Need to learn portraiture... Where to begin?

68lbs

68lbs

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April 2008
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Ok, it's not something I've ever really looked at so far, but I need to look into and start learning how to take shots of people. Human ones, with two legs n stuff!

But where do I start?

I'm not talking studio stuff here, so don't want to be doing these studio sessions where you get some training, and get to have a play with a model. I need to learn portable portraiture... the skills and setup needed to go into people's homes/offices and get great shots.

Here's a few of my questions buzzing around... :lol:

I am guessing this is something best achieved with speedlites (rather than studio flashes which would be too bulky), but how many? And what sort? And how do they fire like studio heads on slave? Do you need stands and brollies? Speedlite softbox? And what sort of focal length is best? I seem to remember reading 85mm on full frame? And then background? I guess the option to blow the background is going to be fairly limited because of space and distance from background to model? So what are the options?

There are loads more questions, but lets start with these for now. :D
 
I'd recommend a day trawling around on strobist.
http://www.strobist.blogspot.com/

That will answer all of those questions and give you a good grounding in portable lighting.

Joe McNally's blog is also a worthwhile read.

Have fun. :)
 
68lbs said:
I always get a little lost on this site. As interesting as it is (and it's very interesting, with some great shots), I'm not sure where the beginning is. Does that make sense?
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You start at 'Lighting 101,' then 'On Assignment,' then 'Boot Camp.'

Just follow the list of links at the bottom of each article until you are finished them, then move on to the next section and do the same again...
 
Zack Arias' Onelight DVD taught me more about lighting with a hotshoe flash in a couple hours than i learnt in several months from other sources. It's not cheap but worth the money.
 
68lbs said:
So what are the options?

There are loads more questions, but lets start with these for now. :D
Click to expand...

Hi Lee! Sorry about being so late! It's been one of those days :nuts:

IMO, a single or maybe a twin speedlight set up could be the most cost effective and wallet friendly option. Especially if you want to light a portrait on location as opposed to a studio environment.

First mate, this video explains the basics, how to put it all together and a little extra. :D

[YOUTUBE]<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/lKAD7leNOVY&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/lKAD7leNOVY&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]

As far as the gear goes, and the following are examples only, shop around, it's been so long since I bought any items like this from the UK as I have found a few suppliers over here that have the same prices:

Light stands

Umbrella Swivel

Shoot through umbrella

Triggers

When it comes to flashes, Canon or Nikon or any third party unit that has full manual control is suitable, if they have the optical slaves built in then all the better.

As far as technique and camera settings, it really depends on the circumstance, whether you wish to balance with ambient, accent ambient or wrestle the ambient to the floor and enforce your own, situations and settings change, Dave Hobby refers to the controls on your camera as valves, I really like this analogy.

You'll most likely see varying versions of this formula though:
Shutter speed controls the amount of ambient you allow into the frame and aperture controls the exposure globally.
Best thing to do is have a good old experiment when you have your set up and familiarize yourself.

Dave Hobby's www.strobist.com is the single source that got me started, I spent alot of time experimenting, failing and fiddling but visited and absorbed the info Dave has devoted so much time to.

Zack Arias and Joe McNally are great teachers too, any books and DVD's by these fella's are gold.
There are both very proficient teachers with consistent and clear methods of explanation. Funny chaps too ;)

I'm so tired I can't really think straight but if you have anything you'd like to ask mate, don't hesitate, I'll be happy to help in any way I can :thumbs:
 
Anybody who gets bored before the end of that video has to listen to the last 10 seconds, hilarious.
 
Cheers for all the info guys n gals... and Tomas for his input at my request :)

I'm sure there will be more questions in the coming weeks :D
 
Don't do a lot of portraiture, but the flash set up I use is two canon speedlights (580+430) with ST-E2, and stofen omni's

Tend to use 85mm for head/shoulders, occasionally 50mm and 24mm for groups.
 
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