Portrait advice please

Snapdragon

Snapdragon

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Name
Tracey
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Hi All
I've been asked to shoot some portraits this weekend and am just after a bit of advice. I'll be taking photos of fans with a very special trophy - the rugby league challenge cup. The photos will be used for fundraising, so while it's not a paid job I want to do a good job so that people will want to buy them and this in turn will raise more money.
I've recently bought a f/1.8 50mm fixed lens which I thought I might use instead of my kit lens and just wondering what people would suggest to be the best settings. There will be some kind of backdrop but it will be basic shop lighting.
I have an external flash, would this be a good idea?
Thanks for any advice.
 
I'd go with the prime lens for sure. Try using it at about f2.8 where the sweet spot is. Are you using a tripod? If not keep the shutter speed above 1/90 assuming crop sensor. If using a flash bounce it using a deflector or off wall if you have to. Use burst shutter and take 2-3 shots at a time to counter people blinking.

Good luck!
 
OrangeCanon said:
I'd go with the prime lens for sure. Try using it at about f2.8 where the sweet spot is. Are you using a tripod? If not keep the shutter speed above 1/90 assuming crop sensor. If using a flash bounce it using a deflector or off wall if you have to. Use burst shutter and take 2-3 shots at a time to counter people blinking.

Good luck!
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Thanks Adam, sorry excuse my ignorance just don't understand 'sweet spot' ?? Not decided whether or not to use the tripod yet, I've got one shoot in the afternoon in a shop and then a further one in the evening at a dinner, two different locations so will have to see how it goes I think.
 
The 50mm 1.8's are generally at their sharpest at around f2.8 - hence the term "sweet spot" :)

Good luck!
 
OrangeCanon said:
The 50mm 1.8's are generally at their sharpest at around f2.8 - hence the term "sweet spot" :)
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Oh my I never knew this! Pleased I read thru this thread hahaha.
 
IamAshlyRose said:
Oh my I never knew this! Pleased I read through this thread hahaha.
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Most lenses tend to be sharper when stopped down a little, maybe by one or two stops
 
No ones ever told me this before!

I wish I'd known 'cause I can't afford to purchase sharper glass atm but my current lens {the 50mm f/1.8 MKII} can be a tad soft at the best of occasions, which is always handy O.o! Looks I'll be testing lenses at different apertures from this point onwards. Cheers guys.
 
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IamAshlyRose said:
No ones ever told me this before!

I wish I'd known 'cause I can't afford to purchase sharper glass atm but my current lens {the 50mm f/1.8 MKII} can be a tad soft at the best of occasions, which is always handy O.o! Looks I'll be testing lenses at different apertures from this point onwards. Cheers guys.
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Always best to test a lens all the way through ;-)
 
For portraits you shouldn't really be going below 1/160th...which will pick up miniscule movements by you or your subject.

Personally I'd be working at f4 which is the 50mm's sharpest aperture and 1/250th adjusting flash and iso to meet my requirements.
 
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Used the 'nifty fifty' to start off with, but the problem I encountered was that I was working in a very small area and I couldn't get far enough back to get all the subjects, challenge cup trophy and sometimes a person either side, in the shot. Ended up having to change back to my 18-55mm for the evening shoot as I was shooting more and more larger groups.
 
don't just use f2.8 or f4 - you need to use the aperture that gets everything you need in focus.
 
POAH said:
don't just use f2.8 or f4 - you need to use the aperture that gets everything you need in focus.
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Exactly.

To the OP (and AshleyRose) depth of field if governed by several factors, such as:

Focal length
Camera to subject distance
Aperture
Sensor format

A wide aperture will of course give less DOF than a smaller one - but it's up to you to make a creative decision depending on what you're shooting, such as one individual person. Introduce more than one subject, and if they're not on the exact same plane of focus then one will likely be out of focus, since your depth of field will be narrow at f1.8 (and for headshots you'll be pretty close to your subject if you're using a 50mm lens). So to get more than one subject in focus you'll need to stop down - if the available light allows you to, that is. If not, either add light or make sure your subjects are side by side. So for group shots where you have people two or three deep, a very wide aperture would not be workable.
 
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