Portrait help!

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bex bowman

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I am a headshot photographer but I want to improve my photos. A lot of shots I've seen from photographer's I like, I cannot replicate!

Any advice on how to achieve creamy, light skintones like the below...(This is not my shot!)

mod edit: broken to a link - don't post pictures that aren't yours...

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DgZ9RbYWAAEyuN4.jpg

MOD EDIT 2 - AND DON'T DISRUPTIVELY EDIT YOUR POSTS BECAUSE YOU DON'T LIKE THE ANSWERS YOU WERE GIVEN...
 
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Hi Bex & welcome to TP

Just something for you to be aware of, when you signed up I believe there was in the terms......that you should not embed any pictures that are not your own. However, you can link to them as in this case asking how you might achieve similar look.

Can I suggest you edit your post to make it a link :)
 
Box Brownie said:
Hi Bex & welcome to TP

Just something for you to be aware of, when you signed up I believe there was in the terms......that you should not embed any pictures that are not your own. However, you can link to them as in this case asking how you might achieve similar look.

Can I suggest you edit your post to make it a link :)
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I think it is a link from Tw@tter ;)

Bex, have a look on youtube for phlearn and piximperfect, they do a lot of good videos on re-touching. The look in the image is a fairly common one (and not one I'd normally go for tbh, but I still like it). It looks to have been de-saturated and possibly had the black and white points compressed a little (the above youtube channels show how to do this).
 
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Your fundamental problem is outlined on a statement on your website:

"I work mainly outdoors, utilising natural light and settings, which helps to capture the very best out of each client "

Your shots appear to be taken either with flat (therefore boring) natural light or direct on camera flash.

You are never going to be able to achieve the look you want until; you learn how to use light properly.
 
What he said^ Though some of the natural light on your headshots is really good, at other times it’ll be a bit ‘meh’. If you can’t find/spot good light, you need to know how to create it. The best money I ever spent was on a lighting course, learning how to create it helps us to find it too.

And welcome to TP.

And I’d personally prefer a longer FL lens for headshots, though your framing and engagement is really well done (and they’re the difficult skills to learn)

As for the shot you linked, a light and airy feel that’s often no more than very slight overexposure, but as above, the Internet is awash with PP tutorials,
 
DemiLion said:
Your fundamental problem is outlined on a statement on your website:

"I work mainly outdoors, utilising natural light and settings, which helps to capture the very best out of each client "

Your shots appear to be taken either with flat (therefore boring) natural light or direct on camera flash.

You are never going to be able to achieve the look you want until; you learn how to use light properly.
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Have to agree and TBH statements about preferring natural light are often just an excuse for simply not knowing how to use flash properly. Or laziness. Sorry to be blunt ;)

There is nothing inherently special about natural light, other than convenience. Sometimes it's good, just as often it's crap or inappropriate, and forces you to use the same locations with a limited number of looks. With modern battery-powered flash, you can create any lighting effect, anywhere, anytime.

Flash can also be used to enhance or modify daylight in natural locations. Skillful use of lighting is what separates the men from the boys IMHO, and is also a key marketing differentiator for professionals.

On the OP's question, it looks like simple post-processing to me - just a bit of skin smoothing, tone compression and brightening.
 
A question because I wonder?

Bex mentions doing actor headshots on her website but does the processing she wants to emulate actually help when it comes to Actor Headshots (where the character, energy, facial expression etc count.................not how nice a portrait they have had done?)

She has not separated it out in her OP from portraiture?
 
Oh dear :(

It looks she does not wish to stay at TP

Now which one of you miserable beggars scared her off ;)
 
HoppyUK said:
TBH statements about preferring natural light are often just an excuse for simply not knowing how to use flash properly. Or laziness. Sorry to be blunt ;)
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:p - I managed not to go there.


...and is also a key marketing differentiator for professionals.
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I was wondering how far we could get in this thread without mentioning Mr Hurley! :D
 
@bex bowman - PLEASE DON'T disruptively edit your posts.

You asked a question, it was answered, and some people went into perhaps a little more detail than you were expecting.

don't throw your toys out of the pram, instead, stick around, ask some more questions, open your mind and maybe learn something.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKS6xy87ewk
 
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Basically what Biggus Diccus wrote above. The advice isn't criticism just a practical answer to your question.

Apologies if it wasn't sugar coated, but I don't do that.
 
Woa I’m not throwing my toys out of the pram. I just got what I wanted and wanted to leave it there. I’m fine with criticism to my work, it helps me learn. I just didn’t know how to delete my post because I didn’t need it anymore. Thanks all for your help
 
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bex bowman said:
Wow I’m not throwing my toys out of the pram. I just got what I wanted and wanted to leave it there. I’m fine with criticism to my work, it helps me learn. I just didn’t know how to delete my post because I didn’t need it anymore. Thanks all for your help
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Posts don't get deleted on here. They remain so that others can learn from them.
 
bex bowman said:
Woa I’m not throwing my toys out of the pram. I just got what I wanted and wanted to leave it there. I’m fine with criticism to my work, it helps me learn. I just didn’t know how to delete my post because I didn’t need it anymore. Thanks all for your help
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Hi Bex,

FWIW portraiture (though I have done the odd family thing) is not my bag but TP is a great resource as you may have spotted for all/many photographic genre.

There are a significant number of skilled amateurs / semi-pro / full professional social photographers here at TP so I hope you find it worth your while to keep visiting to ask & share as you see fit.

All the best with growing your venture and developing your skills :)
 
bex bowman said:
Woa I’m not throwing my toys out of the pram. I just got what I wanted and wanted to leave it there. I’m fine with criticism to my work, it helps me learn. I just didn’t know how to delete my post because I didn’t need it anymore. Thanks all for your help
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Good (y) I didn't read any criticism of your work, only comments intended to be helpful - and FWIW I rather liked what I saw on a brief visit to your website :) But i have to say that any serious portrait shooter is surely going to face severely limited options without flash.

If you're tempted, one thing to add on that - I dislike the big black pupils in the eyes of portraits shot in darkened studios with flash, but a bright modelling light fixes that and some battery flash units are bright enough, eg Godox AD600-Pro and AD400-Pro, also Elinchrom and Profoto.
 
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