity. Of course they were probably not intended to be "cheescake" shots, the fact is that she looks more attractive to me in #'s 7 and 8. While she may not have been looking for alluring photos, I have yet to meet a woman (or man for that matter) who would not prefer to look physically appealing in a photo - especially a swimsuit photo.

I'd be interested to hear others' reactions - especially from the ladies in our group, lest I be accused of being too "male" in my comments.

Additional thoughts: I would check the white balance and try to whiten up the foaming water at her feet. Appears too blue on the monitor I am using today ( which is NOT calibrated I should add). I also like the display of her well toned arms in #7.


And pic #8 is probably the poster child for my argument about unflattering pose. It accentuates her lack of curves on top and makes her look like she is pregnant. And in comparing #7 and #9 (probably taken moments apart) - in nine she looks thicker in the torso than she does in #7 which generally translates (at least to my eyes) as less flattering.

rick:

thanks for the informative feedback. I agree 100%. I was trying to get an arched back and have her turn her furthest hip squarer to camera to have a flatter look in the stomach. It didn't really work. How would i pose here to eliminate the belly, by turning that furthest hip more square? I didn't think a full square on shot would work.

the difference in 7 and 9 is her hand placement. Her dress was a size too big and blowing in the wind. In 7 she was able to cinch it in with her hand, but in 9 it billowed out a bit.

cheers
wembley

 

[wembley]

Great first attempt. I like 7 & 9. When using my SB600 off camera i always placd it so the sensor was facing the camera, but never thought about flipping it over for the few situations where I wanted it placed differently. Good idea.

the lack of consistency in it flashing was irritating and I'd heard that the nikon cls system sometimes struggles in bright light so I was wishing for a set of pocket-wizards. it wasn't until towards the end that i realized the sensor was away from camera and a simple adjustment had them working.

cheers
wembley

 

[RickW]

"the difference in 7 and 9 is her hand placement."

For sure her hand placement (and the resultant hip thrust) had a lot to do with the success of #7. Hand on hip with hip out is a classic glamour pose. Just look at the female stars who stand on the red carpet for the paparrazi. First thing the stars learn is 3/4 view with hand on hip when getting photographed.

 

[Seneca]

Number 9 is your best one. The lighting looks good there. The expression is the same in all images. Change it up a bit.

 

[wembley]

So i made an adjustment on #7. I did a little wb adjust and a small amount of pp. Does the wb and the flash to background look better now?

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[jawarren]

I am getting the X on 1,2,3,5,8 & 9

 

[lovecolt]

I got a x for all pics.

 

[wembley]

i changed the status of the picasa album and i think that changed the links. I will try to correct them.

cheers
wembley

 

[wembley]

Ok i couldn't work out exactly which were posted originally, so here are a couple of re-processed ones and and some new ones including ones the model liked.

A

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B

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C

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D

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E

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F

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Cheers
Wembley

 

[jonh68]

Overall they look pretty good. My suggestion would be to use an orange gel to match the sunset light. It looks odd to have warm light in the background, but then the equivalent of noon day light as your main source.