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I have been playing with my Speedlights recently (I am reading the Hot Shoe Diaries) and have come up with some interesting results. All three were shot with a single flash and auto white balance, lens Nikkor 50mm 1.4.


My wife.
This shot is oof and not a keeper but I would like c+c on the pose as I want to redo the shot with better lighting. What do people think she should do with her eyes, should they be looking up at the camera?

AP mode 8000s @ f1.4 -3.7ev. Flash on camera direct at subject +3.0ev TTL


M mode 2000s @ 5.6 ev-3 on the camera and +3 on the flash with a Lightspehere and cap. Flash pointed direct to subject.


This is my second daughter who turns 21 today.

S Mode 125 @1.4 No EV. Off Camera Flash below and between the subject and camera no EV TTL. I have toned down some hotspots in CNX2. There was also a tungsten overhead light.

I quite like the last one despite it being a bit unconventional in terms of light quality and placement. Maybe it conveys a little bit of mystery about the subject.

If you wanted a romantic look for a female I would use softer light. Although there was a nice photo of a woman in strobist recently done with hardlight as a key.

who says #1 is not a keeper ? i think it looks fantastic. strongest image of the 3 imo.

Rooz wrote:who says #1 is not a keeper ? i think it looks fantastic. strongest image of the 3 imo.

I agree

I thought number 1 was really striking from the first time I saw it - great shot I reckon.

Thanks for the comments guys.

I will go back and reshoot #1 with a less distracting background, if I can get the missus to sit for me.

I agree about reshooting and changing the background - the top is lost in the dark background.

The wave of hair seems to draw my eyes up toward the paler skin within the part of the her hair.
Did you specifically want the hair in focus? I wonder if it might work better by keeping the narrow DOF but changing the focus to the glasses instead.

Cheers

edit - sorry, just read you wanted lighting and pose critiques. I think the diffused light looks far better. In the first it appears very harsh. Bringing the light from the right of frame may remove the strong shadow on her cheek.