Advice on taking some portraits of the kids

[jonrayner]

My kid's had a photographer at their nursery take some shots of the kids. They sent home a A4 piece of paper with the shots on, of which we could order.

Technically, the photos were spot on, the lighting was good as I assume the photographer had the right kit. However we did not order any as the kids were not smiling, and the youngest was chewing something so you could not see her full face.

Now I can get the kids to sit/ pose correctly and be smiling/ laughing to get a pleasing shot, but I do not have the kit to get the correct lighting, OR.........

Is there a way to get a decent portrait without having all the fancy kit. I have a white/ cream blanket I can use as a back drop, but after that I start to get lost. I only have the built flash on the camera. Does anyone have any suggestions or advice on how to go about this task, e.g. where to place the kids in relation to the natural light from the window. Where would I stand in relation to the window as if I have my back to the window, I would be casting shadows. Do I need to use the natural light from the window and reflect it. If so how? Do I need to diffuse the on camera flash?

Or is it simply a case of MUST get a external flash?

Any advice would be most appreciated.

Thanks

Jon

[coffee]

You know Jon, Kids portraits are tough. That's why people spend good money to have someone else do it. But one problem is the kids might not feel comfortable around someone they don't know taking their picture. AND...they only have one shot at a good picture, but when YOU take their picture, you may have hundreds/thousands of opportunities. So learning to do this yourself and correctly will pay off big time for you. I am a fanatic about shooting my little girl. For proof, go here and see: http://public.fotki.com/scotsue/samantha-jean/
I have taken about 100,000 of her in her first 2.5 years.

Your equipment is more than enough to get very nice, or even professional quality shots. It's all about the photographer behind the camera. shots, and you never know. That photographer could have easily used the very same equipment you have. This is the best way to start out as I see it with Children's photography.

First of all forget about setting up a background, and flash to start with. Take your shots outside in a playground setting where your child will be comfortable and inhibited. This gives you the best possible preparation cause your child will be happy, and you have ready made background ready to go. Don't try to pose them. You as the photography must move around to get the best compositions and background. Take lots and lots of shots. You never know what is going to turn out and what expressions you will get. Take a veriity of crops, meaning take some full length shots, some 3/4 shots, and some head shots.

I would use a few different lenses. Use a longer lens at first as the kids are running around and checking things out. Then go to a wide angle when they setting in and play longer on a piece of equipment.

For the longer lens use a larger AP. For wide angle I would start out at f/8 or so to make sure the subjects fact is in focus, then adjust as needed.

Once you get some good shots and you are comfortable that the shoot was a success, this is the time to be creative and try something different and artistic like a back lighting situation, maybe you laying on the ground shooting straight up at the kids, maybe a slow shutter to show motion of a fast moving child zooming down a slide . Take some shots of just their shoes in motion, maybe the back of one child looking at the other, take some shots of just the playground equipment, Just something different after you know you got the shots you came for.

When you move inside or start posed shots, things get different, but if you want the best possible setup to start taking child photo's, this I feel is the very best way to start and get results. For inside posed shots chances are you will need a lighting setup or a good external flash or two. You can use natual light, opps more later my child just got up :)

[coffee]

And one last important item; try setting this kind of shoot up in the morning or evening sun, or cloudy conditions. If you take these in full sunlight when the sun is high in the sky, you will have huge contrast swings and blown-out highlights.

[jonrayner]

Sound advice, thank you. I think I am ok with the candid/ outdoor shots. I, like you have quite a few hundred shots of the kids now, and although I am sure that I could get better with practice. I am however after a shot of the kids with a completely plain background, as if it was done in a studio. I am fairly confident that I can get the kids to feel completely confident and relax (failing that there is always the Jaffa Cake bribe!), it is just the lighting side of it that scares me some what. I'll give it a go any way and see how it goes.

Thanks for the time in replying.
Jon

[coffee]

Your Welcome. I'm sure Jerry will be along to help out with your questions about studio lighting. Larry would also be a good one to ask. I have a very cheap set of hot lights that I have used in the past with good results. I think the basic studio lighting would consist of 3 lights. A main, left and a right. You want to set then just so so that you don't get harsh shadows behind the subjects and on to your background, but not so light on the faces that they look 2 dimensional. Setting the background farther behind the subjects will help with any shadows and blur it more too. I'm sure this isn't much help. I don't studio much and it's a whole different animal. Make sure you post something for us to see when you are done.

[jerryph]

34 hints on portraiture on my blog (http://jerryphpics.blogspot.com/2008/07/portraiture-guidelines.html). :)

You don't need fancy lighting to get good portraits, it takes knowledge and understanding and lots of practice.

Sometimes, the simplest light gives the best result.

Stand the subject next to a window and get this:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2227/1592734652_f1152880ce.jpg

I just desaturated the colour and added a little grain for that old fashioned look.

For tons of info on lighting, I always suggest the www.strobist.com site... look for, read and practice everything you can find in the lighting 101 and 102 sections. Those 2 areas kept me busy and filled with things to learn for MONTHS!

BTW, I rarely use backdrops. I prefer seeing the natural surroundings and if they are distracting... blur them out!
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2592/3714469855_ee8c5da6f5.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2421/3714470307_fe525be328.jpg

You also do not need tons of equipment. This shot was taken with ONE speedlight on a lightstand and gelled orange. Then colour shifted in camera so that the skin tones were right and the background made bluer:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3372/3669219491_676eef1fd3.jpg

More brains and less money is what the "strobist way" is all about. :D

[treetop]

Jerry, this is fantastic.