The Nature, Wildlife and Pet Photography Forum - Fine Art Landscape Photography

Reference "Schnauzer" and "Maxx"

Posted By: PossumCorner

Reference "Schnauzer" and "Maxx" - 01/31/06 01:48 PM

Chris A and James
I have showed your amazing photographs to Frodo and explained to him that leaping flyball jumps with a stupid expression and a mouthful of tennis ball is no longer enough; he is now expected to cultivate "The Look". He kind of said "Yeah, whatever" and trotted off.

Your photographs are beautiful portraits, it really does raise the bar to look at them.



Posted By: Chris_A

Re: Reference "Schnauzer" and "Maxx" - 01/31/06 06:08 PM

If the two above, especially the top one, don't display "the look," then I don't know what does!

If I tried to shoot a running dog, I'd get a blurred patch of grass as a result.
Posted By: James Morrissey

Re: Reference "Schnauzer" and "Maxx" - 02/01/06 05:49 AM

LOL. Thanks for the compliments on Maxx. I think that top shot definitely shows 'the look.' I think what we are doing is entirely different, and what you are doing is much harder. Give me a studio set-up any day of the week as I can completely control my lighting.

Are you using any additional flash on these shots? The light looks strong, but you cannot always bargain with Mother Nature. Very well done.

James
Posted By: PossumCorner

Re: Reference "Schnauzer" and "Maxx" - 02/01/06 12:22 PM

Quote:

... Give me a studio set-up any day of the week ... Are you using any additional flash on these shots? The light looks strong, but ....




Chris-A and James, thanks for your comments on little Frodo. And yes James that was the point I had intended to clarify: these are fine portraits for me because they are my dog - but I couldn't offer them as "portraits" if it were a client. Without flash or a studio set-up and with our harsh light, it is a mixture of blown highlights and deep shadows with no detail, not good enough, even with much retrieval photoshopping. Maybe trying for more correct portrait results should wait until I have a lighting system and can use it well.

Some people do not seem to mind and are quite happy to have just a reasonable head-study of their dog, but that's not the result I would like to be achieving.
Posted By: James Morrissey

Re: Reference "Schnauzer" and "Maxx" - 02/02/06 05:44 AM

"Some people do not seem to mind and are quite happy to have just a reasonable head-study of their dog, but that's not the result I would like to be achieving. "

Hey PC,

I hear your frustration. Having never been to your part of the world, is the outdoor light always so strong? i.e. what if you did shoots in the morning or later in the evening when the sun is at a stronger angle and not quite so powerful? Or, is that unreasonable?

The reason why I ask this is because I find 75% of the day unphotographable...even here where the light does not seem so intense as what you are dealing with.

On another note, a studio set-up is not that expensive. I believe that you can get a set of Alien Bees for about 500 dollars, and I have seen two light studio sets for less than that. The wireless proprietary system by Nikon and Canon is much more expensive (i.e. my ST-E2 wireless transmitter is a couple of hundred dollars...two 420 EX flashes are about 200 each...the 550 and 580 EX flashes are about double).

James
Posted By: Dee Dee

Re: Reference "Schnauzer" and "Maxx" - 02/02/06 07:11 AM

Frodo is ADORABLE!!! What a cutie! Nice pics too!

Jim, what hours of the day would you suggest to be the best on sunny days to shoot in? I will be doing a shoot at a farm with an Andalusian Stallion in May, as well as some other farms, and I would like to know what time of day I will get the best results.
Posted By: Chris_A

Re: Reference "Schnauzer" and "Maxx" - 02/02/06 02:15 PM

I find the best times for daylight shoots are the first and last three hours of sunlight, optimizing during the second and third of each. The warm glow can be used as front light (just make sure no one is squinting) or even a backlight if you have flashes. Otherwise, I find some nice shade to put them in, so that the light is coming in evenly from the sides of the shade source.
Posted By: Jim Garvie

Re: Reference "Schnauzer" and "Maxx" - 02/02/06 03:41 PM

DeeDee,
I agree with Chris that early light and late afternoon light are lovely to shoot in. Of course, it all depends on your objective: if you're trying to get real moody lighting, then early dawn can provide some gorgeous colors and mist which diffuses the light and produces some really nice effects.

I like to shoot at sunset and put that behind the subject and use my 580 flash for primary illumination being careful to expose so that the sunset colors are properly exposed.

On the other hand, if you're going to shoot to create a painting or where detail is very important, any time of day is great as long as you and the subject are in open shade to reduce the shadows.

Sounds like a lovely shoot. I'm jealous

Jim
Posted By: Julie

Re: Reference "Schnauzer" and "Maxx" - 02/02/06 06:48 PM

If you are going to shoot horses, you really need to be there at dawn, and get the shoot done by 9-10am. Light will be too harsh after that. I have even found by 10am in the summer it is too late. Late afternoon isn't bad as long as you can find a shady area.

What kind of shoot are you doing? A conformation shoot? At liberty? You need to pay alot of attention to what is in your background as fences can be distracting(or plain ugly depending on what their fence is)

If you are doing a conformation shoot, you need to have someone who can stand the horse up properly.
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